J. R. The Giant

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in Me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." -Galatians 2:20

The Bible says in the book of Genesis, "There were giants in the earth in those day." Sounds strange, doesn't it? However, many of us will testify to recent sightings of one, and some of us will go so far as to say we knew the giant personally. I will try to describe him as told by others and my own experience, but it will not be easy as he was bigger than life. Giants usually are.

The giant never drew attention to himself but always pointed us to his Father. Oh, how the giant loved his Father. Many of us would sit at the giant's feet and listen to him tell stories of his Father. Our eyes were as big as saucers. He once told us that his Father could handle any difficult situation in life if we would just let him. I remember being jealous of the giant's relationship with his Father. I always wanted to hear more and was never disappointed, because the giant always had fresh encounters with his Father.

The giant's hands were huge and were often used to help direct the traffic of those who had lost their way in life. As you might expect, the giant had enormous arms and if you got too close they would engulf you with a crushing embrace. This was the giant's way of smothering you by his love. He would often say this was an extension of his Father's love. He said that passing on his Father's love was passing on his Father's life and with out the Father's life there was no life.

I know this sounds hard to believe, but from time to time the giant would let me ride on his massive shoulders so I could get a better perspective of life. This allowed me to see life the way his Father saw it. The view was amazing and even breathtaking, but once I climbed down I would often forget what I had seen. Many of us had the same experience and we often shared our own stories about what we saw and how the giant would often rebuke us for trusting more in him than in his Father. It was always about the Father, never about the giant.

The giant was everyone's best friend but no one was his best friend. That was reserved for his Father. He was our counselor. Some would say he was the father they never had. There were times when he would kneel down and say, "Stop trying to control other people and stop trying to change everyone around you." He would always tell us that this was his Father's job and we couldn't change anyone not even ourselves. The giant would never give us his counsel but the counsel of his all-wise Father.

You may ask if this gentle giant ever got angry? Oh yes, yes. I remember one time telling the giant that maybe his Father would love him even more if he would try a little harder. The giant's face turned red and his soft voice began to thunder as he informed me that his Father could never love him any less or any more. "My acceptance with my Father is never based on my performance," he would say. I made sure to never revisit that subject again lest I incur his stern rebuke, but often wondered how anyone could know of such love?

We would often ask how the giant could find so much time to spend with so many people? It was simple. He never entangled with anything that would hinder him from introducing others to his Father. He said this is what his Father told him to do. He often warned us not to get too attached to the stuff of this world or we would miss out on his Father's love which he said was for all of us. He told us that if we came to know his Father that he would be our Father also and we could have a full life here and experience the life that is yet to come. Sadly, there will not be any more sightings of the giant. His Father called him home.

Some of you may have never known the giant personally. That's okay. Just get with someone who did and they will tell you countless stories of the giant among men. The giant traveled lightly and carried only to things in his bag - LOVE and GRACE. He used these to help sculpt the lives of all who experienced his embrace. We will miss that big squeeze, but then again, he always wanted us to know that it did not come from him but from His Father.

With fond remembrance of a giant named J.R.,

Grace Ministries
Tres Dias
Reston Bible Church