Philippians 1:3 - I Am Thankful for You

First,let me say to my Facebook and media friends, thank you. Thank you for yoursupport over these past five years as we have been in a state of retirementfrom more than 50 years as a senior pastor. I just wanted to give you a specialshout-out. You have been such a blessing and such an encouragement. Yourprayers and your support have helped me through difficult times and inspired meto keep on keeping on as we serve the Lord here in Sneads Ferry, NorthCarolina. Thankyou for your prayers during our times of illness, and even recently with thesciatic nerve pain that you helped pray us through. I wanted you to know that Ihave been so blessed, because of your prayers, that the pain has subsided. Butwe found out that the MRI definitely shows that I will need surgery. I met witha surgeon this past week, and we will be scheduling surgery probably the firstof May. It is noninvasive surgery—they will put me to sleep in a clinic andperform the procedure. It is in and out. Hopefully, that problem around L2/ L3,will be taken care of. At the same time, they did an MRI on my rightshoulder that has be very painful for several years, and we found out that thereare so many tears in the muscles there, they are talking about total reverse shoulderreplacement. We will be praying about having that done later on this year.  Iwas thinking back over the 50 years of being a senior pastor and the churcheswe had the privilege of pastoring. I thank God for the very first church in WinchesterVA, Shenandoah Valley Baptist Church, where I spent 15 years. The first twoyears was as an associate while we were still in school at Lynchburg BaptistCollege. I think of the many friends and the wonderful things the Lord didthere. I thank the Lord for my associates, Bob Quinn, Eric Farel, and RonCombs, who were always there beside me, and the deacons of the fellowship.There were difficult times, no doubt, but you prayed for me. You were therewith me. You stood with me in the tough times. Thank you. Upon everyremembrance of you, I thank God for you. Thenwe went to Holland, Michigan, for eight years at Calvary Baptist Church. Therewe had a very wonderful and exciting ministry with the church and the school.Again, I think of the deacons, the leadership of the church, and the friendshipsthat developed there. I think of how Rick Flowers came alongside us for six ofthose years—a young man who gave his heart to the Lord at Shenandoah, went intothe ministry, and is still a dear friend. So many people stood with us, besideus, encouraging us and helping us. I will not name all the names, but thankyou. Upon every remembrance of you, I thank God. Thenin 1996 we moved to Troutville, Virginia, to Rainbow Forest Baptist Church wherewe were for 25 years, from 1996 until 2021. My friend, how blessed we werethere. I often feel like I am the most blessed man in the world for thechurches we had the privilege of pastoring—the leadership of those churches,the deacons, the staff members who worked alongside us, encouraged us, prayedfor us, and helped us through the tough times. The very last church we had theprivilege of pastoring was Burgaw Friendly Community Church here in NorthCarolina, for two years. Wow—how greatly I was blessed to meet so manywonderful believers, to see people baptized, and to see lives changed. Theneven in my own neighborhood, meeting people who are encouraging me and blessingme. Ofcourse, I am so thankful for a wife and children who have stood with us, andbeen such a blessing and encouragement. Upon every remembrance of my family, myfriends, and all who have been a part of our ministry and our lives over thesepast 54 years as a Christian, I thank God for you. I have been so blessed. Ijust want to encourage you to take time to remember those who have blessed you. Uponevery remembrance of all of you, I thank God. I am so blessed. I just wanted to taketime to do that today.