Thursday, April 30, 2020


Leadership Thought: Things I Am Grateful for During This Pandemic.

Dear Friends,

I don’t like to hang out with negative people. I guess my coaching background and sports involvement has kept me from falling prey to a lot of the negativity that has accompanied this Pandemic period. I know that there are advantages to be found in every adversity. If this weren’t true, we would never have discovered vaccines for measles or polio or any of the other epidemics that have ravaged our nation.

During this period or lock down, I might have found  plenty of reasons to grumble, but quite honestly that has not been the case. I have discovered an abundance of things for which to be thankful.  Oh, there is a part of me that is frustrated by the substantial number of options that have been eliminated from my life. This lockdown has severely limited my mobility, save an afternoon walk, but all in all I  am grateful for the things I have left to enjoy. Instead of grumbling. I am filled with gratitude, and so a couple of days ago sat down and drew up my “Grateful List”. 

Having said this, I don’t want to minimize the personal suffering and financial pain that so many are experiencing. Many of you may have lost  loved ones and  jobs, and have witnessed your investments dwindling.  I don’t want to minimize the  toll this  has taken on so many of you. However, I hope these things will never overshadow the fact that we still have so much for which to be grateful. We  live in the greatest nation in the world,  and we enjoy the kind of freedoms that people all over the world would love to possess.

So, with that let me share with you some of those items on my Gratitude List. 

I have almost an additional hour to work each day  by virtue of not having to drive to and from home to my office.

I have more time to  spend with Jean and to play with my grandchildren and to keep in touch with our own four children.

I have more time because I don’t have to watch the news every day. Why would I, for the past few months it has remained pretty much remained the same, death tolls and government briefings. One newscast is enough to digest most of what’s been happening over the last 168 hours.

I have more time  for study and reflection because fewer minutes of my day are consumed by  listening to "Sports Talk" radio or watching grown men hit a baseball and run around three bases. (I do confess, I  still do miss this a bit).

Breakfast is  daily delivered to our upstairs apartment by my granddaughter. It is lovingly  prepared by our daughter, Rachel,  who besides teaching, doubles as our live-in gourmet chef, preparing not only our  breakfasts but incredible sit-down dinners with our family. 

I haven’t spent a penny on gasoline since my daughter has hid my keys (no, not exactly,) but she does closely monitor both Jean and my whereabouts.

I haven’t had to spend a cent on haircuts, and some of my friends are saying I am beginning to look a lot like John Bon Jovi. That's pretty cool.

I have more time to communicate with high school  and college classmates (zooming with my high school classmates tomorrow)  as well as friends I have made  over 50 plus years of ministry.

I have had more time to reflect on my “ All Time Thankful List” which I commenced on Easter morning, and which now contains almost 30 of the greatest blessings I’ve  enjoyed over a span of 79 years.

I have had the luxury of watching movies, something that I have hardly ever done. I Love those Hitchcock classics, and they are even better the second time through like Vertigo, North my Northwest. Dial M for Murder, and yes even Psycho, if you are up to it. 

I have had  more time to walk, and think and reflect, something that I have not done enough of in years gone by.

And during this time, I have read more books than I have done in the past. I just finished John Maxwell's Thinking for A Change, and I have viewed a number of  leadership podcasts which I hope has made me a more effective leader and mentor. 

But most important of all,  this extra time has provided me the luxury to spend more time to spend in the Word and in prayer, and in study which has drawn me closer to the Lord than at any other time in my life.  This past month I have become reacquainted with Peter, and  Esther and Jonah who I have gotten to know better than I could ever have imagined. 

Apologies to those of you who don’t enjoy the luxuries I do, but at 79 I  feel like I deserve a few, so any guilt I might harbor,  I refuse to acknowledge. 

I know my life is  probably a lot different from yours, and you may not possess the same margins I enjoy. However, I do hope my list will jog a few things that you too can appreciate during this time of this pandemic.  And just maybe these thoughts might stimulate you to develop your own Gratitude List. If you do, I would love to hear how your grumbling might have been changed to gratitude.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: Stuck in a Rut, I’ve Got Good News.

