Today, I had the privilege of sharing the officiating of a funeral with my predecessor and friend, Pastor David Eshleman. Pastor Dave served as the Senior Pastor of CCF before I did. Every time I am with him, I am challenged to grow. Tonight, I just have to thank God for him.If you know Dave Eshleman at all, you know that he is the polar opposite of self seeking. He is meek, humble, gentle and caring. He will not be thrilled when he finds out that I wrote this blog. But, he'll forgive me. Pastor Dave has qualities that all by themselves remind me of my need for more of Jesus!
- He leaks scripture all the time. He has hidden it in his heart, but just deep enough that he can dig it up and quote it...text, chapter and verse with relative ease.
- He drips Jesus. The brother is as Christocentric as anyone I have ever met. Jesus is clearly his first love.
- He loves people. He cares about anyone he knows. I watched him "Pastor" people all over the place today in the few hours he was among us. Remembers details, follows up on things you have told him, asks questions, listens and actually cares about what you are telling him.
I don't write these things to score any brownie points. I have nothing to gain here other than to honor one of the leaders in my life that I am thankful for tonight. He has made a difference in me. It is not every day that a current and previous pastor can share the type of relationship that we do. So beautiful.
But the main reason that I share these things is to issue a challenge to each of us to strive for a pure heart, a passion for the scriptures, a love for the Lord Jesus and an intentional love for people that leaks out you walk in a room. If you fill up with Jesus, you will leak Jesus. If you fill up with other stuff, then you will leak.....well.....other stuff!
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Pastor Dave is also an author (book pictured above) and church consultant. You can click HERE to buy his book.
1 comment:
"But the main reason that I share these things is to issue a challenge to each of us to strive for a pure heart, a passion for the scriptures, a love for the Lord Jesus and an intentional love for people that leaks out when you walk into a room."
Yes, this is a wonderful challenge and I would love for it to manifest in our daily lives. I have heard that as Christians, we are like barometers, the atmosphere ought to change when we walk into a room--if, as you say, we're carrying God's light with us. (I think it was the pastor at nearby Reid Temple who wrote that in a circulating daily blog." Also, I'd say it ought to show when we walk down the street, ride the train, etc. Oddly enough, I'm finding my new next-door neighbors are nearly invisible. I want to make a connection and welcome them, but they seem to not to "see" me!
Alexine
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