Leadership Thoughts: Farewell for a Season????????

Dear Friends, 

Later this morning I'm heading to the lake for summer vacation, and I will be gone for much of the summer. In the past I've continued writing a daily Leadership Thought while on vacation, but this summer I'm planning to reduce the amount of time I spend at my computer keyboard, so I can enjoy more time with my family and friends. I haven't yet decided how this decision will impact my communication, but hopefully with some time away, I will have a clearer sense of how I would like to spend the next few months. Right now, I plan to take a few days to refresh and recharge (hopefully catch some bass and work in the garden), and after that, I trust I will have a clearer sense of how I will spend the summer.

As I have shared with you before, I write because it is an important, and I believe, a necessary discipline for me. It keeps me reading, thinking, and reflecting on things which are important to me. The more you write, the more you improve, and improvement has always been a goal of my life, regardless of whatever the area in which I have been involved. Yes, I want to  be a better writer and communicator, but I also want to be a better small mouth bass fisherman, flower gardener, pastor, husband, father, grandfather, and a good friend, and all of these things take time and work and the "B Word" balance, something that I have never been particularly good at.

One of the bi products of writing is that I not only get to share with you some of the things that are important to me, while staying in touch with people like  you, friends from the present and the past who have meant so very much to me.

Well, the longer I write, the more this is beginning to feel like a leadership thought, and that was not my intended desire.

My desire was to let you know I'm grateful for your friendship, and to let you know how much I appreciate hearing from you from time to time. I probably wouldn't keep writing without having friends who keep on reading, so thanks for your encouragement. 

As I have said, growth is important to me, so I want to continue growing, and one of the most important areas of growth for me is my spiritual growth. I want to always be "growing in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18).

I hope this summer you might take some time to concentrate on your spiritual growth as well.  Paul writes to the Colossians, "For you have been raised with Christ, (so) set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God" Col. 3:1-3).

I hope you will find some time this summer to "set your mind on things above," and that when you do, God will speak to you in ways He has never spoken to you before.

I know it can be an overused cliché, but I don't care if it is: "God loves you and so do I," and that's the truth!" 

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

P.S. If you ever stray to areas in Northern New York-we are 60 miles north of Syracuse on Lake Ontario in Henderson Harbor, N.Y- I hope you will give me a call, as Jean and I would love to welcome you. 954 605 2825

Leadership Thought: Do You Know What MMFI Means?

Dear Friends,

One of the rewards of sharing “Leadership Thoughts” is the e-mails I sometimes receive from readers who respond with their personal reactions to what I have written. They often share a comment about what they have learned or experienced regarding the thoughts I've shared. One such e-mail response came yesterday from Marty, who writes: “Your story yesterday of the young restaurant owner assuring the lady there would always be a Diet Dr. Pepper in the cooler for her, reminded me of a slogan a former boss taught us; He made signs for everyone to post above their doors on the inside opening that read ‘MMFI’---simply meaning, ‘Make Me Feel Important’!” Thanks, Marty, for sharing the way one person encouraged you to help make others feel important.

I e-mailed Marty back and shared a few of ways I have learned to help people feel important:

• put your mother’s face on the face of everyone you meet.
• envision a sign hanging around the neck of everyone with whom you speak reading,  ‘please help me feel important.’
• put a 10 on the forehead of everyone with whom you are with.

Thanks Marty, and for those others of you for sharing your thoughts and words of encouragement. They keep me writing.

On the same subject of encouragement, I share some thoughts on the subject from a podcast I listened to yesterday by John Maxwell who is the “King of Encouragement.” The following are some of the thoughts he shared.

“How do you identify someone who needs encouragement? That person is breathing. Truett Cathy (Chick-fil-A founder) Yes, I might add,  no one can live very long without encouragement.

                                                        Five things to know about people:

1. Everybody wants to be a somebody.

2. Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care.

3. Everybody needs somebody.

4. Anybody who helps somebody influences a lot of bodies

5. Today, somebody will rise up and become somebody.

“Encouragement makes people better, People get better when we: value them, praise effort, and reward their performance.”

“There are high spots in all of our lives and most of them have come about through encouragement from someone else.” George M. Adams

“People will go further then they think they can go when someone else thinks they can.”

“The greatest good you can do for another is not just share your riches, but reveal to him his own.” Benjamin Disraeli

“Treat a man as he appears to be, and you make him worse. But treat a man as if he already were what he potentially could be, and you make him what he should be. Goethe

I hope one or two of the above thoughts on encouragement will stick with you. I close with my most important thought on encouragement, a thought I memorized many years ago. “Don’t let any unwholesome word come out of your mouths, but only what that which is helpful for building others up according to their need” (Ephesians 4:29).

Have a great weekend and don’t forget to add to your things to do list: Find one person you might encourage, and encourage them for as Samuel Goldwyn was fond of saying, "If you do, you will make two people happy."

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

Leadership Thought: Little Things Do Make a Difference.

