My Thank You Note To SweetWater
We are living in a day when positive viewpoints of the Church are rare.  The Church has been struggling to have the public influence she once had and the stories of great spiritual growth are few and far between.  Our own community in what’s left of the Bible Belt has been a vacuum for many years in regards to a church with a good reputation.  Waycross has been my home since I was a little boy and I am not sure if I have ever heard a fellow citizen say anything good about a local church, even routinely blasting the church.  Most of the time all that is communicated about any given church is how bad the pastor is or if it is the pastor talking, how much a pain in the hind parts the

I Found Freedom In Prison — September 23rd, 2009
God let me preach at Washington State Prison last Sunday night.  I will be honest, I was extremely nervous at the thought of being locked in a prison with rapist, murderers, dope fiends, and others, but in reality I have never been more at peace.  The Lord allowed me to go with some brothers that were used by God that night as well.  I know they each could fill up a blog of their own in regards to their experience on the “inside”.  But, I want to stick to what I learned while preaching in prison. I learned that there are believers behind bars.  The passion displayed by the prison choirs, both the Hispanic and Black choirs, was a manifestation of the fruit of believers who

Baptist Affirmative Action — September 21st, 2009
If I may I would like to climb upon one of my many “Soap Boxes”.  For those of you who are not familiar with the phrase “Soap Box” allow me to boil it down for you.  A “Soap Box” digression is a moment of releasing all of one’s aggravation on a commonly discussed topic.  The topic I would like to tear open is the topic of “How to Reach the Black Community”, espoused by many well meaning Southern Baptists.  I have been told on many occasions that in order for a Black community to be effectively reached by a local White church, said church should, if not must, call a Black minister to its staff.  In essence, the Black community will trust First Baptist Whitey if he i

Are You Ready for Some Football?
The heat is beginning to break.  The humidity is starting to wane.  The grass is slowing in its growth.  The pine straw is thickening on the ground.  Leaves are beginning to dry. School is back in the swing of things.  Vacations have come to an end.  People are getting back into their highly segmented lives.  Weekends are never in higher demand than now.  With the weather changing and a renewed love for the weekend a desire for watching football is renewed in our culture. I must confess this is my favorite time of year.  I love the cooler weather, the beginning of football, and not to mention the baseball playoffs.  I am looking forward to Thursday Nights, F