PEOPLE OF INFLUENCE - PART ONE

More and more I am interested in people of influence and so I am beginning a series of blogs about people who have had great influence on my life.

To begin, I have to start with my parents. My dad was born in the family home on a farm between Ozark and Springfield, MO. He only went to the 8th grade because he was needed on the farm. Later, he went to work for a company owned by his uncle in Springfield and sold butter to grocery stores in that city. When asked how he met his wife, his response always was at the zoo where she was in a cage. Later, my father became a wholesale milk salesman for Foremost Dairy. He chose a route that went to Branson long before Branson was a great place to vacation. I remember he would often break the roads on snowy mornings just so the people who lived in that area could have their milk. He serviced them in a creative way. There was a restaurant in Forsyth, MO called "Paul's Cafe." Paul was having difficulty in obtaining meat delivered from a Crane, MO meat company. My dad said he went to Crane every day and he would deliver the meat order to Paul. That is just one example of his caring. Taking care of people six days a week, getting up early every day to meet people's need. I don't think he ever saw me play football, basketball, tennis, or run track because of his work. He was a great role model for a son. Early on, I can't remember his saying that he loved me, but I knew he did. In his family, that just wasn't done. Later, he did say that not only to me, but to Sue, Jamie, Rick, and Holly. He went to Sunday School and church regularly, and helped in any way he could. He was a good and faithful husband and father.

My mother took care of me in the formative years not only because she wanted to, but because of my father' job. She enrolled me in Greenwood where I went to school for 13 years, beginning in kindergarten. She was strict. I still have the 15 inch ruler she often applied to my backside. She was always incredibly interested in me and my activities. In adulthood, I jokingly called her "Nosey Mary." She would sit me down and inquire what was going on in my life. She did the same to Rick before Sue and I were married. In the years when it was just Rick and me, she would always want to help if he were ill. As a believer, she helped introduce me to Jesus and took me to the pastor's study to confirm my decision. My mother and Mrs. Leona Jones often sang duets in sunday schoold departments. They would practice over the phone. My mother was an alto, so you can imagine how that sounded on our end of the phone. When I was home, she would have me play the piano when they practiced and also when they sang in front of folks. She was president of the Women" Missionary Union of FBC, Springfield, and loved researching stories of those who served as missionaries. She attend most of my programs in elementary school and a few of my athletic endeavors in high school. Later in life, she managed the Kentwood Arms Hotel, which was THE hotel in Springfield. My mother was a classy and attractive lady.

What was the influence of my father and mother? Let's take a look:

1. She told me about Jesus and influenced my decision to accept Him as Savior.
2. They were both role models of a godly life.
3. Without a doubt they revealed their love for me.
4. They were interested in my activities and later in life, came to One Accord concerts in cities a good distance from Springfield.
5. They loved Sue, Jamie, Rick, and Holly very much.
6. They helped me financially many times.
7. We are always lovingly received when visiting them.
8. They took care of Rick and me when we were ill.
9. They saw that I had a good education.
10. They saw to it that I learned how to play the piano.

They were married for 65 years, before my mother passed away in 1993. My dad died in 1998. Some kind of influence!

REFLECTIONS OF THE WEEK

Thursday evening, I picked up Dr. Arthur Mallory at the Drury Hotel and took him to a restaurant where we met the Senior Management Staff of the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA). We had a great time getting acquainted and sharing thoughts about MOHELA.

Friday morning, Arthur and I went to MOHELA Headquarters where we spent the next several hours listening to Arthur and thinking about where we were going. Arthur shared thoughts about what a good organization should look like. Here are some of his thoughts:

1. A good organization ought to smile a lot.
2. A good organization ought to get its books (Know what it is doing).
3. A good organization ought to know the landscape.
4. A good organization ought to change.

Early Saturday morning, Rocky, our dog, and I got into Sue's car to go to Dallas. Our son, Rick, had surgery on his sinus and had his tonsils removed. Cindy, our daughter-in-law, had asked Sue and me to come and help them during this time. Sue had flown to Dallas on Wednesday and had helped in taking care of our granddaughter, Hudson. She is a beautiful little girl who is a delight to be around. Saturday evening was family time as daughter Jamie and her family came from Denton, TX. It was a joy to be with them. Our granddaughters Lauren and Alexandra and I have developed a tradition. When we shake hands, I have a $20 bill and they like to shake hands almost as much as do I.

I spent two days driving Rick all over Dallas to take care of business that had been on hold because of his surgery. I love being with him. He and I moved to St. Charles in 1972 when he was four and we had seven years when it was just "Ricky and Dad." Those were special bonding years that continue to this day. Sue and I have three great children and following her divorce, the desire of her heart was to meet a guy with a son. She immediately became "Mom" to Rick and they have a wonderful relationship.

I saw a lady at QT in Springfield on the way to Dallas. She said: "God is good!" I replied: "All the time!"

