Grandchild 5 arrived

Charleigh Anne Marshall arrived at 8:22 this morning. 9 lbs 10 oz 21.5 inches long. She missed my birthday by 8 hours and 22 minutes.

She must have heard me say I wanted her named Johnatina Edwinaletta if she were born on my birthday. She said "No way to that" and held out just long enough to escape that name.

Mommy and Baby are fine. Amanda is extremely tired. She had a C-section. It will be a while before she is up to visitors.

Charleigh is named for Amanda's dad, my dad, and my brother. She is a beautiful baby in every way.

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Big Country Bells

Thirteen years ago, Second formally adopted an unreached people group we cryptically call the Bells. They live in what we call the big country.

On Friday I received an update from a member of our church who attended on our behalf the international conference on the Bells. It met in a large Asian city,

When we began our work thirteen years ago, there were less than ten known Bell believers. Now there are several hundred. This is good news. I am grateful. And yet the task remains daunting.

They are hard to reach. Trips to them are long, expensive, and arduous. None of us speak the Bell language. None of them speak English.

We made a twenty year commitment to work with the Bells. Another church made a 25 to 50 year commitment. We have seven years to go. "Oh God, please send laborers into the harvest. There is yet much to do."

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Relieved

I'm glad my first day as Moderator of the MO Bapt Conv Exec Board is finished. I'm relieved. It went well. I did not make any huge gaffs.

More important than any concerns about me is the fact peace and harmony prevailed. There is a sweet spirit among us.

Dr David Tolliver is doing a great job as our Executive Director. My appreciation for him is growing with every passing day. He has a wonderful staff backing him up. I am more excited and confident about the MBC than I have been in a long time.

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Parliamentarian

There's a word that scares me to death. One of my assigned duties as President of the Missouri Baptist Convention is to serve as Moderator of the annual session and of the quarterly Executive Board meetings.

Today is my first plunge. It's unnerving. Second, being a staff-led church, has quarterly business meetings, in essence for accountability, not approval. Thus, "Robert's Rules of Order" is not used much.

As a result, I am rusty. Wes Hammond, my friend, First Vice President, and Pastor at FBC Paris MO, told me, "Don't be nervous. If you make a mistake you'll have 55 people in the room who will set you straight immediately." Somehow, that did not comfort me. All prayers appreciated.

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LTG

For the first time in 52 years as a believer, I have started a Life Transformation Group.  Two of us meet once a week to discuss Bible passages we have read every day the week before. At our first meeting we discussed Titus.  This week it was Hebrews 1-4.  Next week it will be Hebrews 5-8.

My partner already has an unchurched friend who wants to start meeting with us.  We'll do that a while and then when we reach number four, we will split into two groups.  Only two or three at a time are allowed in a Life Transformation Group.  Who knows?  I may end up winning more people to Jesus by accident through this than I ever have on purpose using any other method.  I'll keep you posted.

Humor helps.  Mars has 37% of the gravity of Earth.  This means a 200-pound person (like me) on Earth would weigh only 74 pounds on Mars and could jump three times as high.  I have no interest in the jumping, but love the weight idea.  I am quite an anomaly.  As you know I am a perpetual pessimist.  I find this to be the best way to live, because life is full of pleasant surprises this way.  My oddity is that my blood type is A positive.  Pessimists usually have B negative.

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M.E.N.D.

Mommies Enduring Neonatal Death. The Southwest Missouri MEND Chapter held its first annual Christmas Candle Lighting Ceremony tonight at the Elfindale Chapel.

It was a deeply emotional time. Families who have suffered the loss of a baby by miscarriage, stillbirth, or soon after birth were able to come together to be comforted at this Christmas season.

Our very own Heather Fann is the local director for MEND. Her tender touch tonight blessed a lot of people. Her husband Jonathan is writing a book dealing with how fathers can more effectively deal with their grief in these types of situations.

Jesus loves the little children. I think he smiled at what He saw tonight at the Elfindale. I was honored to be there.

