Dear June,

It’s March 1st and I couldn’t let the day go by without saying thanks to you for your incredible service to the ministry of Youth for Christ. After all, this is your 53rd anniversary with the organization. You know more about this organization than any person ever has. You serve with dignity and honor. 

But recently I’ve come to realize why you’ve lived your life and served this organization the way that you have.  One morning when I was in the office before you (and you know how rare that is), I began to grasp the fact that your commitment wasn’t linked to the person you worked for at all, it was tied to the God that you serve.  It was your love for Him that moved you through every storm, past every obstacle, and into every challenge. From carbon paper to wireless networks.  From white out to streaming audio. From your Selectic to your Dell.  From your steno pad… okay, you still love your steno pad.

I’m the sixth YFC president that you’ve supported, but the reality is that you’ve never worked for any of us… you’ve always worked for the King. He’s the one that propels you. He’s the one that makes you want to be better in your 54th year than you were in your 24th. It’s never been about me, or Jim, or Roger, or Dick, or Jay, or Sam, has it?  Honestly, it’s not even about Youth for Christ, is it?

It’s about loving your Father so much that you can’t imagine that you would ever lower your standard.  Okay, I know that the cool plaques, and the pens and pins come from YFC, but we’re just the middle-man.

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. ~ Colossians 3:23, 24

That’s it.  Right there in scripture. It’s as though you worked for the Apostle Paul. And now I understand.

It’s about the love of your life.  It’s about the one thing that brings you more joy than anything else.  It’s about your Lord, your Savior, your closest friend.

So thanks. Thanks for the incredible work, but more than that, thanks for the beautiful lesson. Nobody I know has done this better. I really do want to serve like you.

By the way, I may copy a few of my friends on this note, I hope you don’t mind.

For the King and His Kingdom. 53 and counting!