Tentmaker Redux

Since I'm a winner now and S-Dub from the N-Dub is pimping my blog for a week, I figured I might get a few new readers. With that in mind, I'd like to re-post my first post to introduce my passion and purpose to all of you. Hope you find some commonality and inspiration.

From Nov. 7, 2007:

First off, welcome to my blog. I'm truly honored you have shared a few moments of your time with me.

So, what exactly is a "tentmaker?"

Acts 18:3 reveals a little snippet about the Apostle Paul's life that I find extremely fascinating. The Message says it like this:

"Paul moved in with them (Aquilla & Priscilla) and they worked together at their common trade of tentmaking." (emphasis mine)

Yep. Paul, at one point in his life, had a day job. A regular 9 to 5'er. However, he didn't merely toil at making tents for no reason. Rather, he leveraged his profession to advance the Gospel.

So, to answer the question, a "tentmaker" is someone who has a career and a passion to let God use them in their career to further the Gospel. Like Paul, God may call them to vocational ministry, or not. The point is, a "tentmaker" uses their career as a propellant for ministry.

What about you? What is your career, and how do you see God using you as a "tentmaker?"

The Masters - Amateurs

The Masters tournament is full of time-honored traditions. The tournament's founder, Bobby Jones, was not only the greatest golfer to ever play the game, but he did so entirely as an amateur. Mr. Jones was a lawyer by trade, but somehow found a way to maintain a championship-caliber golf game in spite of balancing his job and family resposibilities. Pure, God-given talent and passion had a lot to do with it, I'm quite sure. In spite of the numerous tournaments he won, he never accepted any of the prize money - including in 1930 when he won the Grand Slam of golf, which has never been accomplished in the same calendar year since.

Here's how The Masters honors amateurs today:

• Winners of the most prestigious amateur tournaments in the world receive invitations to compete.
• If they choose, 5 amateurs may stay in The Crow's Nest, which is a room located in the topmost floor of the Augusta clubhouse. It is a room rich with history, as the walls are adorned with photographs and sketches of past Masters.
• The defending Masters champion is always paired with the current U.S. Amateur champion for the first two days of the tournament.
• The Masters awards the Silver Cup to the amateur who shoots the lowest score after making the cut. This award is presented to them on live TV in the presence of the tournament winner.

There are many more, but I'll wrap this up with one final thought: I see "tentmakers" as "amatuer" ministers. They don't take a penny for the ministry they perform. They do it "for the love of the game." Like Bobby Jones, they can leave a tremendous legacy if they would just "compete."

What are some ways you can "get in the game" this week? Month? Year?