Our Daughter's Wedding



Beautiful Bride-Proud Father

What a whirlwind weekend! Dale and I celebrated our daughter's wedding. Pictured to the right is the proud father dancing with the beautiful bride. And I didn't even step on her toes! I had the privilege of performing the ceremony. It was emotionally challenging, but also exhilarating. It produced a kind of ambivalence. It's what every parent wants and works toward: independence and maturity. And yet, I couldn't help but feel I was losing something...

Ah, well. What's the alternative? Perpetual adolescence? No thank you! Besides, she picked a wonderful young man who will love her and cherish her. Congratulations to you both!

Here's where my mind is today. You know how much you love your family. Well, that's how much I love my family, too. But the fact is, families don't last. Kids grow up and get married. Spouses die. Things change. Not even your family is permanent. In fact, if all you have in this life is your family, one day you will be a very lonely person. It takes more than family to make it in this life. It takes connection to God.  And the incarnation of Christmas reminds us that God has done everything necessary for us to make a meaningful, permanent connection with him. He has given us the gift of a Savior.

Investment Advice

There are many things I could point to with a profound sense of gratitude. But right now I’m thankful for memories. As Dan Quayle famously and clumsily said, “It’s a terrible thing to lose one’s mind.” Yes, it is. And the worst thing about it would be to lose the capacity to recall.

When I was growing up, the day after Thanksgiving wasn’t much of a shopping day. It was a fishing day. My dad, my older brother, and I would go fishing in the saltwater marshes of south Louisiana, in the heart of Plaquemines Parish, the Parish that was so devastated by hurricane Katrina. It was an all-day affair. We’d leave before light and get home after dark. And we were good, too. The fish celebrated our departure! Those are some of the best memories I have from my childhood.

Since I’m a preacher I feel I can relay a preacherly word. If you want to really be rich, invest in memories, not things. As the years go by, the value of things decreases, but the value of memories increases. In this uncertain and unstable economic world, you can’t claim that about very many investments.

For Sweet Music

This post is copied from my column in the Nov/ Dec issue of The Message.

When Dale and I have dinner together we always have candles and music. The candles are still very, very old school. A candle is a candle. But the delivery of music has changed a lot. We use to do the music the old fashioned way. We played the radio. And you take what you get—including the commercials. Then we upgraded; we got a CD player. We get the music, minus the commercials, but we’re limited to what we have on hand.

We’ve upgraded again. To something called Pandora. This is internet radio. It’s a step up even from satellite radio. It has no commercials, and, it’s free. And the sound quality is flawless. It works like this. You pick an artist, a style of music, or even just one song, and Pandora uses an algorithm to parse the music you’ve selected into something called a “Station,” and it will then go and find more music for you that is like it. I can enter, “Macy Gray,” or “Bach,” or “Chris Tomlin,” and Pandora will play their music, plus others who are like them. Each song that is played comes with a little “thumbs-up,” or “thumbs down,” for you to click. In this way, you can further and further refine your new Station.

I realize the analogy can’t be pressed very hard, but there is something of sanctification going on here. You sign up for a Station. This is the principle you agree with. It is, if you will, the Truth. When you finally humble yourself and submit to the truth, you find God bringing it to you from many different places. You will find the truth in Scripture, in worship, in music. You’ll find it in the countless ways and places you have to make decisions through the course of a week. And each time you respond to God’s truth with obedience it’s like you click “thumbs up.” Each little act of obedience causes God’s truth in you to become a little more refined, a little more focused. It’s like God has a great algorithm working in your life, slowly, day by day, making you a little more like Jesus. Jesus said, “Sanctify them [purify, consecrate, separate them for Yourself, make them holy] by the Truth; Your Word is Truth” (John 17:17, Amp.).

The more you respond in obedience to God, the sweeter the music of your life will sound.

Land of the Rising Sun





I’m glad to be home! Six of us spent ten days in Japan (seven days serving). The flight over was direct—14 ½ hours and 13 time zones. But I got much of that time back when I came home. I arrived in Atlanta 35 minutes before I left Japan. Think about that.