Dear Friends,

“It's the little things that make the difference.” How many times have we heard that expression, and yet its frequency never seems to dull its essential truth? “Little things do make a big difference.” That's why I enjoy shopping at Walmart. The moment I enter the store there is someone there to greet me and make me feel welcome. In the aisles I will see blue vested employees with “How can I help you,” emblazoned on their backs. And when you take the opportunity to ask for information, my experience has been that their service-oriented employees will go out of their way to help assist you. They don’t point. They ‘travel’ with you.

It's the little things that make the difference. A good motel delivers a clean room with a bed. A great motel offers crisp sheets, a guest paper, freshly brewed coffee, and a neatly wrapped piece of chocolate tucked under your pillow. What's the difference? Not much and that just my point. It's the little things that keep you coming back to shop, to rest, and yes, even to go to church.

It is the little things that make a difference in the way people view your church. It's the willingness of its members to do the little things that catch your attention. It's taking time to lead someone to the reception area, rather than just pointing out directions. It's the umbrella offered in the rain, or the smile on the face, and the words, “How may I help you,” from the lips of the church secretary that communicates this church really cares about you.

Many people will visit a church because of a gifted teacher, but the glue that holds them and keeps them coming back is the way they were treated by those who represent the face of Christ? I suggest that it is the little things that make the difference between a one-time visit and a long-time member.

All this reminds me of a story I read titled, “Just What the Doctor Ordered.” A young entrepreneur in Gilmore Texas, opened a fast-food franchise along with two partners. During their first week in operation, he overheard two ladies in the restaurant talking about their disappointment with the soft drink selection. One of the ladies, who was diabetic, wished they had diet Dr Pepper.

The entrepreneur got in his car, drove to the nearest convenience store, purchased a 6 pack of diet Dr Pepper, and returned to his restaurant. Then he brought the lady a cup of ice and a can of the drink.

“Ma'am, he said,  there will always be a case of diet Dr Pepper with your name on it in a refrigerator in the back. Anytime you come, you just tell the person at the counter who you are and that you would like a diet Dr Pepper, and they'll get it for you.”

The woman was shocked.

“Young man,” she said, “I have lived in this town my whole life. I have many influential friends and they will hear what you just did for me. Thank you. From now on, we will be regular customers,”  and she was as good as her word. (Success One Day at a Time, John Maxwell, p. 37).

Rebecca had well learned the principle that little things make a difference.  It all started with drawing water and ended with a husband named Isaac. Eliezer had been sent by Abraham to find a wife for his son Isaac. One day while his camels were needing water, he came upon Rebekah, and he noted something unique about her. It was demonstrated in her drawing of water for his camels. She did so willingly and so quickly. The pots used for carrying water were large and heavy. It took a lot of water to satisfy a thirsty camel- up to 25 gallons per camel after a week’s travel. Seeing Rebecca go to work, Eliezer knew this was a woman with a heart for doing far more than the bare minimum. And it was her service that singled her out, and resulted in her becoming Isaac’s wife (Life Application Study Bible, Genesis 24: 18 -21).

Yes I would like to be more like those Walmart helpful employees, and the young man  who went the extra mile to bring pleasure to a tired and thirsty lady, and like Rebecca, who did more than just the minimum, and in doing so found a husband. But most of all I want to be like Christ, “Who, being in very nature God,  did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant” (Philippians 2: 6-7).  

As we go about our day, let's not forget the lesson that “little things make a difference,” because they do.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

Leadership Thought: How Good Are You at Balancing Truth with Tact? A Parking Lot Experience I Will Never Forget.

Dear Friends,

“Tact and truth are two concepts that rarely mix; However, when they do, one knows that he is in the presence of leadership greatness.”

These words captured my attention this morning as I was reflecting on the difficulty of balancing truth and tact. They were penned by Orrin Woodward in an article he titled “Truth and Tact: The Art of Loving People and Truth.” In his article he quotes the 19^th century writer, J. R Miller who writes, “Evil is wrought by lack of thought-as well as lack of heart.”

I will never forget a note that was left on the windshield of my car a number of years ago. I was in a hurry to pick up a church van, and because I was late, I left my car in the closest space to where the van was to be picked up. A few hours later when I returned the van to the church parking lot, I was surprised to discover a note that had been left on my windshield. It read, “If you're going to park illegally in a handicap space, please use only one, (underlined five times), not 3 spaces! And then what really caught my attention were the final words.  “God bless you.”

I know a lot of people who deliver the truth like a 10-ton truck. You best get out of their way when they have something to say for fear that they will steamroll right over you.

But this brother had a wonderful handle on the skill of communication. He had beautifully mixed together truth and tact. The message was clear, and I received it, and I felt sorry that I had unintentionally created potential problems for others who might wished to have parked in one of the three spaces I occupied. However, he camouflaged the truth of his message with such grace filled tact that I had to laugh when I read his words. “God bless you,” were the honey that helped the medicine go down. I wish I could communicate like him.

