Many years ago, in the midst of a Thanksgiving sermon, I decided to ad lib. I suggested that everyone think of three people for whom they were thankful and tell them of their thankfulness. After the sermon, my wife asked me who my three people were. I really hadn’t thought about it. The sermon was for others, right? But I decided to take my own advice and thank three people. I have no idea why I challenged that congregation to thank three people, and surely no idea where the number three came from, but it was such a rewarding experience, I have repeated it every year since. Have I run out of people? Not a chance! God keeps bringing people into my life or allowing me to re-new long-ago friendships every year around this time, I have no problem identifying three people for whom to thank. The Bible encourages us to “Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever” (1 Chronicles 16:34). So, I challenge you not only to remember to be thankful this year, but think of a few people, perhaps even three people, for whom you are especially thankful, and tell them so. Robert Lewis Stevenson wrote, “The man who forgets to be thankful has fallen asleep in life.”

Sometimes I am easily amused, like sitting in a coffee shop, reading T-shirts, while waiting on an appointment with a friend. On a recent day the back of a nearby t-shirt read, “Together is better,” which was a good thought. Then I noticed a scripture reference underneath, Ecclesiastes 4:9, which reads, “Two are better than one.” As I was able to pick up bits and pieces of the conversation, I realized that the one in the t-shirt was offering spiritual counsel with the other person at the table. It was so refreshing to see someone actually living what they were displaying on their t-shirt. Much better than the t-shirt I saw on another occasion, which read, “I’m only talking to my dog today” as the person chatted continually with a friend. Or the t-shirt that read, “I love New York” worn by a person with a distinctly southern accent. A better t-shirt message might be the words of Helen Keller, who said, “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” The best thing about togetherness for Christians, is expressed in the words of Jesus who said, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20). Together is better. Together with Jesus is best – whether worn on a t-shirt on not.

A few Sundays ago, my pastor preached on Psalm 73, reminding me that I had also preached on that Psalm – several times in fact. It is the age-old conflict of the prosperity of the wicked vs. the suffering of the righteous, and the Psalmist began by asking tough questions. Make no mistake, the wicked do prosper, and our questions make little difference to them. But one must quickly get past the questions to Psalm 73:16-17, “When I thought how to understand this, it was too painful for me – until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood.” In those days, to enter the sanctuary, the tabernacle, or the Temple, was to enter the presence of God. There sits on my shelf, an old book entitled “Settled in the Sanctuary,” published in 1925, written by a retired pastor to ministerial students in the college where he taught. In his book, W.W. Landrum wrote, “Whether I understand or not, God does understand, and by communion with Him I shall have whatever explanation he is pleased to afford a trusting child. And that is all that my mind demands, or my heart craves.” When the Psalmist left the sanctuary, he was just as poor, and the righteous were just as prosperous, and he still had no answer to his question, but now he had a new perspective, making his previous question irrelevant. He had settled it in the presence of God, in the sanctuary. I have a suggestion. Next time you have an unanswered question, head for the sanctuary – or wherever you go to be in the presence of God – and there settle it. You may not come away with an answer, but God’s presence makes many of earth’s questions irrelevant. Martin Luther said it this way: “As long as I have Thee, I wish for nothing else in heaven or on earth.”

I was recently faced with a major decision concerning my future. I realized that the older I got the fewer options I had, and this one was complicated because it involved financial issues. In the midst of the decision, as I was listening for God’s directions, I read Isaiah 30 as a part of my daily Bible reading. When I got to verse 21, I had to pause, as if it were written just for me. “Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it’.” “Behind,” I wondered. It sure would be easier to know God’s will if He would speak to me in front, rather than behind. However, this was not a first-time experience for me. Several times in my life I have been forced to make a decision without a clear understanding of God’s direction. Each time, I made the decision based on the best understanding of the situation and what I thought, but did not know for sure, God would have me do. Each time, almost immediately following the decision, God affirmed my actions. In other words, God spoke “behind” my decision rather than in front of it. Perhaps this is what the Danish philosopher, theologian, and religious author, Soren Kierkegaard, meant when he said, “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.”