Though Japan is the 3^rd largest economy in the world it is very small in terms of land mass. Japan is slightly smaller than the state of California. The people are small of stature. Their cars are small. Their roads are small. Their houses are small. The doors in their houses are small. I nearly suffered a concussion from banging my head on doorways. Their hotels are small. The last 3 nights we were there I stayed in a single room in a hotel in downtown Tokyo. I could stand in the middle of the room and touch both walls. And my arms are not that long.

While there is a lot about Japan that is small, I can say from firsthand experience, their faith and their hearts are not. It’s not easy being a Christ follower in Japan. And it’s not easy to reach Japanese people with the gospel. Fewer than 1% of the people are Christian. Those believers we met are passionately dedicated to Christ and his church. You would love them immediately.

Thank you for your many prayers for our team. Our team was comprised of Keith and Anna Miller (team leaders), Fred and Sara Creighton, Bob McDuff (my roomie!), and me. We shared one small, three-bedroom apartment and one bathroom. We have become very close friends. Please continue to pray for open hearts among the Japanese people and encouragement for the believers there, as well as for the encouragement of our missionaries. Many thanks go out to Pastor Yoshio and the Shinkoiwa Baptist Church. I preached to this great congregation on October 30 (with Pastor Yoshio's smooth translation). Other team members shared their personal testimonies plus we led in Sunday morning Sunday School classes. In addition to this, during the week our team met with several small groups in members' homes in order to share our testimonies and ask and answer a wide variety of questions. We also did some prayer walking and passing out Japanese language tracts. Our team is planning a time soon to report on our trip and the wonderful ways we saw God at work.

A Birthday to Remember

I take pleasure in a lot of things.

• A steaming plate of Dale's shrimp creole.
• Late Thursday and the sermon is finished.
• Leaving for a week of vacation with JUST my wife.
• Watching someone in the congregation who is really getting their life together and growing closer to God.
• A sweater that fits.
• Changing the oil in my car.

But this weekend was memorable. It was my birthday! (double nickles, my kids like to say). Of course they treat me like I'm the King of the World (or at least the Western Hemisphere)--but you don't want to hear about that! My son and his wife Cristina and my daughter and her fiance Josh came to church with us Sunday, then came home with us for dinner.

They all got home from church before I did. As I went up the stairs from the garage I paused before opening the door. They were all in the kitchen, just down the hall. And they were really yucking it up--laughing and cutting up--it seemed like they were all talking at the same time. And I just stood there and listened. And I thought, "The things I spend my time worrying about are just not very important. This--this is important. This is really sweet. Today is a good day. Today is one to remember. Today is one of those days I'll want to come back for someday."

Of course, I still have to be 55 all year, but it sure got off to a great start.

The Bible says, "Parents rejoice when their children turn out well" (Pr. 23:24, The Message).

I'm finding this to be so very true.

Take That You #%&

This post is copied from the Sept./ Oct. '11 issue of The Message.

           The writer Klarissa Smith tells about a recent experience. “My 4-month-old daughter and I took a trip to the library. She babbled softly as I browsed through the books. As we walked, I heard an older man say gruffly, ‘Tell that kid to shut up, or I will.’ Angrily, I responded, ‘I am very sorry for whatever in your life caused you to be so disturbed by a happy baby, but I will not tell my baby to shut up, and I will not let you do so either.’



"Hey, you talkin' to me?"



            “I braced myself, expecting an outburst from him. Instead, he looked down, took a deep breath, and said softly, ‘I apologize.’ He looked up at me with tears in his eyes, and we remained silent. Finally, he looked at my daughter. She smiled at him and happily kicked her arms and legs. He wiped his eyes and said slowly, ‘My son died when he was 2-months-old.’

            “I moved to sit in the chair next to him. He went on to explain that his son died from SIDS over 50 years ago. He described how his anger grew, leading to a failed marriage and isolation. I asked him to tell me about his son. As he did so, he smiled back and forth with my daughter. Eventually, he asked to hold her. As he held her, his shoulders relaxed, and he briefly laid his cheek on her head. He returned her to me with a heartfelt ‘Thank you.’ I thanked him for sharing his story, and he quickly left.”

            I share this story fully aware that there are many stories that could illustrate a response to inappropriate, aggressive, hurtful words. But this one is useful because what it illustrates is so often true. There is often more going on in a person’s hurtful words than meets the eye. Don’t you know it’s true?

