Leadership Thought: Whatever Happened to Prayer or "Guess Who's Zooming Tonight?"

Dear Friends,

A few weeks ago, I prayed with the largest group of pastors with whom I have ever prayed. For an hour, between three and four thousand pastors spent time praying together for those all over the world who were being impacted by the Covid 19 virus. They had gathered from every part of  the country for this one event, and the amazing thing about it was that it was all organized in a matter of minutes.

Yes, it is true that  adversity has its advantages, and this prayer meeting was one of those advantages that enabled me to do something that I had never done before. How, you might ask,  did this event all come together so quickly? The simple answer is that it happened by a click of the finger.

Let me explain. I am part of a network of pastors who belong to “Renegade Pastors,”  a team of pastors who want to do ministry better and “advance beyond average.” One click of the finger on “send” and the word of our prayer meeting traveled to thousands of pastors from all over the world. No travel  needed, no costly arrangements necessary, and I didn’t have to leave the comfort of my living room to attend. And the only resource  needed was my  phone. 

Just last night several people from our church hastily gathered  for a prayer meeting. We had learned that  one of our family members had been taken to the hospital and needed prayer. At 4:30 pm the message went out-“Prayer Needed”- and at 8:00 pm concerned friends from all over the area were on the phone praying together for a sister in need.

This evening our church is being mobilized to pray for this pandemic crisis, and once again we will be not be gathered in any church  but in our homes, with Zoom as the vehicle that  brings us all together. 

Little in my wildest imagination did I ever  think that this pastor who long ago had shunned the Face Book ‘frenzy’ would be “zooming,” or whatever the technical name for it might be called. All these recent events have transpired because crisis is creative. The dictionary defines crisis as  a time of intense difficulty and danger. A medical doctor might see the word as a turning point when one can get better or worse. And the Greeks would simply call crisis a time of  decision. When you put all three of these definitions together, a crisis becomes “an intense time of difficulty requiring a decision that could become a turning point that makes a difference.”

A crisis requires adjustments and adaptability. It compels us to think outside the box. A crisis opens our eyes to new ways of doing things. It has been said that “Success in life comes not from holding a good hand but playing a poor hand well,” and this is just what we are trying to do as we explore new ways of doing ministry.  

Good coaches  are separated from great coaches by one thing; it is their half time adjustments. It is these adjustments that  will spell the difference between victory and defeat. 

As we look forward to what is quickly becoming the new normal, let us be quick to adjust and make changes in the way we perform ministry. Let us pray for a spirit of flexibility as we ask God to show us ‘new’ ways of doing ‘old’ ministry. 

Life never stays the same; it is constantly changing, and as we face these changes,  may our prayer be, “God, show us how we can change in the midst of a changing world so we might share the unchanging message of our Jesus Christ to a world that is desperately in need of change.  That's a lot of  'changing,' but that's what you and I and the world so desperately need.

Want to be  part of that change, that is the “new normal” that is already upon us? Why not become a “zoomer”  and join us tonight as our church gathers for a good old but newly fashioned prayer meeting?  Watch your computer screens-more details to follow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!l.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: Determination

Dear Friends,

As a former coach and teacher, one of the qualities that I have always admired in both my players and students was determination. Determination is a key ingredient in the life of anyone who wants to be successful, but it is especially important for the one who desires to be a leader.

Determination  is the ability to hang in there for just one more round, and the willingness to get up just one more time than you get knocked down.

One of my favorite stories involves a ‘want to be’ journalist who lived in a small town where nothing much happened of noteworthy significance. Then one day the dam upstream broke, and the town was flooded. He got into  a rowboat and headed out to look for a story. He found a lady sitting on her rooftop. He tied up his boat to the house and told her he was looking for a noteworthy story. Together they both watched as various items floated on by.

He says, “Now there’s a story.” “No,” she would say, “that’s not a story.” Finally, a hat floats on by and then does a 180-degree turn, goes upstream a way and then does another 180-degree turn.

The fellow says, “Now there’s a story.”

“Oh no, that’s not a story,” she says. "That’s my husband, Hayford. He said he was going to mow the lawn come hell or high water.”

Now that’s the kind of determination I love to see in people. They just won’t quit regardless of the situation or circumstances.

While Hayford was probably never the smartest guy in his class, he did possess the kind of determination that might mark him for success. He possessed the quality of determination as seen in the life of the Civil War leader General Ulysses who once said, “One of my intentions in life has always been that when I started to go anywhere or do anything, I would never turn back or stop until the thing intended was accomplished.”

The Apostle Paul was like that. In 2 Corinthians 4:8-10 (Living Bible) he writes, “We are pressed on every side by trouble but not crushed and broken. We are perplexed because we can’t know why things happen as they do, but we don’t give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going.”