Dear Friends, 

A man walked into a fortune teller’s tent at a carnival and paid his money to have his palm read. “I see many things,” the fortune teller said. “Like what?” the man asked. “You will be poor and unhappy until you are forty- five,” she stated.  “Oh,” he said dejectedly. Then he had a thought and asked, “What will happen when I am forty-five?”  “You will get used to it.” she said.

There are people like this man who have become used to living without hope of change. They are locked into their life with little or no hope for change. 

Our expectations can play a significant role in shaping our attitude.  Ben Franklin said, “Blessed is he who expects nothing for he shall receive it.” And how true that is. If you don’t expect much from life you won’t be disappointed. If you don’t think change is possible, you won’t change.

Dead end thinking will never be the solution to change. We need to believe change is possible and that we can become the subjects of that change.

If you happen to be a person who feels you are stuck in a rut, I have good news for you. Your life can change. There’s time to write a postscript to your story. Even if you believe life has dealt you a poor hand, you can walk away a winner.

The good news I have to share comes from the Good News, written by God but penned by a couple of His followers named Jeremiah and Paul. Together their words provide the solution for the change you’re looking for.  Listen with the ears of your heart to the hope they offer: “For I know the thoughts I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil. To give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). When we trust God and allow him to grow us to become more like Christ in how we respond and act then we are promised, “That all things will work together for good to those who love Him and keep His commandments” (Romans 8:28).

Stuck in a Rut? Why not trust in these words, but add to them the thoughts of the late Christopher Reeves, the renowned actor who spent the last nine years of his life completely paralyzed, the result of a horse-riding accident. He said, “Once you choose hope, anything is possible.”

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: Worry Words from the Great Shepherd.

Dear Friends.

Someone once said, "worry is like a rocking chair. It gives us something to do, but it doesn’t get us anywhere."

Solomon reminds us that worry weighs a man down, and how true that is. Worry is a heavy burden to carry with us. 

There is a lot of worry going around these days. A recent poll indicated that half of our population is worried about catching Covid 19 and two thirds worry about one of their family members catching it. 

Yes, we are living in the midst of a pandemic, and we are facing major health and economic issues,  but worry won’t make the situation any better. Worry will never make the past or the future any better, but it sure will mess up the present, and it has.

Where can we go to find relief? Certainly not to the television channels which are constantly spewing out death counts and pessimistic predictions.

Where should we go for our news? The Bible, for it is the only place where we can get the straight stuff. Its pages provide us with the antidote to anxiety and a remedy for worry.

If you want a worry reducer, turn to the 23rd Psalm. And as you read the first words of this best loved Psalm, be reminded that you have a Shepherd who is watching over you. And he is not just any shepherd, but he is “My” Shepherd, and just as a shepherd meets the needs of his sheep, He is the Shepherd who wants to meet your every need as well.

And He is not only any shepherd, but he is a “Good” Shepherd. Each day we wake up, let us prepare our defenses against the onslaught of worry by repeating the words, “The Lord is My Good Shepherd.” And whenever that red light of worry appears throughout the day, let us repeat them again and again. Yes, the "Lord is My Good Shepherd.” 

As one saint expressed it, “Taint worthwhile to wear a day all out before it comes." Sarah Orne Jewett from Quotations from a Christian World. Edyth Draper, p 655. And what was it that the “Great” Shepherd told us about worry, “Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” Matthew 6:34.

There you have it, so let's heed the words of the Good Shepherd and the Great Shepherd. If you do, you'll be sure to break the back of worry when it comes.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom


Friday, April 24, 2020


Leadership Thought: How to Fix the Wobble in Your Life.

Dear Friends,

A couple of days ago Pastor Nick shared with me an interesting drawing he found on the Internet that provides a quick way of assessing the balance in one's life.  I share it with you thinking it might be helpful to you as well. The drawing originated with, Richard Duncan, a pastor in Ohio.