Hurt people hurt people.

            This is no excuse for hurtful behavior, but it can temper your response and lessen the likelihood of escalation. In this light I’ll offer two words:

1. Pastor Steve’s general operative guideline: Your clever return zinger is not nearly as helpful as you think it is.

2. God’s explicit command: “Summing up: Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that’s your job, to bless. You’ll be a blessing and also get a blessing” (1P3:8-9,Msg).

Back-to-Church Day!

Former Gov., Sonny Perdue

Former Gov., Sonny Perdue led us in a great worship service Aug. 14. The emphasis for the day was, Back to Church. School resumes on Aug. 15 and, since the church year tends to follow the school year, we wanted to challenge our people to Get Back to Church! And Gov. Perdue helped us do just that.

His message to us was, "Return to God." He talked about his own period of brokenness when he was a young adult. He came face to face with the inescapable conclusion that all of his accomplishments were inadequate to bring meaning and purpose to his life. He was finally humbled and he returned to God, who welcomed him and restored him to right relationship.

What we find is this: meaning in life is always found in relationship.

Always.

And meaningful, enduring relationship always begins with God.

It's not too late for you to return to God. He'll welcome you with open arms.

P.S.: See my picture with my new best friend!

See the Gallery page of our website for a picture of Gov. Perdue speaking to the church.

Interesting Times

May you live in interesting times.
                  --Ancient Chinese Curse

It seems the curse has been fulfilled.

You may be left at the end of the day, scratching your head and wondering, "What is happening to our world?" Welcome to the club.

Notice a common theme. From the riots in Athens, Greece, to the riots in London, England, to the (near) riots in Madison, Wisconsin, to bailouts and bank failures and bankruptcies, people are beginning to confront the ugly reality that we don't have as much money as we thought we did.

For generations, politicians have entered elected office bound and determined to convince everyone how generous and compassionate they are. So, they promise generous benefits to today's voters while deferring the bills for those benefits to people who are too young to vote.

And there is abundant talk of not "kicking the can down the road." In political discourse, a cliche has a very long shelf life. So we're told, "We must not kick the can down the road." "We should not kick the can down the road." "We will not kick the can down the road." Our leaders got together, compromised, and, you guessed it, decided to "kick the can down the road." Someone should flatten the can so it can be disposed of.

But hey, that's how we like it. Once a constituency starts receiving a benefit, they don't want to give it up. When pressed, you get riots.Nobody wants to pay more taxes, get less Social Security, or pay higher Medicare premiums. We want what we feel we're entitled to. So, in the first 10 months of this fiscal year alone, the federal government has borrowed over $ 1 trillion dollars (that's 1,000 billion). This year alone.

Here's a simple, godly principle for individuals and nations:
                                         --There is great dignity in living within your means.

Taking on large amounts of debt changes you. It changes you from a free man or woman into a slave. The Bible says, "The borrower is servant to the lender" (Pr.22:7). And you were made to be free, not a slave.

Well, you might guess there is an exception. You're right. Paul said it like this, "Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another" (Rm.13:8).

Should We Make Purple?



Let's do it MY way!



My first ministry out of seminary was in suburban Washington, D.C. The D.C. metro area is some kind of political town! I guess it was here, in the early 80s, that I really cultivated an interest in all things political. I can't remember a time when Washington was more entertaining than it is right now.

And, by the way, don't get too excited about any headlines that finally come out about the debt ceiling and reduced spending. No proposal is going to do anything about insane, indefensible spending. "Shall we cut off half an inch of the lion's tail, or a whole inch?" Be sure, either way, the lion will still have a very long tail and he will be exceedingly annoyed.

People will complain, "Why can't they just get along and compromise?" The thinking is, "You prefer Red and you prefer Blue. Just get together and make some Purple!"

But that's not the nature of our system. We have, by design, an adversarial form of government. And it is absolutely terrible. That's right. We have a terrible form of government. It's just that it's so much better than whatever is second best.

