A Picture That is Meaningful to Me (On Many Levels)
As many who read the posts from A Legacy of Faith know, the annual Freed-Hardeman University Lectureship takes place on the first full week of each February. For years, I have looked forward to that week and its events. In so many ways, this event is a true “spiritual feast.”
One of the highlights each year is the opportunity I have to spend time with people who have meant – and continue to mean – a great deal to me. It is good to hear many of them speak, to share ideas with them, and to just enjoy their fellowship.
This year, the older gentleman in the picture above will not be there. He is one of those people I have always looked forward to seeing. As far as I know, he was never a “big name preacher.” Many people may not recognize the picture. To them, the name Robert M. Waller may mean very little.
However, Robert M. Waller is a name that means a lot to me. The reason for that is that he is the man who baptized me into Christ a number of years ago (cf. Rom. 6:3; Gal. 3:27).
Because of brother Waller’s role in my conversion, I always tried to make sure that he and I spent some time together at the FHU lectureship. I don’t know how much that meant to him, but it sure meant a lot to me.
Sadly (for me), brother Waller will not be attending the lectureship this year. He passed from this life to the next a couple of weeks ago. Although he was buried not far from where I live, I was not there.
Instead of being present for the burial of a man who meant so much to me, I was at a retreat for the men of our congregation. I chose to go there because the speaker for that retreat was the other man in the picture – our son, Adam Faughn.
I’m sure that brother Waller would have understood. I can almost hear his voice as he would probably say in his quiet and unassuming way something like, “Now, Jim; you know where you should be. You ought to be very proud of Adam and you need to encourage and support him.”
It should be apparent by now that the picture means a lot to me because of the two men in it. It also means a lot to me because of where it was taken. It was taken on the campus of Freed-Hardeman University during the lectureship. It also means a great deal to me because it was taken after our son had presented a lesson at that lectureship.
This picture also means a lot to me because it serves as a visual demonstration of how far-reaching the gospel can be. While every soul is more valuable than the entire world (cf. Matt. 16:26), the baptism of one person can have an impact that may be impossible to appreciate at the time.
I am sure that, when brother Waller baptized me over forty years ago, he never imagined that he would hear my son preach. In fact, when he baptized me, he probably never imagined that he would ever hear me preach. Preaching was not even on my “radar screen.” I was a high school teacher in my hometown and thought that was going to be my life.
Who knew then that I would spend over thirty-eight years in “full-time preaching?” Who knew then that Donna and I would have both a son and a son-in-law who would be preachers? Who knows how many of the people who have heard us preach will be preachers and/or will serve the Lord in some meaningful way?
I did not realize it when I took the picture, but I actually took the picture of three people. As I looked at the picture later, I noticed for the first time that our son’s son, Turner, is in the background.
He doesn’t appear to have been too interested in what was going on, but that can change. Who knows what the future holds for him? Could he (or one of our other grandsons) be the third generation of gospel preachers?
Who could be influenced or taught by you? Who might spend eternity in heaven because of your efforts?
The number could be much higher than you think!
There is an old saying that informs us that we can count the number of seeds in an apple, but we cannot count the number of apples in a seed.
To Receive Every Post from A Legacy of Faith through Email for Free, Click Here
AUTHOR: Jim Faughn
