Inspirations:

I’m not comfortable talking about myself or choosing heroes. Others can probably tell a better story about me than I. Others know your shortcomings and your virtues better than you do. If you’ve done well it speaks for itself, and if not, it screams. It is kindness and dedication to truth that inspires me. My wife Pinky’s kindness and her desire to give of herself, inspires me every day. I’m not sure about heroes. When Bob Dylan spoke of heroes in a concert with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, the band sang, “When They Came for Him in the Garden Did They Know.” Dylan opened a concert in Tel Aviv, Israel last year with the same song. The fact that the "Man in that garden" has accepted me; that’s big in my life. So, I’m a Jesus Freak and still a hippie I guess. I have listened to Bob Dylan's words since I was ten years old; that’s approaching 50 years now, well 48 this year. This week, “Death is not the End” has played in my mind a lot of the time.

When you're sad and when you're lonely And you haven't got a friend Just remember that death is not the end

And all that you held sacred Falls down and does not mend Just remember that death is not the end

Not the end, not the end Just remember that death is not the end

When you're standin' on their crossroads That you cannot comprehend Just remember that death is not the end

And all your dreams have vanished And you don't know what's up the bend Just remember that death is not the end

Not the end, not the end Just remember that death is not the end

When the storm clouds gather round you And heavy rains descend Just remember that death is not the end

And there's no one there to comfort you With a helpin' hand to lend Just remember that death is not the end

Not the end, not the end Just remember that death is not the end

Oh, the tree of life is growing Where the spirit never dies And the bright light of salvation shines In dark and empty skies

When the cities are on fire With the burnin' flesh of men Just remember that death is not the end

And you search in vain to find Just one law abiding citizen Just remember that death is not the end

Not the end, not the end Just remember that death is not the end

Not the end, not the end Just remember that death is not the end

(Down in the Groove © 1988)

Bob’s words are never far from me. He is 71 this year, taking a break from his “Never-Ending-Tour”. His new album Tempest is rich in metaphor, dark and intricate. He was awarded the highest honor our country can bestow on a civilian, The Medal of Freedom. I hold freedom as the highest of ideals.

I am not a fan of many preachers, not since Doc Scott died. Doc saved my faith in a dark time. Doc's scholarship in languages, history and scripture was unsurpassed. His Ph.D. from Stanford in Philosophies of Education empowered his teaching. His most famous sermon, "The Resurrection", is the central issue of Christianity. If Jesus of Nazareth did not rise from the dead, the religion is empty and a waste of time. Doc examines the evidence of the ressurection in a rational and scholarly methodology.

http:/f/www.resurrectionism.com/pdfs/Resurrection.pdf

I do owe a few preachers: Jim Vinita, Pastor of Abundant Grace Community Church in Edinburg, TX; Jerome Elstad, a wise man in Mission, TX; Kent Johnson, a bold teacher in Austin, TX; and Romeo Mireles, Pastor of the Rock, and a faithful friend, on his ranch outside Edinburg, TX; these men shaped my childhood in Christ.

http://agcc.tv/about/our-pastors/