Gary Pearce was “the” personality on the campus of Mississippi College at Clinton, MS, in the early 1970s. He knew everyone’s name and never met a stranger. When he walked into a room, he filled it up–in every way conceivable. I was one of the ministers at his church, the First Baptist Church of Jackson, and that’s more or less how he became one of our sons.

During those three years, from 1971 through 1973, Margaret and I “adopted” four college students as our own. Three were boys–Bill Garrett of Harrisville (he used to say he was from “Hot Coffee”), Tom Hearon of Memphis, and Gary Pearce of Baton Rouge–but the fourth outshone them all: Mary Baronowski of Sardis. Looking back from this vantage point 35 years later, I wonder how we chose so well.

Bill Garrett went to Hollywood and did lots of things before dying of a heart attack in his 50s. Tom Hearon married Bonnie and they became Southern Baptist missionaries to Brazil and then Italy. These days, they work for the International Mission Board in the personnel department, based out of Nashville. More about Gary Pearce in a moment.

Mary Baronowski married Steve Smith and they became the kind of church members every pastor would give his right arm for. They belong to Istrouma Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, where she teaches college students, gives piano lessons, and serves as prayer leader for the association. I’ve told Tom and Gary–but don’t plan to tell Mary–that she is probably the finest Christian woman any of us will ever know. (We will now see if she reads this blog.)

Gary Pearce is married to Caty and they live in the Hammond-Independence area. Gary is the senior chaplain at the Dixon Correctional Institute in Jackson, Louisiana. He still has that infectious joy-in-the-Lord and the incredible attitude. Even when he went through a partial foot amputation from diabetes a couple of years ago, nothing slowed him down. He is so unbelievable.

And would you believe, Gary is a cartoonist. The newspaper in that part of the world–I’ve forgotten exactly which one–runs his drawings on a regular basis and soon they will be included in their on-line edition. He says he inherited it from his “dad.” I will happily take all the credit.

I had a letter from Gary this week, which prompted me to tell you about him. The letter was sent to the people on his mailing list because, frankly, he needs our help in his prison ministry.

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1) If you enjoy Bible study or will be teaching Romans anytime this year, we’d like to encourage you to stop by www.joemckeever.com and look at the three offerings inside the “Features” box: the cartoons on Romans, “10 Things to Know about Romans,” and a chapter-by-chapter analysis called “Getting a Handle on Romans.” You might find some help there.

Today, Wednesday, we put a few more cartoons in the mail to Marty who will be posting these with the Romans group. We plan to add some more in the next week or ten days, so stop by later to see if there’s anything you can use.

Also, as I learn more about Romans from continuing to study it and from teaching it, I’ll be coming back into these articles and tweaking them, adding insights, changing anything I’ve learned more about, and refining the English. (Not too much on that last point. Hey, I’m from off the farm in Alabama and you should expect only so much.)

So, where will I be teaching Romans? Here’s the schedule. You’re welcome to drop in for any that are near you.

Thursday, January 10 – We’ll do a two-hour preview of Romans twice at our Baptist Center, 2222 Lakeshore Drive, New Orleans. In the morning from 9 to 11 am and that evening at 6:30 pm. This is primarily for pastors, but anyone is welcome. (My cell phone is 504/615-0149. Call if you need directions.)

January 14-16, Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday mornings from 10 to noon at Oak Park Baptist Church, 1110 Kabel Drive, in the Algiers section of New Orleans. Pastor Bobby Stults says this is primarily for the senior adults who don’t like to get out at night, but you’ll surely be welcome.

January 18-19, Friday night (6:30 to 9 pm) and Saturday (8 am to noon), also at Oak Park Baptist Church. This is for everyone else.

January 20, Sunday, through Wednesday night, January 23, at Rocky Creek Baptist Church, Lucedale, Mississippi. Contact that church for the exact schedule. Note: We’ll not have a Tuesday night session; I’ll be speaking at the annual associational men’s banquet at the same church. Jimmy Holcomb is the Associational Director of Missions. He can give you directions or information: jimmy@ggbaptist.com.

2) We had gridlock in New Orleans today.

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Two or three years ago, having heard that my Dad needed a new large-print Bible, I drove across town to the Lifeway Christian Store and purchased him one. Of course, it was the King James Version, the only kind he had ever known.

