Of Moths and Rust

My wife, Pam, has been a fan of the British rock group "The Who" since she was a teenager. She was particularly crazy about the lead singer of the group, Roger Daltry. Pam had seen The Who in concert several times before we met, and she and I have seen them three or four times together. In other words, Pam has a pretty impressive list of close encounters of The Who kind on her concert-going resume.

So, it came as no surprise that when Pam found out that Mr. Daltry was appearing solo in a small venue about an hour from home we were going to be there. In fact, Pam ultimately managed to get us front row seats. And there we found ourselves, not more than ten feet from Pam's teenage-era rock-n-roll crush.

I have to say that the front row seat thing was pretty cool, even if there were a few glitches in the concert itself. At one point Mr. Daltry had voice problems, apparently because of cold air blowing on him from an air conditioning vent. At another point he forgot the words as he tried to navigate his way through a medley of Johnny Cash tunes (which I don't think had anything to do with the air conditioning). Still, I left feeling like I got every penny's worth out of our tickets (and Pam probably would have thought they were a bargain at ten times what we paid for them!!!!!).

There was one thing that struck me about the concert though, which leads me to the reason for this post. Mr. Daltry has, by most measures, been a phenomenally successful individual. The Who have sold about 100 million records and have charted 27 top forty singles in the United Kingdom and United States and boast an impressive 17 top ten albums. The Who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990, and their display in the Hall describes them as "Prime contenders, in the minds of many, for the title of World's Greatest Rock Band." The Los Angeles Times wrote that during their tenure as a quartet, the band "rivaled The Beatles, Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones as the most vital rock voice of youth."

Yet, despite all of this success, their was a very subtle, but unmistakable, sadness to Mr. Daltry that night. It may have been due in part to the thin crowd, and maybe even to the technical glitches that I am sure drove the performers crazy but were hardly noticed by the audience. I think, though, that what really was on his mind was that, like it or not, his career was coming to an end.

I have never known that kind of success, so cannot appreciate what it must feel like to see it ending. What I do know, though, is that no matter how successful we are in business, no matter how big our house is or how expensive the car we drive, some day no one will care and some day no one will even remember those things.

Jesus warned us about investing in temporary, worldly things. "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal." Matthew 6:19 - 20. So, what are those things that don't rust or get eaten by moths?

Today I had the privilege of attending a memorial service for Joe Pena, one of our partners at Heartland Church. Four men from the family spoke at the service; a son, a nephew and two grandsons. Each of the men naturally spoke about what an influence Joe had been in their lives. But what really impressed me was how each man wove into his words a clear expression of the importance Jesus in his life. That faith, which Joe undoubtely fostered in his family, is a great legacy. And that legacy is something that rust, moths and thieves can't touch!