My Papa taught me many things over the course of his lifetime. I was barely writing numbers and he was explaining algebra and geometry, not by name but by practical application. He took me to work with him at Cone Mills more than once and proudly showed me how every piece of equipment worked and why it was important. I know I was younger than ten because that’s when we moved away with my dad’s job, but he talked to me as if I understood everything he was saying and I knew he was proud of me by the way he introduced me to his coworkers.
Papa’s work ethic was without equal. He started in the cotton mill sweeping floors. He worked shifts opposite his mother as they shared one pair of shoes. He worked in every department, attending night classes to learn to make the mill run at maximum capacity and was named Master Mechanic. By the time he took early retirement at fifty-five, he was superintendent of the mill. He was always giving, serving, and investing in people- his family, his neighbors, coworkers, fellow church members and leaders, and complete strangers. He was the epitome of resourcefulness. If you needed something, he probably had it or could find it or rig it up.
After his retirement, Papa employed our family to built a home with a separate carport and a barn on acreage that now belongs to my youngest cousin who inherited my grandfather’s talent, work ethic, and frugality. When my parents moved next door as empty nesters, Papa was there, working alongside my dad during much of the construction process to save money. My mom recalls him instructing her on how to get up from kneeling when aging knees gave way. First, he’d give his right leg a good whack and say, “move leg!” Then he’d repeat on the left, followed by, “get up, old man! You’ve got work to do.”
Maybe this was a result of his Merchant Marine and Naval service, but his Commander in Chief was Jesus and that decision impacted every aspect of his life. His employees always bragged that he came to the mill before everyone else on Sunday but he never missed church. He would return after service and before his own lunch to be sure everything was running smoothly.
I am his eldest grandchild. I saw him kneeling by the foot of his bed talking with God too many times to count. His strength and resolve to the very end of his days was birthed from that posture before his Maker. His heart was right and it remained strong, but when the blood flow to his brain became restricted, he was admitted to the hospital for carotid artery surgery. The day he was released, I was sent to get his car. The nurse called to me shortly after I left the room. “Hurry!” she gushed. “Mr. Ashley won’t sit in the wheelchair. He’s running ahead of me out the door!”
Asbestos and smoking early in his life left his lungs compromised and near the end, lack of oxygen made him weak, but he never complained. When I drove him home from the hospital for the last time, he nearly fell out of the car trying to walk himself inside. He never gave up his independence nor lost his sense of humor. I watched as he talked with my daughter from his hospital bed about how the meals in the cancer center were better than in the heart center. It was not a proper meal without meat and a biscuit. She chided him for not eating his salad and he quipped, “that stuff is for rabbits.” She countered, “Try it. That’s romaine lettuce,” but she got no further for his immediate reply. “I know one thing for sure. It’s gonna romaine on my plate.”
Papa once taught me to drive a manual transmission dump truck with a stick in the floor half as tall as I was and before I had my license. It wasn’t enough just to start and stop without choking either. I had to drive downhill and back uphill too. He wanted me to know and benefit from everything he knew. He shared his expertise and experiences freely, generously, and not just with me. Anyone who took the time to know him came away better for it.
Jesus told a story about three servants who were entrusted with managing large sums of their master’s money. The first two were industrious individuals. Each doubled their trust. The third, later referred to by his master as wicked and lazy, dug a hole and hid his masters wealth in the dirt.
Jesus sums up his tale with these words.
“For the one who has will be given more, until he overflows with abundance.
And the one with hardly anything, even what little he has will be taken from him.’”
Matthew 25:29 TPT
https://bible.com/bible/1849/mat.25.29.TPT
Papa’s faith is now sight and since he was freed from his earthly body, his breathing is unrestricted and his knees work perfectly without fail. I’m certain he still bows to the One he always did- Jesus.
“The authority of the name of Jesus causes every knee to bow in reverence!
Everything and everyone will one day submit to this name—in the heavenly realm, in the earthly realm, and in the demonic realm.
And every tongue will proclaim in every language: “Jesus Christ is Lord Yahweh,” bringing glory and honor to God, his Father!”
Philippians 2:10-11 TPT
https://bible.com/bible/1849/php.2.10-11.TPT
As long as we inhabit this earthly tent, we have work to do as well. Until every creature has heard the good news of Jesus and disciples have been made of the nations, believers must not give up. A harvest of righteousness awaits.
““Up on your feet!
Take a deep breath!
Maybe there’s life in you yet. But I wouldn’t know it by looking at your busywork; nothing of God’s work has been completed.
Your condition is desperate.
Think of the gift you once had in your hands, the Message you heard with your ears—grasp it again and turn back to God.
If you pull the covers back over your head and sleep on, oblivious to God, I’ll return when you least expect it, break into your life like a thief in the night.”
Revelation 3:2-3 MSG
https://bible.com/bible/97/rev.3.2-3.MSG
“Come on, my soul, don’t you get shy on me.
Lift up your song ‘cause you’ve got a Lion inside of those lungs
Get up and praise the Lord”
Brandon Lake GRATITUDE
Until He comes…
A Fitting Reply 