And he will turn
The hearts of the fathers to their children,
And the heart of the children to their fathers,
Lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
Malachi 4:6
My daddy, Les Riley, is a man of unquenchable zeal and deep passion. He is a man of vision, yet never one to neglect the present hard work needed to achieve that vision. He is a man who sees the humor in every situation, and a man of sobriety who understands the times. He is a man of reflection, of humility, and of uncompromising integrity. He lives out before his sons and daughters the meaning of ‘loving his wife as Christ loves the church.’ He is an example before his wife, children, Christian brethren, neighbors and coworkers of a man living a life of selfless Christlikeness.
My daddy has worked hard for over twenty years to provide for his ever-growing family. Sometimes the jobs he has held have been less than his favorite thing to do, but he always places our well-being above his own desires.
My daddy practices ‘true religion’ according to James 1:27. Whether the single mom around the corner or the AIDS orphan in Africa, he and my mother are always open to our Lord’s call to ‘visit the widow and orphan.’
My daddy always points his family to Christ. He is desirous to see each of us walking in ever deeper fellowship with and greater obedience to the Savior of our souls. He prays fervently for his unsaved children publicly and privately. From my earliest memories he has taught us the importance of seeking the Lord through the Scriptures and prayer, both individually and as a family.
My daddy is never willing to compromise his beliefs and principles for the sake of pragmatism. In his many years of work in grassroots politics and pro-life efforts, there have often been times when the temptation was strong to make a ‘small’ compromise for political advantage or faster results, but Daddy always says no.
My daddy willingly sacrifices to follow God rather than man. He has given up possessions, the career he once wanted, money, relationships, and the good opinion of many old friends and family members, and ‘counts them as rubbish that he may gain Christ’ (Philippians 3:8).
My daddy makes sure that whatever we
don’t have, our house is always filled with joy. He has a repertoire of silly faces and voices to make us laugh. Sometimes we joke that we might not know how to sing, but we can still make a joyful noise.
My daddy loves to open our home to guests from far and near. Young people often visit to glean Daddy’s wisdom. He considers hospitality a family ministry and our unbelieving neighbors are as welcome to our table as our Christian brothers and sisters.
My daddy loves his family! He shows affection to Mama and his children in many ways. He sneaks kisses from Mama during family photo sessions and hugs almost every child when he walks in the door in the evenings. He sends emails from work to let us know he is thinking of us. He invests his time, resources, thoughts, prayers, and tears into his children. He tells all of us in word and action that we are his greatest earthly treasure.
Father of ten, husband for twenty-three years, ‘farmer trapped in a tractor salesman’s body’, defender of the fatherless--I believe my daddy is a great man, whether he’s organizing a state-wide petition drive to end abortion, rising before the sun to spend time with the Lord, letting half of his children pile on the bed for a late-night talk when he’s ready to go to sleep, or heading off for another day of work.
My amazing mother considers Daddy her hero and calls him her ‘Mighty Warrior’. As 2009 opened she wrote down some thoughts about him:
‘The Warrior is always stretching us, always leading us higher for the glory of our King. I am so thankful that my children see their daddy loving the Lord with all his heart, setting aside his leisure time and earthly treasure for the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom. I will follow him to the end of the world because I know that he does it all for the honor of his King and the glory of his Lord.’
