By Bob Allen A Cooperative Baptist Fellowship church planter and adjunct professor at McAfee School of Theology died Aug. 27. Gwen Brown, 59, was founding pastor of Cornerstone Church in Snellville, Ga., which began as a Bible study in her…
Graces I have experienced when grieving
This list began after my Dad died in 1991. I chose not to preach at his funeral, but several weeks later, in a sermon, I listed some of the graces I had experienced since his death. They are included in…
Angle of repose
Death is bigger than us. All of us. And when we brush up against it, we leave wounded—especially when we lose the ones we love (i.e. friends, family, etc). We leave hurt. Over two years ago my wife’s uncle died…
Church loses new pastor to drowning
By Bob Allen A Baptist church in Connecticut is mourning the death of a recently called pastor who died July 29 during a family vacation in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Greg Hamby, 52, pastor of First Baptist Church in Essex, Conn.,…
Zimmerman verdict reveals flawed jury selection process
A jury comprised of five white women and one Latina has acquitted George Zimmerman on all charges. This outcome was largely determined by the way we select juries in America. Imagine that two women who looked like Trayvon Martin were…
A prayer for peace
In his recent lament over the Trayvon Martin tragedy, evangelical leader Jim Wallis implored: “If there ever was a time that demonstrated why racially and culturally diverse congregations are needed — that time is now.” For the past 4 1/2…
I’m playing the race card
I blogged last year about the Trayvon Martin / George Zimmerman case. Specifically, I shared my uneasiness with claims of “God’s plan” being part of the rhetoric. The verdict is in. I’m not a lawyer, and I don’t claim to…
Church musician Don Hustad dies
By Bob Allen Don Hustad, 94, a leader in evangelical church music who taught for decades at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, died June 22. Hustad, once full-time organist for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, served on the faculty of Southern…
Texas mission worker dead at 32
By Ken Camp Seth Dorrell, 32-year-old director of Mission Waco’s global arm — Mission World — died of a heart attack June 16 while he was serving on a mission trip in Mexico with his family. Dorrell’s heart attack was…