June 1, 1986 I preached my first sermon as pastor of the Grace Baptist Church in Cape Coral. My text, which has served countless “first sermons,” was 1 Corinthians 2:1-5. My ambition, while commendable, far surpassed my abilities. From the perspective that 3 decades gives I now realize that…
One of the main objectives of my recent sabbatical leave was to start working on a project with my friend and fellow pastor, Shawn Bergen. Shawn and I crossed paths five years ago when he served on staff of a church in our area. Within a year, through some…
For the last several years the church that I have served since 1986 has provided a month’s Sabbatical leave every year. There have been years that I’ve not been in the position to take advantage of this gracious provision and a couple where the Sabbatical had to be cut…
Last year was one of unprecedented transition for Grace Baptist Church, the family of believers that I help lead and pastor. After a couple of years of unusual growth and trials, God opened a door for us to sell the facilities that we had utilized for over two decades…
I’ve had this question put to me in various forms hundreds of times during my ministry. “Isn’t there more we can do?” “Have we done everything possible?” “Can’t we do more?” Usually the question is asked in relation to some painful difficulty, often arising from a strained or broken…
On April 3 of this year I had the honor of preaching the graveside funeral of Art Davis, a World War II hero. Like many veterans of that war, Art was very reluctant to talk about his experiences in combat. In the 26 years that I knew Art, we…
Through the power of film Peter Jackson has made J.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy famous and accessible to a generation who may have never have heard of the literary classic. One of the most endearing characters in the story is a wizard named Gandalf. He is the…
Matt Hammit’s song, “Lead Me,” captures the challenge involved in one the primary callings that God places on husbands and fathers. A man will not be able to rise to that challenge to spiritually lead his family if he is not wholeheartedly and increasingly devoted to following Jesus in…