I wrote his name in the front and added this: “In appreciation for the Bible you bought me for Christmas, 1948.”

In presenting it to him, I said, “Dad, I want you to do me a favor. Mark it up. When you read something you particularly like, underline it or write in the margin.” That was a new thought to him.

Dad grew up in the generation that was taught not to mark in Bibles. That’s why the Bible which belonged to his mother, my Grandma Bessie, who died in 1982, and which Bible I own, has very few notes in the margin. She was such a godly woman with excellent insights; I would have loved for her to have marked that Bible up.

On November 3, 2007, at the age of 95 years and 7 months, my dad went to Heaven. The next day, when I arrived, one of my sisters handed me the Bible. “Pop wanted you to have this back,” she said.

There on the presentation page where I had lettered his name and written my appreciation, he had added, “At death, give back to Joe.”

A word about his handwriting. For a man with only a 7th grade education, and a lifelong coal miner at that, Pop’s writing style was impressive. He used to tell us how the schools in his childhood taught classical penmanship to the students. He would hold the pen in a certain way and move his hand around in circles. “We practiced these exercises until we learned to write well,” he would say.

The other morning, two months after Dad’s death, when I remarked to Mom about his notes in this Bible, she said, “Even at the last, he still had this beautiful handwriting.”

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1) Why do any Saints fans attend ball games in Chicago?

The last several times the Saints and Bears have played in Chicago in the dead of winter, the Saints fans have been harassed and cursed, snowballed and even abused. Furthermore, many who attended those games have indicated the stadium security people were unresponsive when they complained.

We’re not saying all Saints fans are “saints.” And competitive spirit is even fun. But there is such a thing as carrying it too far, and from all we hear, the Bears fans have exceeded that line.

The best seat in the house is the couch in your own living room. The temperature in New Orleans is in the 50s this weekend, and my fireplace will be getting a nice workout.

2) Why do African-American churches celebrate Kwanzaa in their services?

This question was raised on the religion page of Saturday’s Times-Picayune. The writer for the Religion News Service told how many black churches in America wrestle with that issue. I don’t want to push my own opinion too hard here, because I’m mixed race myself–mostly Irish, I expect, but mainly “Heinz 57”–and have no clue what it’s like being a minority in this country. That said, I do know something about the Christian faith and I know a good deal about churches.

My opinion is this: if African-American churches want to celebrate Kwanzaa and do not mind alienating non-blacks in their congregation, have at it. More and more, particularly in the part of the world where I live, ethnic churches are drawing people from mixed backgrounds. The Chinese Baptist church here, for instance, is thinking of putting an associate pastor on staff who would be Anglo, in order to minister to their members who do not speak Chinese. In the Vietnamese Baptist church, you’ll see bi-racial families in the congregation, indicating that the son or daughter of first-generation American-Vietnamese has married an Anglo. To a lesser extent, the same thing is happening in African-American congregations. More likely, it’s non-black families or singles who have been attracted to the congregation because of their music, preaching, or ministries.

Celebrate your cultural and racial heritage if you want to, but recognize the effect may be to build a barrier between people.

3) Why would a spokesmen for Baptists run down Baptists?

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My Birmingham friends Philip and Shellyn Poole started this with their Christmas letter. According to that document, last year they learned such lessons as home warranty companies consider water lines to the fridge to be “plumbing” and not “refrigerator repair,” tires for small cars are costlier than for trucks, and the ever-popular “Poorly lit stop signs are still stop signs.” We may assume someone got a ticket and is having trouble getting over it!

Here are my top ten lessons of 2007. (A disclaimer: I’m doing this at one sitting and no doubt will think of a dozen more later.)

10. If you are in Gardendale, Alabama, don’t even think about driving past that white line at the intersection. Doing so cost me $133, and yes, I am still having a little trouble getting over that!

9. Southern Baptists are still the greatest people in the world. Two years after Katrina, they’re still flowing into New Orleans in record numbers to help us rebuild. We’re so grateful this country has not been hit with another hurricane of any size to draw away the attention and resources. For those interested in coming to help, go to www.joemckeever.com and click on the house at the top of the page.