Someone said, “Tact is the art of making a point without making an enemy,” and my undiscovered security friend had learned that lesson well. Chuck Swindoll eloquently writes, “Tact graces life like fragrance graces a rose. One whiff erases any memory of the thorns.”

Paul exhorts us to let” our speech always be grace filled, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one” (Colossians 4:6).

We all know how easy it is to win an argument and lose a friend in the process. There is a time for truth, but it must be delivered gently and with sensitivity lest it not be heard. Solomon writes, “The tongue of the wise brings healing, (Prov 12:18), and “a man has joy in an apt answer and how delightful is a timely word.” (Prov. 15:23).

Today and every day, let's remember that a message delivered gently and sensitively, and yet truthfully, is like the fragrance of a rose and can erase any memory of the thorns.”

I close with the words from J. R Miller who I mentioned above, who wisely writes “There is no better way to acquire this wonder working tact- then by becoming filled with the spirit of Christ. Warm love in the heart for all men, unselfish, thoughtful, kind- will always find some beautiful way to perform its beneficent ministries.”

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

PS. For anyone who would like to read more about the importance of balancing  truth and tact, I encourage you to google “Truth and Tact the Art of Loving People and Truth by Orrin Woodward.” His message includes the excellent article on the same subject by J. R. Miller. 

Leadership Thought: Would You Rather Have Grit or Giftedness?

Dear Friends,

The other day I listened to a podcast where the speaker used the word “grit” in describing a key quality of successful people. I thought to myself that is a great word. It’s a core strength of leaders, and it often determines whether you will fail or succeed in life.

Angela Duckworth, a leading expert on grit, says that, “Grit is passion and sustained persistence applied toward long term achievement, with no particular concern for rewards or recognition along the way. It combines resilience, ambition and self-control in the pursuit of goals that take months, years and even decades.”

If you possess grit, you are the kind of person who has tenacity, and determination (nothing will keep you from achieving your goals). Grit will help you get up no matter how many times you get knocked down. Grit will overcome a lot of deficiencies in your life. You won’t always be the smartest and most gifted person in the world, but if you have grit, the chances are you will be successful for grittiness will almost always overcome giftedness.

You may possess exceptional talent, gifts, and ability, but without grit, others less talented and with less ability will pass you by. I used to tell my son, slow and steady wins the race. You may not be the first one out of the starting blocks, but life is not a sprint, but a marathon, and if you possess grit, you’ll eventually outdistance the seemingly more gifted in the race.

If you have grit, it means you will work a little harder, last a little longer, fight a little tougher, and in the end your grit will win over other’s giftedness. I would rather have a lot of grit with fewer gifts than a lot of gifts with little grit.

One has no farther to look than the Apostle Paul to find an example of one who possessed grit, and I believe it was this quality that made him the spiritual giant he was. He was steadfast, a great synonym for grit. He never quit or gave up. He never backed down no matter the challenge, and even when death stared him in the eye, death always blinked first. He writes to us, “My dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1  Corinthians 15: 58).

In relating challenges believers would face in the last days when they would come face to face the dangers of spiritual compromise, he exhorts his disciples “To stand firm and you will gain life.

Call it determination, endurance, steadfastness, or grit, we need this quality in our professional and spiritual lives. Like the banking commercial says, “Don’t leave home without it.”

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

 

P.S. David Livingstone said it best. "I will go anywhere-provided it be forward."

Leadership Thought: What Kind of Leader Are You?

Dear Friends,

What kind of leader are you? Are you one who is more concerned about results than relationships, process more than people? Do you lead first and love second or love first and lead second?

Good leaders are able to do both simultaneously. They never lose sight of their goals, what they are called to achieve, but they never forget the people who help them achieve those goals.

The leader can be successful and knowledgeable in his field, and possess a vision to see possibilities long before others see them, but without people skills, he quickly discovers the truth that  “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

Everyone who serves on a team wants to know he or she is loved and appreciated. That is why it is so important for a leader to love his people. If a leader doesn’t love his people, it won’t be long before the leader starts manipulating and taking advantage of them.

Long ago I read words I have never forgotten: “A leader leads by serving and serves by leading.” Good leaders both lead their people and love and serve their people.

Research has shown that if employees work in a culture where love, affection, care, and compassion are present, they are more satisfied with their job, more committed to the organization, and are more accountable for their performance. No one wants to work in an environment where the only bottom line is the dollar sign, and where the leader uses his people and doesn’t love his people. When this happens, leaders become more committed to satisfying their investors than investing in their people.

If you don’t love your people, you fail them. You will take advantage of them and abuse them, and in the process, they will lose respect for you, and often this lack of a caring culture will become the company’s demise.

Lording leaders’ want what best for themselves. Loving leaders want what’s best for their people.

The consummate example of leadership is our Lord who taught us to always “love one another” (John 15:12). But then He becomes more specific and takes the challenge to a more daunting level when He tells us that the love, He describes should be the same kind of self-sacrificing love with which He has loved us.