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Cold December Morning

I drove the Falcon to work this morning.  Twas a cold December morning in 1970 when I totaled its ancestor. I was winging my way through a yellow light when my dear friend, my 1963 Ford Falcon, began to choke down on me.  It stalled.  A young guy who was reading the light came barreling through the intersection and plowed into me.  He also totaled his car.  He hadn't made the first payment yet.

A major sidelight to this story is, when I married Ruth 3 months later, my insurance company had cancelled me.  I had no auto insurance the day I married.  Fortunately, my in-laws trusted me enough to let us take their car on our honeymoon.

Ruth owned an AMX, a souped up sports car, when I married her.  When I called an insurance agent to see if I could buy drivers insurance on it, he laughed out loud.  No kidding.  We sold her much loved AMX and bought a tiny Opal, which we never did like.  But at least I was able to secure insurance. Wow. What a saga.  All because of a cold December morning exactly 40 years ago.

Humor helps.  A lady at a restaurant asked for minimal lettuce.  The server replied, "I'm sorry, we have only iceberg lettuce."  A pedestrian heard a buzzer on a pole at an intersection.  She asked what the buzzing was for.  A friend explained it signals blind people when it's safe for them to cross.  The lady, appalled, gasped, "What on earth are blind people doing driving?"

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Lunch with Dr. Tolliver

Today I will meet Dr David Tolliver for lunch in Lebanon MO.  This will be our first meeting since my election as President of the MBC.  Dr Tolliver is our Executive Director.  He and I really do like each other.  He laughs at my jokes.  I always appreciate that in a person.  By the way, I laugh at his jokes too.

I'm enjoying my role as MBC President.  I thought it would be a ceremonial burden, but I was wrong.  It is a position that matters, and one for which the obligations are not terribly stringent.  I'm glad I have this chance to serve the Convention I've been a part of for most of my life.

Both of my grandpas, my dad, my brother, and three of my uncles, have served as MBC Pastors.  It's safe to say our family loves the Missouri Baptist Convention.

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Money sermons. Ouch.

I have decided to return to my custom of preaching money sermons to start the new year.  Few subjects are more distasteful to a large percentage or our listeners.  At the same time, few topics are more important for them.  Many who dislike money sermons the most are the very ones whose lives are being torn apart by their own poor money management. For anyone with money troubles to be against sermons on the subject is like a person who is in danger of drowning refusing to put a life jacket on. It doesn't make sense.

In my younger years, I admit I preached on money to make sure we had a steady stream of money in the church offering plate.  I still hope to see good income in our offerings, but as I've age, I've seen the devastation bad management brings into lives and families. It makes people miserable.  Therefore I feel compelled to speak on the subject.  To avoid it would be dereliction of duty.  Pray for me as I prepare these lessons.

Humor helps. A lady, told her garage door opener needed a larger motor, said it was 1/2 horsepower.  The repairman said she needed 1/4 horsepower.  When she said 1/2 is bigger than 1/4, he replied, "No it's not.  4 is bigger than 2."  A lady asked the city to remove the "Deer Crossing" sign from her street.  She said too many deer were being hit by cars there, and she didn't think it was a good place for them to be crossing anymore.

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The Young Bucks and Me

I've been preaching 43 years.  That's quite a bit longer than the ages of the six guys I met with this morning to discuss the sermons I will preach in all three morning worship services January, 2, 9, and 16.  I was 20 years old before any of them were born.

What is going on here?  Well, I'm determined to stay in the learner mode.  I want to communicate well with this younger generation when I preach.  I felt I needed help on my 11:00 delivery and content, and decided these were the guys who could help me most.

I think I was a good listener this morning.  I received several helpful insights.  The guys and I will be getting together a few more times before I take to the pulpit in 2011.  Pray for us.  Pray we will be a blessing to each other. I'll keep you posted.

Humor helps.  A 3-year-old prayed, "Our Father, who does art in heaven, Harold is His name." A 4-year-old prayed, "Forgive us our trash baskets as forgive those who put trash in our baskets."

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