“Laying Up Treasures in Heaven”
By Jeff Keaton - Founder, CEO & President of Renewanation
It was something I had done many times before. At the invitation of a pastor, I was at a hotel conference center to give a seminar to his leadership team. Little did I know that on this routine path, God had led me to a divine intersection.
As I was setting up for the training session, in walked the owner of the hotel. He asked me if I had everything I needed and then asked, “So what do you do?” In less than two minutes, I shared with him Renewanation’s vision, mission, and next step.
He simply responded with, “I totally get that.” I gave him some of our magazines, and as he looked through them for a moment, he asked if we could have a meeting that day.
After the seminar had concluded, he invited me to join him and his manager in the boardroom. He asked me to give him a little broader understanding of the work of Renewanation. I spoke for about ten minutes. He then told me he would soon be selling his hotel and was looking for organizations to give a portion of the proceeds to. His next request was very direct: “In two minutes tell me why I should give this money to Renewanation over [five other organizations he named].”
I responded, “I would never ask you to give money to Renewanation over those organizations, but I will tell you that no one in this country is doing anything greater than giving a child a biblical worldview.” We shook hands and then went on our way.
Two weeks later, I asked him if I could stop by and give him more of the “why” behind the work of Renewanation. He granted my request, and I shared with him a 45-minute keynote presentation on the importance of giving children a biblical worldview.
When I completed my presentation, he told me that he was a dying man and wanted to get all of his affairs in order. He scribbled for a minute on a piece of paper, then looked at me and said, “I’m going to give Renewanation between $100-150,000 when I sell the hotel.” Obviously, I was inwardly rejoicing, and I expressed my appreciation to him.
Some time after our meeting, his health suddenly improved, so he placed the sale of his hotel on hold but began sending $2,000 per month to Renewanation. Over a period of two years, he and I built a wonderful friendship. He traveled with me to California and Tennessee, and we met on many occasions for a meal.
In February 2017, he sold his hotel, and we received a check for $222,000. In total, this wonderful Christian gentleman has now given Renewanation $258,000. His gifts have enabled us to hire new team members who are raising millions of dollars to help give children a biblical worldview. All throughout eternity, men and women will find him and tell him how his gift resulted in their salvation. Long after he is in heaven, those influenced by his gifts will be impacting our world for Christ. This is what it looks like to lay up treasures in heaven.
God is moving in a powerful way through the work of Renewanation and many Christian schools. Is He speaking to your heart about coming alongside Renewanation or your local Christian school to help impact more kids? I invite you to call our office or your local school office to schedule a call or personal meeting. We would be honored to help you better understand how you can lay up treasures in heaven by supporting the ministry of biblical worldview education.
Volume 9 Issue 2 - The Renewanation Review
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