Serve by Design

Recently, I had two special blessings. The first was on a Sunday as we gathered for worship in the church where our grandsons, Charlie (12 yrs.) and Dawson (10 yrs.), attend. These boys had made their public professions of faith over the summer at separate events. For Charlie, it was at a camp experience, and for Dawson, it was during Bible school. On this day, their dad, Dan, conducted the ceremony of believer’s baptism. In our tradition, any candidate for baptism must have first accepted Christ as Lord and Savior before baptism. Thus, it is called “believer’s baptism.” We believe that baptism symbolizes and celebrates a person’s inward, personal decision to follow Christ through the outward picture of their baptism. Retreating for Rest & Reflection! The baptismal formula that I have affirmed throughout my pastoral ministry involved saying these words over each candidate who entered the baptismal pool, “In obedience to the command of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And upon you...

Our New Mexico rental car these days has made our travel a little more conspicuous than we’re accustomed to! This time, Enterprise put us behind the wheel of a snazzy Dodge Charger for the next two weeks. Back in the day, we proudly owned a plain white two-door 1973 Charger SE with vinyl top and rear quarter opera windows. While it only had a 318 V-8 engine, it had as much power as needed and took us over 200,000 miles! This rental is a 2023 model with an Octane Red Pearlcoat exterior and black rims, accents, and interior. The 6.2-liter V-8 qualifies for “muscle” and jumps to sixty mph a lot quicker than my number one passenger is comfortable with. 😊 I have been trying to hold it back because I know, as a law enforcement chaplain, that the red color, along with the faster acceleration tends to attract unwanted attention! I am doing some chauffeuring during this visit. The boys have noted that there are a lot of heads turning as we pull up to the school drop-off locations. The grand...

Hardly a day goes by when Monique or I must search for something that has been misplaced! It could be our phone, keys, a shopping list, an item from our billfold or a purse. I’ve concluded that we are simply trying to keep up with the younger generation who boast of their ability to juggle multiple tasks all at the same time. I’m sure that it isn’t a sign of forgetfulness or old age!😉 "Found this... do you need it?" I recently received a text from my beloved sister who was wondering if I had seen a special angel bracelet that she thought she might have dropped on the floorboard of my car after our Sunday dinner together. No sooner had I returned from searching the backseat, I picked up my phone and saw this reply, “I just found it on my bedroom floor! Thank you!” I’m thinking that this misplacing of things may be catching! Last month, Marc and I made a trip to take Ben’s car to him on the campus of Texas State about an hour away. The vehicle needed some repair work, and th...