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 50,000th
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
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