I was left standing at the microphone 6 at the 2018 Southern Baptist Convention during the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) report to the Southern Baptist Convention in Dallas. Russell Moore, president of the ERLC, gave that report and reminded messengers of the various ways he and his…
Whatever doubts I may have harbored about having recently fallen down an evangelical rabbit hole were completely erased by the announcement of a racially segregated meeting at the upcoming TGC Women’s Conference (TGCW18). “Women of Color” is being promoted as a “special evening of fun and fellowship” sponsored by…
Through a series of inexplicable providences I found myself, along with my brother, Bill, in a late night meeting of about 25 men during the 1990 Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). Assembled in the small room were the key leaders of the conservative resurgence. To clarify, though we both were…
Recent events in the SBC cause me to feel like I am riding blindfolded on a roller-coaster. I know more drops and sharp turns are coming but I do not know when or where. If you have been even mildly aware of American evangelicalism the last few months, you…
I am flummoxed over much of the discussion about race going on in the evangelical world right now. There are several contributing factors to my bewildered state, not the least of which is that brothers with whom I share deep theological convictions and from whom I have learned so…
This song from Bob, Brittany and McKenzie Kauflin is a beautiful prayer for this season of the year. The birth of Jesus Christ is an amazing display of grace and wonder. It is always worthy of praise to God. Yet, sometimes praise to God is difficult to offer with sincerity….
The Medieval Greek fabulist, known to us as Aesop, is famous for his stories that are designed to communicate some moral. One of his lesser known fables is entitled, “The Fox and the Lion.” It is very short—just three lines—and it goes like this: When first the Fox saw…
I graduated from Texas A&M in 1979 and enjoy returning to the campus whenever I can. At a university that takes its traditions seriously I am always fascinated by the changes. One “new” (to me) tradition is an on campus student Bible study called Breakaway. It began as a small group Bible…
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…
This week marks the end of my career. Not the end of my pastoral ministry or of my work in other gospel endeavors, but the end of my coaching “career.” Seventeen of the last 20 years have found me spending most of my November–March Tuesday and Thursday afternoons coaching the…