18 Years

This week I celebrate eighteen years as pastor of Southside Baptist Church. It hardly seems possible that I have served here this long. The time has gone by rapidly.

Ruthi and I have loved each place that God has given us to serve. He has always given us wonderful people who have loved us and encouraged us as we followed the Lord. This is particularly true of Southside. The people of Southside are God’s finest. They have been gracious to us and our family. They have been tolerant of my mistakes. They have been willing to follow leadership. I am proud to be their pastor.

Here are some things I have reaffirmed in eighteen years.

• You can trust God’s people to follow Him.
• It is imperative that the church maintain its evangelistic zeal.
• The greatest challenge of leadership is training and education.
• Southern Baptists with all of their weaknesses are still the finest missions’ force in history.
• Florida Baptists have been given a magnificent opportunity to impact the world right here in our state.
• I have been privileged to serve with some of the most committed people in God’s service.
• Not every experience is good but across these eighteen years God has been good to the point of overflowing to me.
• The most glorious moment in serving Him is the winning of a lost soul.
• It is the supreme privilege of life to stand before a group of people week in and week out and proclaim the riches of God’s Word.

I am grateful that God called me to be a preacher and I am honored that He called me to be the preacher at Southside Baptist Church. Thank you my dear people for eighteen God blessed years.

Attempting to connect the dots…

Wayne
Romans 1:16

Quotable:
"The successful man doesn't use others, other people use the successful man, for above all the success is of service."
- Mark Caine