E.L. Russell”“A Pacesetter Without Prominence

By Brett Andrews

I suspect one day in Heaven we will be treated to a long parade of the greatest leaders in history. And we won”t recognize most of their names.

One of those uncelebrated but great leaders I wish you could have known was Eldreth L. Russell, minister of my home church in Meadville, Pennsylvania, for most of the 1960s and “70s. Under his ministry, the Meadville church grew, sent out ministers and missionaries, and became a middle-sized church with a megachurch influence.

Setting the Pace with Joy

Ministry taxes the strongest. Paul wrote of carrying the daily pressure of church leadership. Elijah, Jeremiah, and Thomas were not poster children for positive thinking. Yet, if I were playing a “word association” game and you mentioned the name, “E.L. Russell,” my first response would be “fun.”

“E.L. had an infectious burst of laughter,” recalls Daryl Pratt, Meadville”s associate minister. “I never knew him to be depressed about the church. If he was discouraged, he always seemed to have a positive outlook. He never talked about people in a negative way.”

Every year, my grandmother hosted the Friendship Class picnic at our place at the lake. Mr. Russell usually attended with his wife, Ila. We kids would play croquet in the side yard in our bathing suits. Mr. Russell would join us in his suit pants and white dress shirt, and laugh more quickly than all of us.

This is the lasting image I carry of Mr. Russell. Not merely a preacher standing behind an elevated wooden pulpit delivering an eloquent message, but a friendly, quick-to-laugh, dignified man playing croquet with kids in the side yard.

Setting the Pace with Contentment

Hebrews 13:5 says, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have. . . .” Most people don”t need a lot of money to be content. Like John Rockefeller, we just need a little more. E.L. Russell didn”t suffer that malady.

Growing up poor, he hitchhiked to Johnson Bible College in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Hitchhike to Bible college? If it had been me I might have thought, Attending Bible college is not God”s will for me!) It was no secret in the church that Mr. Russell repeatedly refused raises. He was cheap toward himself, but rich toward God.

He was never wealthy, but his needs were met. “Ministers have the best retirement plan,” was his conviction. “God will be faithful.” Many times when I”ve been inclined to feel discontent with my financial situation, I”ve been thankful God gave me the stewardship example of E.L. Russell.

Setting the Pace with Teaching

For nearly 20 years, Mr. Russell was a “speed of the leader, speed of the team” minister. In the spirit of 1 Timothy 4:13, he set the pace not by becoming a businessman, but by devoting himself first to the Scripture, preaching, and teaching.

I will always remember one Sunday morning in junior worship. I was in fifth grade. Mr. Russell was our guest speaker. He held up a simple, white poster board with handwritten Magic Marker words from Isaiah 53:6 and recited from the King James Version, “All we like sheep have gone astray. . . .” We repeated after him. He explained that we have all sinned against Almighty God. We listened. “We have turned every one to his own way. . . .”

We repeated. He applied. We listened. By the time he finished, all of the “little sheep” had memorized the verse and understood its meaning.

Thirty-two years later, hearing “All we like sheep” still transports me back to that morning in the church basement. Twenty years into ministry, whenever I write a lesson for children, I recall that day and wonder, How can I teach these Scriptures so young ones will remember 32 years later?

Setting the Pace with Passion

Mr. Russell preached with passion as well. Like his mentor, P.H. Welshimer, Mr. Russell”s sermons were filled with Scripture, logically developed, and rapidly delivered. Twenty minutes, three points, clear applications, invitation. No fluff. As I heard my grandfather say many times, “E.L. said more in 20 minutes than most ministers say in 40.”

He worked with passion. Every day began no later than 6:00 am. (I start early because I want to beat traffic. Mr. Russell actually wanted to start the day that early!) In some seasons, he wrote five different sermons and lessons a week. And, when the Palmer kids” father passed away, Mr. Russell drove into the country week after week to pick them up and bring them to church.

In my mind”s eye, I can still see Mr. Russell standing in front of the congregation asking for a show of hands: “How many made calls this week?” As hands rose, everyone knew that no one made more calls””evangelistic and pastoral””than the preacher. One hundred calls a month was normal for him.

Mr. Russell never spoke the vision statement, “People matter to God. People matter to us.” He didn”t need to. He embodied it, so others followed.

Even as an older man, Mr. Russell walked with more energy than most teenagers. Daryl Pratt writes, “I remember during one revival meeting, the visiting preacher made a comment about E.L.”s pace. E.L. had jumped up to give the announcements in his excited way. The evangelist got up and commented about how he appreciated that energy, because it looked like he was a man who had something important to say when he got up to speak.”

Later, when Daryl”s turn came to sing a special, he knew he couldn”t casually amble to the podium, so he shot out of his seat and jumped the steps to the stage. People got the connection and broke out in laughter.

Setting the Pace with a Servant”s Heart

Mr. Russell was a great leader because he had the right heart. Paul”s words in Ephesians 3:7 could have just as naturally come from Mr. Russell”s pen, “I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God”s grace.”

That is not our natural bent, is it? My instinct is to see the gospel as my servant. Ministry should be fulfilling, right? Ministry should render us “more”: more leadership credibility like Bill Hybels, more worldwide influence like Mr. Purpose Driven, and more copied than Bob Russell. Most of us don”t want much, just four weeks vacation, sleep-filled nights, whine-free people, and charts that always move up and to the right. Is that so much to ask?

E.L. Russell wanted to serve. To him, ministry was a gift from God””not his gift to God.

The old prayer says, “Lord, if You give me prominence, keep me humble; if You want me to serve in obscurity, keep me faithful.” E. L. Russell is the best example of faithfulness I know.

 

 

Brett Andrews ministers with New Life Christian Church, Centreville, Virginia.