Jim Martin's Encouragement Note #110
The nurse, the needle, & the other side of difficulties . . . The power of decision . . . It's never too late for a significant day . . . The choice for any church leader . . . Etcetera
The List of Five
The Nurse, the Needle, and the Other Side of Difficulties
There are moments when the path to something better is on the other side of pain.
As a boy, I dreaded going to the pediatrician. Most of the dread was over the tongue depressor and the “shots.”
My pediatrician in Dallas was Dr. John Young. His nurse was “Miss Gillis.” Dr. Young had bulldog jaws that shook whenever he bent over to examine me. He would then take his tongue depressor, stick it in my mouth, and say “open wide.” I felt like I was choking.
“Miss Gillis” would then enter the room with one hand behind her back. I immediately smelled stale cigarette smoke. On her white smock was a bandaid. She would tell me to roll up my sleeve and from behind her back revealed she was holding a shot syringe. There was nothing I disliked more.
One day, as we drove home from the doctor’s office, my dad said, “I know you don’t like shots. But when you get a shot, it is like soldiers are entering your sick body to fight the germs and disease that are making you feel so bad.”
There is a lot of truth to this.
Could it be that at least some of the difficulties or challenges in my life could actually be shaping and forming me to be stronger, more holy, and humble?
I have found the following questions helpful as I navigate through difficult seasons in my own life. Maybe these will be helpful to you:
How is this challenge helping me? Are there ways I am growing because of this challenge?
How is this challenge blessing me? Are there good things that have come about as I grapple with this difficulty?
How is this challenge helping to form and shape me into the kind of person I want to be? Are there ways in which this difficult experience has been spiritually formative?
How has God been faithful in my life through this difficult season? What have I learned about God?
The Power of Decision
Writer Ann Patchett (Talking Volumes, September 28, 2023) spoke candidly about a principle that has been very important to her as a married person:
So much of life is making up your mind that it’s going to work. You are going to be happy. I’m going to get this done. . . Again and again, you decide how you are going to read the situation.
Marriage, childrearing, and so much of life begins with a decision to commit.
My spouse should not have to wonder if I am coming home after work.
My children should not have to wonder if dad or mom will continue to stand by them.
My friends should not have to wonder if I am still following Jesus.
As a disciple of Jesus, I have committed my life to Him. At my baptism, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus became very personal to me. When I wake up in the morning, the question of my identity is already settled. I may have a variety of roles - husband, father, friend, employee, etc. Fundamentally, I am God’s child.
Each day I am God’s child. Each day, God blesses me with his security (Psalm 73:23), his direction (73:24), his destiny (73:24), and his strength (73:26). This is good news!
It’s Never Too Late to Have a Significant Day
It’s never too late to invest your life in something that really matters.
Frances Havergal draws attention to what one’s life might become if you follow Jesus. Frances was born in Worcestershire England in 1836. Her father was a minister. She wrote poetry and hymns as a child. She sang of the love of God and his desire for us to serve him.
Lord, speak to me that I may speak
In living echoes of Thy tone;
As Thou has sought, so let me seek
Thy erring children, lost and lone.
She speaks of a significant life. She speaks of a life that matters.
I’m trying to remember this as I watch Harding School of Theology move after having been in Memphis for 66 years. This week, workers loaded trucks loaded with tables, chairs, pictures, etc. to take to the main campus in Searcy, Arkansas.
The education building, where classes have long been held, is now virtually empty. There is an eerie echo in the Mansion as more and more of the furnishings have been taken away. By the end of August, most of the faculty and staff will have left.
My last day is Friday, August 30.
Yet, the strength of this school has not been in its location, its buildings, its furnishings, its staff or even its faculty. All of this has been important and helpful but there is something even more essential.
The strength of this school has been one generation pouring a kingdom investment into the next generation. This has been a school, led by a faculty/staff who understood its mission and carried it out for decades.
Through its graduates, the investment continues to be passed on from one generation to another. The school may move but the Holy Spirit will continue to be at work through its graduates all across the globe. The work of the men and women associated with this school has been significant and will continue to be.
This is true with all of us. It is never too late to invest your life in something that matters. It is always right to make a kingdom investment in another person.
You may be a business person, serving God every day as you live to glorify God in every sale, every transaction, and in every appointment. You are living a significant life.
You may be a mother, at home with small children. Your presence, your words, and your affection mean so much. All that you do through example and word to point them toward Jesus, matters. You are living a significant life.
You may serve in a church, perhaps in a place that receives little visibility. As you serve faithfully, know that you are living a significant life.
What you are doing matters.
The Choice for any Church Leader (Especially for ministers and other church leaders)
Challenges and pitfalls for any church leader:
Some who are ministers may be aware of the tendency of their family of origin to have an unhealthy patten of dealing with conflict. For example, this person’s parents may have had a pattern of using deception or denial when faced with conflict. It can be very helpful to have self-awareness of these kinds of unhealthy patterns.
We may project a public persona that suggests we are thoughtful, engaging and competent. Yet, there is a problem if at home, our children and spouses have to deal with a grumpy, immature husband or father.
We may be stuck in status quo behavior that is low-risk and comfortable, instead of taking the initiative to face our fears and insecurities.
We may minister for many years and then fade away as we get older and choose to live on cruise control. The recliner becomes our new home.
The following are paths you can take toward greater growth and effectiveness in ministry:
We can ask for the input of people whom we trust as we seek to grow as ministers, preachers, leaders, and most of all - as disciples of Jesus.
We can seek to grow in wisdom for as long as we live. Yes, we can google most anything and gain more information. Yet are we growing in wisdom?
We can ask better questions. For example, we could ask ourselves how we might grow as disciples of Jesus in our marriages.
We can live every day, every moment, recognizing this is a gift from God meant for his glory.
I feel a tension between the first group of realities that and the second group. Yet, I know that when I live intentionally, I tend to focus on the last four. What about you?
Etcetera
Don’t miss Steve Cuss’ new podcast, Being Human, published by Christianity Today.
I have been reading portions of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Lessons in Leadership. Such a thought provoking book.
Recently, I have been reading Conversations with Walker Percy. A collection of interviews, etc. I find him to be very interesting.
I serve as Vice President of Harding School of Theology, Memphis, Tennessee.
Every other Monday morning, I publish this “Encouragement Note.” You can subscribe at jimmartin.substack.com. You can also find me on Facebook - @jim.martin or Instagram - @jimmartin.jm. My e-mail address is: jmartin9669@gmail.com. Feel free to write. I would love to hear what is encouraging. — Jim Martin
Thank you so much for blessing my day and week with your inspirational message. Each time I listen, I get uplifted and blessed.
Thank you, Jim. Sent part of these thoughts to our Tuesday devo group. Blessings, Bill