2008 Shepherd’s Conference – Session 2, Tom Pennington

Dr. Pennington is the Senior Pastor of Countryside Baptist Church in Dallas.

Pennington contrasted the way of the righteous with the way of the wicked using Psalm 1 as his primary text.

The righteous are blessed (have spiritual life and vitality), the wicked produce only chaff (no life). The righteous are plants, being cared for and bearing fruit. Chaff bears nothing. The righteous (the leaves), do not wither but have permanence, endurance and stability. Chaff just blows away.

As believers, we all want what the man in Psalm 1 has; a blessed, joyful and stable life that prospers and thrives. Sometimes we can pursue these things in the wrong fashion. Fads sweep the church periodically. Fads sweep our ministries periodically.

We go the way of the righteous by making two commitments: (1) Abandon every human way by a) not walking in the counsel of the wicked (not taking advice from the ungodly, b) not standing in the path of sinners (not following their patterns of behavior), c) not sitting in the seat of scoffers (not joining their social/cultural assemblies. In short, we avoid the wicked by not thinking like they think, not living like they do and not being part of what they are a part of.

The righteous man meditates on God's word day and night and delights in it. A righteous man's walk depends on his response to God's Word. He reflects on it and it whispers to his heart. It serves to illuminate our lives once we understand and begin to apply it.

After two General Sessions and one long workshop, we went for our traditional dinner to the Thai restaurant down the street from the church. John B and I had Pad Thai (superb!) while Ron and Bob had 'Orange Duck' which was, curiously, brown??