I don’t know what challenges you face or what obstacles you must overcome, or how great is  your temptation to pick up, pack up, and pull out, but don’t do it. Hang in there for just one more day, for your rainbow may be just beyond the darkness of those storm clouds. 

The great Old Testament leader Nehemiah may have faced the same temptation as he gazed upon the rubble of those broken-down walls surrounding Jerusalem.  Despite the enormous task of rebuilding those fallen walls, he picked up a trowel and began the restoration process. But mid-way through the project, the hearts of the builders grew discouraged as they looked at all the rubble, and they began questioning whether they had the strength to complete the task. And with the critics quick to plant the seeds of discouragement, and others threatening the lives of the builders, Nehemiah did what every great spiritual leader does: “He redirects the builders’ focus away from the impossible toward the greatness of God.” Spiritual Leadership, Oswald Sanders, p. 201.

Undeterred, Nehemiah presses forward despite the obstacles, and in so doing he encourages his people by his example of determination. “Don’t be afraid of them”, he says. “Remember the Lord who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, you sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes” (Nehemiah 4:14).

Nehemiah knew that the difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man’s determination, and he wasn’t about to quit. 

When you and I are faced with what seems to be overwhelming odds, we need to do the two things Nehemiah did.

We need to “Remember the Lord” and  “Resist Retreat,” knowing that “The Lord who is great and awesome (will) fight for (you).”

May you and I be encouraged as we read the words of Habakkuk who writes, “But these things won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed” (Habakkuk 2:3).

Enjoy a wonderful weekend, stay healthy, and don’t forget to worship the God who reigns supreme and whose power far exceeds the strength of any Coronavirus.

Yours in Faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: Don't Run, but Stay and Learn What God Can Teach Us in the Midst of Suffering.
Dear Friends,

This morning I awoke to the message below that flashed across my computer screen.  It’s a devotional sent to me by one of those on my group list who receives the Leadership Thought that I send out each morning. It had so touched his heart that he wanted to share it with me. I pass it along to you in the hopes that it might awaken your heart as well. As the writer reminds us, suffering can be a mighty teacher if we embrace it, rather than turn and run from it.

In one of my favorite Psalms I am reminded that "God is our refuge and our strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So, we will not fear, even if earthquakes (and, yes, pandemics) come, and the mountains crumble into the sea (Psalm 46:1-2). Yes, God is still on His throne and He is still in control, and He has much to teach us about suffering if we will take the time to listen and learn.

Have  a blessed day, and once again be reminded that God loves you, and Jesus died for you, and that He longs to wrap His arms of love around you and hold you close in every situation, but especially in times of pain and suffering.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

e is a close relationship between individual heartbreak and the broken heartedness of the world.‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 

No images? Click here The Dark Emotions Thursday, March 26, 2020 Author and Episcopal priest Barbara Taylor Brown invites us to consider the lessons that suffering has to teach us [Psychotherapist Miriam] Greenspan says that painful emotions are like the Zen teacher who whacks his students with a flat board right between their shoulder blades when he sees them going to sleep during meditation. If we can learn to tolerate the whack—better yet, to let it wake us up—we may discover the power hidden in the heart of the pain. Though this teaching is central to several of the world’s great religions, it will never have broad appeal, since almost no one wants to go there. Who would stick around to wrestle a dark angel [see Genesis 32:22-31] all night long if there were any chance of escape? The only answer I can think of is this: someone in deep need of blessing; someone willing to limp forever for the blessing that follows the wound.   What such people stand to discover, Greenspan says, is the close relationship between “individual heartbreak and the broken heartedness of the world.” [1] While those who are frightened by the primal energy of dark emotions try to avoid them, becoming more and more cut off from the world at large, those who are willing to wrestle with angels break out of their isolation by dirtying their hands with the emotions that rattle them most.   In this view, the best thing to do when fear has a neck hold on you is to befriend someone who lives in real and constant fear. The best thing to do when you are flattened by despair is to spend time in a community where despair is daily bread. The best thing to do when sadness has your arms twisted behind your back is to sit down with the saddest child you know and say, “Tell me about it. I have all day.” The hardest part about doing any of these things is to do them without insisting that your new teachers make you feel better by acting more cheerful when you are around. After years of being taught that the way to deal with painful emotions is to get rid of them, it can take a lot of reschooling to learn to sit with them instead, finding out from those who feel them what they have learned by sleeping in the wilderness. . . .   “One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light,” Carl Jung wrote, “but by making the darkness conscious.” [2] Reading this, I realize that in a whole lifetime spent with seekers of enlightenment, I have never once heard anyone speak in hushed tones about the value of endarkenment.   What a compelling word and question Brown Taylor invites us to consider: endarkenment. What are we learning about ourselves, each other, and even God through these times?

