Father, thank You for a productive day. Much is ready for church Sunday. But I have just now sat down to spend some one on one with You. Open my eyes and my heart. May I hear Your voice clearly. Amen.
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This past Sunday was Father’s Day and I got to thinking, as I’m sure many of us do, about my dad. My father was a pastor for almost his entire life. In fact, he is 81 and just officially retired from basically full-time pastoral ministry at the end of December 2018.
He was not a perfect dad any more than I am a perfect dad. But through all the ups and downs of life and his ministry, I truly believe that he strove to serve God to the utmost of his abilities. He loved my mom and my sister and myself, and none of us ever doubted that he did.
He worked hard as a pastor but over the years, he drove school bus while pastoring and I remember the whole family worked in a privately-owned mop factory of all things for a time. We were never rich by the world’s standards but honestly, we were rich where it really mattered.
The nature of the denomination in which he served lent itself to moving pretty regularly – the longest we ever lived in one spot was a little over four years. So that was a little rough but no matter what Dad always took his new appointments head on. He gave it all he had – his time and attention, his love, his devotion. He was no slacker. And though he never made big money, he earned every penny he received.
Several years ago – when most people retire – he retired from the denomination in which he was raised and began attending a church of a sister holiness denomination. He was their head janitor for many years and served just as faithfully in that position as he ever had from behind the pulpit. It was God’s House and he cleaned it with the greatest of integrity and respect.
A few years later he was asked to fill a full-time position of Pastoral Care. Talk about a perfect fit, that was definitely it! It would be impossible to count the number of people that he impacted with true love and compassion. Once again, he strove to serve God with all that he had.
If anyone could see between the lines of people’s lives it was Dad. His heart was so attuned to the Lord’s direction that I am sure that his heartbeat was in rhythm with the Lord’s. He listened. He spoke. He loved. He touched. He was truly an ambassador for Christ everywhere he went – nursing homes, residences, the office, the altar at church, funeral homes – wherever the Lord guided him, he wholeheartedly followed.
As I said, Dad is retired now but he is still faithful. He still serves his Lord. He and Mom live off of what little retirement they have accumulated over the years but, my friends, his retirement is truly not here for he has stored up for himself a treasure in heaven. And someday, and truly I hope it is many years from now, the Lord will greet Him – and He will greet him by name, for He surely knows him well and he will say, “Well done, Tom, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!” Matthew 25:23 (NLT)
Lord Jesus, please bless my dad. He needs no introduction, for You know him well. Thank You for his example. Thank You for blessing me with having him as my father. He has surely been a shining example of You for all of us to see!
June 18th, 2019, Tues, 10:36 pm
