On Being

Things are what they seem.

Things are not what they seem. 

To seem is to deceive. 

Perception is reality but only for fools. 

We utter what we do not understand.

Real is real no matter what is perceived. 

Things too wonderful to explain.

Objectivity is our need but we are plagued to perceive.

To seem is to deceive,

We cannot escape ourselves.

Not individually, not collectively.

Every sense, every experience, every thought, 

Filtered by and through self-deception.

Momentary breakthroughs but not from within. 

Something outside, transcendence invades our space.

Guiding light albeit seems so dim.

Brightness immeasurable to reach so far

and cut through such black night.

To perceive is not to illuminate.

To receive that light shining is to seem what we ought.

How shall we know this light?

Or detect it’s absence?

Not to perceive, not to seem, which is deception.

Not in the seeing or the hearing.

Not in the feeling with flesh or heart.

Not in the tasting of all our experience.

Not even a rock-hewn believing.

In the being.

Being who we are.

Being who we will be.

Being in the hands of the One who is to be.

If You're Comin' to Texas...

If You’re Comin’ to Texas…

If you’re comin’ to Texas there are some things you ought to know. We are an independent breed. We don't take kindly to someone tryin’ to change our ways. Please remember that the way Texas has been is what attracted you here in the first place. So, please don’t go tryin’ to make it like the place you left. If you’re comin’ to Texas here are some things to keep in mind.

We say “Yes sir” and “Yes ma’am” and please and thank you.
We hold the door open for ladies and say hello even to those we don't know.
We like Copenhagen, Red Man, and a few of us even roll our own.
Our idea of dressin’ up is starched jeans, a felt hat, and boots.
We don’t like the government tellin’ us what to do so we like to keep it small.
Actually, we don’t like anyone tellin’ us what to do.

The spirit of Bowie, Crockett, and Houston still lives.
We believe in sacrifice and courage and honor.
We keep each other safe with armed, law-abiding citizens.
If anyone ever comes to take our guns they will have to pry them from our cold, dead hands.
We honor our police officers and thank God for them.
We believe the Bible and trust in God.

We sing with Ray Wylie, Billy Joe, and Jerry Jeff.
Dancin’ is a subtle art best displayed with a Two Step.
Fishin’ and huntin’ are more than a hobby, we dang sure eat what we kill.
Friday nights in the Fall are for football.
Baseball is great too but not at the same time as a local rodeo.
We drill oil and we ain’t huggin’ any trees.

Barbecue is the fancy way of sayin’ quality meat cooked low and slow.
If its good it don’t need any sauce.
We like whiskey straight with Shiner as an appetizer.
We eat beef. Steak - medium rare. Burgers - fat and juicy.
We guaran-damn-tee anything we shake hands over.
We don’t mean any disrespect to the other states
but we sure as hell want to keep things our way.

So, if you’re comin’ to Texas please keep these things in mind. If most of this sounds good to you, then come on down. Just remember the way Texas has been is what attracted you in the first place. Don’t go tryin’ to make it like the place you left.

Gateway East Africa Ministries Update

Gateway East Africa Ministries

Update from Nairobi

January 11, 2017

This was such an awesome trip! There were 12 of us including 9 students from Criswell College, Bobby Worthington, Kevin Warstler, and myself. This is Bobby’s 3^rd trip to Kenya and he always does such a wonderful job. That guy has such a huge heart for getting the gospel to others. He has the gift of harvest evangelism. He just begins to speak and people come to Jesus. Kevin has now been to east Africa four times and is such a blessing. His heart to disciple others is evident and his biblical scholarship is beyond excellent. Both of these men have become two of my best friends. All 9 of the students worked so hard and we never heard one complaint among the entire group. They are Jacob Griffin, Kyle Wisdom, Wes Barnett, Cory Terrell, David Newman, Derek Ruhl, Chris Garner, Martin Dorsey, and Keith Martin. There was a little bit of sickness but these men pushed hard and worked through it. They knew the work was much too important. Everyone of these guys are choice servants in the kingdom.

            We had 45 pastors from 30 different tribes in Kenya and Tanzania who participated in the pastoral training sessions. It is so wonderful to see these faithful men of God growing in their studies and ministries. They work so hard in various vocations while shepherding God’s people. These guys are my heroes. Kevin taught the books of Amos and Hosea while I focused on Eschatology and Homiletics. Bobby spent some time with them focusing on the subject of Biblical Evangelism. We had some of the best conversations ever and Kevin and I ended up really spending much time on justification and sanctification. There was so much of a works-based mentality that we replaced with the more biblical, grace-filled understanding of salvation. We worked through an expositional approach to Romans 5-8 to clarify God’s saving work. Everyone was incredibly responsive and great liberty was discovered by many in the richness of God’s benevolent work.

            Bobby mostly led the students out in the communities sharing the gospel. There were 382 professions of faith among three different areas. Our group spent the first few days witnessing in Ruiru. This is the Nairobi suburb in which Samson Kisia’s church resides. It is a rapidly growing area and so there were many people needing the gospel and FBC Ruiru will be discipling these new believers. The next few days were spent in another community where we helped start Criswell Baptist Church 2 years ago. Pius Nato is pastoring this new church and doing a great job in a growing area. It was great to continue our relationship with this new church and strengthen them through these evangelistic efforts. The third area is called Canaan and this is where we helped start a new church. Ibrahim Odino is the pastor of this new work. He began as a student of mine four years ago and has grown tremendously. He is smart, kind, respectful, and committed to the work. I’m so excited for him to now have a church to pastor. It is called Canaan Baptist Church. They are now meeting in a small rented space and had 25 people for the first worship service on January 8. He will be following up with every single profession of faith and cultivating a gospel witness in this new area.

