President's Update - March 2009

“Remember to say thank you”….it is advice that I heard a thousand times as a kid, and words I say almost every day as a father.  It is instruction that we all need, especially when we realize the power of those two little words.  

In a story in Luke 17, Jesus heals 10 men of Leprosy - but only one of them comes back to say thank you.  It has always made me angry as I thought about those 9 men who seemed so ungrateful.  When I place myself in the story, I’d like to think that I would have returned to thank Jesus, but in all actuality, I might have continued on my way and failed to thank and praise Him adequately.  Ingratitude is a common occurrence throughout the Bible.  In fact, some say the greatest sin of the Israelites was their failure to be grateful.  After all that God did for them, they arrogantly forgot God and wandered into dire straits over and over again.  He has done so much for us as well - have you remembered to thank Him today?  

One of the ways we can say thank you to God is by thanking the men and women God places in our lives to share His grace with us.  I was reminded of this fact recently when I received a call from an ex-student of mine who is now a businessman in Houston.  I had not spoken with him in almost 3 years and out of the blue, he just called to thank me for investing in his life and for showing God’s love to him while he was a student at SMU.  The call came on a day when I was feeling a little low, and it is amazing how much those words did for my spirit.  

I tell you that story to remind you to say thank you.  Not only do we humble ourselves and keep the proper perspective of God when we thank Him, but we also have the opportunity to make someone’s day when we thank them for doing what God called them to do.  In some of the articles you will find on this website, you’ll see people being honored for their service in Campus Ministry.  We’d love for you to send us tributes to student leaders or campus ministers who have made a difference in your college experience as well.  But even more than we want to hear them, they need to hear them, so take some time out today and call or send a note to someone and say thanks for making a difference in your life.

In closing, I’d like to say a special thank you to Matt Carter.  Matt has served as the President of Campus Crosswalk for the last three years and has given most of his adult life to campus ministry.  He truly has a Pastor’s heart and has made a big impact on many lives.  I am grateful to him for his friendship, his servant leadership and his example of Jesus Christ.  In addition, for those of you who have noticed this website has been updated and changed, we have Matt to thank once again as he gave of his time and energy to oversee this project.  

Finally, thank you for visiting Campus Crosswalk.  I hope you will plan to join us in Atlanta at the end of July for the Connect Conference.  There are some great speakers lined up and lots of time for networking and friend-making as we turn our attention to sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ on college campuses around the world.

May God use you wherever you are!

Jim