Leadership Thought: Pack Your Pockets with Pennies and Be an Encourager.

Dear Friends

Are you a hard-wired encourager? I mean does encouragement come natural to you? Are you the kind of person who is always looking  for opportunities to encourage others? I call such people ‘add value lookers.’ No matter where they are or who they are with, they are always searching to find ways to encourage and add value to others.

I am a great believer in spiritual gifts, and I believe at the time of conversion every believer is given at least one spiritual gift, some even more than one.  Peter teaches, “As each one has received a gift, minister to one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God”(1 Peter 4:10). I often wonder what the church or the world would be like if every believer possessed that gift of encouragement.

But alas, we know that not everyone has that gift nor even has that natural  inclination. It sometimes appears that there are those with just the opposite gift, the gift of discouragement. Rather than being encouragers and lifting others up, they are discouragers who look for ways to tear people down. 

You might ask, “What if I am not hardwired to be an encourager, and encouragement is not a normal and natural part of my make-up, what can I do?”

Let me suggest you do the following. At the beginning of each day take five pennies and stuff them in your right pocket. And during the day every time you say something or do something that is encouraging, take one penny out of your right pocket and place it in your left pocket. As you go through the day, continue to look for encouraging things to say and do, and each time you encourage someone simply transfer one of those pennies from your right to your left pocket. At the end of the day, give yourself a pat on the back if your right pocket is empty and your left pocket is full. “Pocket exchanging” is a wonderful way to remind you to become an  intentional encourager, something that many find hard to do. 

When I am talking with people, I often imagine them wearing a sign dangling from their neck that says, “Please help me feel important.” When you are talking with someone, listen or look for something that impresses you about them, and then before you finish your conversation, ask,  “Do you know what I like about you?” and then tell them. Be sincere. This is not the time for some ‘phony baloney.’

If you want to be remembered by people, try being an intentional encourager, yes one of those ‘add value lookers’ I previously mentioned. 

As someone has written, “Flatter me and I may not believe you, criticize me and I may not like you, ignore me and I may never forgive you, but encourage me and I will never forget you.”

Why stop at five pennies? Why not stuff your pocket full of pennies, and then start emptying? I think at the end of the day you’ll be glad you did, but even gladder will be the recipients of your encouragement.

And remember, encouragement is biodegradable; it has a short shelf life as David Jeremiah says, so pack those pockets every day.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: Please Turn Off Your Televisions and Catch the Real News from Dick Haines.

Dear Friends,

Yesterday I received  call from a 92-year-old man in our church. He was checking on people in the church family, and he wanted me to know that he was thinking of me. I thought to myself, “Dick, I should be the one calling and checking up on you.”

I asked him what he was doing with his time, and much to my surprise, he said “I am washing dishes and delivering food to people.”

“Washing dishes where?” I asked. He told me at a restaurant where he was working. Yes, Dick was washing dishes and delivering food for a Mexican restaurant located near his home. I asked him how he got the job, and he said, “ I was just having a cup of coffee with the owner of the  restaurant, and in our conversation I learned that things were tough for him with customers staying home, and so I thought I might be able to give him  hand.”

May Dick’s tribe increase! We need people like Dick Haines in the foot service of our Lord’s army. Always thinking of others, Dick in his other “day job” makes it his point to regularly call and visit our senior saints, drive people to the hospitals in New York City, grocery shops for one of our several shut ins, and yes, finds time to check in on one of his pastors. Of course, this only happens when he is not delivering food or washing dishes for his new understaffed Mexican restaurant friend.

After I hung up the phone, I thought what a blessing to know such servants like Dick. They are the kind of encouragers who keep my own feet moving and my eyes open and looking for opportunities to serve others.

The Bible tell us that we should be encouragers. The Apostle Paul writes, “Encourage one another and all the more as you see the day drawing near” (1 Thess. 5:11).  Dick is doing just that-encouraging others by letting people know he cares about them. And we as believers should be doing the same. He is not wasting his days sitting in front of the television with fingers crossed while fretting and worrying about catching the Coronavirus. He has too many other things to do. The Coronavirus will probably never catch up to him because he’s moving too fast

During this season of our lives when many of us are in “shut down” or “slow down” mode, what a wonderful time to use the internet or the phone to check in with friends, family and neighbors.

Just the other day my three daughters arranged a four-way call with Jean designed  to let her know they cared about and were thinking of her. It was such a change of pace for me to hear them listening and laughing with each other when so many are stressing and stewing over the news. I am not a minimalist. I know we are facing some dangerous and challenging times, and I don’t want to under emphasize the danger that surrounds us, but worry, and anxiety will do nothing to defeat the enemy or make our days better and more enjoyable.