Duncan pictures a circle with "Faith in Jesus" in the middle and 8 spokes extending outward to create a pie shaped diagram. In each of those eight shaped pieces and starting at the top right he writes the following categories: family (love),  friends (social), focus (mental), feelings (emotional), field (career), finance (money), fitness (health), and fun (recreation).

All these 8 "F" words remind us of 8 important areas of our life.
And then he suggests  we evaluate each of these areas in our life by asking the question, "how are we doing in each of them?" Are we thriving, surviving, or reviving?  And having done this, he then asks the following questions:


1. What areas do you need to focus on the most?

2. What are your next steps?

3. Who can help you?

4. When will I start?

If any of the spokes of a bicycle tire are out of line, the result will be a wobbling tire. The same is true of our lives as well. Is your life wobbling a bit? If so, why not take some time this weekend to do a little self-reflection as you ask yourself if there are any areas that need a little adjustment? 

But remember it all starts in the middle with your faith in Jesus. Without Him being in the center of your life, you will never be able to permanently fix the wobble and who wants to wobble their way through life?

Have a great weekend.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom 

Leadership Thought: How to Make Friends and Get a Great Education.
Dear Friends,


Someone once said if you go through life asking enough questions, after a while you can get a fairly good education.

Jesus went through life asking a lot of questions. Just google “Jesus asking questions” and you will see several lists containing nearly 100 questions that Jesus asked of others. Why do you worry about your clothes, or why are you anxious about your life, or who do men say that I am, are just a few of them? 

John Maxwell, a well-known writer and speaker on leadership, was mentored by John Wooden, widely considered the greatest basketball coach of all time. He tells of his first meeting with  Coach Wooden. He had asked to meet with  him for breakfast, and after they had finished eating coach Wooden asked him. “John, do you have any questions for me?” Maxwell came prepared for the meeting. He pulled out a legal pad and began asking one question after another from the questions he had written down. After a few hours later when it seemed to coach Wooden like the meeting was coming to an end, coach Wooden asked, “Do you have anything else you would like to ask me?“ And with that John turned to page 2 of his legal pad, and then 3 for he had prepared six legal pad pages of questions he had hoped to ask coach Wooden. And by lunch they were only on page 3, so John suggested they meet again and meet again they did. 

For several decades until coach Wooden’s death, they would regularly meet and Maxwell would plumb the depths of wisdom from this great basketball coach who was an even greater human being. 

John Maxwell will tell you today that this relationship profoundly impacted his life. Coach Wooden became the mentor to John who has now written over 100 books and spoken to millions of people. John’s friendship with coach Wooden all started with just a few questions.

Here are just a few of the questions that you might keep in mind when you are spending time with someone. They are probably some of the same questions that John Maxwell  asked coach Wooden for they are the questions that he often asks today.

1. What is the greatest lesson you have ever learned?

2. What are two or three lessons you are learning right now?

3. What is your greatest failure?

4. What books are you reading that have impacted you?

5. What have you done that I should do?

6. Who have you met that I should meet?

7. How can I add value to you?

Obviously, you probably won’t have enough time to ask all of them, but maybe one or two of them would be a good place to start.

And do you know one of the great things about asking questions besides the benefit of learning valuable information; it makes others, and not yourself, the focus of your attention.

You can make a lot of good friends if you ask a lot of good questions, and yes, after a while you will not only have a larger list of friends, but a darn good education as well.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought:  Let’s String That Instrument and Sing That Song.

Dear Friends.

Several years ago, I preached a sermon on stewardship in which I told the following story related by Dr. Louie Evans, a well-known pastor in the Presbyterian Church. Dr. Evans has long since passed, but his story has never been forgotten.

