Hello Substack World
So I’ve started on Substack. I’ll be publishing a few thoughts: observations on life, church, leadership, cows, etc. I’ve been writing my column for newspapers for several years, but now I want to share it with you.
About me: I was asked at a party what I do. I told the man I write a newspaper column, I do a little consulting, I’m the managing partner of the family ranch down in Florida, I have a few ultra-black cows of my own (a cross between Brangus and Angus), I keep the books for my wife’s business, and I preach a little. The man asked where I preached. “Alice Drive Baptist Church, in Sumter, SC, for 31 years.” He asked, “You mean that big church on the corner?” Yep - that’s the one.
When I came to Sumter 31 years ago, Alice Drive averaged about 280 in attendance. God proceeded to work. Now we average about 1,200 in person and 400 to 500 online. This happened despite the population in Sumter declining by 2,000 people over that time period.
We relocated, became a multi-ethnic, multi-campus church. We pioneered contemporary worship in this area, and were the first church in South Carolina to launch a Monday night service.
Over the course of all this, I’ve learned a few things about God, about leadership, and about church. I hope to share all this with you. In a few weeks, I’ll be retiring from Alice Drive, and I hope to write and consult more.
The most important thing to know about me: I love Jesus, I love my wife, I love my kids and the people they married, and I adore my two grandsons.
More to come.