To love your people as Christ loved us, doesn’t mean that a leader neglects accountability or ignores people deficiencies or lowers his expectations of his employees, for the leader who loves his people wants the best for his people and wants them to be their very best.

It has been said that it is wonderful when the people believe in their leader, but it is even more wonderful when the leader believes in and loves his people. That is the kind of win-win situation that every leader and every employee desires.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

Leadership Thought: The Day I Discovered I Was Published.

Dear Friends,

I love to encourage people. I think the reason I love to do so is because I know how much encouragement has meant to me  throughout my life. Writing a daily Leadership Thought is not always easy. Sometimes I wake up very early, and I have no idea what I am going to say, and even when I do think I might have something worth sharing, I have no idea how to express it.  Writing is work and quite honesty there have been a number of  times when I have thought to myself maybe I should reinvest my early morning hours in doing something different, but each time I do, I receive a letter from someone, as I did the other day, encouraging me to continue writing.

The e-mail came from a friend in South Florida, and it was the P.S. that caught my special attention. “II don’t think it’s God’s timing for you to stop writing daily ‘devos.’ Just ‘sayin.’” Thanks, Tina Reeder, for taking the time to encourage me, and thank you for the many others of you who over the years have kept me writing because of your kind and encouraging words.

A few months ago, one of our church leaders surprised me with a gift that I will never forget. It was a book titled The Home Run, Leadership Lessons from the Coach. And guess who wrote it? Below the title in big letters was the author’s name-Tom Crenshaw.

For the last two-year Dan has casually encouraged me to put some of my devotionals in book form, but I had always dismissed the thought as I have never had any self-inflated views of my writing skills. In fact, I write more for my own benefit than for the benefit of others. I write because it is a good discipline and because I know the more, I write the better I will become, and improvement, regardless of the area, is something that I have always sought to pursue.

You and I are different because of the people we have been around. Fortunately, I have been around lid lifters, people who want to lift me to higher levels than where they found me. My mom, my high school and college coaches, pastors I have known, associates with whom I have served, and a multitude of friends like Dan Brennan, Tina Reeder, Ned Newland as well as some of you reading this have been some of my life’s greatest cheerleaders.

Benjamin Disraeli has written, “The greatest good you can do for another is not just share your riches, but reveal to him his own.”

George Adams writes, “There are high spots in all of our lives and most of them have come about through encouragement from someone else.”

You and I are the products of the people with whom we have associated, unfortunately some may have been like anchors in our boat. They have dragged us down with  words of criticism and disapproval that have left us feeling discouraged and defeated. Others, however, have been the wind beneath our wings. Their  words have lifted us and inspired and encouraged us to be the best we can be.

It has been said that people will go farther than they think they can when someone else thinks they can, and I know this to be true.

Oh, you won’t have to worry about standing in line to purchase my book in Barnes and Noble for only a limited number of copies have been published. In fact, the number is very limited-maybe 25 or so to accommodate my family and a few of my cheerleading friends. However, 25 is a start, so keep your eyes focused on the Best-Selling Books lists, for another 25 may soon be printed. And if you happen to be lucky enough to purchase a copy, please don’t ask me to autograph it, for my neuropic fingers only type but no longer  write.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

P.S. Think about someone who might need a little encouragement and send them a note or give them a call. Who knows how high the wind of your words might lift them, but I assure you they’ll enjoy the flight and you’ll enjoy watching them.

Leadership Thought: Secretaries, and Other Church Leaders, “You Don’t Always Have to Be Nice.”

Dear Friends,

I sent the message below to our church secretary, who is one of the nicest and kindest persons you will ever meet. I wanted her to know, as I indicated in my letter to her, that while we appreciate her warm and friendly spirit and the wonderful way she makes people feel after spending time with her, that her job security does not require her to be nice all the time.

Now don’t get me wrong. I do think it is important for the face of the church to be pleasant when she speaks to people on the phone or in person, but that expectation only goes so far. Should people take advantage of her kindness, or presume she has nothing else to do except address their needs, I draw the line. I told her it was Ok to growl occasionally-one of the best things a church secretary can do to relive tension, and that the rest of the staff would even be Ok with an occasional scream so long as it remained a decibel or two below a train whistle.

No one has to remain quiet and unresponsive when disrespected or taken advantage of, and that goes for anyone, not just church secretaries.

I have been privileged to work with a number of great church secretaries over the years, and I know how hard they work and how committed they are to serving others. I tend to several flower gardens with my secretary in mind, for long ago I learned that if you bring your secretary flowers, you will  have a happy and devoted secretary who not only likes you, but who will defend you to the death. And who doesn't need a little additional job security?

So, to you Karen, Denise, Debby, Karen, Lynn, Megan, and any other secretaries I have been blessed to minister with over some fifty years of ministry, I dedicate the message below to you. And to those who read this and who aren’t secretaries, I remind you that you too don’t have to grin when you feel like growling.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

“Biblical Leaders Don’t Have to Be Nice All the Time,” Tom Harper, Biblical Leadership, June 7, 2021,

“I don't envy those of you in church leadership.

