Teen’s legacy lives on after death
The inspiration for these columns never ceases to amaze me. Sometimes topics are a struggle. Other times, they come when I least expect it. This week, as I was struggling to find the subject of this writing, a man walked into my office. He reintroduced himself and reminded me of how we know each other. As we continued talking, a wave of inspiration filled my heart. I could not help but smile because I knew his random visit to my office was not random at all.
With school starting back in a few days, there will be more drivers on the road. Many of those drivers will be newbies. We can only hope they have been properly trained in the operation and safety measures associated with driving a vehicle. Even the most experienced of drivers can and do have accidents. If there are cars on the road, there will be accidents.
On April 1, 2017, an accident occurred on Ball Ground Highway that claimed the life of 17-year-old Tyler Land. Tyler was a student at Creekview High School. Like many boys his age, he was with a group of friends on his way home from a hunting trip. His mom and dad, Gordan and Debra, experienced every parent’s worst nightmare. They buried their child when everyone knows it is supposed to be the other way around. Whether you are a Christian or not, that is how we see it. I am sure God understands how we feel. Sometimes, He has other plans.
As Gordan and I talked, it was not Tyler’s passing we talked about. It was the way he lived his life. Tyler had a lot of friends. His family and friends would learn he was a leader as opposed to a follower. Gordan said when Tyler was sixteen, he attended a local revival. When he got home that night, something was different about him. He had a glow about him he had never seen. He gave his life to the Lord that night and God saved him. He told his mother he could feel it.
After he was saved, Tyler did something very few of us do like we should. He kept going to revival and he did not go alone. Tyler took friends each night so he could introduce them to a man called Jesus. He took so many; revival did not end after a week. It was extended. After everything was said and done, seventeen of Tyler’s friends were saved during this revival. As Gordan shared with me this story, I could not help but think of the story about Jesus in the Book of Luke. Joseph and Mary traveled a day before realizing Jesus was not with them. They went back to Jerusalem to find him in the temple with doctors, listening to them and asking them questions. Like any parents, they asked him what he was doing. He said in Matthew 2:49, “How is it that you sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?
None of us are Jesus. He is perfect. We are not. Tyler Land was a normal 17-year-old boy who enjoyed doing things all teenagers like doing. He did not just live life, he enjoyed life. At the same time, after he accepted Jesus as his Savior, he was up and about his Father’s business. He was not ashamed of his experience of grace. He shared it. And shared it often. Because he was willing to share his faith, others also followed.
At Tyler’s funeral, there were other’s who accepted Jesus as their Savior. Which goes to show, none of our works end when we take our last breath. If they are good works, they will have an effect at the right place and the right time.
Gordan and Debra, and their daughter Erica’s lives changed on that April day in 2017. Their experience is not one everyone can relate to. While I could see the pain in Gordan’s eyes as he talked about his son, those same eyes lit up with a brightness when the conversation turned to his daughter. Talking about his daughter put the life back in his voice and a smile on his face.
We may sometimes think we cannot go on another day, but we can, and we will until our time comes. As he was leaving the office, we shook hands and hugged. He brought me a blessing with his visit. After he left, it was time for me to get about my Father’s business by sharing this story. I hope it blesses you like it did me.