Dr. Evans was visiting a mission station in Korea where a medical missionary friend of his had invited him to witness and operation involving major surgery in a makeshift tent in an out of the way area. The heat, as Dr. Evans describes it, was stifling. The smells emanating from the tent were oppressive. Hour after grueling hour, the steady, calm, and determined surgeon worked on an old peasant woman. After seven hours the doctor stood up and drew back his mask and sighed, “Well, the job is done now,” and together they returned to his modest missionary office where Dr. Evans asked, “I’m curious doctor, how much do you get paid out here in Korea for an operation like this?” The surgeon answered, “Well, to begin with I get this.” He picked up a dented copper coin. “This poor old woman came in here some time ago with this old coin and said, ‘Dr. do you suppose this would pay for the operation?’ I answered, ‘It so happens it is just enough.’ So, to begin with I get this piece of change.” Sitting down and watching tears well up in the eyes of the doctor, Dr. Evans asked, “Is that all you receive?” “No,” the doctor said, “I get far more than this. I have the wonderful feeling of knowing that for seven hours Christ is living in these fingers. I have the priceless awareness that these hands become the hands of Jesus Christ healing one of his children.”

The story reminds me of an old poem I read.

“Spring is past, and summer is gone.

Winter is here.

And my song that I was meant to sing is still unsung.

I have spent my days stringing and unstringing my instrument.”

How sad to live with such purposelessness, and yet there are so many in our world who are living just like that. There life is nothing more than a constant treadmill of action with little or no meaning or purpose. Their days are spent “stringing and unstringing their instruments.” Why? Because they have never sung the song that God intended them to sing. They have never learned the joy that comes from serving others. That is where they would find their joy and their satisfaction. For such joy is only found when we are doing what this medical missionary was doing, serving others, giving ourselves away in the service of Christ,  yielding our hands and our hearts to Him and allowing them to become his hands and his heart. That is when we truly find the abundant life of which the Savior speaks.

The next time we begin to feel sad or sorry for ourselves, may we be reminded of this dedicated minister of healing and the wonderful satisfaction he derived simply by being used to bring healing to one of God’s children. 

And if you want scripture and verse for this message, you might want to turn to Philippians 2:5-7 and be reminded that “Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form.

So, my friends, let’s “get stringing our instruments and start  singing” His song.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: When Was the Last Time You Cried Over Sin?

Dear Friends,

I was humbled this morning as I read about Samuel Chadwick, a powerful preacher of past years. He was known as the “Preacher of Passion." John Courson, one of my favorite bible teachers, writes of Chadwick “that every Sunday tears would fill his eyes as he preached to those in his congregation. His writings reveal the reason why week after week, year after year, he felt such compassion for people. Chadwick recounts how every Saturday night after his sermon was prepared, he would go into his study, close the door behind him, and reflect on what a sinner he had been before he met Christ and how good God was to save him.  Remembering the pit from which he has been rescued caused him to break down in gratitude. Then, looking out at his congregation the next morning and realizing many of them were in the same place he had been, he wept for them.” Courson New Testament Commentary, p 1585

It is easy to forget what our life was like before we met Christ. I am often guilty of this. In the midst of the busyness of ministry, I can easily lose track of the very thing that motivates my ministry. What inspires me to serve is nothing more than God’s love for a sinner like me that transformed me from death unto life.

The Apostle Paul says that it was this very fact that motivated his ministry.  “For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus, that if One died for all , then all died; and He died for all, that those who live  should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again: 2 Cor 5:14-15

Sam Chadwick never took for granted the great transaction that took place upon a Cross, and neither can we. His death for sin changed me, and it changed all who have trusted in Him for their salvation. 

Lord forgive me for ever taking for granted the wretchedness of my sin and the cost that was paid for my salvation. And, yes Lord, may you also forgive me for my lack of tears and my lack of gratitude  and once again  awake within me a greater passion for you and your love that that wrenched me from the clutches of death. 

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: How to Become a "Street Walker" for Jesus.

Dear Friends,

The Corona Virus has opened the door to several new and creative ways to do ministry. It is amazing what one can find to do when God slows us down enough to think about  ways that we might serve Him. 

