Remembering My Dad
Thursday/Jun/2008 11:52 AM- Filed in: Bulletin
Articles
This I Remember About My Dad
On Friday morning, May 3, 1985, I received a call at 12:30 a.m. that my dad had been taken to the hospital with heart problems. I left at 1:20 a.m. to go to see him but by the time I arrived in Baldwyn, Mississippi he was already dead. He died on my sister's birthday and was buried on mine.
My dad was not a Christian for the first 12 years of my life. He was a good man but he had no interest in going to church. He was not wicked but like a lot of people he saw no need in going to church. For several years he would carry mother and the four children to church and wait outside in the parking lot. But he changed and thank God for the change. I still remember as if it were yesterday his obeying the gospel. There is no question about it, if it had not been for my mother's faithfulness and dedication, my dad would not have been a Christian. There were times that daddy would not want to take us to church and my mother, who could not drive a car would say, "If you do not want to take us, I will find someone who will." And my dad would always end up taking us. My dad's life is a great testimony of I Peter 3:1. With all my heart I believe my dad became a Christian 30 years ago because he had a Christian wife who was determined to remain faithful to the Lord regardless of the cost.
I remember his growth in the Lord. I remember shortly after he became a Christian that he was asked to wait on the Lord's Table. He was so nervous he would shake all over. Years later, it would fill my heart with gladness to hear him lead a sincere public prayer or give thanks for our food without any hesitation. My dad did not stand still in the church, but he grew in the Lord.
I remember his good works. My dad did not have much because he was good hearted. He would give you "the shirt off his back." After he became disabled and could not hold down a regular job, he still stayed busy. He visited the sick in the real sense of the word. He would spend many hours at the nursing home feeding the helpless. My dad had that sterling character that caused people to like him because he was good to them. Before my mother died in 1970, my dad was by her side night and day taking care of her during the months she was confined to bed. When my step-mother was seriously ill, he stayed with around the clock just like he did with mother. Daddy loved people. He would stand by them. He gave of himself.
I remember our last visit on April 15. It was just for a couple of hours. I gave him his shirt that we had given him for Christmas that he had to return for a larger size. I installed his bug zapper my sister gave him for Christmas. He showed me his garden and his "new" tiller. In my sorrow my heart tells me I should have visited longer and more often. But I will not dwell upon that which cannot be undone. I shall always remember that good visit and the strong, warm and loving handshake as I said goodbye for the last time on this side of eternity to the man who gave me my life.
Though my dad has been gone for twenty-three years, I still love him and miss him very much.
Tom L. Childers
Revised from an article written on May 9, 1985
On Friday morning, May 3, 1985, I received a call at 12:30 a.m. that my dad had been taken to the hospital with heart problems. I left at 1:20 a.m. to go to see him but by the time I arrived in Baldwyn, Mississippi he was already dead. He died on my sister's birthday and was buried on mine.
My dad was not a Christian for the first 12 years of my life. He was a good man but he had no interest in going to church. He was not wicked but like a lot of people he saw no need in going to church. For several years he would carry mother and the four children to church and wait outside in the parking lot. But he changed and thank God for the change. I still remember as if it were yesterday his obeying the gospel. There is no question about it, if it had not been for my mother's faithfulness and dedication, my dad would not have been a Christian. There were times that daddy would not want to take us to church and my mother, who could not drive a car would say, "If you do not want to take us, I will find someone who will." And my dad would always end up taking us. My dad's life is a great testimony of I Peter 3:1. With all my heart I believe my dad became a Christian 30 years ago because he had a Christian wife who was determined to remain faithful to the Lord regardless of the cost.
I remember his growth in the Lord. I remember shortly after he became a Christian that he was asked to wait on the Lord's Table. He was so nervous he would shake all over. Years later, it would fill my heart with gladness to hear him lead a sincere public prayer or give thanks for our food without any hesitation. My dad did not stand still in the church, but he grew in the Lord.
I remember his good works. My dad did not have much because he was good hearted. He would give you "the shirt off his back." After he became disabled and could not hold down a regular job, he still stayed busy. He visited the sick in the real sense of the word. He would spend many hours at the nursing home feeding the helpless. My dad had that sterling character that caused people to like him because he was good to them. Before my mother died in 1970, my dad was by her side night and day taking care of her during the months she was confined to bed. When my step-mother was seriously ill, he stayed with around the clock just like he did with mother. Daddy loved people. He would stand by them. He gave of himself.
I remember our last visit on April 15. It was just for a couple of hours. I gave him his shirt that we had given him for Christmas that he had to return for a larger size. I installed his bug zapper my sister gave him for Christmas. He showed me his garden and his "new" tiller. In my sorrow my heart tells me I should have visited longer and more often. But I will not dwell upon that which cannot be undone. I shall always remember that good visit and the strong, warm and loving handshake as I said goodbye for the last time on this side of eternity to the man who gave me my life.
Though my dad has been gone for twenty-three years, I still love him and miss him very much.
Tom L. Childers
Revised from an article written on May 9, 1985