The people's voice of reason
The people's voice of reason
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The late Clayton Sullivan wrote about Mrs. Howard, a widow, and her adult son, Johnny Fred. Johnny Fred’s body was twisted like a gnarled tree. He was cognitively challenged, slurred his speech and could only sell peanuts on the street corner to make a little money. Mrs. Howard asked, “Preacher, why did God make Johnny Fred to be the way he is?” Sullivan said this was the end of his faith journey since he could no longer handle “hurting in living.” We’ve certainly seen much hurt in our world r...
It really wasn't a big deal, but the lady thought it was. I was walking into the grocery store when I heard a scrape of metal. A lady drove over the curb and now the curb was lodged between her front and rear tires. In other words, she was stuck. I stopped and told her I'd guide her. I had her edge forward, turn sharply, back up and so on until she positioned herself out of this predicament. When I got her safely situated, she said, "Mister, you're an angel sent from the Lord." I thought,...
It’s a Facebook page for denominational pastors, and it was recommended to me by our student pastor. I’ve since offered it to several others, telling them it will entertain or make you angry. The anger comes when you see how narrow-minded some ministers are about issues that are, in my opinion, secondary, reminiscent of the age-old question, “How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” But the entertainment value is there, too. One pastor said the family played “Spirit In The Sky” at a...
A college colleague told me about a tense Sunday morning when he was a part-time pastor. The deacon chairman confronted him before worship with a stern request (the Baptist deacon chairman is akin to a Master Sergeant in the U.S. Army). “We’re gonna’ wait until after the service, but we want to meet with you IMMEDIATELY when it’s done,” he scowled. It’s been some years since he told me this, and laughed about it then, but I forgot the punch line. I don’t know if he was terminated or lived to pre...
Preparation for deer season is in full swing. Just check out any of your favorite groups or people on social media and you’ll see that we’re all doing the same thing. Checking stands and cameras. Making food plots. Shooting bows and guns. Gathering clothes, boots, and other gear. It’s all happening right now. In some places the season will open in a few days. In others, it’s just around the corner. And nothing brings a greater sense of peace than being prepared before the season gets here. The r...
I last talked with him in June after my wife asked, “Who do you want to do your funeral?” “Jim Auchmuty,” I quickly replied. I called Jim, who agreed, after asking me why the hurry. He oversaw my mother-in-law’s funeral two years ago and was always a caring presence. Jim died Aug. 5 at age 90 after a short illness. After serving for 27 years at Shades Crest Baptist Church in Birmingham, in retirement he served First Baptist Church Roebuck Plaza for 25 years. He went to Roebuck as interim a...
It's a fairly new verb--"ghosted." Merriam-Webster added it in 2017. And I guess I did it. I used a certain business for many years and then hit a rough patch. They were closed on a number of occasions, and I never seemed to know the schedule. In the meanwhile, I found another business with regular hours of operation and more conveniently located and began to use them. This is what "ghosted" means. It normally applies to one who stops posting on social media or to removing someone as a media...
Why evil exists is one of the mysteries of our faith. Sometimes evil is welcomed when people choose to do something forbidden or enjoy perversity, but often evil appears as a temptation we don’t seek, and we succumb to it. During the Covid-19 era we sometimes wished we could see the virus and know when to flee. It would be good to visualize evil and know when to flee it, too. Because evil exists, Christians sometimes do unchristian things. Such was the case in the ancient church in Corinth, t...
I was cleaning out my hunting vehicle as I do every year after the deer and turkey seasons. This time, however, I done a more thorough cleaning. I found licenses from several years back and from different states. A long time ago, I thought I would keep a license from every state I’ve hunted in. But I didn’t. I figured they would only remind me of all the times I came home empty handed. The other reason is they are all pretty much the same. The colors or size may be different, but they all contai...
“Our flag was still there” after the British assault on Ft. McHenry in 1814. Now there’s a different assault. Some protest the American flag in the worship place, decrying “Christian nationalism.” We probably have some who equate the USA with the “new Jerusalem,” but I don’t know that I’ve ever met them. They’re certainly not in any church I’ve ever served. What I’ve seen in my pastoral experience is sincere Christians who love God and love their country. Many of them served their homeland i...
It was a number of years ago when I was in the book signing line to meet former first lady Laura Bush. I fell into conversation with a nice gentleman just behind me when, suddenly, two big men in suits came to him, identifying themselves as federal agents and asked him to come with them. When he returned he was ashen. He said the two agents told him he had a pocketknife, and they were going to confiscate it until the event was done. We puzzled over this since there wasn’t a magnetometer that we...
George W. Bush famously said, “When I was young and foolish, I was young and foolish.” Me, too, Mr. President. We used the Revised Standard Version of the Bible in the classroom at the seminary I attended, and I used it also in my weekend preaching in rural Indiana. The parishioners never questioned this. Since they had a steady contingent of student preachers from Louisville, I’m sure they were accustomed to this particular translation. We moved back to Alabama after graduation. I conti...