The Psalmist reminds us: “No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; for He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all of your ways.” Psalm 91:10-11

So, my exhortation to you is to press the off button on your remote and get the “real spin,” as you read and listen to the one and only truth that derives from the Word of God.

And yes, after you close the pages of your Bible, which you probably have time to read from cover to cover until the “all clear is sounded,” pick up the phone and call someone, like Dick called me. You will be glad you did, for the quickest way to forget your problems is to think of someone else’s.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Thought for the Day: Did You Hear What I Heard?

Dear Friends,

For the five years I have listened to Minute with Maxwell over the internet. I find it to be a wonderful way to start off my day. Each day in a minute or two, John Maxwell  provides me with a leadership tip or an encouraging comment on some aspect of leadership truth. I think anyone who aspires to be a leader would do himself or herself a great service by tuning in to these short lessons on leadership. They come every day, but at the end of the week, he puts them all together in case anyone missed any of the messages during the week.

Do yourself a favor. Click on each day for the next week to listen and watch a daily message  (found below) and see if listening to John doesn't become one of the first things you do in the morning, of course, after your devotional time with God.

John is a believer, a one-time pastor of one of the largest churches in the 

Wesleyan Methodist  denomination, and you will hear his heart for a Jesus lifestyle in most every one of his messages. If you like the messages, why not ask to receive them regularly. They are free. If you do, I promise they will teach and challenge you to become better leaders.

And for those receiving this e-mail who are a part of our church Spiritual Leadership class, let me ask you two things as I close.

1. What did you read today that has made you a better person/leader? Of course, you read the Word, but anything else? If not, why not find a good leadership book and start by reading a  chapter today. Why do I suggest this? Simply because Leaders are Learners!

Did you do your homework. Let me know if any of you have completed chapter 9 and 10 in Spiritual Leadership by Oswald Sanders, and e-mail me know one thing you loved /learned in your reading.

Have  a blessed weekend,
Tom 

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

• Grit Wins
• Luck is Believing You're Lucky
• Don't Get Stuck in the Hole! 
• Don't Let it Get the Best of You
• Every Moment is a Fresh Beginning

Leadership Thought: Engaging  Others by Asking Questions 

Dear Friends

Do you have trouble connecting with people? A wonderful way to get to know people is by asking a lot of questions.

Jean and I are a part of an exercise program called “Rock Steady” that meets twice a week in Shrewsbury. It’s a boxing program. Yes, that black eye you saw me with may have been the result of a left jab or a right hook that caught me by surprise. Rock Steady is an international program for those diagnosed with Parkinson’s.  Its purpose is not to enhance boxing skills, but to improve the strength, balance, and range of motion of those of those affected with this disease. If you walked into the “training room,” you would see a heavy punching bag and participants wearing boxing gloves. I am Jean’s ‘corner man’ and throughout the one-and-a-half-hour class I assist her with activities like hitting the heavy bag, doing wall pushups, standing and sitting down in front of a chair, and just walking through various obstacle courses. It is fun, but its goal is to encourage those with Parkinson’s to exercise different parts of the body in hopes of slowing down its progression.

I enjoy being there with her as we work through the multiple exercises, many of which are the same exercises done by professional boxers. But the best and most enjoyable part of the class for me is the opening when we all sit in a circle, and the leader asks the eight or ten couples a sharing question. These are fun questions designed to help the boxer (Jean) and her ‘corner man,’ (me) get to know others in the group. Through this sharing time I have learned something about a bombardier who dropped bombs from a B 52 in the Viet Nam War, a former professional baseball player, and a lover of classic country music like me.

You know you can learn a lot about someone, if you will ask enough questions.

Larry King, who made his living speaking to people as a television talk show host, believes that asking questions is the secret of good conversation. He says, “I’m curious about everything, and if I’m at a party I often ask my favorite question:” Why?”  If a man tells me he and his family are moving to another city: “Why?”. If a man tells me he is changing jobs, “Why?”  Someone roots for the Mets, “Why?” (Taken from the Internet, “Questions to Ask During a Learning Session)

Asking questions is a wonderful way to engage others and build relationships that can lead to much deeper and much more personal spiritual conversations. 

My dear friend Dan Herman, who is now the Riverview Hospital chaplain, is in the Kingdom today because of a question I once asked some 20 years ago. After several previous spiritual counseling sessions, I asked Dan a spiritual question as he was leaving my office. I asked Dan, “Where would you wake up today, if after leaving my office you got hit and killed by a truck?” Trust me, not all the questions I ask are quite that direct, and if they were, I probably wouldn’t have many counselees. However, Dan will tell you that this was the question that finally opened his heart to Jesus, and the following session he surrendered his life to the Savior. 

