What’s in your Wallet?
written by Clayton Peck
The Gift
On my 39th birthday, my Dad was in the Maricopa Medical Center MICU unit with sepsis from complications of his second lobectomy due to lung cancer. Even though Dad was immobile in the MICU and couldn’t communicate, Dad was going to give me the best birthday gift I had ever gotten and he deliberately planned it. The doctor’s needed my Dad’s funeral card just in case, so my Mom had asked me to look through Dad’s wallet to find it. As usual, I just couldn’t look through it and find what I needed, I wanted to see what was in Dad’s wallet. The old statement about looking in your wallet and checkbook to see what is most important in your life would ring out as I searched through Dad’s wallet. My Dad had left all of us something we would never be able to forget.
Dad’s History
When Dad was young he lived the worldly “good life”. He began drinking in college and during his early career as an architect he was alcoholic and on top of that he smoked for 50 years. Praise God, Dad accepted Christ and then gave up alcohol forever about 30 years ago, but Dad continued to smoke until his quadruple bypass surgery 12 years ago. Dad had complications during the surgery and developed Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrom (ARDS) and Dad would live with a permanent trach from that point on. My Dad had been sick for the last 12 years and in his last couple of years, Dad’s quality of life had decreased significantly due to lung cancer. My Dad was in so much pain and discomfort, he was praying that God’s work was done for him and God would take him home to Glory forever. In Dad’s last 12 years, Dad had done everything in his power to make sure all of his family knew Jesus, by sending us DVD’s and books on salvation and fulfilled prophecy. Dad wanted to make sure his family and his house was in order if the Lord came back on any given day.
It’s not Capital One!
What’s in Dad’s wallet? What we found, wasn’t Capital One! It did include the normal things; driver’s license, bank cards, credit card (expired), emergency information card, etc… Then I opened the area where you would find dollar bills, there was a worn yellow legal piece of paper nicely folded up. Mom and I had to open it. What we found was either Dad’s proclamation of his faith in Christ or one last chance to share the Good News of Jesus for loved one’s in his family. My Dad had a plan, typical of an architect. He was very familiar with blueprints and he left a final draft for salvation.
The Final Draft (The letter)
Saving Faith - Knowing for sure I know whom (Christ) I have believed and am persuaded (convinced) that He is able to keep (safeguard) that (eternal salvation) which I have committed (entrusted) unto Him, until that day (the day of judgement)
Paul, an apostle of Christ II Timothy Chapter 1
-The 3 essential elements of Saving Faith
1. I know - knowledge of the facts
2. I have believed - Agree with the facts
3. I have committed - personal Trust in the facts and the object of faith (Christ) and that he died for my sins as my substitute.
John 6:29 - “ , this is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” Jesus
John 6:40 - “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him, may have eternal life; and I Myself will raise Him up on the last day.” Jesus
John 6:47 - “Truly, truly I say to you, he who believes has eternal life.”
So, what’s in your wallet?
My Dad had a plan, but it was truly our Heavenly Father’s plan for all of us. I tell this story to encourage you to search God’s plan for you and your family, it’s the best gift you could ever pass along to your family and friends. My immediate family has proclaimed Jesus as their Savior and has that exact Saving Faith my Dad wrote about sealed in our hearts, so I guess Dad’s work was done on this Earth. My Dad started his new perfect life on January 11, 2008 and left this world behind. So, I know for a fact, it’s not goodbye, but farewell for now, I will see you soon Dad.
