Pastor Dad

So we did a thing this week... a once in a lifetime kind of thing. Through a very boring story, my family and I got invited to greet President Trump as he exited Air Force 1 in Johnson City. It was a pretty amazing experience that I am so grateful to have the opportunity to participate in. One thing about our current president, most likely, you either love him or hate him. Not very many fence riders these days. I will say this about him. He's done what he said he would. Something else I will say; he supports law enforcement. That's why I am writing today. I hate politics. I despise them but I understand them and I know how they make hypocrites out of the best of us. I know that there are people that love our current president without question and have no problem with him playing golf often but hated our former president and made statements like, "he plays golf too much". I know there are those that hate our current president and say he racist because he is strong ...

I wrote this 6 years ago. It was pretty awesome to read and see how my life has changed. I have gone back and updated and put the updates in a different color. But before anything else, you need to see the coolest update in my world!              I am  47  years old. I am 6’1” tall and weigh 205lbs. I am a Pastor of an awesome church in Maryville, TN. It isn’t awesome because I’m the Pastor; it’s awesome because of the awesome people that go there. Pretty awesome, huh?              I want so badly to serve Jesus with everything in me. It isn’t blind faith or one-sided love but a decision I made several years ago to follow His teachings that have made me a better man. As I have read and studied the Bible, I feel the Holy Spirit attempting to guide my life. I say attempting because I don’t always listen. I want to make a splash for Jesus. Whatever and wherever that means, I wan...

Romans 13:4 NIV For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. So, most every law enforcement officer (LEO) knows and understands the following 5 rules of room clearing. They use them when they are searching for suspects or “clearing” a house. They are intended to give a tactical advantage as well as offer the safest way for a team to work inside rooms. I have asked my local SWAT team, that I serve as chaplain, what is the last thing you’re thinking about when you’re stacked on a door about to make entry. Every person in the room, almost 20, said the same thing; 5 rules of room clearing. Well almost everyone, I think it was Eggers that said, “I’m actually thinking of two things. 1. 5 rules of room clearing. And 2. Is this “bleep” behind me thinking of the 5 rules”.        ...

Writing sometimes comes so easily for me. Talking comes easily pretty much all the time, but I guess, writing is different because once you see it on the screen or paper, you can think about it and back up and correct errors. But this week writing is a little difficult. I want to write about Police Week and our Law Enforcement Memorial Service that took place today and our Law Enforcement Appreciation service that we’re having on Sunday but the words haven’t been going together the way I want them to. I even attempted to do something this morning that I rarely do and write out my closing prayer for today’s service but couldn’t do it. So I went to the service planning on ignoring the service and coming up with a prayer while everyone else was doing their part. Pretty compassionate and professional huh?             But then it was like I forgot that I was doing the closing prayer when the service started. I watched as the offic...

I am a lifelong citizen of Blount County. I pastor a church, I have seen both of my children graduate from Heritage High school, and I serve at the Blount County Sheriff’s Office as the Chaplain Coordinator as well as a Chaplain for the Alcoa Police Department and the United States Secret Service.  My son played youth sports with Mayor Ed Mitchell's son. I knew our register of deeds, Phyllis Crisp, when she ran a cash register at Friendsville market and sold my then 2nd grader his chocolate milk after school. I have at least one representative from every law enforcement agency in our county that attends my church. I don't write to you as someone who sees police as only cars and badges and budgets and elections. I'm speaking as someone who has done 6 weddings and prayed over 13 newborn police babies. I don't write as someone who doesn't know about Blount County, my County, my home, because I have lived here for 46 years. Wait, what? 46? That's crazy....

I hate rumors. Being a positive person by default, I am usually pretty quick to dismiss what I think to be a rumor until I find out for myself. I hate rumors on me individually. Again, I am the person that if I hear of one that is especially rude, or detrimental to my family or church, I will show up in person to whomever was spreading it and ask that it stop (usually nicely). But I also value those that would come to me and ask if what they heard was true. For example, more than one time I have been ask if I, as the pastor of the church, ask people for a copy of their W2’s before they join my church so I can tell them how much they should tithe. Seriously! This happened more than one time. I have laughed and said that’s ridiculous. I have never done this! Ever! I don’t have time to this. As much as I hate rumors in general, on me specifically, I really hate them on my family and friends. That’s why I have chosen to write today. I love the political process in our country. But...

             I wrote the following almost 10 years ago to the day, which was a few years before I even knew what a blog was. As I read it this afternoon, I thought it important to share. I pray it speaks to you: P.S. This picture was from 2008 when I wrote this, they're gonna be excited that I found it! I feel old! No, I don’t mean that “hurt all over old”. No, not the “another gray hair” old. Today I had lunch with, Jordan, my 13-year-old son. He and his sister were out of school and she went with friends so I called him to see if he could find time in his schedule to fit me in a lunch. He did, whether out of desire or mercy but when your kid is a teenager you don’t really care. While we were at lunch I saw a childhood friend and she was talking about how much Jordan looked like me and how tall he was, the only thing missing was pinching his cheeks talking about how he has grown. Then I had a conversation with Kelcey, my 17-year-old ab...

I was in my 20’s when I had to have ACL reconstruction surgery on my left knee. I remember the doctor appointment after the MRI where Dr Thomas put a picture on the bed next to me and pointed and said, “That is where your ACL is supposed to be”. His words, “it has ruptured and we need to build you a new one”. I was expecting that but the next part of the conversation I wasn’t exactly prepared for. In my mind, we schedule surgery, get this knee fixed, go through rehab, and one day begin playing sports again. But he said I needed to go to rehab before the surgery. What? Before? Why? He explained that I was about to have a scheduled trauma to my left leg and it would cause muscle loss, pain, etc… He then went on to say that I needed to build up the muscles in my leg to help the recovery and some other things we can talk about later. Whatever, right? It seemed kind of counterproductive and wasteful to me. But then I began to think about that this week when my son-in-law and daughter ...