I'm Chasing Ghosts

"Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you."

When I was younger, my father encouraged me to Bible Quiz.  Because of that, I learned many, many Bible verses.  While I complained about his nagging as a child, I find myself doing the exact same thing (though perhaps less lovingly) to my children.  This is because the momentary frustration of the time is not even worthy of being compared to the benefits I continue to observe from this blessing into adulthood.

Now, my father passed away yesterday, and the repercussions of that are going to be carried on into the rest of my life, as I begin to learn to navigate the next chapter of my life in this world without him.  How do I pay tribute to the man who shaped me more than can be expressed with words?  The reality is that I cannot.  

As my extended family came together this week to mourn the passing of my father, we told stories of our wonderful lives, because of him.  As the outpouring has come, we know that so many of you were impacted also, because he was a great man.  But, some of the people who were greatly impacted led to stories about how awesome my dad was that I didn't even know.  The reality is that he was not just a great man at home or just a great man in the public eye, he was always exemplifying Christ wherever he was.

While my grandparents could not have known 65 years ago when they named him after the apostle that he would turn out as fantastic as he did, the reality is that the above named verse, written by the man whose name he shared, is one that I will carry when thinking about him.  This is not just because in the sub-vocalization of this Scripture in my mind, the voice-over I hear is my father's voice. It is because I know that the things I need to do are those things that I learned, received, heard, and saw in him.


My good friend, David Poston, pointed out to me a few years ago that many modern Christians will say don't ever look at me, only look to Christ.  And while we would both affirm that salvation only comes from Christ, it is also true that the Bible affirms that God puts examples in our lives for the express purpose of our edification and training.  I was fortunate to have that example in my home for the first half of my life.

It would be difficult to shape someone more than my father shaped me.  Briefly, he is the primary reason I participate in Bible Quiz, he made/encouraged me to get my real estate license right after high school (much of my work centers around real estate), he encouraged me to go to law school, and he modeled being a wonderful husband and father to me.  I hope to be half that good of a husband to Kelly, and father to Jacob, Emily, and Julia.

And, this is why I am chasing ghosts.  My father left such an indelible imprint on this world that I find it impossible to believe he did it all in just 65 years.  I have no doubts that my father has heard, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant" and is with his Savior.  I also have no doubts that the only hope I (or any of us) have is that we allow God to do great things through us.  I also feel like I cannot possibly catch up to the legacy my father left.  But I know, with God's help, I will do all I can.  He gave me the name "West" in pristine condition, and I will try to keep it that way.