I asked you in  my Leadership Thought on Friday to view a 13-minute video by Francis Chan, and I hope you all did it. I promise if you do, it will slow you down for all the right reasons..https://youtu.be/a3T1srvSgKw

I also asked you to take the five-minute challenge. Take one minute to think about someone you need to call, 2 minutes to pray for the person, and two minutes to click the send button and send them an e-mail reminding them that you care about them and that they are in your thoughts and prayers. 

When I took this challenge,  the Lord put it on my mind to write and thank all the doctors that take care of me. Now this took a little more than just five minutes, for at my age, I have a lot of doctor ‘friends’ if you know what I mean, but it was worth it. As a byproduct of my reaching out to my doctors, my grandchildren took time to write some personal thank you notes to some nurses at Riverview Hospital.

My daughter Betsy celebrated her birthday last Friday by parking her car in the driveway with a big sign that said, “Please Help Betsy Celebrate Her Birthday by Donating Medical Supplies.” The back of her station wagon was filled with supplies as we dropped off our contribution of some plastic gloves.

One of our church members who lives down the street from us found a creative way to let her light shine for Jesus. I asked her to share her ministry in her own words. This is what she told me: “I relish the ideas to help us focus on connection with others.  I have been a follower of Francis Chan for a few years and I thank you for including the link to his video.  It made me get on my knees as he spoke, it feels like a long time since I was in church, but I am learning that Church can be wherever God’s word is being taught and his followers are worshiping his name.  I would like prayer for an idea I have to visit a neighbor 2 doors down from my house. I was walking down the street on Monday and looked up as the father was holding his baby, he turned the baby around so I could see him through the window, and I clapped for joy which was the only way to communicate left to me because of the quarantine. I am thinking of creating a special picnic basket with dinner and dessert to give them as my way of connecting.  I thought about using a basket because it might create a reason for them to come and visit with me (most people feel the need to return stuff like that).  So think of me this weekend as I prepare it. I do believe what Francis said, that God has a purpose for this time and I don’t want to miss being a part of it.”

As I close this morning, let me ask you to pray about ways that you can light up your neighborhood. Like Corine you could become a “spiritual street walker” for Jesus. You probably won’t scare people away with your religious jargon or your well refined theology, like many of us “professional” pastor types, but you may wind up walking through doors that we could never open.
Please pray today about what you might do to “Let your light so shine before others that they may we your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”


Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom





Leadership Thought: Your Homework for the Weekend Is…

Dear Friends

Do you remember when you were in high school and on Friday your teacher would utter those dreadful words, “ Your assignment for the weekend is...?"

When I was a high school teacher,  I remember my students would complain, “But, Mr. Crenshaw, why do we have to have homework over the weekend?” And I would always say the same thing “growth is not optional in my classroom.” And growth should never be an optional item for a believer.

With the weekend in mind let me give you a few homework possibilities that could make a difference in not only our life but also in the life of another.

1. Take the 5 Minute Challenge. Take a minute to think about someone who would be blessed to hear from you. Take two  minutes to pray for that person, or persons, and finally take two minutes to give them a call, write them a note, or send them an e-mail. Hint. A person to person phone call would generally be the best of your choices. Hopefully, you might enjoy doing it so much that it  becomes a  daily routine, and what a blessing that would be for you and for others.

2. Sit down and make a “Thankful List.” On your list include everything over your entire life span for which you are thankful. I began mine on Easter, and almost  every day since, I have thought of an additional ‘item’ to add to my "Thankful  List." I am now up to number 27. I hope you have that many “Thankful things,” but at my age I probably have a little bit of a head start on most of you.

3. Listen to a 13-minute video that has gone viral (I think that means a lot of people like it) by a well-known Christian pastor named, Francis Chan, who gives us a very important reason, beside a pandemic, to slow down. And if you don’t listen to it this weekend, please listen to it as soon as possible. I think it will change the way you “do life.” Just click on the following link.https://youtu.be/a3T1srvSgKw

Well students, have a wonderful weekend, and don’t forget to turn in your homework on Monday. Just drop me an e-mail  and let me know how you have begun to change your life or the life of someone else.