Now, not every question I previously asked of Dan was that deep or that heavy. There were hundreds of less personal, and yes, less threatening questions that led up to Dan’s decision, but his spiritual journey with Jesus began with a lot of little questions that ended up with one big answer, and that answer was saying “Yes” to Jesus.

Don’t ever underestimate the value of asking questions, no matter how trite or unimportant they may seem to be. If you do, you may one day have the joy of seeing one of your best friends come to Jesus. Don’t be an “Answer Man,” but instead be the “Question Man.”

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: The 'Move' That Every Christian Should Make

Dear Friends,

Compassion, someone once wrote is “Your hurt in my heart.” It has been described another way by the well-known writer Frederick Buechner who said, “Compassion is that sometimes fatal capacity for feeling what it's like to live inside somebody else’s skin. It is the knowledge that there can never be any joy and peace for me until there is joy and peace for you as well.”

Jesus was the Master of Compassion. Wherever He went, He had a way of feeling the hurts of the people He met, but it never stopped with just feeling for them. He did something with His feelings. Many of us can be sympathetic and say, “I am sorry,” but compassion “feels and whispers I will help.” Many have been the times I have felt sympathy, but unlike Jesus, I didn’t always  translate that sympathy into compassion, and I am the lesser because of it.

Repeatedly in Matthew’s Gospel, we read of Jesus seeing, feeling, and responding to needs. Again, and again we read that “Jesus was “moved” with compassion.” (9:36; 14:14; 15:32; 22:34). This is the “move” that every Christian should make. The Greek word for compassion means to “suffer with,” which implied that Jesus cared so much it physically affected Him. It’s as if he almost retched, because He was so deeply concerned. 

Dale Galloway, a Presbyterian pastor, shares the following story in his book Rebuild Your Life. “The phone rang in a high society Boston home. On the other end of the line was a son who had just returned from Viet Nam and was calling from California. His folks were the cocktail-circuit, party drinking kind, wife swapping, gambling, and all the other things that go with it. The boy said to his mother, ‘I just called to tell you that I wanted to bring home a buddy with me.’ His mother said, ‘Sure, bring him along for a few days.’ ‘But, mother, there is something you need to know about this boy. One leg is gone, one arm’s gone, one eye's gone, and his face is quite disfigured. Is it all right if I bring him home?’ His mother said, ‘Bring him home for a few days.’ The son said, ‘You didn’t’ understand me, mother. I want to bring him home to live with us.’ The mother began to make all kinds of excuses about embarrassment and what people would think…….and the phone clicked.

A few hours later the police called from California to Boston. The mother picked up the phone again. The police sergeant at the other end said, ‘We just found a boy with one arm, one leg, one eye and a mangled face, who has just killed himself with a shot in the head. The identification papers on the body say he is your son.’” Enough said!

As we walk through life this day, let us be on the lookout for those in search of a little compassion, a little empathy, a little understanding, and don't forget you don't always have to express it with words, "for tears speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues."

Yours in Faith and friendship,
Tom

P.S. Sympathy sees and says, “ I’m sorry.” Compassion feels, and whispers “I will help.”

Leadership Thought: Could You Give Me a Little More Laughter, Please!

Dear Friends

In times of crises there is a need for ‘leadership laughter.’ Amid the panic and fear surrounding our nation as we confront the growing impact  of the corona virus, there seems to be  little space for laughter or humor. 

Now I don’t want to be dismissive of the seriousness of the pandemic that faces us, but I must confess that I wish there was a little more room for some humor and laughter to break up these somber and solemn times. 

Interesting enough the assignment for our next church Spiritual Leadership Class I am helping to lead is chapter 9,  “More Essential Qualities or Leadership.”  And guess what is the  first quality listed? Surprising as it may seem, the first quality of a leader listed is humor. Yes, leaders need to be ‘laughers’

In the first three sentences of the chapter, I was interested to read these words: “Our sense of humor is a gift from God that should be controlled as well as cultivated. Clean, wholesome humor will relax tension and relieve difficult situations. Leaders can use it to displace tension with a sense or the normal.”  Spiritual Leadership, Oswald Sanders, p. 77.

Now obviously Oswald Sanders, who is no longer with us, hadn’t known anything about the  corona virus, but could his words have been  any more relevant or prophetic today when there is such a need for a “ tension relaxer” and something that would bring us back to “a sense of normal?”

Humor is an important quality for the leader in the pulpit to possess. “Criticized for including humor in a sermon, Charles Spurgeon, eye twinkling said, ‘If only you knew how much I hold back, you would commend me.’”   And then he adds, “’The preacher is not quite sure about a smile being a sin and at any rate he thinks it less a  crime to cause a momentary laughter than a half-hour of profound slumber.” Spiritual Leadership, p.78.

