Thirty-five years ago this month I began serving my first church as pastor. The Rock Prairie Baptist Church in College Station, Texas took a major risk on a senior Texas A&M student by issuing me a call to be their pastor. It was my happy privilege to serve them…
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…
If you know my family at all you know that I am “Exhibit A” of God’s lavish grace. The fact that I out-married myself was evident long before the vows were exchanged. I still am amazed at God’s goodness to me in giving me Donna as my wife. My…
Five years ago yesterday I was struck by lightning. It is a crazy story that from the vantage point of increasing time and distance seems almost like make-believe (you can read a little about the immediate aftermath here and here). If it was surreal then, it is more so…
The last week has been filled with flashbacks as Donna and I have squeezed out time between demanding schedules thinking back on the last 27 years of our life. I accepted the call to become the pastor of Grace Baptist Church in April 1986. Seven weeks later my wife,…
Exactly 101 years ago President William Taft signed a bill making Arizona the 48th state to be accepted into the union of these United States of America, thus completing the borders of the contiguous portion of the nation. It was also the birthday of the first woman I ever…