You have pressures those of us in the marketplace don't have. When you let a staff member go, you often have a tougher time because you've been at his family's hospital bedside, done their funerals, conducted their marriages or counseled them through personal crises. When we part ways with employees, the roots aren't as deep, and the aftermath doesn't last as long or spread among entire families like in the church.

Whether you lead in ministry or any kind of organization, Solomon has some great advice (and I paraphrase): "Be nice. But sometimes don't be nice."

That's a relief on one hand – it's okay to not to be liked all the time. On the other, especially for us people pleasers, it's frightening. What do you mean, don't be nice? Most of us actually care about what people think.

Let's look at a passage in Ecclesiastes you've heard before:

Ecclesiastes 3:3-8
³ There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
²a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
³a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
⁴a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
⁵a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
⁶a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
⁷a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
⁸a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

Jesus himself said, "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword" (Matthew 10:34).

If you too must be a peace breaker from time to time, remember you're in good company. Jesus showed the way we need to be when short-term peace is detrimental to the greater good."

Leadership Thought: How Far Can Your Joy Be Heard?

Dear Friends,

How far is your joy heard? The kind of joy  I'm thinking about  is the earth-shaking kind, the kind that rattles the very foundation of a community. It is the  kind that reverberates through a community like the  backside of a hurricane. It is the same kind of joy that was experienced in Nehemiah’s day as the community came together to celebrate the rebuilding of the walls surrounding Jerusalem.

If you want to read about what biblical joy sounds like, you might want to flip to the 12th chapter of Nehemiah. As you read this chapter, I suggest that you try and imagine the joyful expressions of thankfulness that must have resounded from the top of the wall as Levite's joined with choirs, and special singing groups who were surrounded by the sounds of symbols, lyres and harps all joining together to create a symphony of joyful praise. The joy of the Lord could not only be heard in Jerusalem but in places far distant from those walls (Nehemiah 12: 43)

I haven't heard a lot of that kind of joy expressed over the past year. Instead there has been fear and sadness, and  lots of frustration during a time when people were longing for the Pandemic to be over, and a time of  normalcy to return.

I am happy to say, however, that what little joy I have heard, has come from my colleagues in the faith here in our church, and that is the way it should be. We are a people that should be able to “rejoice in the Lord, always”(Philippians 4: 4), and that includes even in the midst of a Pandemic, for our joy is not based on outward circumstances but in the Lord.

It is worth remembering what Larry Crabb has written in Effective Biblical Counseling, when he discusses  the difference between joy and happiness.

“Many of us place top priority not on becoming Christ like in the middle of our problems, but on finding happiness. I want to be happy, but the paradoxical truth is that I will never be happy if I am concerned primarily with becoming happy. My overriding goal must be in every circumstance to respond biblically, and  to put the Lord first, to seek to behave as He would want me to. The wonderful truth is that as we devote all our energies to the task of becoming what Christ wants us to be, He fills us with joy unspeakable and the peace far surpassing what the world offers.”

“Paul said it was his ambition (goal) not to become happy but to please God at every moment. What a transforming thought! When I drive my car to work and someone cuts me off, when my kids act up during church, when the dishwasher breaks,”  and yes, I might add, even when my wife, Jean goes on a trip taking  my only set of keys with her-it just happened……… (Through all of this) “my primary responsibility is to please God.” (Effective Biblical Counseling, Lawrence Crabb, pp. 20- 21).

Simply put if you want to be happy, you won't find it by seeking happiness. You will only find it through seeking the Lord. And when you do, you will not only discover happiness, but in the process, you will find something even greater-joy, real joy, the kind  that is never dependent on circumstances, but which is always dependent on the Lord.

Speaker and writer Tony Campollo reminds us, "The Kingdom of God is a Party.” And if this is true, and I believe it is, and if God’s will for us is to “rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in all situations (1 Thess. 5:16-18),  then let’s put on our party hats and start to celebrate.

Yours in faith and friendship.

Tom

P.S. And didn’t Jesus say, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be full.”

Leadership Thought: Wise Words as Rick Warren Steps Down as Saddleback’s Pastor.

Dear Friends,

Rick Warren, pastor at Saddleback Church in California has been a wonderful friend and mentor of mine.  Now, I don’t know him personally, only indirectly through his books, U tube messages, and leadership e-mails, and I am grateful to be the beneficiary of his wisdom and pastoral and professional leadership abilities.

His Purpose Driven Life is one of the bestselling books of all time, having sold 40 million copies.  If you haven’t read it, do yourself a favor and  purchase a copy today. I promise you; it will be a great investment of your time and money.

Rick started Saddleback church 42 years ago, and today it is one of the largest churches in the country with over 30,000 weekly worshippers, with thousands more on different campuses in California as well as on campuses all around the world, including Buenos Aires, Hong Kong, and Berlin.  The church recently celebrated their 50,000^th baptism.

