Lessons My Dad Taught Me
Last week I was listening to a minister friend of mine on television share a series entitled “Lessons My Mother Taught Me.” This is the second time I heard a well-known minister share sermons on the same theme. The Apostle Paul made a very strange statement in 1 Corinthians 4:15. He said to the church, “You might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers.” Sadly, that’s still the case even today as we celebrate Father’s Day. Yet we should consider ourselves fortunate and blessed if we’ve had a great father or father figure in our lives. I am glad to say that I’m one of those fortunate children who has a great dad. My dad passed on four important lessons that I believe make for a good father. The first lesson he taught me was how to take care of my wife. Over forty years ago my mom suffered a panic attack which forced her to give up driving. From that moment on my dad had to drive her everywhere. Yet I never heard him complain while he patiently served my mom. This helped me when, due to a bad experience prior to our marriage, my wife did not drive for the first five years of our marriage. It was because of my dad’s example that I was able to patiently encourage my wife to learn to drive again. The second lesson he taught me was responsibility for taking care of my children. I’m the first third-generation Greene to have graduated from college even though my dad has eight brothers and sisters. I still remember my dad cashing in all his investments to make sure that I was able to go to college, something he did not have the privilege of experiencing himself. As my daughters approach their college years, I know that I will do all that is within my power to do for them what their grandfather did for me. The third lesson my dad taught me was how to be a loyal friend. This May my dad and mom celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary by renewing their vows. I was amazed that my dad’s best man and one of his main ushers in the wedding fifty years ago were not only in the renewal ceremony but are still his good friends. I’ve watched these men go through very difficult challenges and yet remain faithful friends. The fourth lesson he taught me was the importance of serving God and His House (The Church). As a child, I watched my dad play the piano, direct the church choir, be a deacon, teach Sunday School classes, serve as a trustee, and the list goes on. I asked my daughters one day, “How many ministries are you involved in at the church?” One responded four and the other said six. What struck me more than anything is that they thoroughly enjoy serving in God’s House. They have no teenage attitude of whining and complaining! Where did they learn that? They learned it from their dad who learned to serve God with joy from his dad. While mothers are very important, the longer I pastor the more I believe that the most important person in a child’s life after they become a teenager is their...
read moreTwelve
Twelve years! Do you remember when you were twelve years old? You were on the verge of becoming an adolescent. Soon you would no longer be considered just a “kid”—you would be a teenager! I remember being a star Little League baseball player as a twelve-year-old. Like Barry Bonds, I was in a race to set the single season home-run record in my city. However, in spite of my name being in the paper every week, I could hardly wait to turn thirteen because then I would be in the Babe Ruth League. There you played by the same rules used by grown ups. You could take leads off of the base and tag up on fly balls, just like the Red Sox! As far as education, twelve was the end of grammar school. It was time for junior high school, which meant I would be changing classrooms to go from English to math, rather than staying in Mr. Ferraro’s room all day since he taught all my classes. And yet, while twelve places one on the edge of a new stage in life, twelve also represents the end or the completion of the stage in which one currently find himself. As much as I wanted to be in the Babe Ruth League, I would miss seeing my name in the local paper every week. And as much as I looked forward to moving from classroom to classroom in junior high, I would miss being in the senior class of grammar school. I’m writing on the significance of twelve because on June 3rd I celebrate my twelfth year as senior pastor of Pentecostal Tabernacle. Much has happened in those years. In my family life, my oldest daughter will legally become a woman and my wife and I were finally able to purchase a home. At PT, our congregation has grown dramatically, paid staff has increased, renovations have taken place, and most importantly, many lives have been changed by the grace of God. So rather than look forward to the challenges and excitement of getting to my teen years as a pastor, I think I’ll sit back this week and appreciate God’s blessings in my life with regard to the last twelve years. I hope that you will take time out to do the same, no matter in which stage of life you currently find yourself. For, in spite of life’s challenges, God’s been good to all of...
read more
The World’s Most Influential People
One morning I was reading Time Magazine’s list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Of course this list contained what I would call “the usual suspects”: Oprah, Hillary, Barack, Leonardo, etc. However, I was struck by a number of other things such as: Osama bin Laden still being on the list after all these years The number of people of whose names I’ve never heard That President George W. Bush was left off of the list while Raul Castro (Fidel’s brother) was included The inclusion of only two leaders in the Christian faith: Pope Benedict XVI and Archbishop Peter Akinola of Nigeria In his book, Discovering the Leader Within You, Dr. John Maxwell defines leadership very simply: Leadership is Influence, nothing more, nothing less. If this is the case, then these 100 individuals are not simply world influencers, they’re also world leaders. And whether or not I agree with Time’s list, one thing is certain: These are very important people whom I need to be aware of because they in some measure influence the world in which I live. As we ponder the reasons these individuals made Time’s list, I ask: Are you a person of influence? What kind of influence are you for God and His Kingdom? And finally, who are the people who have influenced your life (for better or worse)? The Bible says, “As iron sharpens iron, so people can improve each other” (Proverbs 27:17, CEV). More than likely, we will never make Time’s list. However, we all can make up our minds to accomplish something this year that will improve the lives of others for good. As usual, I invite your...
read moreWhat Men Want
The March issue of the magazine Men’s Health had an article entitled “What Makes Men Fall Love?” by David Zinczenko. Being a man who fell in love 29 years ago and is still in love after 24 years of marriage, I was curious about currently attracts my fellow males who are still involved in the pursuit of happiness. So I decided to read this article, and I discovered (according to a national Harris Interactive Poll) that “sixty percent of men deem friendship the most important thing in a relationship. Sex comes in at a skimpy eight percent.” The writer continued by stating four things a man wants in a woman. Ladies, are you ready to find out what your prince charming is in search of when he comes knocking at your door? Gentlemen, are you ready to discover what you did not know you wanted when you knock? Well, here we go: 1. Men want a woman with a passion in something other than her man. Wow! How humble! How selflessly not desiring to be the center of her universe! Sorry, I could not help myself on this one. 2. Men want a woman who has no problem with guy time. This means she needs to be ok with him spending time hanging out with his buddies from time to time. 3. Men desire a woman who has a strut. Now that’s a word I have not heard in a very long time—strut. However, this means that a man wants a woman with “attitude”, “sassiness”, “confidence”, “charisma”, “charm that shows she can be a little bold and a little daring.” Folks, I’m quoting what the article says. 4. And finally, drum roll please! Let’s open the envelope carefully. Men want a woman with a good taste in ties. In other words, he wants a woman who can provide him with a little gentle guidance in areas of life where he may not feel confident. Again, emphasis on the word “gentle”. So, ladies and gentlemen, are these the four qualities that top your lists of what you need to be to your man, or what you have to have from your woman? How do these four qualities compare to the capable woman found in Proverbs 31 (New Living Translation)? Is there really something to this list? For example, #4 resonates with verses 11 & 12, which say that “Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life. She will not hinder him but help him…”. Part of this list actually sounds very Biblical, but hey, I invite your...
read more
sending...
