I keep in my "memories file" a picture of three faithful servants, each of whom is now in the presence of his Savior. Sometime in the 1960's these three men were ministering together at a pastor's conference in Taiwan.
Sitting at the head of the table is Dr. John Mitchell, the founding pastor of Central Bible Church in Portland, Oregon. In the bottom-right is Norm Cook, missionary statesman and later professor at Multnomah Bible College in Portland, Oregon. And seated between the two is my dad, William Earle Stevens, then pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
I am personally indebted to each of these three men for their direct or indirect influence on my life. Their missionary zeal, pastoral heart, and deep love for the Savior was and remains contagious. The first, of course, is my own father who entered the Lord's presence in 1999. His life was not merely a signpost, telling me the path to follow; it was a model, showing me the path to follow. Though he never did, I believe my dad could have honestly said as the Apostle Paul, "Imitate me, as I imitate Christ" (1 Corinthians 11:1).
My connection with Dr. Mitchell is more indirect. In 2000, the Lord led us from Europe to Portland, Oregon were I served as Senior Pastor of Central Bible Church for fourteen years (2000 - 2014). Upon arriving in June of 2000, little did I know of the previous ministry collaboration that my dad and Dr. Mitchell had shared. My mother discovered the above picture in her many clippings and sent it on to me after hearing of our call to Central Bible. During those memorable years of ministry, this picture reminded me of God's call to faithfully build upon the foundation laid by Dr. Mitchell and other faithful servants who had followed (1 Corinthians 3:10-12).
Then there is Norm Cook, or "stormin' Norman" as some called him. I first met Norm when I was only six or seven years old. Norm, Muriel, and their family visited the church of which my father was the pastor in Chattanooga, Tennessee (1953-1969). We had also served in the same mission (One Challenge, previously O.C. International), though at different time periods. When I arrived to begin the ministry at Central Bible Church, little did I know that Norm and Muriel were part of the CBC congregation and that Norm, as a member of the Elder Team, would quickly become one of my closest friends and colleagues in ministry. Several weeks ago, Norm "passed on." Nevertheless, God's work through him and his wife, Muriel, carries on in the lives of those in whom they so faithfully invested.
The Apostle Paul was very aware of this principle when he wrote young Timothy the following words:
For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. 2 Timothy 4:6-8
The great commentator Bishop Moule once said that he found it difficult to read this second epistle to Timothy “without something like a mist gathering in his eyes.” Penned at the end of Paul’s missionary career, it is the most personal and passionate of all of Paul’s letters. I have no doubt that the pages of the Greek manuscript that young Timothy held in his hands were dampened by the tears of the great Apostle. Young Timothy was also certainly filled with profound emotion as he carefully and prayerfully read each line.
As I reflect back on these three stalwarts of the faith—my own father, John Mitchell, and Norm Cook—I too have "something like a mist" that gathers in my eyes. As Paul, each one could say at the end of his life, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
I pray that I will be able to say the same.
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