Just For the Record

Roughly a week ago, I was involved in the funeral service of Rannie Gaultney. Ordinarily, I would not have deemed this newsworthy; however, this was an exception because Rannie was the pastor of the church (Horeb Baptist Church) where, on September 2, 1979, I was ordained into the gospel ministry. If my math is correct, that was 27 years, 6 months, and 6 days ago, as of today. If my memory is correct, I have not been back to Horeb since then and the reason should be obvious--I have been preaching elsewhere.

Interestingly, yesterday I was involved with another funeral service and believe it or not, it was at Horeb Baptist church in Talbot County, Georgia. When I drove onto the church grounds my mind traveled back to that very special day in my life when a rather large group of friends gathered to affirm my calling into the ministry. When I entered the church building, I was flooded with all kinds of emotions. I stood for a few minutes just remembering, then I made my way into the (very small) social hall, where I ate one huge dinner that day. To tell you the truth, I listened carefully to see if I could hear any of the familiar voices from that incredible experience but it was quiet--very quiet--almost eerie. I did see some familiar names that had long-ago been engraved on plaques that were still hanging in various places throughout the building. In a few minutes, some familiar faces began to arrive for the funeral. As I talked with some of them, I proudly reminded them that this was the place of my ordination--some 27+ years ago. To tell you the truth, it was as if I were standing in a very holy place. Truth be known, it is a holy place for me.

You might want to know that Horeb is another name for Mount Sanai--the place where God gave Moses the Law. As I stood in the sanctuary remembering this, I chuckled a bit and said, "God, I have come a long way from these roots." Who in the wide-world would have ever come up with the idea of having me (of all people) ordained on Mt. Sinai?

Anyway, as I said this is just for the record.

Your Pastor