It’s Never Too Late: Make The Next Act Of Your Life The Best Act Of Your LifeНамуна

It’s Never Too Late to Celebrate

Frank had a strong, deeply rooted religious upbringing. His parents were Pentecostal Christians, and every time they moved to a new place, they found the closest Assembly of God church and put their three children in Sunday school. 

Frank’s father was an oil worker and often out of work during the Great Depression. The Giffords moved twenty-nine times. It was a bleak and difficult time for them—even having to, at times, eat dog food to survive. But they were grateful for it. 

Always an athlete, Frank played football every chance he got. His high school grades weren’t strong enough to gain the athletic scholarship he needed for college, so he attended Bakersfield Junior College, played a season of football there, and got his grades up to what was required for him to enroll at USC. 

A man among men, Frank grew up believing in a big, all-powerful God of the universe, but he never understood what it meant to have a personal relationship with the living God. Not until we went to Israel in 2012. That experience changed everything for Frank. He got baptized in the Jordan River he’d heard so much about back in Sunday school decades before. 

Life with Frank wasn’t boring. I was introduced to the myriad of misfits, miscreants, and all-out crazy creatures who made up his world. I was, for the most part, fascinated by them. One of the most colorful by far was Evel Knievel, the infamous daredevil who kept the world breathless with his exploits. He called often for Frank and would talk on for hours.

After a while, Frank would suddenly say, “You know, Evel, talk to Kathie. She loves this stuff.” Most of the time the subject of our conversations would turn to religion. 

“Kathie, I hate Jesus.”

“I know you do, Evel, but why do you hate Jesus? What did Jesus ever do to you?” And he would launch into a diatribe about his kids, his ex-wives, doctors, or the media—whatever it happened to be that had infuriated him that particular day.

It always ended with me saying, “Evel, I’m praying for you. Lots of people who love you are praying for you, and one day you’re going to call me out of the blue and say, ‘Kathie, you’re right! I don’t hate Jesus, I love Him.’ ”And then he’d laugh and hang up the phone.

I answered the phone one day to Evel’s familiar voice screaming, “Kathie! You were right! I accepted Jesus. He’s real, and He loves me. Let me talk to Frank!” It was surreal. Evel got on the phone with Frank and talked his ear off about his real-life leap of faith. 

Frank, who had also come to know Jesus late in his extraordinary life, came home from Israel a changed man. He’d often say to me, “You know what, honey, I’m not afraid to die. I’m actually starting to get very curious.” 

He died on a Sunday morning in 2015 one week shy of his eighty-fifth birthday. Three days later we threw him a party—exactly the kind of celebration he wanted. The following Monday I returned to TODAY and shared the hope of eternal life that Frank had discovered through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Millions of people saw it. Frank Gifford was not just a football player turned sportscaster; he was a child of God. And his death was when his greatest adventure, and celebration, began.

Respond

What does it mean to have a relationship with Jesus? 

How would you describe the relationship you have with Jesus?

If you are a child of God, in what ways are you looking forward to celebrating meeting Him face-to-face someday? If you don’t know and love Jesus, what questions do you have and who in your life can give you answers based on the truth of the Bible?