In April of 2024, I started seeing my care receiver. Diagnosed with multiple earthly maladies, this gentleman had every reason to be hurting. In fact, he had four very good reasons. This was a person that very late in life was still incredibly active. He enjoyed both physical and social activities of many kinds.

So when these diseases started to grapple him, he could not have felt more out of control. This is when he reached out to talk to a Stephen Minister here at Anderson Hills. He had no qualms about doing so, and that’s probably due to the fact that at one time, he too was a Stephen Minister. He knew what it meant to be side by side with someone whose only desire was to walk with him.

So nearly two years ago, we began talking. Sometimes our chats would be mostly about the week’s challenges, or even successes. Sometimes the discussions were deep, and sometimes we literally chatted about the perils of laundry room design. Each week we would make at least a little time to focus on a daily devotional or some message that one of us wanted to share. Most times I brought something, but was occasionally, and very pleasantly, surprised that he had something at the ready. We’d always close in prayer about what we had discussed, and what was at the forefront of his mind at that time.

What I didn’t count on, quite honestly, is how blessed I would be by him. Oh we say it in class to our Stephen Ministry students, or to one another in Supervision Group, but the impact on me will be life-long. My care receiver positively affected my life.

We went forward together as changed people of God.

Last summer I made the commitment to him to stay with him until the time of his passing. This past month, he did in fact join Jesus in life eternal. I had the privilege of sitting at his bedside, holding his hand, and hoping maybe he knew I was present while Jesus was walking him home. My care receiver was a prolific worrier, much like myself, but never worried once about where he was going after his brief stay here on Earth. Most of his worries were about how changes in his life would affect those around him. Truly the man loved others as Christ would have wanted.

I was always awe-struck by not only his faith in Christ’s assuring Word, but also his bravery in the face of so many physical challenges that would send most people reeling. It was an honor to know him. I didn’t just know him as a fellow parishioner. I knew him as a friend. I miss my Wednesday chats.

May God bless all of you with the gift of another’s time, thoughts, and inspiration like I had for the last two years.