Haddon Robinson, one of the great preachers of our days, whose book, Biblical Preaching, has been used by many seminaries as a preaching’s textbook, and who had trained thousands of preachers, died four years ago. In his memorial service, his daughter Vicky recalled a conversation she had with her father a long time ago in which she asked, “Dad, how do you want to be remembered?”  She thought her dad would answer something like to be remembered as a preacher, but that’s not the reply he gave. Instead, he answered, “I hope that people say of me, he was held and loved in high esteem by those who knew him best.”  What a profound insight!

You and I know, it is a lot easier to hold and love in high esteem those who are not close to us. After all we don’t know or see their shortcomings. But to love those close to us is a lot harder because we know them best and perhaps must live with their shortcomings, and at times, suffer from those shortcomings. Dr. Robinson’s words remind us of that which is important for us to live by: It does not matter how fantastic our achievements in life are, if we are not held and loved in high esteem by those close to us—who know us best—our lives have been in vain. Or to put it another way: Blessed are we who, despite our shortcomings, are still loved by those close to us.

On Monday I went through a medical procedure called angiogram. The doctor found that one of my major arteries on the back and the right side of my heart was 99% blocked. He, then, called in another doctor to perform angioplasty—inserting a stent into my artery. Thank God, that little device was able to do the job of unblocking the clog. God in His mercy has given me another gift of life. We can go at any time; so be sure we are held and loved in high esteem by those who know us best. This is how we want to be remembered.

Pastor Paul