            I am currently working with the Moderator and other leadership of the Baptist Convention of Kenya to begin the training sessions all across the nation of Kenya. We will soon be bringing together the leaders from all 23 regions with some of their key leaders for these sessions. Our hope is that these leaders will then go back to the pastors in their regions with great excitement. We will soon begin our journey of taking sound theological training to each of the 23 regions. This will take at least 3-5 years but it is so needed. We are also currently working on securing the right location for the Dr. Lamar Cooper Theological Library in Nairobi. We are discussing details for the best location and waiting on information from some others regarding land deeds so that everything is in order. We will begin soon. This library will be the first of its kind in Kenya. It will provide theological material for the common man. Any of our pastors and church members will have access. We currently have a few thousand volumes and are collecting more. It will also house the W.A. Criswell Ministry Center which will be filled with Dr. Criswell’s sermon library and copies of all his books. This will be such an incredible resource. The library will also have a small guest room to accommodate visiting professors while we are there teaching.

I thank God for allowing me to be part of this most wonderful work. I thank you for your faithful prayers and support. You can keep up with us at:    gatewayeastafrica.org    and on Facebook.

Onward and Upward,

Richmond

Not Less Than a Carpenter

It seems that our culture has come to look over the wonderful vocation of carpenter. With the emphasis in recent decades of formal education and “getting a degree” there has been an ensuing snobbishness by many toward the trades. I spent most of my life working as a carpenter and farmer and rancher before joining the ranks of the office crowd. I once had a church confess they weren’t much interested in me as a pastor (shepherd) because most of my experience in life was as a carpenter, farmer, and rancher (shepherd). Many have forgotten that God actually enjoys using men from these vocations throughout the Bible. Whoever first said Jesus was “More Than a Carpenter” was right, but let us not forget neither was He less than a carpenter. There is everything right about being a carpenter. This is an ode to the bi-vocational pastor but it is more than that. This is a brief meditation on the vocation Jesus engaged for most of His life on earth and what we can learn from it.

1.     Jesus created with His hands. The One through whom, by whom, and for whom all things were created shared His craft in special ways. He provided microcosms for customers of what He had already put on display for them in the heavens. He utilized His back, hands, arms, legs, and His mind to provide a service to others that was practical in usage for their sake. He knew the pain of splinters and cuts and soreness. This was an ironic microcosm in His own life considering His painful death on a wooden cross. His body was nailed to wood.

2.     Jesus was a man. He was strong. He was no wimp. While He was a kind and compassionate friend He was no girly-man. The carpenters in the Old Testament worked to engrave stone and wood. They assembled massive items and detailed ones. Bezalel “worked in all manner of workmanship”. He and his artisans worked hard. I spent most of my life working with such men. This is no place for delicate folks. Joseph never knew the same prominence of these early craftsmen but he knew a hard day’s work. Jesus worked daily with His father. His heart was merciful but His hands were callous.

3.     Jesus interacted with people. Jesus was well known as the “carpenter’s son” (Matt. 13:55) and the “carpenter” (Mk. 6:3). There is a certain integrity that must accompany a man offering his services in a small-town economic market. You are known by your name. If a man is known for the slightest hints of a lack of integrity, then he won’t last long. A successful carpenter must treat people right and provide them with a good service in a preferable way. Jesus worked with Joseph for about twenty years in the same place and He worked for people.

4.     Jesus didn’t make much money. This didn’t bother Him. Compared to the glorious treasures He left in Heaven anything this world could offer would just be dung. When He transitioned from carpenter work to itinerant teaching ministry He evidently took a cut in pay. At least as a carpenter He had a home with His parents but as a preacher, “the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His own head.” (Mt. 8:20) His concerns were greater than money. He lived for the glory of His Father. He died to save souls.

Press On!

Pastoring is hard work. You are a shepherd and shepherds have historically been at the bottom of the socio-economic structure. Shepherds tend to their flocks 24/7. They don’t get breaks and they certainly don’t get much respect. They work out in the fields trusting only in the provisions of God. Shepherds don’t get plaques of recognition and they don’t receive lofty positions of accolade. They just work. Pastors work in the heat and in the cold. They work in the day and in the night. They get dirty and tired always tending to their flock. It’s no wonder Paul said, “And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure;  being defamed, we entreat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things until now.” (1 Cor. 4:12-13) This is your life. You didn’t choose it, God called you to it. Sometimes you get frustrated and then you are reminded it was Moses’ frustration with the people of God that prevented his entrance into the Promised Land. So you repent and keep working. Sometimes you feel like quitting and like Jeremiah feel that God “induced you” but you cannot quit because God’s word is in your heart like a burning fire and you cannot hold it back. (Jer. 20:9) You could have chosen a thousand other things to do with your life but they would all be a demotion from the highest calling of all. You suffer in the toil and the tears. You are always surrounded by sheep but always feel alone. You walk with Jesus. And in all of this you remain faithful because He remains faithful to you. You know that one day you will step across the threshold into your heavenly home and it will all be worth it. How beautiful it will be to hear those words, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.” (Matt. 25:23) Don’t be discouraged. Tend to Christ’s sheep as the under-shepherd. The Chief Shepherd will soon appear and it will all be worth it. Press On!