His parents and four older brothers came from Germany, but he was born here in the states – the youngest of nine. Growing up he didn’t have much at all, and if you saw the pictures you would think his family was very poor. He attended the neighborhood schools, but he never really took part in too many extracurricular activities.
Walter, you see, was overweight for most of his life, and his esteem was not the highest. He did get married, but the marriage ended relatively fast. He never had any children of his own, and he lived by himself for the majority of his adult life.
Most, however, would have probably labeled him a success. He was always a hard worker and he held a very good, high paying, union job. He owned new cars, and had a nice house.
Walter also loved his family. Yes, he was the youngest; and yes, his older brothers and sisters treated him that way, but he would be the first to help the others if they ever needed it. In fact, he helped take care of his sister-in-law after one of his older brothers died. He would check on her often, take her shopping, and make sure things were taken care of around the house. But all of this is only a small part of Walter’s story.
Not too many years ago, at the age of 50, Walter suffered a major heart attack. He was in his car when the sudden attack took place, losing control of the vehicle as it veered off the road. A passer-by witnessed the whole thing and pulled over to help. So did the paramedics in the ambulance that just happened to be right behind him. The paramedics were able to work on him immediately; and though his heart had stopped, they were able to get him to the hospital where the doctors and nurses could stabilize him.
Walter’s brothers, sister, and in-laws came to his side. They prayed for him and came to visit as often as they could. But there was a deep concern for him by some. You see, Walter was the only child in his family who had never been baptized. He rarely, if ever, attended church, and no one really knew what his relationship with the Lord was.
One of his sisters-in-law took this to heart and baptized him right there in the hospital while he lay unconscious. She knew there would be questions to answer later on, but she also had great confidence in what the Holy Spirit could do. She also knew that if Walter ever regained consciousness that she would have to tell him about this.
After several weeks of uncertainty, Walter did begin to regain consciousness and began rehabilitation. He was told about the baptism and responded thankfully. However, he felt he would rather have it be done by clergy. The priest at the hospital was called in and Baptized Walter while he was awake.
This was just the beginning. At the age of 50, things were about to be very different for Walter. He would struggle with physical discomfort, implanted difibulators, diabetes, and being very overweight in the years to come. But something was now very different.
Walter was filled with questions. He became closer to his siblings, and continued to be there whenever anyone needed help. And he began looking for answers to questions that he hadn’t really asked very often in the past. He wanted answers about God.
Walter began asking many of these questions to those around him that he knew were Christians. And it wasn’t very long before he began to make it known that he too confessed Jesus to be his Lord and Savior.
In recent years, I got to know Walter. I knew of him, but now I got to talk with him. Walter had read through the Bible at least twice, and the questions never seemed to go away. Only now, they were questions about Scripture. They were questions that he asked because he wanted to know more about his Lord. It almost seemed that he couldn’t get enough.
Last week (from the time I am writing this) I saw Walter one last time. He had recently broken his back, and suffered some major setbacks while in the hospital. We talked and prayed, even though he had a difficult time speaking. We talked about Jesus, and we talked about the forgiveness that we have through Christ. Before I left, though,Walter said something that I guess I really didn’t expect to hear. He said, “I am the worst of sinners.” So we talked some more, I assured him that there was no sin that Christ would not forgive, and I left him with the blessing of our Lord.
In recent days I talked to others who visited with Walter. He was very weak, no longer able to eat, and he made one thing clear. Walter said, “I’m going home.” When asked what he meant by this, he responded, “I’m going to be with Jesus.”
This afternoon I received a call that Walter went home. He died at 4:05 p.m. With his remaining two brothers, sister, and other relatives by his side, he went home to see and experience what I can only begin to imagine. Walter was my uncle…and I have never been more proud to say that.
And Walter’s story? Walter’s story is all about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It’s my story and your story. And it’s my prayer that our story – the crucified and resurrected Christ - becomes the story of many, many more so that they too may safely arrive home.
May the Spirit of Christ help you to live this story in a way that others may come to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior, just like Walter.
Saved to serve together,
Pastor Kurt