You
probably have never heard that name before! He was conservative, and
probably his title made him unpopular to the Charismatics; but the
Professor-Emeritus of Dallas Theological Seminary lived his life
genuinely for God. For about four years I have been trawling the
internet for his messages. I even ordered for his books online! James
Dobson, Chuck Swindoll, Rick Warren, and cohorts called him "mentor."
You really should have known him. Thankfully, his messages and books are
available. I stumbled on his obituary while looking to update my
archives of messages from him!
Have you read Finishing strong?
Steve Farrar referred to some research done on some 246 Christian
leaders over two years, and the appalling percentage of those who
remained in ministry: 10%. That research was done by Prof Hendricks. He
really needed to live so long to do so much!
Have
you heard before that the Ninevites worshipped the sea? And that the
action of enzymes on Jonah in the belly of the whale certainly left
Jonah's skin bleached and messed up! With a strange man vomited by the
sea, and his skin colouration strangely altered, the Ninevites quickly
heeded Jonah's call. Meaning? God can make the most of any hopeless
situation! I learnt that from the Prof! By the way, have you heard
that Jonah was not the only survivor of a whale's swallowing? James
Bartley was alleged to have in the late 1800s! Google him!
I
have heard many reasons why ministers do not honour invitations. I have
heard about other engagements, I've heard of the need for rest, I've
heard of the need for retreats. But until I came across Prof, I never
heard someone say he could not honour a ministry invitation because he
had to play with his son! And he couldn't shift though the callers
thought he was crazy; his son was of higher priority than the ministry
appointment! I was so blessed by that! Now that he is gone, his son is a minister of the Gospel!
I've
never heard anyone laugh at the ministry for paying him a salary to
fulfil the call of God on his life. He just found it so funny! He never
preached; he always taught. He always taught; he used to draw and make
sketches while speaking! He was so funny, yet his messages incisive! He
observed that the seminary students who seemed hopeless often turned out
better than imaginable! He preached for one of such students; the
church was so full that someone took Prof's seat when he went up to
preach! His students couldn't understand what the bald old man could be
doing under the tree with his bible in hand. They thought he was crazy
when he told them he was memorizing scriptures! He had to explain to
them: to students, he was a Prof; but to God, he was a Christian and his
battles were no different from those his students went through!
He
was so in love with his wife that his children's friends wished aloud
that they had parents-in-love! Once on a plane an air hostess couldn't
help but ask if they were newly married. "No! Between us, we've been
married for about ninety years! I've been married to her for forty-five,
and she's been married to me for forty-five!" Laughable, but it left
the air hostess dumbfounded in an age in which five years of marriage
could tend to be long! She couldn't help but announce over the public
address in the plane. They got a standing ovation!
He
called Barnabas' the Ministry of Multiplication. Barnabas did encourage
many, but he raised a few (esp Paul and Mark) who went on to raise and
influence numerous. Prof was forever grateful to the man who led him to
Christ. The man beat Prof at the game of marbles repeatedly when Prof
was a little boy, early morning on a Sunday! Hendricks was hooked to
him...and to his Sunday school!
Hendricks
taught over 10,000 pastors in Dallas Theological Seminary. He preached
in over eighty countries, often ministering at Billy Graham Crusades. He
was chaplain to Dallas Cowboys Football Team. He was patron to Promise
Keepers. He was and will still be an influence on numerous others!
One
last point: He came from a broken home, his wife came from a broken
home. And they both decided with the help of God to stop the evil cycle
of broken homes in their genealogy. They did; they were married for
sixty-six years!
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