Joe E. Carter. My dad. Forgive me, but I'd
like to take a minute to brag on my dad and some of the accomplishments he made
during his life. First, dad raised three healthy, intelligent (well two out of
three ain't bad, self-identified), hard-working, and caring children. Joe E.
Carter was a well-known and respected builder and contractor in Hamblen County.
During the time period from the mid-1960's thru the early 1980's, Joe E. Carter
was chosen as builder of the year, elected president of the Home Builders
Association, built an expansive number of homes in several subdivisions across
Hamblen County and then moved into the commercial building arena constructing a
shopping center, apartments, and a number of restaurants namely Western
Sizzling Steakhouses in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Ohio. Not only did he build
these businesses, he was partners in several of these establishments which
enabled him to retire from building in his early 50's. From there Joe E. Carter
fulfilled his passion with farming and either owned or leased farms in multiple
counties around East Tennessee. He became a supplier for Swaggerty Sausage with
his swine farm operation and had over 100 head of cattle on the Carter-Whetsel
family farm. We were heartbroken to lose our dad to a brain tumor way too early
in life at the age of 63. During his life he became a voice for the common man
and was highly respected for his honesty, loyalty, and compassionate heart.
What a legacy for his children and grandchildren to follow.
Like I said at the beginning of
today's message, I wanted to brag about our dad, but not really just to be
bragging, more to set up the context of what today's message is all about. You
see what I didn't share with you was Joe E. Carter's front end story. I didn't
mention that he was only able to attend school through the seventh grade
because he went to work to help support his mother and four siblings. I didn't
mention that when he was a young man he worked multiple jobs at a time,
including one in a local furniture factory where he almost lost his life in an
accident that resulted in the loss of some of the digits on his dominant right
hand. (Remember he was a carpenter, think hammer, screwdriver, saw, etc...) Oh
yeah, I failed to mention that Joe E. Carter and our mother Martha Whetsel
Carter were divorced before I was even born, but remarried and raised Bob,
Chuck, and Donna making sure that we all three received degrees and advanced
degrees from the University of Tennessee, East Tennessee State University, and
Lincoln Memorial University. (Remember this was a man with a seventh-grade
education) My point is by all standards Joe E. Carter had every reason in the
world to not be successful. Nobody would have given it much thought if Joe E.
Carter had at any of the aforementioned "milestones" in his life
given up and just decided that life had handed him a stacked deck and he might
as well get used to being at the bottom of the ladder in life.
It would have been easy for Joe
E. Carter to have made a list of excuses about why he didn't do this or he
didn't follow through on that. He could have made a living out of excusing
himself from hard work due to his impairment and he could have convinced
himself and others that the reason he wasn't able to provide for his family was
due to his lack of "education". All of these were real circumstances
for Joe E. Carter, but just the other day I was thinking about my dad and it
came to me that I cannot recall one instance where he ever made a mention of
his missing digits nor of his lack of formal education. I can't recall one time
that he said "Hey can you do this for me it's hard for me to grip this
screwdriver?" He must have taught himself how to read beyond what his
seventh-grade education had taught him because he went on to read blueprints,
contracts, and lease agreements, but I never once heard him say "I can't
read this" or "Can you read this for me?" I honestly can't
remember one time when Joe E. Carter muttered the words "I can't do
that." That is why I shared the background history on my dad. Joe E. Carter's
legacy to his family is that inner drive to never give up and to never quit.
"You don't make excuses you make it happen!" would probably have been
his mantra if he had one.
So, what is the
thought to go with today's message? What do I hope and pray that you take away
from our Flat Tire time together today? Well just like the mission behind Flat
Tire Ministries is when you get a flat tire you can stay on the side of the
road and wait for someone to come along and fix your flat for you, or you can
get out the spare tire, jack up the car, and change the tire allowing you to
get back on life's highway! that's today's message. In life you have a choice
in everything you do or don't do. You can make excuses or you can make it
happen. It is all up to you. Sure you have challenges, certainly there are and
will be obstacles, insurmountable walls, in front of you, but you get to choose
do I let those walls stop me or do I use the wall to build a ladder, grab a
shovel to go under, or figure out a way to use that wall to build a house! Your
life and the story that it eventually will tell is a myriad collection of
choices and decisions that nobody else gets to make. Those are yours and you
have to take responsibility for each and every one. I can't even imagine what
my life would have been like if Joe E. Carter hadn't made the choice to not
make an excuse but to instead find a way to make life happen!
As we conclude our
time together today, I'd like to share one thought with you about your life's
obstacles and the choices you make to overcome them or use them to your
benefit. It may seem that your life's "problems" are too big to
handle on your own, and of that I would say you are correct. The apostle Paul
gave us a message from our chief cheerleader in life that should serve as an
encouragement in all of your life's struggles and the decisions you make on how
to handle those situations. In Philippians 4:13 Paul wrote. "I can do ALL
things through Christ which strengthens me". Not just some things mind
you, but "I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST". That is pretty
encompassing wouldn't you say? But what about if I try and I don't succeed you
ask? What is the true measure of success I would ask you in turn? To fail is to
not try or to stop trying, but to succeed is to give it all you got and see
where it takes you from there. If I may leave you with one challenge today it
would be this. Don't make excuses about why you can't do something, instead
make a plan on how you will do something and then do it!
Thanks Dad!
Coach Carter
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