The picture above was posted by Rick Champ on Twitter this past May with the simple introduction, “A nugget of wisdom from Henri Nouwen.” I definitely appreciate the wisdom in Nouwen’s statement as well, and Rick is one of the people I’m grateful that God placed in my path for a bit along this journey.
Rick went home to be with Jesus a little over a week ago, and even though our connection was small compared to the many other lives he touched, I can’t help but reflect and share about some of the impact he has had on my life. If you were blessed to know Rick, maybe you will be able to relate in some way. But even if you didn’t have the privilege of meeting him, I’m hoping there can still be some treasures of inspiration here for you, too.
I first met Rick when he came to the church I was attending to share about the mission of a children’s home he was working for at the time. I appreciated his heart as he spoke, and we had a brief conversation that day and then followed each other online (as did several others). Rick was the kind of person who actually was always keeping the “social” in social media. He had a way of staying connected to everyone and keeping up on the important things in their lives.
I also really appreciated the posts Rick shared and the ways he initiated or added to discussions important to the Church as a whole and simply living life in Christ. But then again, we also seemed to connect over things like a propensity toward messy desks, stacks of books, and the need for getting souvenir cups at baseball games.
Over the years, we had a few more opportunities to chat in person as well, mostly out of state when I attended events such as the North American Christian Convention. But we always ended up having meaningful conversations, and I always left feeling grateful. Rick was intentional about connecting with people, asking good questions, and being genuinely interested in others.
Rick was a kind encouragement to me and to so many others in ministry and in seasons of transition. He actually played a key part in helping me decide on the degree option I am currently pursuing in this time of going forward to school, too. I will be forever grateful, and I know it is a direction God keeps leading me.
Rick was also a master at networking and connecting, and people keep coming to my mind that I follow online and/or have gotten to know personally thanks to Rick’s introductions through social media. I think of Kent Sanders, Casey Tygrett, Titus Benton, and Rondel Ramsey off the top of my head, and my life is better because of those connections.
And I don’t even know if I can remember all the books I have read at least in part because Rick posted about them… Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer, The Gift of Hard Things by Mark Yaconelli, and Becoming Curious and As I Recall by Casey Tygrett come to the forefront of my mind. (You can read a bit more about that last one here if you’d like as well.) And I remember laughing to myself when he posted about listening to Alan Alda’s book, If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face?, because I had been listening to the same audiobook at the time (and loving it!).
I also appreciated Rick’s voice of reason in this season when pretty much every other post on social media about politics makes me wonder if the whole world has gone crazy. (And there’s a high likelihood I could mean that statement differently than you might think.) In one of our in-person conversations, we got around to talking about how sometimes Christians can tend to miss the heart of Christ for people even when trying to stand up for Him. I want to remember we are Christ’s ambassadors, called to share His love, not needing to defend His reputation. How often did Jesus choose to let people misunderstand Him as He associated with the broken and shunned, even “tax collectors and sinners”?
As we continued to talk, Rick brought up a song by Rick Elias on Rich Mullins’ Jesus Record, called Man of No Reputation. Then after our conversation, he tagged me in a post online with a link to the song and wrote, “No need to guard the reputation of the one with no reputation. Just love as he loved.” Amen. I want to be doing just that.
It seems like everyone who met Rick has stories similar to and even more profound than mine. Social media has been flooded with them, and each one I have come across has made me smile and think, “Yep, that sounds like Rick.” But they also make me ponder my own life and wonder, “Who can I reach out to and encourage today?” Sometimes what can seem like small efforts of connection might actually be big ones, and I don’t want to miss them.
I can’t help but close with another Henri Nouwen quote Rick shared on social media on September 21st this past year. These seem to be the kind of questions Rick came back to often in his own life, and I want to keep revisiting them for mine, too…
“Did I offer peace today?
Did I bring a smile to someone’s face?
Did I say words of healing?
Did I let go of my anger and resentment?
Did I forgive?
Did I love?
These are the real questions.”
~Henri Nouwen
Yes and amen. Thanks for sharing them, Rick. And thanks for how you put them into practice to encourage so many… even me. We are all grateful.
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