Go Forward in the Name of Jesus

My Dad loved saying those words to me when we would talk in the morning. I think it was his way of blessing me and championing me onward in the faith on a daily basis. He didn’t come to faith in Christ until his 40s, but those last few decades he lived for Jesus. He was sick most of my life and struggled through life in a wheelchair, left arm paralyzed, and left leg amputated above the knee. I grew up with a sick dad, but he never seemed to let those ailments keep him down. As he aged, his struggles increased, but again he fought until the end.

I remember the first time I heard him praying for me and our family. He was visiting me at my college apartment in Austin Texas. He went to bed in my room and before he fell asleep he spent time praying for each of his family members by name. His list was long, and his words were many, and he prayed through every member of our family…extended family included. That night left a profound mark on my life. Here was a man with every reason to complain, but instead he prayed. Here was a man who could have only thought of his needs, but he prayed nightly for everyone else.

My Dad went on to live about 13 more years, and I’m sure he prayed daily for me and my family. His family.

So I’ve taken his words and made them my own. We shared a name. We shared a purpose. And now his words are mine…and I offer them to you. I’m confident if you met my Dad, he would tell you, “Go forward in the name of Jesus.”