The days are different. Some days I find myself with high energy, desiring to accomplish much. Then on other days, I just want to sit on the porch and sip coffee. Carl Sandburg expressed it this way: “There is an eagle in me that wants to soar, and there is a hippopotamus in me that wants to wallow in the mud.” However, Helen Keller countered with “One can never consent to creep when one feels the impulse to soar.” The idea that compares youth to soaring like an eagle, is mentioned several times in the Bible, but its application should not be limited to the young. In Old Testament days, there was a popular idea, based on a rabbinical story, that the eagle renewed its youth (actually, renewed its plumage), in extreme old age. In Psalm 103:5, the psalmist refers to the fresh and vigorous appearance of the bird with its new plumage, “your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Understanding that belief, Isaiah wrote, “Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31). While he wasn’t commenting directly on the Isaiah passage, A. W. Tozer wrote, “In almost everything that touches our everyday life on earth, God is pleased when we’re pleased. He wills that we be as free as birds to soar and sing our maker’s praise without anxiety.” So, on your high energy days, go ahead and soar like the eagle, and on other days, creep on out to the porch, and pull up a chair.

Most of my early heroes were workaholics, and some were also perfectionists. What an amazing, yet deadly mix! No surprise then, that I developed the same two traits. Then I discovered that I was good at multi-tasking. Most of my life, friends seemed to be amazed at how much I could accomplish. I assume, to whatever degree that was true, it was because of the blending of these three ingredients. I had the “disease” of which Nigel Cumberland wrote in his book, 100 Things Successful People Do, “The new disease of our age is being OK doing everything at exactly the same time.” I envisioned myself like the guy at the circus who was able to spin multiple plates on rods at the same time. My secret was to work continually with one plate, until I could make it spin with perfection, then, slowly add plates, until I was spinning as many as the circus performer. As Jesus described Martha, He could have been describing me, “you are worried and troubled about many things” (Luke 10:41). I learned too late the wisdom in Ecclesiastes 4:6, “Better a handful with quietness than both hands full, together with toil.” But I did accomplish a great deal. For that I am both grateful and thankful. No regrets. I was asked the other day, what would I do different if I was eighteen years old again, with my life to re-live. My answer was, “with the exception of a cancelled summer try-out for a minor league baseball team, very little.” As the years of my life add up, one of the things I’ve discovered missing is the ability to multi-task like I used to be able to do. One man said he was fully capable of multi-tasking. He could leave his office, cross the street, read the directions to his next appointment, talk on his cell phone, and get hit by a car, all at the same time. I’m still somewhat of a workaholic and very much a perfectionist, but one thing at a time, please. Anyone else shifting from multi-tasking to single focusing?

Several times recently I have heard it said that God showed “favor” on someone or some group. Wondering where this phrase originated, I went to multiple translations of the Bible, until I found in the Holman Christian Standard Bible, the following translation: “May Yahweh look with favor on you” (Numbers 6:26). And why had I never seen this verse before, I asked. So, I went to my New King James Bible, as well as a few other translations and found the familiar words, “The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace” (Numbers 6:24-26). Ah ha! In the church where I spent my early teenage years, the choir often closed the worship service by singing this blessing, a blessing passed on by Moses to the children of Israel. The priests were solemnly to bless the people so that they would enjoy God’s favor, as the smile of a loving Father upon His children. In scriptural language, the light of God’s countenance is His expressions of favorable regards, His favor. I didn’t know that, when I was growing up. I just thought it was a nice way to end the worship service. But the choir was pronouncing God’s favor on worshippers. It has been a long time since I’ve heard a choir sing this blessing, but some days, I desperately desire the countenance of God’s favor, and wish it for others.