Thankfully Yours,
Tom

Leadership Thought: Aldi Delivers but so Does Jesus.

Dear Friends,

Everyone is eagerly tuned to their televisions looking for good news during this pandemic crisis, and guess what, I finally heard some-not just good news but great news. 

Yesterday Pastor Jared and I were discussing some news about ministry related issues, and at the close of our conversation he sprung it on me. He told me that “Aldi delivers.”  Wow! Can you imagine the excitement that pulsed through my body? Anyone who knows me, knows I have a penchant for food related items, whether the Thai Palace restaurant or Sheetz convenient stores, or Aldi’s grocery stores. Believe it or not I like the place so much that one time I even inquired about working there. Aldi is great place for low cost quality groceries, and yes if you go there don’t leave without purchasing a few pints of “Make Fudge Not War” or “Thank You Cherry Cherry Much” (inside information for Aldi shoppers). 

Yes, good news is a wonderful thing, and we all are anxious to hear it. The president of Sloan-Kettering laboratories once told a medical convention, “My father was  a country doctor. We now know, scientifically speaking, that he didn’t carry a thing in that black bag that would cure anybody. But people got well because he patted them and said, ‘You’re going to make it.’” The encouragement released by the good news heard from the lips of the doctor played a significant part in the bodies amazing power to heal itself. 

I will never forget meeting with my oncologist almost a year and a half ago when he delivered the radiologist’s report that I had stage 3B cancer. I vividly remember hearing those words while sitting in his office with Jean and with my daughters present for support. To say we were all shocked to hear the news would be a vast understatement. 

I clearly remember trying to hide my shock, however, and stoically responding to my doctor, saying “Whatever time I might have left, I want it to be as productive as possible, so tell me what I need to do to fight the battle?” He looked me straight in the eye, and knowing I was no way near as composed as I tried to be, he spoke the words I will never forget.  He said, “Tom, we are not looking to maintain you, we are going for the cure.”  Those words of Dr. Laughinghouse screamed hope, something that I desperately needed at that moment in my life.

Words can bring good news and encouragement for those who  in need of physical healing.  Solomon tells us that  “Words can be like a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones (Prov. 16:24).”

But right words cannot only be spoken to help heal the physical and emotional  needs of a person’s body, but they can also be used to heal a man’s heart. The news that “The wages of sin is death, but the free give of God is eternal life,” is  not just good news, but it is the greatest good news one could ever hope to hear. This Great Good News of God’s gift of eternal life is not only written on the pages of our bibles, but is visible on a  blood stained cross where Jesus hung and died to offer you and me the greatest gift of all, the gift of eternal life.

In the eternal scheme of things, the good news that Aldi delivers is of little consequence when compared with the  great news of what Jesus delivers. Yes, he delivers us from the bondage of sin and death and offers us the gift of abundant and eternal life.

Yes, I am excited by the words that Aldi delivers but I am far more excited to hear the words that Jesus delivered me not only from the clutches of sin, but from the pathway to hell. 

Yes, the news that Aldis delivers is exciting, but the news that Jesus delivers is life changing, not just for today but forever. I hope you have made that choice.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: Which Shelf Are You On?

Dear Friends,

This past Good Friday I shared an illustration I heard several years ago while attending an evangelism conference. At the conference one of the speakers presented an interesting way of offering an invitation to receive Jesus.

He invited us to think of a bookshelf. On the top shelf were the great saints like Billy Graham, Mother Teresa, and Corrie Ten Boom.

On the shelf below would be great people, many of them national heroes like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln Mahatma Gandhi etc.

On the next shelf would be the morally respectable, church going and law-abiding individuals who for want of a better word we might describe as good, but very ordinary people.

One the fourth shelf would be those whose reputations we might consider a little suspect-perhaps they would be the kind of people who cut corners ethically and morally, who seldom could be trusted, and whose life is lived primarily to serve themselves. They fall below the shelf of those ordinary people on the shelf above.

And on the bottom shelf are those who we would classify as morally despicable, the rapists, the bank robbers, the murderers, those we might consider the dregs of society.