The leaders in our government are not going to "get along." And they shouldn't. They are adversaries. Our system is not about compromise; it is about prevailing. People want to say the government is broken. I think it's working exactly as it was designed.The left and the right represent two very different views of the role of government and have two very different visions for the future.  Now, I won't bore you with my description of these distinctions because I'm really on the way to making another point.

In the spiritual realm, we live in an adversarial system. Our adversary (Satan) has a different view for our future than does God. The Apostle Peter warns us, "Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion as he looks for someone to devour" (1P5:8,GW). Are we to get along with our adversary and just compromise? Of course not. Rather, Peter says, "Be firm in the faith and resist him" (1P5:9,GW).

Please understand. I'm not urging the demonizing of political opponents. Our grasp of political truth is not nearly as clear as is our grasp of spiritual truth. But when it comes to the matter of the spiritual walk, our attitude should be the same as the politician running for office, "I'm in it to win it." We do this by trusting our advocate, Jesus Christ, not compromising with our adversary.

Jim Wallace Steps Down

July 10 is Jim Wallace’s last day with us. He has served as our Minister of Music for 32 years. He and I have served together for 20 years. Twenty years!

I can almost say that he (and Dean) has been an institution. But that wouldn’t be quite accurate or fair. I think of institutions as immovable and unchanging. Jim has proved to be neither.

Church music has changed profoundly in the last 30 years. It may not be an overstatement to say that there has never been a 30 year period in all of the history of the church that has seen more change in church music than has the last 30 year period. And the fact of the matter is, many church musicians simply got stuck in whatever type of music they were trained in. They couldn’t adapt. Couldn’t change. And couldn’t lead their people to adapt and change.



Jim Wallace



Jim has.

He should be respected for that. He has taught us to worship and encounter God in so many new and fresh ways. We have been exposed to so many different kinds of music and worship styles because Jim never stopped learning and never stopped teaching us about worship.

Thank you Jim! You will be missed.

Timberrr!



I hate that when that happens.



Dale and I live in an older neighborhood with a lot of mature trees. The trees are beautiful and provide wonderfully refreshing shade through these brutal summers. But they can be menacing, too.



What a storm we had last week! Last Wednesday we came home to find a tree toppled over against our house. It was a beautiful, 30', silver maple. And it decided it was tired of standing! Fortunately, only the very top of the tree hit the edge of the roof. The damage was minimal.

OBSERVATION:



I have an observation. Trees fall. It's what they do. Eventually.



Are you kidding me?



     Troubles come.





          Eventually.

               To all of us.

The only real variable is, how will we respond to them when they come?

CONCLUSION:



I don't think so.

I have a conclusion. It makes a difference what resources you bring to the troubles that come into your life. In my situation, the combination of the right tools, a great neighbor, Dave Mayo, my friend Weldon Price (Weldon knows how to do EVERYTHING!), and several hours of manual labor took care of the problem.



The word of God teaches us that we have to have the right resources at our disposal to deal with the threats and dangers of life. Paul wrote, "So use every piece of God's armor to resist the enemy whenever he attacks, and when it is all over, you will still be standing up. But to do this, you will need the strong belt of truth and the breastplate of God's approval.  Wear shoes that are able to speed you on as you preach the Good News of peace with God.  In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan.  And you will need the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit--which is the Word of God" (Eph 6:13-17,LB).

Don't go out there alone. Trees fall.



Now that's more like it.



Father-In-Law



Rick, Eloise, Dale, Steve



Dale and I are on the north shore of Lake Ponchatrain in Abita Springs, LA, visiting my father-in- law (also known as Dale's father). He is an interesting guy with a great story. He grew up in New Orleans, was a star running back for Tulane University.

He was a high school history teacher by profession, but his real passion was high school football. He was the head coach of the largest high school in the metro area for many years--and he was very good at it.
After he retired he began training and racing thoroughbred horses. Turns out there are a lot of similarities between training athletes and training thoroughbreds. Again, he was very good at it. He'll turn 83 next month. Today his pursuits take a more pedestrian turn.

He was married to Dale's mother for 47 years, until her death 15 years ago. Two years after she died he reconnected with a wonderful lady he'd known and dated when they were high school students. They've now been married for 13 years. She's pictured with us.

