In The Tank Comments

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Lunch with Hefner Wednesday, May, 19, 2010
by John Fischer

You would have to know Thatcher to understand how it would be possible for him to be on a service call at Hugh Hefner's mansion and not know that the old guy in the smoking jacket he had lunch with was Mr. Hefner himself.

Called in to do some camera repair work on a live set, Thatcher, a recent graduate of Biola University, was invited to join the crew for lunch. That's when he noticed the Playboy magnate alone at a table, so he took it upon himself to give the old guy some company. He just didn't know it was Hugh Hefner until later. Actually had he known, it probably wouldn't have made much difference; Thatcher is just that way.

When I heard this story, I couldn't help but think that Mr. Hefner must have thoroughly enjoyed the rare privilege of having lunch with someone who wasn't after a thing from him except to enjoy his company over lunch.

I asked Thatcher what they talked about and he said "Oh just the usual stuff. He wanted to know what I was doing there and how things were going for me. He seemed to take a genuine interest in me and my career. When I asked what he did, he said he was in the publishing business."

"What kind of a guy was he?" I asked.

"He was just a nice old man."

Why am I greeting you with this story today? Because at the most basic level, every one of us, from criminal to President, is just a human being with common needs and desires—someone for whom Christ died—and the more we see everyone this way, the more we will be able to befriend people and give them what they need.


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Today's date: Friday, September 10, 2010
Robert Durbin Monday, May 24, 2010
Springfield, MO, 65807
I love the elimination here of the "us" vs. "them" mentality you often write about. Most of us would automatically classify Hefner as "them" and approach conversation with him from a sense of moral superiority.
On a side note (hopefully not too much a tangent), I was recently at an amusement park and saw a group of families walking along together, with numerous young kids, all wearing matching t-shirts. Curious, I took a closer look at the shirts, which all said "Jesus Was Homeschooled". I have many friends who homeschool their kids, and I appreciate the many reasons people have for homeschooling or not homeschooling. I'm not against whatever school situation families decide is best for them.
My immediate thought was "what message do these people want to communicate?" Are they trying to defend their choice as a family? Are they trying to express moral superiority in their choice? (that's the impression I came away with). They could have just substituted: "We think we're better than you" and communicated the same concept.
I pointed the shirts out to my wife, whose first sarcasm-toned comment was "Well, that's not alienating at all!" I thought about walking up to them and saying "Judas probably was too", but missed that opportunity.

John Fischer Responds
This is unfortunate. Wish you'd gotten the opportunity!

Janet Parker Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Decatur, AL, USA
This is amazing! All of my life, I've had a vague dislike for Hugh Hefner. It's subtle and stuffed down into my life but for years I've thought of him as a hopeless case. Thank you for this and for Thatcher! Thatcher might have been just the person God prepared to minister to Hefner. And without the Bible thumping or steps to being saved. I've asked God to forgive me for pushing people like Hugh Hefner aside and going about my business.

John Fischer Responds
Everybody gets a chance... and another... and another...

Glenda Leasor Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Tuscaloosa, AL
This is more of a technical issue, but I keep resubscribing to Catch of the Day since I'm a monthly donor and so enjoy your thoughts on our every day lives, but I will get them for a little while, then no more. For a long time, I was receiving them every day (I almost think since the beginning of your journey after Purpose Driven Life), but no more. Any ideas of what could be happening? I've checked my spam and trash with no luck. The last one I received was May 14. Thanks for any assistance you can provide.

~glenda

John Fischer Responds
I will try and answer this here for all who might be experiencing similar problems. We are trying to run on a 15 year-old delivery system that cannot sneak through all the radar out there that looks for spam and blacklists whole servers if someone hiccups over a regular email. The problem is we have no idea of knowing who is and is not getting the Catch. I am working on getting set up with a whole new system that is recognized by all the servers so this won't happen again. We are a couple weeks away from getting that ready. In the meantime, you can always go to "In the Tank" from my home page and "catch" up on current Catches. Sorry to everyone for this inconvenience; we are pressing forward.

Lisa Hendrickson Wednesday, May 19, 2010
I love this idea of taking people as they are, without all the preconceived notions I have about their status, their values, and just seeing them as another human with the basic needs we all have...to belong, be loved where we are at...
Thanks for sharing this story.

Lisa

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