Pastor Tom
From the desk of Pastor Tom : treasure
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21
One thing most all of us treasure is the opportunity to be successful. To win at the goals we pursue. But did you know that winning can sometimes be losing? Especially when you come to the top of your ladder of success, only to discover it is leaning against the wrong wall. So make sure the goals you aspire to, are the goals in life that are really important to you. Because climbing ladders can be fun, but you only get a couple of them in life to try!
- Category: Pastor Tom
From the desk of Pastor Tom
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”
Paul Harvey told about a 4-year-old boy who went to the grocery store with his mother. On this trip she had decided the family needed to eat healthier. So, before they entered the grocery store she told the young man, "We are not going to buy any chocolate chip cookies today, so don’t ask." She put him up in the cart, and he sat in the little child’s seat while she wheeled down the aisles. He was doing just fine until they came to the cookie section. Upon seeing the chocolate chip cookies he felt compelled to stand up in his seat and ask, “Mom, can you please buy some chocolate chip cookies?” She replied, “I told you not to ask me for cookies. We are not going to buy any cookies today.” So he quietly sat back down. They continued down the aisles in their search for certain items. The little boy again felt a strong compulsion arising from within, so he stood up and asked, “Mom, please, please, can you buy some chocolate chip cookies?” Now upset, she gave him one of those looks that only a mother can give, and in a stern voice said, “I told you NO. We are not going to buy any chocolate chip cookies. Now sit down and be quiet!”
Finally, they approached the checkout lane. The little boy sensed that he was at his last chance to nab some cookies. So he stood up on the seat of the cart and in his loudest voice shouted, “In the name of Jesus, may I have some chocolate chip cookies?” Everyone around them began laughing, and some even applauded. According to Paul Harvey, due to the generosity of the other shoppers, the little boy and his mother left the store with 23 boxes of chocolate chip cookies....
This is a great illustration of what someone can do with enough conviction and dogged perseverance. Sometimes victory comes by just sticking with it. And most often success is not defined by results but by our convictions. So here is my encouragement to you. Don’t be quick to give up on what you have set in your heart to do. Your heart might be right!
- Category: Pastor Tom
From the desk of Pastor Tom
“The world and its ambitions will pass away, but the one that does the will of God lives forever.” (1 John 2:17)
Today I had a young man staying with us come and ask for some career counseling. He had just finished rehab for drug addiction and was looking for the next step. It's what he said that caught my attention. He told of an inner feeling, a sense that God had something for him to do, and he wanted to figure out what it was. That excited me because I think it's the right next step!
His comments reminded me of a story I heard about a family who lived long ago in Yorkshire, England. They had two sons and were part of a burgeoning middle class society. The oldest son was very ambitious and talented, and set out to make a name for himself. He eventually become wealthy, entered England’s high society, and was elected to Parliament. The younger son chose a different route. At an early age, he gave his life to Christ. Later, he recalled, “Well do I remember, as in unreserved consecration I put myself, my life, my friends, my all, upon the altar. I felt I was in the presence of God, entering into covenant with the Almighty.” With that commitment, he went on to spend his life as a missionary in China. Unlike he is brother, he died in relative obscurity. His name was Hudson Taylor.
Today he is known and honored on every continent as one of the greatest missionaries in Christianity. He founded the China Inland Mission (now known as Overseas Missionary Fellowship), which has significantly influenced the spread of Christianity in China. For his brother, however, you can find no lasting tribute. When you look in the encyclopedia, there are only these words about him - “the brother of Hudson Taylor."
So let me ask a question. What is God calling you to do? Whatever it is, that's the thing in life most worth doing!
- Category: Pastor Tom
