It is not unusual to have two songs or hymns merged together, but this one was a bit strange. While attending a recent meeting in an Amish owned hotel I heard on the background soundtrack, the mixture of the 1970s classic “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and the 1770s classic “Amazing Grace” by John Newton. The…
I’ve been brushing off old lecture notes, and adding new thoughts to them. Why, you ask? Because today, I’m going back – back to the classroom. No, not back on the faculty, but back to help prepare want-a-be preachers to preach revival meetings as a part of Southwestern Baptist Seminary’s spring revival practicum (now called,…
I was asked to take the lead at a Prayer Breakfast for Dr. Adam Greenway, the 9th President of Southwestern Baptist Seminary. Having served on the faculty of this institution for more than two decades, Dr. Greenway is one of my former students. So I gladly accepted the invitation to lead. However the date of…
A new term has been added to modern discussions. I’m hearing the term “exit ramp” used to describe everything from how to end a negotiation, to how to end an assignment. Recently a political candidate spoke of running full speed for office, and not planning an “exit ramp” if it didn’t work out. Best-selling author,…
There comes a day when one attends more funerals than birthday parties. I’ve been to an unusual number of funerals lately and noticed similarities. People walked by the casket and said things to each other like how natural the deceased looked, as if that were something to look forward to. A minister and possibly a…
This Monday, December 30, is a special day. It is my birthday. I’m not sure how I got this old. Dr. Seuss said, “How did it get so late so soon? Its night before its afternoon. December is here before it is June. My goodness how time has flewn. How did it get so late…
Do you give any Christmas gifts to people you don’t know personally – like the postman, the firefighter, the police officer, others who give to you, but never meet you? For the past twenty-plus years I have enjoyed a Christmas Eve practice of giving to police officers I do not know. It started after 9/11,…
I remember once making a request of my parents that was so out of sync with the plans for the family, that they just stared at me, no verbal response, just a glare. Some may say that my request was unanswered. It took me years to learn that my request was answered. The answer was…
When I was the Baptist Student minister and Bible Instructor at Pan American University (now University of Texas Rio Grande Valley), Jim Hatley was the Director of Missions for the Magic Valley Baptist Association. In our first visit, he confessed that he was not yet functioning in his job to his full capacity, since his…
Many years ago, I was sitting in Missions class listening to one of my favorite professors, Dr. Cal Guy, lecturing a group of want-a-be-pastors-and-missionaries on the pressure of perfection in ministry. He said something I’ve never forgotten. I didn’t write it into my notes and it wasn’t on a test, but I remember the exact…