Remembering Mr. Cathy

I was saddened to hear the news that Chick-fil-a founder, S. Truett Cathy had passed away.  I have been a fan of Mr. Cathy and his work for a long time.  Who does not love those chicken sandwiches and that amazing sweet tea?

More than his food place though, I admired this man's integrity.  He never backed down from what he truly believed.  He set up his company to fall in the lines of his convictions, and the Lord blessed his efforts.  It was a great reminder that when we do things - even our jobs - the way that God desires, they seem to have a blessed touch to them.

I remember my first encounter with Mr. Cathy.  I was a student minister in the Huntsville, Alabama area.  I had received an invitation to the Mayor of Huntsville's annual prayer breakfast.  Mr. Cathy was the keynote speaker for the event.  He received a key to the city and asked if it would be good enough to get him out of the speeding ticket that he had gotten on the way to the event.

That kind of humor and genuineness is one of the qualities that I admired most in Mr. Cathy.  Though he had tasted success greatly, he was very much the same man he had always been.  He will definitely be missed, but his legacy will no doubt continue on in the many lives that he has touched.