Today after church, Jay and I had the pleasure of having lunch with a dear old man from our church. His name is John Knox. Mr. Knox just turned 81 years old yesterday and we wanted to treat him to lunch in honor of his birthday. He has no family. He has never been married and has no children and most of his other relatives have passed away. He is a lonely man. But, he loves the Lord so much. You can see the glimmer in his eye. He and Jay have formed a very special bond over the past year and he looks at him as the "son he never had". He brags on him when we are out in public and tells everyone that he meets that Jay is a minister, before they even ask! Jay is a "minister in training", but according to Mr. Knox, he has already arrived!
Well, Mr. Knox has decided that his time on earth is quickly coming to a close. To our knowledge, he is not sick, but he talks constantly about how he is going to die soon. Jay always asks him if he knows something that we do not know, to which he answers, "No".
Today after lunch, we received an unexpected blessing. Mr. Knox called us over to his car to give us something before we parted ways. He placed a large book into our hands called, "The Precious Gift, Bible Stories for Children". We opened it up and read the inscription on the front cover. It read, "To Johnnie Knox, from Mother on his third birthday. October 18, 1930".
We continued reading the following words:
"Notice: After 78 years of ownership of this Bible Story Book, I am giving it to Erin and Jay Joye one day after my 81st birthday which was on October 18, 2008. Since they are expecting their first child, a son, in early November, and since Jay has already devoted his life as a minister of the Gospel, I wanted them to have it, and since I am now in my twilight years and my life will soon come to a close". John Knox, October 19, 2008
Needless to say, we were both in tears reading this. What a precious, priceless gift was given to us today. What an unexpected blessing! We took Mr. Knox out to lunch wanting to bless him and in turn, we received the blessing. It truly is amazing what happens when you slow down long enough to get involved in someone's life that you otherwise might not. I was reminded today that all people everywhere long for the same thing. Everyone wants to be loved and to feel like they matter to someone. Mr. Knox is lonely, but he matters to us and he is loved.