Even though it’s only July, the deer hunters are getting prepared for another season. While it may be several weeks until the season opens, there is much to do to be ready for opening day – especially if you hunt with bow and arrow. Right now, I’m checking trail cameras, hanging tree stands and trying to figure out where the deer are likely to be early in the season. And it is not always where one might think. I am reminded of an Alabama hunt several years ago. I was with a friend on a piece of...
Our denominational publishing house contacted me last year after a writer had to drop out of an assignment. The editor asked if I could write guidelines for teachers to go along with the curriculum. Since the three lessons were from the Gospel of John, I relished this study and found it rewarding. One of the lessons was about the healing at the Pool of Siloam. Jesus spat in the dust, made a pasty poultice, covered the eyes of the blind man and asked him to wash in the nearby pool. So why did...
Many years ago, when I first started Outdoor Truths, I wanted to be connected with some hunting and fishing companies. I felt like any association would help me grow the influence I wanted to have. I was not only able to get some sponsorships, but I actually became a pro-staff member for a few of those companies as well. Even now, I hesitate to even mention the name “pro-staff” because it involves the word “pro.” And if there is any word that I should never be associated with, it’s the word...
A denominational organization just endured a time of testing. Critics said it was “woke” and took money from a liberal icon whose name is anathema to conservatives. An independent researcher found that 98 percent of funding came from the denomination, and the remaining two percent from individuals, not including this icon. The charge couldn’t be proven, yet the charge was oft repeated. Of course, the accusation implied that contributions meant control. This episode brings up the age-old quest...
American Express launched an ad campaign in 1987 entitled, “Membership Has Its Privileges,” a phrase that found root in pop culture. I don’t think we’ve used the phrase in church, but we’ve traditionally said something similar. Evangelicals say, “Trust Christ, be baptized and join the church.” However, numbers of people today declare their love for God and attend, but may join the church later, or never. Studies show about half of American adults belong to a church, but a “significant...
A prominent businessman approached the pastor to discuss his brother’s funeral. The deceased was widely known in the community as a scoundrel. The man told the pastor, “I’ll give you $500 if you’ll call my brother a ‘saint’ in your funeral sermon.” The pastor thought long and hard. On the day of the funeral he stood to say, “John was a bad man, a bully and a thief, but compared to his brother, he was a saint!” Delivering funeral orations is among the most demanding pastoral tasks. I’ve condu...
I’ve never been much for hiking even though some of my friends love it. And I feel the same way about camping. I’ve often said if I’m camping, there needs to be a hunting or fishing trip involved somewhere. Otherwise, I would prefer a weekend getaway in a condo and breakfast at Cracker Barrel. That idea goes for hiking as well. When I walk through the woods, I can’t help but continually scout for signs of animals I may want to hunt. I can’t imagine just walking through the woods to get to a...
A pastor on a denominationally-related Facebook page took issue with ministers dressing casually in the pulpit. This is truly an unwinnable argument. Many congregations have been influenced by the contemporary church movement—though this movement from the 80s is hardly contemporary anymore. One of the precepts is that members intentionally “dress down.” A common excuse from the unchurched was they didn’t have “Sunday clothes.” Hence, the argument went, we’ll do away with both Sunday clothe...
I stopped by a fast-food restaurant en route to work lately and saw the line of cars around the building. I decided walking in for a morning biscuit would be faster. However, the lady at the counter said, “We’re out of biscuits and won’t have any for 20 more minutes.” I saw the biscuit-maker behind the counter who was working furiously, and I decided not to wait. Another gentleman in a work uniform walked out with me. He snidely said, “Who’s got 20 minutes?” “Right?” I said snidely back. I’v...
The motto for many turkey hunters this year is, “So close, and yet so far away.” It really is amazing sometimes how close we can be to a good gobbler and yet be unable to take a shot. More than one person has bemoaned this truth to me. I empathize with them. Just today, I got as close to a roosted tom as I possibly could without being seen. He flew down and paced the side of the hill just over the crest from where I was set up. He probably got as close as 40 yards, but I could never see him...
Tim introduced Jonathon and I to sight fishing last year, during a crappie fishing trip. Then, we only used that method for a few hours. This year’s trip was two days of this technique. And after those two days, we had nearly 100 fish in our cooler. While sight fishing has a few nuances, our method was to use the fishing-finding equipment on the boat to locate underwater structures and to identify the crappies on those structures. Once we identified them, we would cast our bait and watch for t...
This year’s turkey season was full of all kinds of different experiences. I shot and killed. I shot and missed. I witnessed lots of gobblers strutting just out of range and others close enough, but just behind me. There were four jakes that constantly came to my decoy party and would stay until I ran them off. I hunted in the cold, the heat, and the rain. Some days I walked miles and other days I set up only a few feet from my truck. At times there were so many turkeys roaming around my farm, I...
A local church is meeting elsewhere during renovations, and their electronic sign flashes, “Temporary worship.” It is only the next panel that tells the current location, so be patient! This made me think about temporary worship I was in for a few weeks. I was pastor at First Baptist Church, Selma, when we did some major roof and ceiling repairs. We asked (at the time) First Presbyterian across the street if we might use their sanctuary for the ten weeks. Our neighbors responded with kin...
