The legacy I feel PawPaw has most impacted my life with, is his legacy of generosity. As I will now welcome our first child into the world at any point- I find myself dreaming of what our life will be like as parents and eventually grandparents. I think of my son- what values do I want to pass along to him, what do I want the next generation of Greenfields to be like?
I think of PawPaw and the way he intentionally lived a full life. He was sold out to his passions. He studied about the things he cared about, he expressed himself and his beliefs in his words. he preached the Gospel with a fierce boldness, he knew God intimately and he was generous.
When I returned to the States for this past Christmas, my mom, Leslie and I jumped in the car the day after we arrived and headed down to Elberta. It was an odd feeling knowing that my visit would potentially be the last time I saw PawPaw. I knew that this was going to be the time I would share with him my heart- I didn't want to be in Jordan and regret that I never got to say goodbye. It was sad to see PawPaw, once so strong and vibrant, shrunken and frustrated with his situation in the hospital. I saw his stubborn streak on more than one occasion during the short visit and couldn't help but smile when he argued with the nurse that he didn't want to do anymore leg lifts- he was tired and besides, he had company :).
When it was time to say goodbye, I knew it was my time to share what impact he had made on my life. I shared the following with him- when God opened up the door of opportunity to move to Jordan, Nathan and I knew that very night, we would be moving our life overseas. There is one reason we were able to make such a hefty decision with such ease. We had been preparing for years for this. We didn't know WHERE God would call us, or even WHEN he would call us- but we knew that when He did- we would go. I told PawPaw, that out of my entire graduating class (from the Missions Dept. at TFC), I was only the second person to go overseas as a career missionary. The reason? Almost every single one of them is still paying off their college debt. Nathan and I were one of very few married couples that graduated without debt (interestingly enough- Nathan was able to graduate debt free because of his years spent living at Paradise Mountain for free). Because of PawPaw's generosity and contribution to my school bill- when we received the call to go- we were READY! I don't take this lightly= I feel he and Memaw are a part of our ministry because of their roll in our preparation.
I believe that when PawPaw is in heaven, he will receive a kidney slap of congrats every time we see one our friends turn out of darkness and into the light of Jesus Christ!
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