Fond memories

Tonight I am doing something that I have never done before. I have the privilege of preaching to a group of senior adults at a nursing facility in Clemmons, NC, as a part of their week of revival. As someone who is used to speaking to students and a younger crowd, this is a cool and challenging opportunity for me.

What do you share with a group of elderly men and women who probably rarely have the chance to leave the facility that they now call home? Surely God wants to use all of us until our final breath, but what if your breath will never leave the grounds of where you now live? How do encourage them to keep reaching out in the name of Jesus when they are so dependent on others to reach in to them?

I've drawn inspiration for my message from the memory of my grandmother, Dossie Scott Dagengardt. I didn't realize this until my mom informed me but today (August 13) marks the day three years ago that she went home to be with Jesus. Later in her life my grandmother was afflicted with Alzheimer's disease and, while it was not advanced enough to totally incapacitate her, it made it so difficult for her (and for us) to maintain a normal lifestyle. The last couple of years of her life were spent in a skilled nursing facility much like the one I will be preaching in tonight, and while there she gradually slipped away from us. But in spite of her deteriorating condition the legacy of her wisdom and strength is what I still draw upon today when I think of her.

My grandmother read her Bible daily, three chapters in the Old Testament and two in the New. She was feisty and had tons of energy, which she needed to keep up with not only her own three children but then her seven grand kids and six great grand kids that she was able to meet (she was able to meet my son Deacon not long before she died). She could be tough as nails and stern yet she was one of the most giving of people that I have ever met. And she was a tremendous woman of prayer. In fact, I believe that one thing that Alzheimer's could not rob her of was her prayer relationship with the Lord, for I know that she prayed for her family continually even though she couldn't always remember who we were.

The example of my grandmother spurs me on as I prepare to preach to a precious group of seniors tonight who have so much life left in them. Whether or not they can jump up and serve as actively as they once could, they still have so much to offer in that they are continuing to live a legacy that so many have benefited from throughout their lives.