His wife stated after his death, "They usually give you 12 months to live and he lived 26 months. That was just a blessing. Jim was just an amazing man. Everybody that ever met him loved him. He was always just my rock. And the whole family's rock. And he just had this unwavering faith that was just inspiring. Always had a positive attitude,"
Part of Jim Golay being amazing actually came months after he passed away. On Valentine’s Day, some eight months after his death, flowers arrived for his now-widowed wife. The card said, "Happy Valentine's Day Honey. Stay Strong! Yours Forever Love Jim."
At first, Shelly thought that they had been sent from her children. But upon calling the florist, she discovered that her husband, knowing of his impending death, ordered the gift to be delivered every year for the rest of her life! She was of course overwhelmed by the love and devotion of her departed husband. She stated, "He set up such an amazing gift for me to receive that. That act of love to me is just true love in its purest form and flowers and means to me that his love never ends."
The thirteenth chapter of the book of 1 Corinthians is often referred to as the love chapter of the Bible. It begins by stating how worthless even our great abilities and amazing accomplishments really are if the proper love is not evident and the main motivating source behind them.
Verse four goes on to share the primary traits that exist in true and pure love. “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” The last verse of the chapter concludes by declaring, "And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”
The Bible speaks at length concerning love and particularly the special kind of love seen in the Creator for His fallen creatures. In 1 John 4, we are told how that love was demonstrated and what our response is to be towards others in the light of it. Verses 10 and 11 say, “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” The specific depths of God’s love is best explained in Romans 5:8. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” In other words, we need look no further than the cross to grasp the reality of the Father’s love for us all.
Mrs. Golay was overwhelmed by her husband's great gift and will continue to be throughout her earthly life. She will never take lightly what he did and will eagerly await each February for his unique offering. But the gift of God’s love, through the giving of His Son as sin's ultimate sacrifice, is one of far greater meaning. It is a gift of incomparable value and one that will endure throughout the endless ages of eternity. And His is a gift that could be well summed up by the words that Shelly Golay spoke of her beloved spouse. “This is just true love in its purest form and means that his love never ends." (Romans 6:23, Titus 3:7)
"In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." (1 John 4:10-11)
Bill Breckenridge
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