It was a sad morning. Several months ago, our neighbors were re-located to a memory care facility. Their three sons had come and gone, taking what they wanted out of the house, then turning it over to an auction company. On the morning of the auction, the auctioneers waited inside, as the crowds began to gather. Eventually, my wife and I walked over to observe the “estate sale.” As we bumped and maneuvered our way through the crowded rooms of the house, we saw strangers taking priceless possessions – paintings from the walls, coffee mugs from the cabinets, clothes from the closets, tools from the garage – things with value beyond money. I purchased a baseball cap and Joanne bought a flower vase, simple reminders of our friendship with this couple, who no longer remembered many of the details related to their possessions. When we left, I commented as to the sadness of the situation, realizing that the longer we live, the more apt we all are to reach this point – when “the things of earth grow strangely dim.” It causes me to weep. I like my possessions. They have personal, priceless, sometimes private meanings. I know that someday I will need to release them – a few things to family, most things to the crowds, perhaps some things to the trash can. And I will weep again. When I reach that day, someone please remind me of Psalm 30:5 – “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning” – an eternal morning with no auctioneers waiting outside.

The older I get the less I understand about some things. I don’t understand why good people elect bad politicians. I don’t understand why faithful church members have violent disagreements. I don’t understand why people who love each other make decisions that cause their children to suffer. I don’t understand why rich people spend their money foolishly, even illegally. I don’t understand why God shows public favor on some of His called-out ones and allow others to serve in relative obscurity. I don’t understand why God chose me to travel, serve, speak, write, encourage, befriend, while there were others with seemingly far more talent, skill, intelligence, personality, etc. Following a very profound spiritual experience, song-writer Kris Kristofferson wrote the following words. “Why me Lord? What have I ever done to deserve even one of the blessings I've known? Why me Lord? What did I ever do that was worth love from You and the kindness You've shown?” The song doesn’t really answer the “Why” question, but the Bible does. When God’s people in Old Testament days wondered why God blessed them more than others, the answer was: “It was not because you were more numerous than any other people, that the Lord set his heart on you and chose you—for you were the fewest of all peoples. It was because the Lord loved you” (Deuteronomy 7:7-8). I still don’t understand why God chose to love me so much, but this much I do know, God made me unique, and in the words of Augustine, “God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.”

As a recent flight was caught in a “holding pattern” the analogy was too obvious for me. Perhaps I’ve been too far to many “celebrations of life” lately. French Philosopher, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin said, “we are not human beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a human experience.” Allow me to paraphrase: we are not human beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings temporarily caught in a human holding pattern, awaiting arrival in heaven. In Philippians 3:20, Paul affirms that “our citizenship is in heaven.” We have sung, “This world is not my home I’m just a passing through, my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue” and “I am a stranger here, within a foreign land; my home is far away, upon a golden strand” and again “Beulah Land, I’m longing for you, and some day on thee I’ll stand; there my home shall be eternal, Beulah Land, sweet Beulah Land.” In the last few months, I have memorialized family, friends, mentors, colleagues, fellow church members, and others. I’m thankful to still be in my “holding pattern,” and while heaven grows more special with every funeral, I am in no particular hurry to arrive there. So, take your time on my mansion, Lord. With Robert Frost, I have “promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.” But, then again, I’m ready when You are, Lord.

My local newspaper recently gained national attention with an investigative report on sexual abuse by ministers in “Independent Fundamentalist Baptist” churches.

The study revealed 412 documented allegations of sexual misconduct in 187 churches, based in 40 states and Canada. Let me quickly add that while I am “independent,” and some would say, a bit “fundamental,” and a life-long Baptist, I am not an “Independent Fundamentalist Baptist.” Second, on behalf of ministers everywhere, I’d like to apologize to victims of ministerial abuse. It is never acceptable, nor should it be ignored, or covered up. It is true that many ministers sit dangerously on pedestals, without seat-belts, and when they fall, they deserve correction.

