Notes from the Narrow Road: Observations from a pilgrim traveling along The Way

At FBC Rockport, we’ve experienced an awakening. Not the awakening we thought we would get, but we are awakened nonetheless. When we first worshipped after the storm, we talked about how the process of moving from one understanding of God and his ways to a better understanding of God and his ways, the process of moving from being blind to truly seeing, the process of awakening, is not always fast, pleasant, and joyful. Jesus also works in ways that are frightening, confusing, difficult, painful, humiliating, and unpleasant. This has not been easy, but we are being awakened. I am seeing everything differently: myself, my family, my church, and my community. Then we talked about the future. We have the opportunity to rebuild, to renovate, but what will that look like? What will be different? How will we be better and stronger? I think very little will ever be exactly like it was before the storm. I think making everything the way it was before Harvey is not Rockport Strong, it’...

This will be a comprehensive update providing as much information as I can to our church members. I will begin by saying something to all our partner churches and concerned individuals around the world who are following our situation in Rockport-Fulton. Details on various aspects of church life will follow. Information for Partner Churches and All Those Concerned for Rockport-Fulton Once again I want to thank all the churches, families, and individuals who have prayed for us and helped us since Hurricane Harvey. We are well into rebuilding and remodeling our property. In many ways our church building will be better than it was before. The rebuilding and remodeling should be completed by March. I think God is working on the hearts and minds of our church members as well. We are being renovated, remodeled. We will not be the same church we were before the storm. There is still great need in our community. I believe that food, clothes, toiletries, and the like are readily available...

How does one honor the career of a teacher like Dr. Evelyn Romig, who taught English and Literature for 44 years? I was her student four of those years at Howard Payne University in Brownwood, TX. Honestly, she teaches me still. I loved Dr. Romig fiercely when I was a college student. I took every class she offered. She was my adviser and I spent time in her office being advised on academic matters and other things. I often reflect on what her life means to me. My recollections and anecdotes here will be personal, but I do not think they are unique. I was 18 years old and a freshman when I first met Dr. Romig. I was a Baptist ministerial student, majoring in something from the School of Christianity. She was my British Literature teacher. Because of things I had done in high school and because of how well I tested on the ACT and SAT, I did not have to take the typical Freshman English courses. I had no way of knowing at the time how much this small woman, an English Literature p...

I want to thank everyone for all the prayers, love, support, and material help. I have been overwhelmed with calls, texts, and emails. Please be patient as we try to get a handle on things and decide how to go forward. Our community is crazy right now with fabulously generous disaster relief groups. I am so glad they are here. At the same time, I know they will not be here long. There are needs in other places beckoning to them. Therefore, I have asked our people to focus on future needs more so than immediate needs. FBC Rockport and Coastal Oaks Church,  along with the Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopals and so many others are the ones that will be here for the long run. We will work together to help our community recover. We are really just getting started. I am proud of Mayor Wax, Mayor Kendrick, Judge Mills, Chief Jayroe, Sheriff Mills, and all the workers from near and far who are working to help things move forward. What follows is information I want you to know. It wil...

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer’s; he makes me tread on my high places. Habakkuk 3:17-19 Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?  Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. Psalm 42:11 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” John 14:8 When, where, and how will I see the goodness of my God and praise him? After the events of this past weekend, this is a fair question. I am heartbroken by the devastating loss so many families are experiencing. I realize the path ahead is painful and difficult. I did not ask for any of this. When will things get better? When I attach my faith, security, and sense of God’s presence ...

In my last entry, I noted the lingering tension people are experiencing in their families and other relationships, tension exposed after the presidential election of 2016 that continues to the present. If it is true that Jesus called me to be in some kind of relationship with people who are different than me, perhaps even hostile towards me, and if this relationship is to be redemptive and reveal the love of Jesus Christ, then how can I accomplish this when they don't like me much and the feelings are largely mutual? Bowen Family Systems Theory describes tension relationship systems (such as families, churches, friendships, and even workplaces) as the result of anxiety: an emotional response to a sense of threat. That threat can be real or imaginary. Anxiety can be chronic : the system may feel threatened all the time - a constant crisis. Anxiety can also be acute : temporary elevation in anxiety that will subside in time. Some people's relational systems are always tense. ...

The alienation and conflict experienced in many families and personal relationships after the presidential election of 2016 appear to persist in American culture as the summer of 2017 draws to a close. The topics are somewhat different (Confederate monuments, illegal immigration, race relations) and in addition to the President of the United States, people are focusing on other players (the alt-right or alt-left movements, for instance), but the emotions seem familiar: anger, anxiety, paranoia, outrage, dismay, and so on. As a Christian, how am I to manage myself and my relationships during these tense times? Is it possible, or even desirable, for me to engage in conversations about tense topics without experiencing further conflict or alienation? In Luke 6:27-49, Jesus gives moral and ethical instructions for his followers. ·         I am to love my enemies and do good to those who hate me. ·         I a...