When I was 12 to 16 years old we lived on a farm out of Myrtle Creek, Oregon. We were the second to last house on our road before everything was BLM forest land. We were 13 miles out of town and the nearest neighbors were a mile in either direction. The family that was the last house on the road had seven kids about the same ages as us five kids in our family. The dad’s name was Hank and he owned and ran the feed store in town. Because he was the last house on our road he would deliver animal feed and supplies to people all along the road on his trip home in the evening. He often delivered supplies to us, and when he did my Dad would always invite Hank in. He wore rubber boots because he was often in barns as he made his deliveries, and he would take them off on the porch before he came into the house. Feet that are in rubber boots sweat a lot, Hank’s feet sweat a lot, and his feet had a very strong aroma. He would not sit on the furniture, but always sat cross-legged on the living room floor. Mom would bring him a cup of coffee and he would stay and visit. He often told stories and he was the best storyteller of anybody I have ever known. We would all sit around him enthralled by his stories, most of which were about hunting or fishing. It is kind of funny, but the smell of Hank’s feet became one of my favorite smells, and even after all these years the smell of someone’s sweaty feet will bring back many good memories of Hank. Hank was my hero, I wanted to be just like him, I would imitate his walk, and his laugh. More than anything I wanted to be able to hunt like he hunted. It seemed like he knew all the deer in the woods by their first name.

One of the Biblical principles in the Bible is that we all need good examples, models of how a Christian ought to live.

Philippians 3:17 Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us.

I often hear well-meaning Christians say that we ought not to have any models in our lives except Jesus, but it is impossible to use Jesus as a model because we can’t see Him or hear Him. We can follow His teaching, but we need real flesh and blood people to have as examples to follow.

All around us are people who are ahead of us in character growth. We need to imitate their way of treating people, talking, and dealing with trials. People often are strong in certain areas so we can follow their example in those areas. My wife is the most gracious and gentle person I know so I often ask myself, “what would Patty do or say in this situation?” I have a long list of friends and acquaintances who I admire greatly for certain character traits and I ask the same question about them. Wise people pick good people to model their lives after.

One of the scariest, but also one of the most motivating verses in the Bible for me over the years is Peter’s admonition to Pastors in 1 Peter chapter 5 to be an example to the people in their church on how to live the Christian life, though my strongest motivation in my life was to be a good example for my kids on how to live righteous lives for Jesus, and now for my grandkids.