While this study focused on one group of churches, it followed a national scandal involving sexual abuse among Roman Catholic priests. So, let me broaden the focus of my comments to include all of those called by God to church-related ministry. As a twenty-two-year Seminary professor, I observed first-hand, the moral and ethical failures of both want-to-be ministers, alumni, and colleagues.

This is not a new problem, nor a narrow one. It began shortly after the creation and fall of mankind. Early in my ministry, I memorized a verse of scripture (from the King James Bible, which is all we had back then) as something for which I wanted to strive. It was Paul’s standard, “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). I focused on three words: “mark” which was later translated “goal;” “prize” which was an award, often given in the public games of the day; and “calling” which was an invitation, and in the New Testament, always used for a divine call from God. I am not a judge (even though that is the meaning of the Hebrew name, Daniel), and now that I am much closer to pressing toward the finish line than kneeling in the starting blocks, I realize the danger in judging others. However, I pass this verse along to my younger ministerial family, and beyond. Keep your focus on the prize of the “high calling of God in Christ” not the low calling of “the sins of the flesh” (Colossians 2:11). No doubt some have been, and will be again, falsely accused. To those, I repeat what I often told my students, “So live, that when the rumors and the negative reports begin no one will believe them.”

 In other words, be “marked” by the “high calling.”

Years ago, I found myself in charge of an organization that was deeply divided. Every decision was challenged. Every vote was split. As I struggled to lead, a good friend said to me, “Just lead! We will follow!” While not everyone followed, the organization survived. If you have ever been a part of an organization that suffered from a lack of leadership, you know how painful that can be. How agonizing it is to watch a group of people flounder around with no direction, wasting their time in meetings that have no real purpose, and dismissing without accomplishing anything of lasting value. Such is the fate of a leaderless organization. Leadership is crucial. People who find themselves in charge, but have no leadership ability, penalize the people. On the contrary, a gifted leader can lead people to accomplish goals beyond their own ability to envision. Alexander the Great is reported to have said, “I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.” Observe how the emphasis changes in the familiar scripture passage relating to the Apostle Paul turning west on his second missionary journey. So important was that decision, that some have said, had he not headed west, along with his entourage, we in the west might have been receiving missionaries today, rather than sending them. “A vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’ Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them” (Acts 16:9-10). “He” (Paul) saw the vision, but “we” went to Macedonia, with the conclusion that God had called “us” to go. Leaders lead. Minus that truth, organizations suffer.

My role models have all been workaholics. Many of these have also been perfectionists. This is a dangerous mixture. Trying to justify such a lifestyle, I searched the scriptures, until I discovered Jesus saying in His sermon on the mount, “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). Then I learned that Jesus is here setting a goal, that is certain to be impossible. The pursuit of perfection is important, even if the attainment of it is impossible. The legendary football coach, Vince Lombardi said, Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.” What about the workaholic idea? Jesus said, “I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work” (John 9:4). In other words, “Get ‘er done before dark.” On one hand, I am tired from working toward perfection. On the other hand, I have accomplished much more than those who are content with simply working an eight-hour day with average production. Am I sorry that I became a workaholic perfectionist? Not for a minute. Do I recommend it for others? Only if you are at least partly crazy.

