Why Am I Here? -- Part 1 -- Somebody Played

Why am I here?

Now there is an interesting question.

I don't think I am going to go into the biology of it all.  That would be icky and probably bring the wrong crowd to the blog.  Or maybe it would be the right crowd.  Who knows?

But, why am I here?  Or maybe, a better way of putting it is, "How did I get to where I am today?"

One thing I know for sure, I did not get here on my own.  And I was thinking the other day about the influence that many folks have had on me down through the years.  Fellow blogger, Trey Morgan had an interesting post on that today.  He was asking about it from a ministerial perspective.  He was posting about a couple of pastors who were very influential in his life and ultimately his ministry. 

But what about that question from a more wholistic perspective?  Here is what I came up with and have been formulating in my mind long before Trey's post today.

I am what I am because:

• Somebody Played
• Somebody Stayed
• Somebody Paid, and
• Somebody Prayed

Let's consider the first -- Somebody played

I grew up in the church.  My family has always been a part of the fabric of ministry.  My dad is the best Sunday School Superintendent that has ever been.  And my mom is perhaps the best Head of the Children's Department that has ever been.  I truly mean that.  They were that good.  And I will get to them in a later post in this series. 

There were others that were influential.  And I will not name them all.  But, one stands out tonight as I sit at the laptop.  You probably don't know him, his name is Mr. Gene Snell.

Mr. Snell was the 4th grade boys Sunday School teacher when my family moved to New Cumberland, PA.  I remember a lot of things about that man.  I remember he loved us boys.  I remember he gave us $20 if we would read Revelations.  And I remember that he took time out of his busy schedule running a concrete construction business to take us boys horeseback riding on a Saturday. 

That's right.  He took time out of his busy schedule to play with a bunch of unruly boys.  He didn't have to do that.  But, he knew that if he were going to have an impact on our lives, he would have to do more than just show up on Sunday morning with a Bible story and a snack!  He would have to play with us.  He would have to spend time with us.  He would have to invest his time, talents and treasure into our lives.

I don't know whatever became of Mr. Snell.  I don't know whatever became of the twins Charles and Charlie that were in that class.  (Seriously, they were twins and those were there names!) That was about 40 years ago.  But, I know what his investment in me has done.  It helped form the foundations of my Faith.  It propelled me on to jr. high and sr. high and then on to college where my Faith grew and matured. 

I am beginning to grow older.  My kids are grown and serving the Lord.  And I am watching the next generation come along.  And I remain firmly grounded in Faith because somebody played.  And I want to have that kind of impact on a young boy's life.

Thank you Mr. Snell.