My father died when I was 14. Six years later I married Dale and married into her family. I have a lot of experience being a son-in-law. I've been doing that for 34 years now. What I don't have any experience at is being a father-in-law.

That's going to change, however. Next month my son is getting married and I'll take on a new role. And we'll do it again in December when my daughter gets married.

In response to Congress' effort to define obscenity, former Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart famously said, "I don't know how to define it [obscenity], but I know it when I see it."



Steve and Rick



Father-in-law is a unique role. It's not a mini-father or dad-lite. It's its own role. I don't know how to define a good father-in-law, but I know one when I see one. I can already anticipate many times to come when I'll have to pause and ask myself, "Now what would Rick do?" He is steadfast in his commitments and optimistic in his spirit. I'm glad to have a model to draw on. I really have a great father-in-law.

I'm Rich! Rich!



Me and the Benjamins



I have great news to share! Through no real credit of my own I’ve just learned that I am going to receive 2.5 million dollars! It’s hard to believe, but it’s true. Dale will probably quit work and we may buy a little place at the beach. I just can’t believe how wonderfully fortunate we are. Two and a half million is a lot of money. Life is really going to be different now.

I just got an email from Mrs. Veronica Amadi. I don’t know how this happened, but there is a fund in my name at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). I know what you’re thinking, but you’re wrong. This is no scam. Mrs. Amadi has assured me that it is all legitimate. She is reaching out to me because she is a Christian. All I have to do is send a few hundred dollars to cover some paperwork. Seems reasonable to me!

Upon further reflection, I won’t spend any of this money just yet. When it all comes through, though, I’ll be happy to buy you lunch.

The fact is, we tend to overestimate what money can do for us. Paul reminds us that contentment is a gift from God, not something accomplished by circumstances. “I've learned to be content in whatever situation I’m in. I know how to live in poverty or prosperity. No matter what the situation, I’ve learned the secret of how to live when I’m full or when I’m hungry, when I have too much or when I have too little. I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me” (Ph. 4:11-13,GW).

When is enough enough?

Probably sooner than you think.

I Was Hungry



Workers on the assembly line



Who believes hungry kids should have something to eat?

Who believes hungry kids in Cobb County should have something to eat?

Who wants to help feed a hungry child in Cobb County?

Who wants to help feed a hungry child in Cobb County every day this summer?

Who wants to help feed 650 hungry children in Cobb County every day this summer?

Who’s available in the morning?

Those are the questions we put to our church, our Weekday Education parents, and our Upward parents. And even though the questions got progressively harder and closer to home, people didn’t put down their hands!



Susan Shay being interviewed by CNN



Our summer lunch program is going great. In fact, CNN was here last week to interview our Children’s Minister, Susan Shay, observe the mechanics of putting this many lunches together at one time, and ride along on one of the delivery routes. We’re looking forward to a feature story later this summer.



Our church is not the building. The building’s just the place we come for marching orders. Thank you to all of you who are helping us get our church into our community. I am proud of First Baptist.

For Christ,

Steve



Joy in the Walk

We have a lot of great state parks in Georgia. Dale and I spent Memorial Day exploring Ft. Yargo State Park. Gas? About $16 (I drive a Civic!). Post-hike dinner at Pappasito's? About $25. Getting out of town and away from the phone and computer? Priceless.

We hiked a great trail around the lake. It’s a loop, about 8 miles. We typically think of life as circular. And, I guess it is, in a sense. An elderly relative dies and a new family member is born. It’s striking how frequently these events occur near each other. And so we talk of the circle of life.

I get that. But I also think the biblical notion of life (time) is really not circular. It is linear. It is going somewhere. You’re never passing this same way again. And even if you do pass the same way it won’t be the same. You’ll be different. The people around you will be different. Your environment will be different.

And yes, the trail we hiked was a loop. But by the time we got back to the beginning we were through! We didn’t see the same thing twice. Except for the turn I missed, which added two miles to the trip (sorry about that Dale J). Hey, it’s like life: serendipity happens!

The Psalmist said, “You make the path of life known to me. Complete joy is in your presence. Pleasures are by your side forever” (Ps16:11,GW). We only pass this way once. We have to get it right. For maximum joy and pleasure we have to follow the path God lays out for us. He won’t disappoint.