Since grief is such a big subject, there isn’t a single definition that covers it. A commonly used definition is “Grief is the normal and natural emotional reaction to loss or change of any kind.” Let me illustrate. Last week I attended a conference that involved several hundred cross-cultural missionaries, some of whom were former Seminary students of mine. I received two invitations to teach a short-term class on prayer (my favorite subject to teach) in two different countries, far removed from my Texas home. I want to accept the invitations so bad I can hardly stand the possibility of having to decline. But my doctors don’t think too highly of the possibility. Following the X-ray, MRI, Myelogram and CT Scan of my neck, I was told by my surgeon, that I have a serious bulging disk in my neck and the day I feel numbness in my arms or tingling in my fingers, or feel dizzy, or fall, he will meet me at the hospital for emergency surgery. Neither of these places where I have been invited, offer a very good alternative to the emergency surgical facilities in my home town. Across the years, I have made many trips to far-away places, when my physical condition was somewhat questionable. But I’ve never been this old before. One of my doctors challenged me to “Think about age, before making plans!” So, I’m having an “emotional reaction to loss or change.” You don’t have to be my age to suffer grief – from a variety of causes, most of which are far worse than mine. So, if you are grieving today due to “emotional reaction to loss or change” do what I did. Remembering Psalm 119:28 (NASB) where the Psalmist cried out, “My soul weeps because of grief; Strengthen me according to Your word.” I went to the Word where I found two verses in Ecclesiastes: “In much wisdom there is much grief and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain” (Ecclesiastes 1:18 NASB) and “Remove grief and anger from your heart and put away pain from your body, because childhood and the prime of life are fleeting” (Ecclesiastes 11:10, NASB). Employ much positive wisdom today and move on with life.

What does a real friend do? I now have a new answer to that question. It was a sickening feeling to arrive at my hotel and begin unpacking my luggage only to miss seeing the small zip-lock bag containing my prescription medication. A call home revealed that the bag was indeed ready for the trip but was sitting on the counter in my home bathroom. It never made it to the luggage, thus was not available when I unpacked in another city, in another country. 

Several text messages between my doctor and I revealed the sad fact that he could not call a Pharmacy near my hotel and give the prescription since he was not a registered physician in the country where I was needing the medication. However, he did go the “second mile” and call a pharmacy across the border and they were able to fill 2 of my 3 prescriptions.

We celebrated our wedding anniversary last week and were reminded that our wedding prayer of commitment was sung, not spoken, and one word was changed: “My heart, my life, my all I bring to Christ who loves me so; He is my Master, Lord, and King, wherever He leads I'll  we’ll go.” We began as a team and have remained that way all these years. Need proof? We’ve lived in eight cities in two states, including thirteen addresses. We’ve traveled together to thirty-two states and thirty-nine foreign countries. Since I’ve done some travel alone, my individual numbers are a bit higher (all 50 states and 59 foreign countries), but not without the prayer support of the home-front. We served two churches as pastor and wife, three campuses as collegiate minister and wife, one denominational entity, and one seminary. We have shared in five sabbatical leaves in places such as Boston; Calgary; Hong Kong; Vancouver; Bonn, Germany; Milan, Italy, and one assignment that had us traveling throughout the Central & Eastern European Region of the International Mission Board. With various degrees of wifely involvement, we have served twenty-four interim pastorates. We began singing “wherever He leads” and fifty-four years later “from the ends of the earth we have heard songs” (Isaiah 24:16). Had we known on August 8, 1964 that “wherever” would include all of this, we might have had a different song sung at the wedding. Then again, we might have decided to do it all over again, the same way.

One of the ways I am processing the unexpected death of my brother is by remembering the fun times of our youth. The memory verse at one year’s Vacation Bible School was Ephesians 4:32, “Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you (KJV),” and Bob had committed it to memory from the King James Version of the Bible – which is mostly what we had back then. There were a few other translations, but our Southern Baptist leaders assured us that all the others were liberal. Being ten years older, I became very good at harassing Bob. In fact, I “bullied” him (in an older brother kind of way) before bullying was so much in the news. Following this VBS experience, Bob had a come-back for all my bullying attempts. On every occasion, Bob would respond with, “Be ye kind!” Obviously, his new favorite verse, was not very popular with me. A more mature look at the verse shows me that there are three things Paul wants his readers to “be.” We are to be “kind” or gentle. One of those “liberal” translations calls this benign courtesy. We are to be “tenderhearted” or compassionate, feeling warm sympathy toward others, especially if they have been hurt in some way. Finally, we are to be “forgiving,” which is the natural result of being “kind” and “tenderhearted.” As if this were not enough, Paul then holds up Christ as the example for this kind of attitude and action. Without knowing it, Bob had discovered an antidote for bullying, a lesson it would take me a few years to learn. Try kindness this week.

