Father, I’ve not said it for a while, but I am grateful for Your presence. Throughout the ebb and flow of my day, I know You are there every guiding, ever loving.
Romans 14:20-23 (<<click here to read the passage)
Thomas S. Fowler, Sr. was my grandfather, or as he preferred, my granddad. He was a faithful servant for many, many years ministering as a pastor and as an evangelist traveling with his musically inclined family. (They actually released a couple of records!)
He was raised in a spiritually divided home. His father was a hellion, putting it mildly…but his mother was a saint on earth. As a young man, he waivered in his faith. He even came close twice to taking his own life, but his ever-praying mother petitioned Heaven with her pleas, and the Lord graciously – miraculously! – intervened wooing him back to Himself.
In those early days, he by no means was a saint himself and one of his passions was playing the guitar with a straight pick – which is the way most everyone plays the guitar. He loved to entertain those around him, and more than willingly joined in their revelry – a drunk playing drunken songs on the beaches of Hawaii while in the service. After he gave his life over to Christ he felt convicted in regard to why and how he had played guitar, bringing only glory to himself. He acted on that conviction and from that time on, set aside his straight pick, switching to a thumb pick. Granddad faithfully played the guitar for the Lord’s glory throughout the many years of his ministry.
Reading that story, you may think his decision trivial – maybe even silly. But to him, it was an important difference. His change of focus had changed his life. His decision made a lifelong impact on the lives of thousands!
Verse 23, the last verse in this chapter, reads,
…if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.
The Apostle Paul speaks here of food, but it is equally applicable to many other areas of our lives. I cannot show you any passage of Scripture that speaks of guitar picks but many times in our lives we come upon decisions that the Holy Spirit must guide us as to how to go about addressing them. Paul here clearly states that if we go ahead and do what our convictions tell us we must not do – if we are striding firmly ahead knowing we are doing things that are not right, then we are sinning.
Guitar picks may not be important to you, but they were to Granddad and when he gave his life to Christ, he did just that. Tom Fowler gave his all to the Lord who had given His all for him. May we all do the same.
Aug 31st, 2023, Thurs, 8:43 pm