Now I am not asking for some reincarnation of Johnny Carson to suddenly appear on the scene, but I do think that even a little hint of humor would help lighten the blanket  of fear that has enveloped our nation.

Bill Wilson, one of the founders of Alcohol Anonymous, prayed, “Please Lord, teach us to laugh again, but God, don’t ever let us forget that we cried.” This statement screams of the word balance. Yes, there is “a time to weep but there is also a time to laugh,” and one without the other would greatly devalue  our lives.

And so, in the interest of coming down on the side of laughter and hopefully doing my best to dispel the shroud of fear and sadness pervading our land, I share the following story: 

Three young men left home and all did exceedingly well financially. They were bragging about how they had honored their mother with the gifts they had given to her on her birthday. 

One brother told how he has provided a gift of a 20-room mansion for his mother. 

The second son told how he has purchased the top of the line Mercedes Benz for his mother and even  included a driver with it. 

The third son bragged he has bought an expensive parrot for his mother. His mother  loved the Bible but had lost her sight, and this parrot had been trained to memorize every chapter and verse in the bible. The son told how it has been trained in a far-off Asian monastery and how  for each of the last  twenty years  he had  paid the trainers ten thousand dollars annually to continue its memorization of the entire bible.  He knew his mom would love his gift for now whenever she had trouble seeing and reading a  verse, she could ask the parrot to simply recite it for her.

Later  each of the boys received letters from their mom acknowledging their gifts. To Marvin, her first son, she said “I received the gift of the mansion, but since I don’t move around much anymore, and live in only one room,  I hate the thought of having to clean all those other rooms.”

To Morris she wrote” I received the gift of the expensive car, but since I am old, I don’t go out anymore and so I don’t  need it, and the driver you sent me was rude so  I fired him.”

And finally, to the third son, she wrote. “Mitchell, I knew how much you loved me and how you would send me the perfect gift. Thanks for the wonderful chicken I just enjoyed for dinner!”

Have a great day, and please no e-mails from those who might think it  irreverent to encourage laughter in "such a time as this." 

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: Do You Want to Stop Worrying About the Coronavirus, Please Read This.

Dear Friends,

Are you worried about the Corona Virus? If not, you are probably in the minority, or at least it seems that way. The other day I made a shopping  foray to the local  grocery store to buy some milk, bread and dog food. I couldn't believe what I saw. The parking lot was filled with cars. Inside the store the check-out lines stretched  from the back of the store to the cash registers in the front. As I waited in line, I couldn't help noticing the empty shelves as I waited over 30 minutes to check out my few groceries. I confess my first response was anger. Why are people hoarding food and things like toilet paper? Why are people making two and three trips to insure they have enough bottled water to last them for a year? Isn't tap water sufficient for times of hydration? As a nation we are in a full-on panic mode.

 But then there is the senior saint I called yesterday. Ethel Halvorsen lives in Seabrook, an assisted living complex in Tinton Falls. At over 90 she has things in perspective, and we all can learn from her. As we chatted about how she was doing, our conversation turned to the corona virus. I wondered if she would respond like the countless people I have met or heard  who are so stressed out?  This was not Ethel, however. Calm, unfazed by all that is going on in the outside world, she sits in her chair and reads her bible. I asked her why she was not worried like much of the rest of the world, and she mentioned she has claimed Ps. 91:10, I remembered the 91 Psalm, one of my favorites, but for the life of me I couldn’t recall verse 10. We both hurried for our bibles-a telephone bible sword drill if you will- as we each sought to be the first to find and quote the verse. I won! I read “No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling.” And then there is the wonderful follow up promise in v. 11: “For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.” Talk about a couple of “Virus Verses.” There you have them. For Ethel, faith will always conquer fear, and for us the antidote is the same. If those verses are not enough, turn to Matthew 6:33-34 for another dose of spiritual fortification.

Now I don't want to dismiss the need to be careful and vigilant as we deal with this pandemic which is stressing so many, but I can’t help but think that the world would be a lot less stressed if we had more people like Ethel Halvorsen walking around.

This morning I listened to a short one-and-a-half-minute  message by one of my favorite preachers, evangelist Greg Laurie, who put things in perspective for me  with a three point, three "P" sermon. He said, “ Be Practical”. Take precautions. Wash your hands with soap, keep your hands away from your face, stay away from large crowds...…...…...…….you know the rest by heart.

