By Don Nichols

More than 40 years ago, my father was killed in a freak car accident. Although a tragic death, it came with quite an unexpected gift from God: a valuable lesson about generosity that utterly stunned me, and one that made me see that generosity indeed brings us closer to God.

I grew up Catholic, and my parents even sent me to twelve years of Catholic school. But while my mother was devoted, I never knew my father to be religious. I can't recall him stepping foot in a church until my mom died, when he honored my request for a Requiem Mass at the church she and I attended throughout my childhood.

So, after his accident four years later, you can imagine my surprise when the pastor of the largest Methodist church in my hometown called and asked if we could have the funeral service at his church. He explained that my father's commercial painting and decorating company was in the midst of doing major renovation work at the church, and during that time my father had initiated several private conversations with him about matters of faith. In his sermon, the pastor delivered a subtle, but poignant, message focused on my dad's most notable trait, leaving many recipients of that trait sitting in the pews squirming: Without fail, he lent his ear to and shared his good fortune (think cash, and sometimes substantial amounts) with anyone who gave him a hard luck story. He never asked to be repaid, and seldom did anyone do so, thus the squirming.

The pastor's message was clear to me (and the squirmers): This man who never once talked about God with his son had been growing with God by practicing kingdom-like generosity. Those words spoken by the pastor made me realize my dad was far closer to God than I ever could have imagined, a surprising revelation that gave me so much peace during such a difficult time of loss.

That revelation also gave me a blueprint for how I've tried to live a life of sharing and unselfish giving ever since. Understanding the big role generosity played in my dad's relationship with God has inspired me to follow his example. If I'm honest, I don't always live the lesson as well as I should. While I can be generous with money, I can be calculating about it and only share what I think I can spare. I'm not all that generous with my time, either, thanks to workaholic tendencies. My family and friends hesitate to call or text me because I've made it clear that I don't like being interrupted while I'm working, which is much of the time.

With such honest reflection and prayer, I'll continue striving to live the lesson as well as my dad did, growing closer to God myself as my generosity grows.