The speaker then asked us to draw a line where we thought we would fall on these shelves.

Most people drew a horizontal line somewhere across one of those five shelves.

Having done that, the presenter then took a marker and drew a vertical line from top to bottom right down through the middle of the paper to point out that Jesus doesn’t measure goodness as the world measures goodness. It is not goodness that determines our salvation, but it is grace. It is not what we are, but whose we are, that determines, (pardon the expression), our shelf life.

The bible makes it abundantly clear that “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God,” (Rom. 3:23), and that “The wages of sin (not sins) is death,” (Rom. 6:23) or separation from God. No one is good, for we are reminded that “There are none righteous, no not one,” so how could anyone ever presume to be good enough to inherit the kingdom of God? And after all, doesn’t Jesus tell us “That you must be perfect even as your heavenly Father is perfect to inherit the kingdom God,” and who among us can live up to this standard?

You see the Mother Teresas and the Billy Grahams are  in the same boat as those residing on the bottom shelf if they have not received Jesus as Lord and Savior. No, God does not grade on a curve. It is not a person’s goodness, but a person’s faith that opens the door to salvation. It is God’s grace and not our goodness that determines our eternal destiny.

The line drawn straight down through the center of those shelves presents us with only two choices. We either possess a heart that is separated from Him, or a heart by faith that has yielded itself to Him. That is the only line that is of value in God’s economy.

Paul reminds us “It is by grace that you have been saved through faith, it is not of yourselves; it is a gift of God, not by works so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

I love what Oswald Chambers has written, “In new birth when one is born again, God does three things that are impossible: the first is to make man’s past as though it had never been; the second, to make a man new all over again, and the third, to make a man as certain of God as God is of Himself.”

May your ‘shelf life’ be eternal.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Monday, April 13, 2020


Leadership Thought: The Word of God and the word of John.

Dear Friend,

How do you start your day? No, I don’t mean coffee or tea, cream or sugar, the paper or news Fox or maybe CNN, depending on your political preference? No. I’m not thinking of beverage preferences or information gathering. I am wondering what you do to enrich your heart and soul?

I want to start my day with something that will make a difference in my life, so that I might make a difference in someone else’s life. Long ago I heard someone utter the phrase “No Bible, no breakfast”, and while I can’t say I have always  adhered to this maxim, I can say it would certainly be a wonderful discipline to develop.

Good habits that feed the heart and soul are valuable disciplines to develop. They not only will make a difference in our life, but they will make a difference in the lives of those with whom we’re with.

Let me suggest a routine that I have found helpful, and which I believe has made a difference in my life, and hopefully will make a difference in your life as well.

I try and start each day by studying the Bible. There are many ways to accomplish this, and for me variety is essential. During this spiritual season in my life, I have chosen book studies for my devotional time. Right now, I am studying 1 Peter, and before that it was Esther. The important thing, however, is not how you read the bible, but that you read your bible.

There are many varied and effective ways to study your bible, but that is a lesson for another day. I am always reminded of Paul’s admonition to Timothy: “Spend your time and energy in training yourself for spiritual fitness. Physical exercise has some value, but spiritual exercise is much more important, for it promises a reward in both this life and in the next” ( 1 Tim 4:7-8).

But there is a second habit I have found helpful to cultivate, and that is listening  to John Maxwell's daily one- or two-minute message on leadership called  "Minute with Maxwell."  I have found combining these two habits has been a wonderful way to enrich my mind and spirit, while preparing me to serve and minister to others.

John Maxwell, who has written over 100 books and spoken over 12,000 times, is one of the great Christian leaders in the world. As a former 28-year-old pastor of one of the largest churches in his denomination, he has added value to millions of lives through his books and his teaching.

I suggest you give him a listen, and if you like him, add him to your morning routine, but don’t forget the “order of the day”: The Word of God before the word of John.