8. Rebuilding New Orleans is not going to be a ten-year job as I previously thought. We’re now talking about 25 years. I’ll be in Heaven when it’s finished, but I’ll be cheering you guys on!

7. Had I brushed my teeth regularly as a child when Mom told me to do so, I could have saved myself over $12,000 this year alone. How does that line go from the mechanic–“Pay me now or pay me later!”

6. Bill Taylor’s innovative plan for helping our struggling churches–the program is called Unlimited Partnerships–is a wonderfully creative way for pumping new life into our congregations and encouragement into our pastors. He started it March 1, 2007, and already it has made a lasting difference in a hundred ways.

5. Friendship is the best thing going. This year, as we continue to deal with the rebuilding of this city, and as my family has dealt with the homegoing of our Dad, we have drawn such incredible strength from friends. I’ve frequently (and teasingly) quoted a Canadian pastor friend who says, “A friend is God’s apology for your relatives,” but I’ve got some wonderful kin also, so no apology needed. Just basking in the glow and love of friends.

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The text is Luke 2:8-18, the message of the angels to the shepherds.

Theme: Every element in the angels’ message is a welcome surprise to us.

FEAR NOT.

There is so much fear in this world.

When earth is invaded by Heaven, we naturally cringe. To our delight, God’s messenger tells us not to be afraid. He does not bring us the spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind (II Tim 1:7). You don’t have to be afraid ever again.

GOOD NEWS.

There is so much bad news in this world.

We would have thought that when God came to earth, it would be just long enough to plant an explosive device that would put an end to the human experiment. And yet, to our overwhelming surprise, His message to mankind is good news, which is the meaning of the word “gospel.” The gospel is the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16).

GREAT JOY.

There is so much unhappiness in this world.

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Angus Lind, columnist for the Times-Picayune, has filled the alphabet with aspects of the culture that makes this city unique. Sunday’s paper ran the Living section crossways so that by opening the entire page out, you have this giant poster depicting Lind’s compilation of New Orleans blessings, complete with pictures.

So many expatriate New Orleanians read this blog, we thought you would enjoy his list. It’s shortened somewhat for brevity’s sake. See if any of these bring back memories. Or make you homesick.

A is for Audubon Park, Azaleas, the Absinthe House, Antoine’s, Arnaud’s, Algiers, Arabi, architecture, and ain’t dere no more. B is for the big easy, bless you boys, Buddy D, Tom Benson, Bienville, beignets, bananas foster, brake tag stations and Barq’s.

C is for Crescent City, Canal and Claiborne, Cajuns, Carondelet, Creoles, cafe au lait, Cafe du Monde, calliopes on steamboats, Chalmette, Commander’s, City Park, Charity Hospital, Camellia Grill, and the Crescent City Connection. D is for Deuce and Drew, Dawlin’, Dis n’ Dat, downtown, Delgado, dey all axed f’you, and D. H. Holmes.

E is for Emeril’s, ersters, Endymion, Essence. F is for the French Quarter, fleur-de-lis, French Market, de ferry, Faubourg Marigny, first you make a roux, and Frostop. G is for gumbo, gris-gris, Galatoire’s, Gentilly, Garden District, Green Wave, go by yo mamma’s house, and Gretna.

H is for Hubig pies, Hornets, hurricanes, Harry Connick Jr., the Huey P., half shell, Hap Glaudi, and how y’all are? I is for Irma the sweet soul queen, Iberville, Irish Channel, I done tol’ you a hunnert times, and izzat so? J is for Jazzfest, jazz funerals, jambalaya, Jackson Square. K is for K-Paul’s, K-Doe, Krewes, Krystal burgers, K-Ville, and “another K we won’t mention because it doesn’t exactly feel like a blessing yet.”

L is for lucky dogs, lagniappe, Landrieu, Lee Circle, Lower Nint’ Ward, Louis Prima, Liver n’ Onions, Lenfants, Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop. M is for Mardi Gras, the Mannings, Morgus, Mandina’s, makin’ groceries, Magazine Street, Marie Leveau, muffulettas, mirlitons, McKenzie’s, Monkey Hill, and Maison Blance. N is for N’Awlins, nutrias, neutral ground, nectar sodas, and no left turn signs. O is for “only in New Orleans,” Olympia Brass Band, and Orpheus.

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