Throughout his 42 years of ministry as founding pastor of Saddleback Church, Rick has remained free of scandal. Preaching as many as 5 times a week, and living with a rare auto immune disease that mimics Parkinson’s, has taken a significant toll on his health, and last week he announced he would be stepping down as Saddleback’s lead pastor.

This morning I listened to the message he delivered to his Saddleback family in which he announced the reasons for his retirement. In sharing his decision, he provided a series of guidelines to contemplate when considering change in your life: “Enlist the prayers of others, seek the counsel of wise friends, take time to be quiet and listen to God, consider what you have done well in the past and the gifts you possess, don’t be in a hurry to make your decision but trust in God’s timing, and finally ask yourself if you are willing to do something even harder in the future than what you have done in the past.”

Now I can’t do justice to the wisdom he shared in his 52 minute message, but I would encourage those of you who might be envisioning change in your life to listen to the message “How to Discern the Best Time to Make a Major Change” in its entirety. I have provided the link below.

Rick is still planning to remain involved in the ministry, but his teaching will be limited. He says he envisions his wife Kay sitting in the front row of their sanctuary being cheerleaders for the one God calls to take his place.

Rick, you have served well. You have faithfully fulfilled the call God gave you 42 years ago to found Saddleback, you have influenced and impacted millions of people throughout your ministry, and you have done it without stain or blemish, so I ask for God’s blessing to rest upon you as you continue to serve Him is whatever capacity that might me.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

https://www.newsweek.com/rick-warren-retires-1598357

Leadership Thought: Reflections at Last Night's Fellowship of Christian Athletes' Banquet.

Dear Friend,

Last night I attended a Fellowship of Christian Athlete’s annual fund-raising dinner as I have done for the last decade or so. I invited a couple of friends to join me as I am always interested in introducing others to the ministry of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

The evening always brings back a lot of memories as 59 years ago, almost to the very day, this young sophomore football player from the Virginia Military Institute found himself numbered among 500 other young men in Lake Geneva, Wisc,  for my first ever Summer F.C.A. Conference.

I still remember some of the speakers. Bart Star, Jessie Owens, Bob Feller were among some of those who would be speaking. I was there because of the influence of a good friend, and fellow football player, Chuck Beale, whose life had been changed at a similar conference a few years before, and he was eager to share his experienced and his newfound faith with anyone who would listen.

As I sat there last night at the dinner, my mind wandered back to that first F.C.A. Conference in Lake Geneva. It was after hearing Jessie Owens share his spiritual testimony and his  challenge to those present to yield their lives to Jesus that I quietly walked back to my cabin and knelt down beside my cabin cot and gave my life to Jesus.

Little did I know at the time how my life would change because of that decision. This morning I found myself quietly and gratefully reflecting on those 59 years since that Lake Geneva experience. I thought of the 7 wonderful churches I have served, and the young men I have coached and taught as a teacher and as an athletic director, and the many friends I have made throughout my years of ministry. I thought of how blessed I am to have such a wonderful wife and 4 incredible children, who like their dad, are all teachers.  And at my age, how lucky I am to find myself still ministering in a wonderful church, serving alongside  two young and gifted pastors.

And as I reflected on these things, it dawned on me that the day before was D-Day, June 6th, when  our  troops first set foot on the beaches of Normandy in 1941, and how similar that D-Day was  to my Spiritual D-Day when I knelt beside my cabin cot on that Lake Geneva summer evening of 1962.

In both cases, the first stage of ultimate victory had been achieved, but there would  still be a lot more territory to be conquered. The enemy would still need to be displaced. Satan’s occupying forces would still need to be destroyed.

The goal of every invasion is to defeat the enemy and that requires discipline, devotion, and an unwavering determination to accomplish the mission, and that is why we as believers continue to wage war against the unseen enemy of our souls. The battle rages on for the victory of Christ in the hearts of His people.

Jesus says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have and have it to the full (John 10:10)

There is still work to do, battles to be fought, before the victory flag can be planted in the ground. While Christ’s army awaits that final promised victory and  the sound of the trumpet call of God that marks the enemy’s final demise, we labor on for the victory that is assured  even though it has not yet finally been accomplished.

And so, we take the Good News with us as did those D-Day soldiers as we travel from village to village, town to town and nation to nation. Our foe is crafty and his power is real, and he wages an unrelenting battle to protect his territory, but D-Day has been achieved and  V-Day is just around the corner, and we can confidently proclaim, “Thanks be to God who gives us the victory” (1 Corinthians 15:57).

I hope you, too, are enjoying D-Day as you await that final V Day victory when Christ shall come and take us home to be with Him forever.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

Leadership Thought: Are You Ready to Be Your Church's MVP?

Dear Friends,

In an hour I will be heading up to our church for a time of prayer. This past Sunday in the course of my message, I challenged our members to join me at our church at 6:00 am to spend an hour together in prayer. I don't know how many or how few will be participating, but the one thing I know is that even if it is only a handful, our church will be different because of the time we spend together.