Yours in faith and friendship, Tom

P.S Click on the Weekly summary below and see what you think. I believe you will be glad you did.
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Dear Tom,
In case you might have missed the last few episodes, here is a summary with quick links to get you caught up with this week’s Minute With Maxwell

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Leadership Thought: From a Foot Washing to a Fire.

Dear Friends, 

In yesterday’s “Leadership Thought” we looked at a foot washing ‘service’ where Jesus provided a visual lesson on humility as he knelt beside his disciples with towel and basin in hand and washed their feet. 

Today we meet Peter, one of those foot washed disciples, sitting before a fire, his feet clean but his heart divided. He wants to be close to Jesus without being connected to Jesus. He is ready to go and die with him and yet we see him as he openly denies Him. We see him sitting in the courtyard warming himself beside a fire as he mingles with the enemy, and yet only a few moments earlier with sword in hand he's lopping off the ear of one of the Roman soldiers dispatched to arrest him. Will he die with Jesus as he says he is willing to do or will he deny Him as he does?

Who is this Peter? Unfortunately, the answer is that he is a lot like us.

This morning as I was reflecting on those last hours before Jesus journeyed to the Cross, I thought of those poignant words in Luke 22:54: “Peter followed Him at a distance.”

It is tempting for us to be one of those followers of Jesus, who like Peter, prefers sitting down with the crowd rather than standing up to the crowd, being a silent witness rather than a speaking witness.

Listen to what pastor John Courson writes in his commentary: “Praying in the Garden, Jesus was sweating.”
Sleeping in the garden, Peter was cold. The difference between being hot and cold is simply prayer. To warm himself, Peter sat down at the enemy’s fire. So, too, if you are following Jesus from a distance you will feel a chill inside, and you’ll go back to the old places, the old ways to get warm. The problem is, when you warm yourself at the enemy’s fire, like Peter, you’ll get burned.” John Courson’s Application Commentary P. 408-409. 


This Good Friday might be a good time for all of us to spend some time praying and pondering  the question, “How am I following Jesus?” While we may remain “socially distanced” from one another, let make sure that our heart is never spiritually distanced from Him.

Happy Easter!

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom


Leadership Thought: Who Wants Their Feet Washed?



Dear Friend

Which would you rather do? Have your feet washed or wash the feet of someone else?  I can hear your thinking; “Pastor Tom, I don’t want anyone washing my feet, and I certainly am not about  to wash someone else’s dirty feet. 

I guess if I had to choose between being “the washer” and “the washee (surprisingly enough spell check refused to recognize this word),” I would do the washing, only because I like to be in control. But either way, I must confess there is something that makes me a little uneasy about the act.

I still remember the first foot washing service I attended, and how discomforting it was for me to have my feet washed. But if I was uncomfortable for me, how do you think those disciples of Jesus must have felt as the Savior of the world bowed down before them with towel and basin in hand and began to wash their feet. If I had been Jesus, I might have been tempted to wash a few feet, maybe Peter’s or Judas’ with a brillo pad, but then again, I am not very much like Jesus, I am sorry to say.

I have been studying the wonderful little book of 1 Peter for over a month now, and I have been through it again and again (It seems to take me a lot longer to digest God's truth than most of you). 

And interesting enough of the five chapters I could have studied, it was my turn to study chapter 5 this morning, a chapter that has so much to say about the subject of humility.

Peter tells us to “Be submissive to one another and be clothed with humility for God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time. (1 Peter 5:5-6).

Today some churches are celebrating Maundy Thursday, the day commemorating Jesus’ last Passover supper with His disciples. This supper concluded with a lesson in “Towel and Basin” theology (John 13:1-11). 

Any takers for some foot washing? If we are submitted to the Lord, then we will be submitted to the things He taught, and even if you are in a church that doesn’t practice this tradition, you’re not exempt from being a foot washer. 

Jesus needs plenty of them and if this is your occupation you will never have to worry about standing in the unemployment line.

And always remember, "It is always good to start out at the bottom of everything except in learning to swim."

Who will you serve today and how will you serve them?

Happy  Maundy Thursday.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom