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A Birthday Note

May 24, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Dear Brandon,

Has it really been 11 years already?! As the old cliché says, “Time sure flies when you’re having fun!” And it certainly has been so much fun watching you grow up.

In many ways you have helped me grow up too. One of the things I most appreciate about you is your sensitivity to other people, and your ability to encourage them. I have a lot of notes from you around so that I will see them often. It seems like whenever I’m having a rough time, I stumble across one of your notes that helps get me refocused.

You have taught me the value of encouragement. Did you know that the word encouragement literally means to put courage into someone?

Courage to do the right thing, even when everyone else is doing the wrong thing.
Courage to focus on God, even when everyone else is focusing on their fears.
Courage to give my very best, even when everyone else is trying to just get by.

Thank you, Brandon, for showing me the power of encouragement. One of your notes to me simply says, “Just trust God.” So I say the same thing to you, my son: Trust in Him in all you do, and He will make your path straight.

Happy 11^th Birthday!

I love you,

Dad

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: birthday, Dad, encouragement, family, father, sons. Leave a Comment »

Humbled Dad

March 16, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

If you heard a popping sound earlier today, that was probably my suit coat buttons! I attended the Cedar Springs Rotary Club luncheon today as an honored guest, because my son Brandon was a winner in the essay contest.

The essay contest is for the entire 5^th grade in Cedar Springs, where they are asked to write about someone who shows integrity. I’ve known for a couple of weeks that Brandon was one of only five winner selected, but he has carefully guarded his essay. Today at lunch was the first time either Betsy or I heard it.

You can watch Brandon read his essay here…

…or you can read the essay for yourself here:

Dad

     “And that is why God sent Jesus to earth.” That’s my dad practicing his sermon. If you didn’t just catch that, my dad’s occupation is a pastor. Personally I think my dad shows tons of integrity. Here’s some ways my dad shows this as a pastor.

     My first reason I think my dad shows integrity is he speaks God’s word to the people every Sunday and Wednesday at church, so in a way he’s educating people in God’s word.

     My second reason I think my dad shows integrity as a pastor is that he goes out of his way to counsel people at the church and people having a hard time in life. When he goes to hospitals or homes to pray for people, he’s showing his care. Maybe someone needs some tips for staying a healthy Christian, my dad can help.

     My next thing on the list is my dad helping people even in not so good places. Sometimes my dad has to go to the people when they need help. My dad says, “Jesus went to parties and bad places to spread God’s grace and love.” Sometimes my dad has to go to bad restaurants or has to sit in the smoker’s area of a restaurant. But he does it to show God’s love.

     My last reason I think my dad shows integrity as a pastor is he helps the city with activities. He gets the youth group involved and will do what he can.

     My dad also shows integrity as a dad. Here are some things I would say about my dad. My dad is always there for his family. If someone is in need of a ride home, my dad can probably squeeze it in. If someone gets hurt, he’s there for sure. If anyone has a problem, he’ll be there to solve it.

     My second reason my dad shows integrity to the family is by setting a good example for me to follow. But he still lets me grow in my own way. Those are the reasons my dad shows integrity to the family.

     I try to be more like my dad because my dad is a role model to me. He shows me the right from wrong. He helps me grow as a person and will always keep me on the right path. My dad plays with me and shows me humor. He’ll tell me stories about things he did, motivating me to do the same thing. But the thing I look to my dad for the most is to be a better Christian. My dad tells me a small sermon every day. It’s not something you would hear at church, but it just helps me go through my day.

     This is why I believe my dad is a great person and I hope from this story that you can see my dad shows integrity to everybody.

I am one humbled and PROUD dad!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Cedar Springs Rotary, Dad, essay, family, father, integrity, pride, sons. 1 Comment »

Your Most Important Ministry

October 12, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

These thoughts are especially targeted at pastors. If you are a pastor, tighten your chinstrap because this may hit you a little hard. If you aren’t a pastor, perhaps you could help your pastor in this vital ministry.

Pastor, what is your most important ministry?

Think about it. Get it clear in your mind: what is the most vital ministry you have every week?

Let me give you a little hint: if your “most important” ministry has anything to do with your church, you chose poorly. Your most important ministry is at your home with your family.

I hate to burst your bubble, but someone else can pastor your church. As much as you might think, “These ministries won’t get done if I don’t do them,” trust me, they will get done with or without you.

But, my dear friend, you are the only one who can be your mate’s spouse, you are the only one who can be your kids’ Dad or Mom.

I love studying the life of David. There is so much to learn from him: his passion for God, his military strategies, his prayer life, and other important things pertaining to leadership. But we need to also learn from David’s failures. For all of David’s success as a king, he was an abysmal failure as a husband and father. He spent so much time “at the office” that he neglected his family.

I don’t mean to condemn anyone, but I know that when things are right at home, things will go well at church. Too many people in our churches are getting short-changed because their pastor works so hard on ministering to them and doesn’t work hard enough on ministering to his family. Just like with David, this will come back to bite you. So here are the tough questions:

Do you spend more time thinking about how to grow your church than you do thinking about how to grow your marriage?
Do you read more books about church growth than you do about marital communication?
Do you put more effort into discipling new believers than you do discipling your kids?
Are you more attentive in keeping appointments with church members than you are in keeping family time protected?
Do you know more about the struggles of the people in your church than you do about the struggles your spouse and kids are facing?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, it’s time to refocus. EFFECTIVE MINISTRY BEGINS AT HOME WITH YOUR FAMILY!!! Do you want to grow your church? Start at home. Do you want to be a more effective pastor? Be a more effective spouse and parent.

Did I step on anyone’s toes? Good, ‘cause I just stepped on my own too. Now, let’s get to work on our most vital ministry.

Posted in Pastoring, Uncategorized. Tags: church, Dad, family, husband, kids, ministry, Mom, parenting, pastoring, pastors, spouse, wife. 6 Comments »

The Imbalanced Mother

May 10, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

We had a great time celebrating Moms yesterday. Moms are these amazing creatures that seem to be everywhere and doing everything. This ability to multitask is a blessing, but it can lead to problems if Moms try to perfectly balance their lives through more multitasking.

Perfect balance is an impossibility. Just as soon as you think you have everything balanced, life throws you a curve: a sick child … a flat tire … change of plans … I’m sure you know the drill.

Instead of trying to be the perfectly balanced multitasker, I suggest that you become a purposely imbalanced, God-leaning mother.

Imbalance your day toward God.

Take the time necessary to lean into God, and the rest of your day will be well-ordered.

Dads and kids, the greatest thing you can do to honor your wife/mother, is to make sure she has undisturbed time alone with God. I promise you that after she spends this time, the rest of her day—and therefore your day—will go much more smoothly. Help her to imbalance her life.

Here’s a great poem from Faye Inchfawn written in 1920:

See, I am cumbered, Lord,

With serving, and with small vexatious things.

Upstairs, and down, my feet

Must hasten, sure and fleet.

So weary that I cannot heed Thy word;

So tired, I cannot now mount up with wings.

I wrestle – how I wrestle! – through the hours.

Nay, not with principalities, nor powers—

Dark spiritual foes of God’s and man’s—

But with antagonistic pots and pans:

With footmarks in the hall,

With smears upon the wall,

With doubtful ears, and small unwashen hands,

And with a babe’s innumerable demands.

I toil with feverish haste, while tear-drops glisten,

(O, child of Mine, be still. And listen—listen!)

At last, I laid aside
Important work, no other hands could do
So well (I thought), no skill contrive so true.
And with my heart’s door open—open wide—

With leisured feet, and idle hands, I sat.

I, foolish, fussy, blind as any bat,
Sat down to listen, and to learn. And lo,
My thousand tasks were done the better so.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: children, Dad, father, Faye Inchfawn, marriage, Mom, mother, Mother's Day, multitask, parenting, poem, poetry, prayer, solitude. Leave a Comment »

Look Alikes

February 13, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

Brandon’s class had their annual “Living Wax Museum” at school yesterday. Can you guess who Brandon portrayed?

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Dad, NFL, parenting, Peyton Manning, school. 2 Comments »

Simply Profound

November 20, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

This morning I went to “Donuts With Dad” with my youngest son. It’s a time for Dads to bring their kids to school, grab a donut, and then walk around the school with their child. It was so cool seeing how excited my son was for me to be there with him!

We sat in his classroom to eat our donut, then he gave me the grand tour: the library, the computer lab, the lunchroom, the art room, and the gym. So simple, yet so important to him.

Earlier in the morning on my way to drop off my older children at their school, we were reading this passage in Colossians:

It’s that simple. That is the substance of our Message. We preach Christ, warning people not to add to the Message. We teach in a spirit of profound common sense so that we can bring each person to maturity. To be mature is to be basic. Christ! No more, no less. That’s what I’m working so hard at day after day, year after year, doing my best with the energy God so generously gives me.

So I’ve been thinking: if the simple things are the joy-filled things, why do we insist on making things so complicated in our Christian faith? We tell God’s children, “To be in a relationship with God you must do thus-and-so, and you must do it this many times each week, and you must do it this way.”

Must, must, must.

Complex rule after convoluted rule after antiquated rule. Why not simply say, “Love God will all that you’ve got. Just love Him in the unique way He made you to love Him”?

There’s great joy in simplicity. There is a profoundness in simplicity.

Here’s to a simpler walk with Christ!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Colossians, Dad, donuts, father, Gospel of Matthew, intimacy, joy, kids, relationships, simplicity, uniqueness. Leave a Comment »

The Full Bucket

August 7, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

DSCN0731

Yesterday we celebrated the Fourth Annual Father-Son Tigers Outing. Not a very memorable name, but a wonderful tradition. We didn’t start out doing this with the idea of creating an annual event, but I’m so glad it has become so.

A group of 21 Dads and their sons spending an entire day together. Breakfast … a long car ride across the state to Detroit … great seats at the Detroit Tigers game (watching them beat up on the Orioles) … a quick stop at Kensington Park to play our own version of baseball (the sons beat the Dads 17-to-16.8 because of our creative rules!) … a dip in the lake … Jimmy John’s subs before hitting the road … and another long trip home. All total, more than 14 hours of memories.

I love it!

As Dads, we want to pass on a full bucket to our sons. It’s how we translate our heritage into their legacy.

How do I fill my bucket? God gave this command, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.” It’s my responsibility to learn to love God with all I am and in all I do. I pursue God as I…

worship
pray
study
read
sweat
laugh
cry
play

That pursuit of God as my everything fills my bucket. Then the very next instruction God gives is this: “Write these commandments that I’ve given you today on your hearts. Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night. Tie them on your hands and foreheads as a reminder; inscribe them on the doorposts of your homes and on your city gates.”

How do I do this? Simply add together to my personal pursuit of God. Together with my sons and these other Dads and sons we…

worship together
pray together
study together
read together
sweat together
laugh together
cry together
play together

We started the day together under the shadow of the big tiger outside Comerica Park. We ended the day under the shadow of the Jimmy John’s restaurant as we prayed for one another. Dads and sons, together pursuing God.

Yesterday we Dads passed on a full bucket to our sons. Today we’re filling our buckets again so we can pass it on again.