The Buddy System

When I was a kid on Beach Retreat with my church, whenever we went in the ocean we had to have someone go with us. Between undertow, sharks, and other oceanic hazards, it was good to have someone who was looking out for you. When the LOD (Lifeguard on Duty) blew the airhorn, we had to go find our buddy and raise our hands together until they sounded the airhorn a second time. That was the program for helping to make sure everyone stayed safe and accounted for in the Gulf of Mexico.

Last week, a phenomenal friend of mine flew in from Upper State New York to attend the Spur L'ship Conference with one of his staff members (I know it's Upstate, but we have another mutual friend that we like to harass for calling it Upper State). Buddy Cremeans is the Pastor of Northway Church. They have multiple locations throughout the Clifton Park-Colonie region of New York (and their Malta location is in process as we speak), and they are absolutely crushing it for the Kingdom in an area not noted for church growth fertility. (NOTE: If Upstate NY is accessible to you, next week on Monday, Oct. 13, Buddy is hosting a C3 Regional Conference with Ed Young. These one-day events are packed with hard-won principles that will promote mission-critical practices for a monster payoff in your church. You can get more info and register by hitting this link for CreativePastors.com.)

Since he left Austin last Friday morning, he has called or texted me four other times to encourage me, say thank you, and ask an opinion or two. Buddy is one of those people that fill my tanks. Every time I talk to him, or Julie and I get to be around him and his bride Debbie, we are fueled, in-couraged, and strengthened to go fight another day.

No airhorns, no literal sharks in the water or actual undertow. But, the Buddy System works. It's great to have people who are looking out for you and make the time to check on you.

Who's your "Buddy System" partner?