In the sports world we have MVP's. They are those who are recognized as the " Most Valuable Players." They are the ones who put up big numbers and who are known for their athletic productivity whether it’s on the baseball of football fields. In the spiritual world we also have our  MVP's. The MVP's in the spiritual world are not to be confused with those in the sports world. They are not necessarily those who come through in the clutch when there is some significant financial need, or those servants who are always there when there is an important task to be accomplished. The MVP's are not always the most well-known or prominent members of the church; in fact, many in the church may not even know their names. No, unlike MVP's in the sports world, these are not the Most Valuable Players; they are the "Most Valuable Prayers.”

The church MVP's are those behind the scenes people like Pearl Goode who are the key to the church's ministry. They are the ones who faithfully and consistently spend time on their knees praying for their pastors and their church. 

Pearl Goode was a widowed nurse in her mid-60s, living in Pasadena CA. in 1949 when a young evangelist came to hold tent meetings in Los Angeles. The very first night of the crusade, she watched the fiery preacher Billy Graham and his team share the gospel. As Pearl later recounted in an interview, "That night God laid those boys on my heart as a burden."

After that night, Pearl traveled to dozens of Billy Graham Crusades and prayed during each event. Pearl then joined the volunteer prayer team for the greater Los Angeles Crusade and was a part of seeing the campaign extended from three weeks to eight weeks, with people cramming into the tent every night to hear the Good News. After that early crusade, Pearl became a prayer warrior for the Crusades, with hardly anyone on the Billy Graham team even knowing who she was. 

She would spend her own money to travel by greyhound bus to wherever they were holding an event, quietly check herself into a motel near the venue, and immediately begin praying. Pearl estimated that over the years of her prayer ministry she covered 48,000 miles to pray for the Crusades.

In an address Billy Graham gave in 1994, he said, "She prayed all night many nights, and I could sense the presence and power or that prayer. When she died, I felt it." 

We can never underestimate the power of the prayer that is lifted up by wonderful saints like Pearl Goode all around the world.

Prayer-talking to God-is of paramount importance in developing our relationship with our Savior and in building up and supporting others through the work of the Holy Spirit. The great significance of prayer is why we see so many calls to prayer in the New Testament.

Charles Spurgeon, one of the greatest preachers in the church, used to point to the furnace or boiler room below the sanctuary whenever someone asked him about the power of his preaching ministry. Every week he stood in the pulpit, there were as many as 300 people kneeling in the basement, the "boiler room," below praying for him and for every word that would come from his mouth.

Want to be a church MVP? If so, start kneeling, for God's MVP's are always found on their knees.

As one great saint of the church used to say, "There is more you can do after you have prayed, but there is no more you can do until you have prayed." 

While you may not be able to join me and others this morning, you can participate with us by simply taking a few minutes following the reading of this message to pray for your pastor and your church's ministry. In doing do, you might become your church's MVP!

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

Leadership Thought: Fire Lighter or Fire Fighter: The Blessedness of Being Needed.

Dear Friends, 

Someone said, we can either be the wind beneath someone’s wings or the anchor in their boat. I seek to be the wind.  I want to lift people up and help lighten their loads. I want to do my best to inspire people and encourage them to realize their goals and achieve their dreams.

There are all too many people in our world who act like anchors, and who are quick to drag people down. 

The world needs more fire lighters,  who come alongside those who have a dream and help ignite that dream.  “You can do it,” I’m with you,” “You can count on me." are some of the words in the vocabulary of the fire lighter. 

The firefighter functions just the opposite. The firefighter douses dreams and dampens spirits. He pours water on the flames of enthusiasm.  He finds way to discourage one’s efforts.  “You can never do it,” “the task is insurmountable,” “You don’t have the resources," "you don’t have the background," "you lack the experience.”  The words of the firefighter will leave you discouraged and  ready to give up and quit.

Many years ago, one of my favorite authors, David Mains, told the story of how he and his wife sought to address some behavior issues with their four-year old son Jeremy. He had a habit that they wanted to break, but they were making Iittle progress. They tried everything until as a final resort they applied physical the discipline of spanking.

When conversation was restored, his wife, Karen, asked the chastised little boy, "Jeremy, what are we going to do with you?" Fully contrite, he slowly answered, "Why, don't you just throw me in the garbage.  "

And there are many people, who like little Jeremy, feel like they have been thrown on the garbage heap. They don't feel as if anyone cares about them. They feel like they are without value, good for nothing, except to be cast into life's dumpster.

A number of years ago Anne Murray popularized a song whose lyrics remind me off something we all need.

           “I cried a tear, you wiped it dry

            I was confused, you cleared my mind.

            I sold my soul, you bought it back for me

           And held me up and gave me dignity.

            Somehow you needed me.

            You gave me strength to stand alone again,

           to face the world out on my own again.

          You put me high upon a pedestal. So high that I can almost see eternity, 

you needed me, you needed me; and I can't believe it's you, I can't believe it's true.

