What an interesting day I have had. I was sitting in a hospital waiting room this morning waiting on a friend to have a CT scan when a self proclaimed eighty-four year old man sat down next to me, and asked if he were to tell me that he was a multi-billionaire, would I marry him? I should add that he’s been happily married for 61 years and I’ve made it to 27 years so far, so he was just trying to get my attention–and that he did. He told me about his days as a Wing Man in World War II, and introduced himself as “Goldy” and further stated that “God loves you and so do I.” He pulled out a postcard that had a photo of a WWII glider pilot and on the back, it had his name and Hebrews 12:1-2. He then told me he had written a book about his experiences in WWII and Mel Gipson is making a movie out of it, and he should be a multi-billionaire by next year. For now, there is a documentary on these brave pilots narrated by Hal Holbrook called “Silent Wings” that he made me promise I would get. That I will. He wasn’t pulling my leg. Check it out. He told me the G-wings monogram on his shirt stood for “guts.” And that would describe Goldy to a “t.” He has survived three cancers, and a triple-by-pass surgery on his heart, yet he is still going strong. He had some other great stories, but what I noticed most about him was he didn’t waste one minute. From the second he sat down, he engaged me in a conversation even though I thought I had a deliberate unapproachable thing going with an open laptop. He didn’t let that stop him. And I am so glad he didn’t. Goldy plays golf five days a week and is still going strong, winning souls for the Kingdom even in waiting rooms.
David Jeremiah’s devotional article this morning ponders the following: “The question every believer needs to ask himself is this: How much light am I shedding? To what degree is my little corner of our dark world being illumined by the light of the power of God in my life? Am I a 30-watt, 60-watt, or a 100-watt Christian?” The Scripture Goldy wrote on the back of the postcard he gave me was “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” I have to seriously consider what kind of light bulb I am in this dark world, particularly as I encounter such a great cloud of witnesses like Goldy, spreading the love and the light of Christ wherever he goes with a great big smile that’s as bright as a 150-watt light bulb.