“Be Prayerful.” Instead of using up your time getting more stressed  as you sit in front of the television listening to the dire predictions of what could be, use the time to pray. Pray for those who have the virus, pray for those working with those who have contracted the virus, pray for those who are stressed out by the virus. Pray, pray, pray and pray some more. While doing so, be reminded of Philippians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” And finally, number 3, "Proclaim." Use this time as an opportunity to share your faith and the hope you have in Jesus. We need not worry for we know that He is the One who has defeated sin and death. God is bigger than the corona virus or any other fear that might seek to enslave you.

And I would add a fourth P. "Don't panic." Panic is never productive. Worry is never helpful. The word for worry comes from an old English term that means to “choke or strangle” and that is what worry  will do. “Worry, as someone said, “does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, it empties today of its strength.”

So,  in conclusion, why not turn off the television, grab the Book, the Bible of course, just as Ethel does, open the word, and then pray away any worry or stress that may be stealing peace from your heart.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

Leadership Thought: The Power of the Listening Ear.

Dear Friends

Tucked away in Romans is a verse that recently caught my attention.  I have a lot of verses on encouragement underlined in my bible because I think encouragement is so important. It is a gift that everyone needs, while at the same time, it is the gift that everyone has the power to give. Paul writes in Romans 14:19 “Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify  another.”

The word edify means to build one up.  As leaders we should always be looking for opportunities to build people up, not beat them down. We should be firelighters, encouraging others and spurring them on, and not firefighters, dousing dreams and dampening spirits.

As leaders let us look for every occasion to encourage and edify others, especially   when we see them doing something positive. Let us also  expect the best from them for how true it is that people often live up to the expectations we place upon them.

But another way we can build others up is by being good listeners. One of the best ways you can demonstrate God’s love for someone is by listening with your heart to hear the ways you might be able to meet their needs. When you are listening with your heart, you are loving, and there is not much difference between love and listening, for they are inextricably linked together. Listening to someone shows respect for them. It communicates they are important, and that you think they have something of value to offer.

Mother Teresa, when once  asked what she said during her prayers, she replied, “I listen.” The reporter then asked, “Well then, what does God say?” Mother Teresa answered with a smile, “God listens.” Listening is love and if  the God of love listens to our very own hearts, how much more do  we need to listen with our hearts to  the hurts and hopes of others. You and I can make a difference today in someone's life, and all this is needed is a couple of listening ears.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Pastor Tom

Leadership Thought: Take Time to Get to Know the People with Whom You Work

Dear Friend,

Leaders take the time to know their people.

You and I have taken a lot of tests in school in our day, but I bet you have never taken a test like the following. A professor gave his class a pop quiz that seemed fairly easy. One student breezed through the test without any difficulty, but then he came to the last question. The question read, “What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?” The student thought to himself, I had seen the cleaning woman several times, and she was tall, dark-haired and in her fifties, but how would I know her name? He handed in his paper leaving the last question  blank. Just before the class ended, one student asked If the last question would count toward his quiz grade.

“Absolutely.” said the professor. “In your careers, you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say hello.” I have never forgotten that lesson, the student said.

I shared this same story a  number of years ago while serving at Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale, a large church with over 400 employees. Everybody knew the name of Pastor Bob and a number of the other pastors on our staff, but how many knew  the names  Brad, or Phil or Shayla, or Chuck or Jeannie, or Jen or Bruce, or Todd, or Jason or Mike or…………………….. These were the names of just a few of the employees who were a part of the facilities' department who took care of the grounds, cleaned our offices, or helped make sure we were properly fed and served in the church restaurant? They were our unsung heroes who were a very important part of the Calvary Chapel team. 

This story has always served as a good reminder to me to make a special effort to get to know the people who serve alongside of me whether in the church, school, or workplace. They are an important part of the team,  and you and I need to be alert for opportunities to recognize and affirm them for the services they provide and the contributions they make. 

One way we can do this is to  greet them by name, and if we don’t know their name,  simply thank them for what they do and then ask them to tell us their name. Compliment and thanks them for what they do. “I have been noticing  the wonderful way you greet people and make them feel so special" or "how diligent you are in responding to whatever needs I have," or "I want to thank you for making the grounds looks so beautiful. Could you tell me you name, so that I might be able to pray for you?"

There are many ways to make people feel special, and if we have a heart in tune with the Lord, He will show us the ways to help people feel special.

We all need to keep in mind the words of Paul who taught us that “God has arranged the parts in the body, everyone one of them, just as he wanted them . If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye can’t say to the hand, I don’t need you! And the head cannot say to the feet, I don’t need you! Those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat them with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given even greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.” 1 Corinthians 12:18-27

Oh yes, in case you wanted to  know the name of  the woman- it was Dorothy.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Pastor Tom

Leadership Thought: "Talent Wins Games, but Teams Wins Championships"

Dear Friend,

At our church staff meeting yesterday, I asked our team members, "What was the best team, sports or otherwise, they ever played on and why." It was interesting to hear their answers. Most mentioned athletic teams on which they played and they identified characteristics like common goals, encouraging coaches, excellent work ethic and outstanding chemistry, but few mentioned a characteristic that I would consider to be the  most important ingredient, and that would be unselfish players or team members.

