Opinion Archive

In thirty-five years of ministry, I have had several speaking engagements, some at conferences, and many at churches. That is not remarkable for a preacher. What is remarkable is that many of those engagements were in Spanish-speaking countries, and I do not speak Spanish; to be understood, I had to speak through an interpreter.

I am not a fan of snow. I have occasionally purposefully travelled to areas where I know there is a good possibility I will encounter snow, and I am OK with that because I know it is very temporary. I’m also prepared mentally, and I bring proper attire and equipment.

Two words that do not go together – Florida and snow. They don’t go together for a reason, actually for many reasons. We experienced every single one of them last week when Winter Storm Enzo blasted Northwest Florida with extreme cold temperatures and nearly a foot of snow…in 24 hours.

Ten years isn’t some magic number, but it happens to be the number of years I’ve been here in Florida.


A lot has happened in that time.

My wife and I pray together most mornings before one of us leaves the house for our workday. Our prayer is always the same, “Lord, we are yours and this day is yours. We ask you to fill us with your Spirit and use us for your glory.” One day last week, having prayed with my wife and seen her out the door, a question popped into my mind: God, are you tired of hearing the same prayer from us day after day?

We are working on finishing up all three of our newspapers on Monday while wondering if the driver is going to be able to bring them to us from Jackson, Mississippi, on Tuesday evening like he normally does. We attempted to print earlier to get ahead of the storm, but the company that owns the press prioritizes their own papers first – of course – and no can do. They were really nice about it – but the facts are the facts.  And we would do the same if we owned the printing press. There is a good chance you are reading this – at best on Thursday, but probably on Friday.

This week we watched the beautiful and majestic pomp and circumstance that is the presidential inauguration. No matter who the incoming president is, the ceremony surrounding inauguration day is one to behold. It touches us both patriotically and spiritually.

Let the story of Michael Carter provide a valuable lesson to all young athletes out there who aspire to one day be the best they can be in their respective sports.


Carter is a former Navarre Raider running back, the best in school history to be exact, and he just finished up his fourth year in the NFL.

It’s getting tougher to play the recruiting game as a high school athlete.


Between the transfer portal, Name Image and Likeness deals and roster limits at the Division I level that all but eliminate walk-on opportunities, athletes in high school who dream of one playing a college sport are finding it tougher to find a home.

The acronym GOAT is frequently used in publications, but the first time I saw it used, I mistook it for a pejorative. “What despicable thing did this person do,” I wondered, “that this author would refer to him as a goat?” Reading further confused me even more because the author spoke of the person only in the most glowing terms. Then the lights came on and I realized that GOAT is an acronym for “greatest of all time.” Yes, it took me awhile.