"People truly were his mission"
"C. S. Lewis said, 'True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.' Pastor Tom Craig was the best living example of that definition that I have ever known."
"... a great man, who loved His Savior dearly and as a result loved people dearly"
"what a great legacy you left..Always pointing those around you to Jesus, giving of your time, and always making us laugh"
AND ON AND ON THEY GO...
I shared about Pastor Tom and his cancer about a month ago. I know this didn't do justice. This picture to the right is from our wedding, where he was sharing the gospel.
Pastor Tom went to be with the Savior he loved so much, Wednesday night, September 3, around 6pm.
Since then, stories keep popping up. I keep remembering how his wife and he really reached out and spoke into our lives. Honestly, it wasn't from his sermon. It was his life. It was how he reached into yours, without you even noticing it and spoke into it. It was the way that he was there. It was the way that he made you feel important and encouraged you.
One thing that hit me these last couple weeks was that I wasn't "it". Pastor Tom and Kim had this way of making you feel important like you were their only ministry.
I mentioned that, recently, I had visited the church, and even though there were a ton of visitors to see them, Kim saw me and called out and spoke to me. She asked how I was doing. She genuinely cared. They were just selfless.
I mentioned that, recently, I had visited the church, and even though there were a ton of visitors to see them, Kim saw me and called out and spoke to me. She asked how I was doing. She genuinely cared. They were just selfless.
I remember visiting in town over the last 5 years since we moved. They would talk and chat with us and ask us how we were doing. We mattered to them. Why? Because we were people and people were their ministry. They loved people. They breathed into the lives of people. People MATTERED!
BUT I WASN'T THE ONLY ONE! This is what hit me.
When we would go visit TN, Pastor Tom and hubby (a pastor) would usually meet up for a coffee or lunch. PT mentored and poured into him as well as many people. My husband was so impacted by Pastor Tom that he insisted on going to TN to be apart of the celebration service.
My sister and I were talking as well. Her husband and her have been at the church for nearly 10 years and were the ones to introduce the rest of us to it. She mentioned several stories of how he poured into them. Once time after they ran a vacation Bible School for the church, he brought them into his office and after teasing them, presented them with Auburn gifts for Joe and a Charming Charlie's gift card for Faith. He loved to tease but yet he made you feel loved through the teasing.
So you see, I wasn't their only ministry. They touched hundreds and maybe thousands of lives over the years. If you read his memorials and comments, on Facebook and elsewhere, you realize how many people he really affected. It's shocking. He made so many people feel like they mattered. He loved God. He loved people.
When we would go visit TN, Pastor Tom and hubby (a pastor) would usually meet up for a coffee or lunch. PT mentored and poured into him as well as many people. My husband was so impacted by Pastor Tom that he insisted on going to TN to be apart of the celebration service.
My sister and I were talking as well. Her husband and her have been at the church for nearly 10 years and were the ones to introduce the rest of us to it. She mentioned several stories of how he poured into them. Once time after they ran a vacation Bible School for the church, he brought them into his office and after teasing them, presented them with Auburn gifts for Joe and a Charming Charlie's gift card for Faith. He loved to tease but yet he made you feel loved through the teasing.
So you see, I wasn't their only ministry. They touched hundreds and maybe thousands of lives over the years. If you read his memorials and comments, on Facebook and elsewhere, you realize how many people he really affected. It's shocking. He made so many people feel like they mattered. He loved God. He loved people.
Pastor Tom wasn't perfect. He was human. He made mistakes but, in the end, he touched people with his life. He touched people with this death. He left a legacy because he made people feel like they matter.
Are people important to you? Do they matter to you? You know, they matter to God. He loved them so much He gave up His Son for them (John 3:16) -- Rejoicing in the Present
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