          I needed you and you were there, and I'll never leave.

          Why should I leave, I'd be a fool

          'cause' I've finally found someone who really cares."

We all have a need to be needed. We want to know that people care for us. We want them to affirm our value and our importance. We want someone who we know truly cares for us and wants the very best for us. We long to feel valued and  important to someone. Blessed is the person who knows he or she is needed and has someone who really cares.

Max Lucado sums up my thoughts when he writes, "God sees us with the eyes of a Father. He sees our defects, errors, and blemishes. But He also sees our value. What did Jesus know that enabled Him to do what he did? Here's part of the answer: He knew he value of people. He knew that each human being is a treasure. And because He did, people were not a source of stress, but a source of joy." (Max Lucado, I Never Knew That Was in the Bible: Inspirational Thoughts for Each Day of the Year).

Is there someone you know who needs to know he/she is needed? Why not be the wind beneath his/her wings?

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

Leadership Thought: A Love Letter Sent Yesterday That Started Off My Day Today.

Dear Friends,

“Tom, I was especially moved by this installment of your leadership emails. Thanks so much for sharing with us your heart regarding your dad. Also thank you for that beautiful video. May God continue to bless you and your family with Faith & Love, and may you be in good health. Warmly, John Grove.”

These words greeted me as I opened my computer this morning wondering what I might share with those of you who receive these daily Leadership Thoughts. I have only seen John a few times in the last 40 years. He was a gifted and caring student assistant of mine in my second church in Philadelphia, Pa, and today he pastors a church in N.W. Jersey where he has faithfully labored  for over 40 years.

It probably only a minute or so to type out his few words, but the  magnitude of their meaning will not be quickly forgotten. John was simply and thoughtfully  saying "thanks," and thanks is a wonderful word to hear, especially as one starts out this new week of ministry.

Mother Theresa was right when she wrote, "Kind words are short and easy to speak, but their echoes are endless,” Long ago I memorized those words, and I have always tried to live them out as I endeavor to impact and influence the lives of the people I meet and know.

It takes so little time to encourage someone, yet how often we miss those opportunities to lift them up with a few words, whether they be spoken or written.

Today I printed out John’s short but kind and thoughtful message, and I have placed them in my "Bible file cabinet," where in one of the first Bibles ever given to me,  I keep all the encouraging notes I have received over the years of my ministry. From time to time, I will open the cover of that bible and those letters will spill  out, and I take a few minutes to  read a message or two, and then with a short prayer of thanks, they are tucked back into my bible, saved to be read again some other day.

One of my favorite verses, and one I try to live out daily in my ministry is 1 Thessalonians 5:11, where Paul writes, “Therefore encourage and build one another up, just as you are already doing.”

Is there someone you know who needs to be built up and encouraged? When God puts that person on your heart, why not do as my friend John did, take a few minutes to write that note or type out that e-mail, or better yet, give that person a personal call. I promise if you do, it will not only bless you, but I guarantee it will make their day a little brighter, just as John’s note did for me.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

P.S. “Silent gratitude isn’t very much use to anyone.” Gertrude Stein

Leadership Thought: My Dad, the Viet Nam War, and my Tribute to Him and to All Those Who Have Faithfully Served Our Country.

Dear Friends, 

Happy Memorial Day

Having had a dad who was a retired colonel in the army, and having grown up in Watertown, NY, only 10 miles from Fort Drum, the home of 40,000 men and women and dependents, who are stationed there as a part of  the 10th Mountain Division, I have a great appreciation for those serving in our military.  A good number of my high school and college friends fought in Viet Nam, and while I opposed, and even campaigned against that war, I have always respected those who served.

While in the military my dad was in charge of security for the Oak Ridge, Tenn. project where the atomic bomb was being built. Like a lot of those who worked there he probably had little  idea of the magnitude of destruction that this bomb would cause. 

At the time of the Viet Nam War, my dad and I became estranged. I was opposed to the war and even campaigned against it, and I am sure as a military veteran it was hard, and even embarrassing for him to have a son who was actively engaged in opposing the Viet Nam war.  I loved and respected my dad for his military service, but unfortunately my opposition to the Viet Nam war significantly impacted our relationship, and following it our time together was very limited.  As a result I never got to know much about my dad and his past and in particular his time at Oak Ridge where he got to personally know men like Robert Oppenheimer and many of the other scientists and physicists who were instrumental in the creation of the bomb. This is one of my life's greatest regrets.

On this Memorial Day I share these thoughts out of respect for my dad and for all of those military veterans who have fought and served to  help preserve peace both at home and around the world. I am sad that my dad and I never had a chance to reconcile our military differences before he died, and I live with the great regret of never having known some of the very significant accomplishments of his life, both in and after his military service. Dad, I love you, and I am grateful for your love for your country and your service to our nation.

The video below is shared as a tribute to you and to others like you who have served our country so faithfully. 

See this Video at http://worriersanonymous.org/Share/Mansions.htm