Coach John Wooden, who may have been the best coach ever, regardless of the sport, had something very interesting to say about the importance of having unselfish basketball players on his team. He often pointed out that the team with the five best players didn’t always triumph on the basketball court. One would think that this would be the case, but Coach Wooden explained that this was not always true. He went on to describe a situation where one of his greatest players often sat the bench next to him during the game. The player would say to him, “Coach, you know I am the best and most talented player on the team, so why am I on the bench?” And Coach Wooden would respond, “Yes, Sydney, I know you are the best player on the team but the team doesn’t play its best when you are on the floor.” As a former high school basketball coach, I know Wooden’s statement to be true. 

If your best basketball player happens to be selfish and is one who plays for himself and not the team, then he is going to find himself riding the bench for much of the time. Teams are not going to be particularly successful unless everyone is willing to unselfishly contribute to the success of the team.

If you have ever played a sport, you have probably heard those familiar clichés: “There is no I in team.” and “Teamwork makes dream work,” and “One is too small a number to achieve greatness,” and while they may be clichés, they are true and accurate statements regarding the  value of teamwork to the success of a team.

I am told that there hangs a sign in the New England Patriots locker room which reminds players that “Individuals play the game, but teams win championships.”

The writer and leadership expert John Maxwell said “The true measure of team leadership is not getting people to work. Neither is it getting people to work hard. The true measure of a leader is getting people to work hard together.” 

And perhaps the greatest basketball player ever, Michael Jordan, comments “One thing I believe to the fullest is that if you think and achieve as a team, the individual accolades will take care of themselves. Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.”

If you want to be a successful coach with a long tenure, you had better cultivate players who place a high premium on adding value to others. If you have a team, whether on the playing field, or in the church, or in the workplace, you must have members who are willing to subordinate their own goals for the good of the team. Teams that do that may find the smartest and most talented member on the bench or on the outside looking in, because raw talent doesn’t win in any field of life. As one coach of mine used to say to us, “You need to check your egos at the door.” Good advice, but sometimes hard to follow, unless in fact,  you are truly committed to your team’s success. 

Yours in faith and friendship,
Pastor Tom

Leadership Thought: Failure, Why Chippie Doesn’t Sing Much Anymore 

Dear Friends,

It has been said that the victorious Christian life is a series of new beginnings.

The Psalmist writes “If the Lord delights in a man’s way he makes his steps firm, though he stumble he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with His hand (Psalm 37:23-24). We all will stumble or worse yet, step into sin, but those who are sincere and repentant will find the hand of the Lord ready to lift them up and help lead them to a new beginning. They don’t have to live in the muck and mire of their past failures.

Chuck Swindoll tells the story of Chippie the parakeet. He said the bird’s problems began when the woman who owned him decided to clean up the seeds and loose feathers from the bottom of his cage using a vacuum. When the phone rang, the owner turned to pick it you and you guessed it-with a thud and a whoosh Chippie was gone. The owner quickly tuned off the vacuum and unzipped the bag. There was Chippie. He was stunned but breathing. Seeing that he was covered with black dust, his owner rushed Chippie to the bathtub where she turned on the faucet full blast and held the bird under the icy water. At that point she realized that she’d done even more damage, and she quickly cranked up her blow dryer and gave the wet shivering little parakeet a blast. Swindoll finished the story by saying, Chippie doesn’t sing much anymore (Quoted from Failing Forward John Maxwell, p 77).

Maxwell writes that “There are people like Chippie, who have had some bad experience in life, and who don’t sing much anymore.” They have lost their song, their joy, their enthusiasm, and their zest or living. They no longer will take risks for fear of failing again so they live as prisoners of their past held up in their little cocoon of self-pity simply having checked out of life. Rather than learning from the past and not making the same mistake again, they live in the past as its prisoner. Learning from the past is healthy. It leads to change, but living in the past is unhealthy, even deadly.

May God help us to realize that His hand is upon us when we fail, and He is ever ready to lift us, and steady us, and start us on the road of new beginnings.

The Apostle Paul said it this way: “But one thing I do forgetting what is behind

and straining toward to what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:13-14

That is great advice and each one of us who has ever failed in life needs to heed and hang on to it.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom

P.S.  “Often the doorway to success is entered through the hallway of failure.” Erwin Lutzer (Taken from Quotations  for the Christian World, Edythe Draper, p197