As much as we would like to change things, some things are just unchangeably real, and there’s not much we can do about it. To say that in a popular way, “It is what it is.” Jesus does not change. The writer of Hebrews proclaims, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). Even while society changes, human nature does not change. Reality is real. Hanging on my wall as I grew through my teen-age years, was a plaque containing the words of American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr, entitled “The Serenity Prayer” – “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.” More recently, I have come across a line from American Author Byron Katie, “If you want reality to be different than it is, you might as well try to teach a cat to bark.” I have prayed Niebuhr’s prayer again this week and decided to cease trying to teach cats to bark. I have also asked God for wisdom to change the things I can.

I knew five men who served as President of my seminary – one while I was a student, three while I was on the faculty, and one who was Interim President between two Presidents.

While they were very diverse, each had his strengths, and each made lasting contributions to the school. Each impacted the lives of future ministers. I considered each to be my friend. I learned from all of them.

One took the first Chapel of each semester to welcome the new students and pronounce them, “Southwesterners . . . You’d rather die than dishonor the name!” He was so punctual that one day he went to the pulpit while a long-winded Chapel speaker was continuing past his time, put his arm around the man, and said, “Excuse me brother, but I’m going to go ahead and lead our closing prayer while you finish your sermon.” I loved him. He taught me to honor the clock.

Another was loved by everyone on campus. He would enter the Auditorium from a side door, three minutes before the beginning of Chapel, index card in hand, shake hands with whoever was praying that day and be on the platform by the top of the hour, in time to begin. He modeled proper time management for me.

Another President would enter the auditorium for Chapel from the back door, work his way down the aisle, shaking hands, speaking to everyone within sound range, calling some by name. He never applied to be President. When asked in the interview why he wanted to be President, he is reported to have replied, “I’m not sure I want to. You invited me. Why do you want me?” Love it. He taught me not to be afraid of honest answers.

Still another President, entered the auditorium for Chapel from the back door, shaking hands with a few, calling fewer by name, some incorrectly (such as Dr. Don Crawford), taking the platform to be in charge, often commenting on the sermon, after the day’s preacher had finished. He was always gracious with me, even when we disagreed, which we did on several occasions. He taught me how to disagree without being disagreeable.

One Interim President and I shared a three-office suite, only he took up two of the three, so as to have room for all his slides of the Holy Land, that he showed in class and in dozens of churches. I enjoyed watching students enter his office to discuss a bad grade on a test, likely made because they dropped their pen and missed getting a thousand years of history in their notes. Most came out weeping. They learned that while they were saved by grace, they had to pass by works. Even though we differed considerably in age, he taught me how to be a colleague. I’ve learned that one does not always get to choose with whom he works, but one can always work with respect and honor, whomever are his associates.

We’ve recently celebrated Resurrection Sunday, so what do we do now? One of the first things Jesus said to His followers after His resurrection was in the form of a command. He told them to go and tell others what had happened and what they had experienced (Matthew 28:10, 19; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:47; John 20:17; Acts 1:8). So now we go and tell, not because of need or desire, but because we were told to do so. When my daughter was a teenager, her room often looked like a straight-line wind had hit it. I could tell her to clean it because in needed cleaning, but that never worked. I could try convincing her to clean her room because I knew she desired to have a clean room. Nothing. But when I said, “Danna Ruth Crawford, clean your room!” The room got cleaned. Same thing with my son. When he was young he begged to mow the yard on the riding mower, but he was to young. A few weeks after he got old enough to mow, he decided he was too old to mow. I could tell him the yard needed mowing, or that he desired to mow and have a nice yard for his dog to live in. Nothing. “James Edwin Crawford, mow the yard!” Worked. Jesus did not say go and tell because the world needed to know, although it did and does, nor did He say to go and tell because we desire to do so. He commanded that resurrection be followed with mission – go and tell. So, who will you tell this week?