My oldest brother Bob, at 6’3” tall and 210 pounds of solid muscle, is a man’s man to the core of his heart. He’s a successful dentist, avid bird dog trainer, and skilled outdoorsman. He’s always been one of my heroes.
Thirty years ago, Bob married the first girl he ever loved. He said “yes” to the preacher on that wedding date and gave his word that he’d give Mary Evelyn his life no matter what. Two summers ago, Mary Evelyn’s kidneys quit. Her blood poisoned her (according to the charts) to the point of death. She needed a donor kidney immediately to stay alive. No kidney that matched her biological chemistry was available. Immediately, brother Bob volunteered his. He was tested for compatibility and, amazingly enough, his matched perfectly.
In a love-story-of-love-stories surgical procedure, the doctors opened Bob up from his belly button to his back bone, took three ribs and the kidney, placed the kidney into his bride’s abdomen, and hooked-up the tubes and vessels. The next day, she was alive and well. She feels like a million bucks. He feels pain every day, but just smiles and shrugs it off as a small expression of his love for his “wife of a lifetime”.
Jesus said, “let your yes be a yes”. Presidential politics, television drama, talk shows, MTV and a lot of our daily conversation makes you wonder if there’s any truth left in the world.
Brother Bob showed me that a man keeps his word.