You will be remembered for who you are

Good morning, everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even when others aren’t”

Our Bible verse for today: “For he (Barnabas) was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.” Acts 11:24 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “You will be remembered for who you are”

Today I will perform two funerals, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Both will be for older women who lived lives of great faith and who consequently were a blessing to many. We will celebrate their lives and talk about many of the things they did in life. But more than remembering the things they did, we will remember them for who they were.

I’ve mentioned before that Barnabas is one of my favorite people in the New Testament. Acts 4:36 identifies him as “The Son of Encouragement”. Acts 11:24 says he was “a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith”. He was known for his generosity, for his encouraging ways, for being good and kind, and for being gracious. He was a man of strong faith, and the fruit of the Spirit was evident in his life. He was always lifting people up and blessing them.

The New Testament does give us some specific examples of ways in which he blessed people, and many of us remember those specific examples, but more than being remembered for what he did, Barnabas is remembered for who he was. He was the “Son of Encouragement”.

The same was true of my mother. When she passed away in April 2012 we were inundated with emails, cards, letters, and phone calls from people who just wanted to say how much they loved her and how highly they thought of her. People from across the country and from across the decades suddenly surfaced to share glowing memories about her. One old family friend from our childhood actually got on a plane in Dallas early in the morning, flew to Nashville, rented a car, drove to Crossville for the funeral, drove back to Nashville, and flew home to Dallas, all in one day and all just to be at my mother’s funeral.

The phrase people used over-and-over again to describe her was “she was such a beautiful person”. By “beautiful” they were referring to her character. She was a beautiful person in her heart, and it showed in the way she treated other people. My mom was kind, friendly, generous, and gracious. And although people cited many specific examples of ways in which she had blessed them, more than anything else they remembered the kind of person she was more than just the specific things she did.

The same will be true of you and me. People will remember us more for the kind of person we were rather than for what we did. It’s true that what you do will be a product of who you are, but in the end, people will remember your character more than they will remember your deeds.

Ask the Holy Spirit to help you be the person you want to be remembered as once you are gone.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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