Personal Heroes: David Giles

Over the years, I’ve been influenced by a lot of people, especially as I started to pursue ministry. Today I’m going to talk about one of them: David Giles, my grandpa.

My grandpa served as a pastor and U.S. Army chaplain for over two decades, joining the Army in 1966 and serving in Korea for a tour before getting sent to Vietnam. He grew up in the great depression, a pastor’s son who knew he would grow up to be a pastor, too. Growing up, most pastors that I learned from pounded the pulpit with excitement, fervor, and occasional anger (most of the time it was positive expression but still forceful and emphatic). In contrast, my grandpa preached with an even, calm tone, a ready smile, and an eagerness to share God’s love and truth with the congregation. I don’t remember him once raising his voice in the pulpit, or slamming the lectern to make a point. Mostly, he would lean forward and smile as his eyes widened to emphasized the importance of his point.

He kept his sermons short and on topic, as well. Sure, he would provide illustrations to keep people engaged, but he wanted to focus on Scripture. That’s why we were all at church, after all. When I started learning how to preach at my church, he told me one piece of advice that I genuinely took to heart (though fail to achieve): keep your sermon to no more than 20 minutes. The shortest lesson I’ve taught was about 30 minutes. Because our church follows an at-home Bible study discussion format, most of my lessons tend to run closer to 45 minutes or an hour, though I’m trying to get better at keeping them below 40 minutes unless discussions lead us deeper into Scripture.

His leadership style has been a big influence on me. Teaching truth with gentleness, focusing on Scripture, and volunteering to serve when the need arises. Without his impact on my life, I wouldn’t have joined the leadership at my church, pursued a formal Bible education, or founded Disciple Gaming Ministry.

God blessed me by giving me a grandfather who set a great example for me. I pray I can do the same for those I serve.