my take on rick warren-

I’ve been thinking a lot about Rick Warren lately. One of my friends used to work closely with Rick Warren, and he tells me stories about amazing this guy and his church is. He also gave me this book about his life. I’ve read Rick Warren’s books, and have heard him speak a few times. I have visited his church and even got to meet him once. I have always had a big respect for him, but after reading this biography about him and hearing stories about him, I come away with a whole new admiration of him. here are a few of the things I respect the most:

:: his capacity- rick warren runs a huge church, plus a network of pastors, plus several charities, and still seems to have room to tweet, and interact with people as though he were not hurried at all-

:: his friendliness- I have heard it said that rick warren can meet with the president of a country, and then a busboy at a restaurant and treat them both with the same level of kindness, interest, and respect. he has friends on the left and on the right and from all walks of life-

:: his message- a lot of people want to be famous or influential, but few have a message that is as concise and as accessible to as many people as Rick Warren.

:: his intellect- rick warren is a genius. he goes through at least a book a day and can converse with anybody about anything and at a high level. he is extremely curious and loves learning.

:: his faith- if you ever read through the story of how he planted his church and how he acquired the property, you’ll discover that he is a man who believes that God can do anything.

:: his humility- I have heard Rick Warren often speak of how he was given a simple honor by a fellow pastor, and that honor brought him to tears. when you’re that successful and that humble, it’s a rare combination.

:: his generosity- Rick Warren seems to have coined the phrase “reverse-tither” where he lives off of 10% and gives away 90%. most of that goes to AIDS victims in africa.

:: his contentedness- his book the purpose driven life is possibly the best selling book of all time- and yet he did not buy a new house or even a new car after its release.

:: his character- it takes a special man to point attention away from himself and onto Christ and onto the people who are hurting in the world. it takes a special person to say no to riches and fame for the sake of others. it also takes a special character to be put in the spotlight and to be found with integrity.

I used to think it would be cool to have a church like Rick Warren, or a book, or notoriety like him, but I don’t really want any of that. what I would like is the qualities I’ve listed above. I’m not asking God to make me a super-star pastor or author, but if He wanted to make me into something like that, I would want to have the character that could survive that kind of attention and money.

and that’s what I’m after these days.

God is love.

-rev-rob