Friends For a Long Time

It is interesting to visit with someone from years gone by. This week has been such a time. I have known Wayne Nelson for many years. He has been a pastor and then took the training to become a hospital chaplain. Wayne has always had a great disposition. In fact, I have felt that if there was anything wrong with our relationship, the problem had to be me. Wayne lives in Georgia and he and his wife, Mary came through St. Charles on their way to her high school reunion. Sue and I took them to dinner on Tueday evening and enjoyed a good time with them. Yesterday the time was spent on the golf course with another long-time friend, Dr. Tom Trimble. My relationship with Tom goes back in time and he and Wayne went to the same high school in Columbai, Mo. Tom is president of Christian Psychological and Family Services with offices in St. Louis and Nashville. He was the one who told me about Sue and that she was expecting me to call. Whenever we get together, we take up where we left off as though time and distance are non factors. That is so special.

Next week, Sue and I will take high school friends of mine to a Cardinals' game. Dave and Bitty (real name Martha) Fay are huge Cardinals' fans. This has become an annual event for them and us. I have a standing invitation to stay with them whenever I am in Springfield. We will be having a high school reunion in September and I have asked Dave to draw what the public squrare in Springfield looked like when we were in high school. As an exercise for the old folks at the reunion, I will have them locate the businesses on the square in the right place when we all lived in Springfield. That will be a lot of fun.

On Thursday, I have invited another long-time friend, Dr. Arthur Mallory to come to St. Louis and have a workshop for the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA). Arthur has been president of Missouri State University and the commissioner of education for the state of Missouri. He is a very strong Christian, having been the past president of the Missouri Baptist Convention. I have asked Arthur to lead us in sharing "What a Great Organization Should Look Like." Arthur is always inspiring. This should be both informative and fun.

God has always been faithful in placing the right person in my life at the right time. This was never a conincidence. It is just the way God works. There was a time when something happened to me that should not have happened because it was against the law, but God supercedes American law for His purpose. The result of this was having a relationship with just the right person who opened the door for me to go to Baylor. What a powerful God!

Sue goes to Dallas on Wednesday to be with our son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter. Rick is facing surgery and they wanted us to help them. I will drive down on Friday evening and be there until Wednesday of the following week. I am driving to take Sue's car to her so she can drive to Nashville on Monday.

I have to announce two high school all-star baseball games on Saturday. As always, I need prayer.

BOOKS AND THINGS

Through the years, I have spent a lot of money on books. While serving as pastor of the Lakeland Baptist Church located on the shores of the Lake of the Ozarks, I developed a pretty good library of Christian writings, and used them in preparation of sermons and counseling. In 1983 I gave most of those books to my pastor, Jay Piper. Jay was a great pastor and was so supportive on One Accord's singing ministry. We even had him sing with us one time when we hosted the Blackwood Brothers. Not long after I gave the books to Jay, be became terminally ill and died at the age of 41. We sang at his funeral.

As the years have gone by, I accumulated more Christian books. Commentaries, books authored by well-known writers as well as books not so well-known. I used those in preparing sermons while serving as interim-pastor of two churches in the St. Louis area. As Sue and I began "down-sizing," I looked at all the books and decided to call our pastor, Dr. David McAlpin, and see if he would like to look at the books and take anything he wanted. Yesterday, he came by and reviewed the authors and took three boxes of books with him. He took old books and new books and a set of commentaries. His son just graduated from Liberty University and David took some for his son. It was fun visiting and I enjoyed his reaction when seeing some of the older books written by men who have gone on to be with Jesus.

David McAlpin is a rare breed. I have been around preachers much of my life and he is one of the few who listen when you speak, and look you in the eye while listening. I told him he had the first characteristic of a serving leader. Sue and I are so fortunate to have David as our pastor.

I have a very important MOHELA board meeting Friday. The Missouri legislature has passed legislation and Governor Blunt has signed the bill that will allow MOHELA to give 315M dollars to the state for building repairs at state universities. Included in this bill are provisions that will allow MOHELA to do things that were previously not allowed. One of the things I want to do is pilot a program for parents of kindergartners that would encourage them to begin saving for college and MOHELA will help them by matching their savings.

At our Friday board meeting, I have asked Dr. Robert Spence, one of our board members who is also president of Evangel University, to share with us some of the things he believes MOHELA can do for private universities that use our services. Dr. Spence is a great Christian who has led EU in a marvelous way. I look forward to hearing from him.

I write this on the seing in our backyard. It is a very pleasant morning to be outside, especially with Service Master cleaning our carpets.

Serving your family - They Deserve it!

Today was a very interesting day. I am sure Sue will go into more detail about it on her blog; however, it was special for me to see three people I have grown to love go back in time and visit some places that had been special to them.

We drove east of I-70 toward St. Louis to find the old Calvary Baptist Church. Sue's dad taught himself how to lead singing and lead a choir and became the music director at Calvary. The church had great preaching from a pastor who was incredibly talented. Not only was he a sensational pulpiteer, he was great on the organ and piano. Reverend Nelson Reagan was a great influence not only on Sue's dad, but caused her to want to learn to write. The music, under the direction of Sue's dad had to be great. This little church grew to number over 1000 in Sunday School and had to move their service to the Pauline Theater where the aroma of popping corn caused worshippers to sometimes stray in their concentration. Today, the building still stands as a church and is suprisingly well-kept. We took a picture of Sue in front of the church and also one of her mother and dad. We drove by the house where Sue's parents lived when she was born. Except for the church, the surrounding area has not been as well-kept as we might like. The memories of Sue and her parents were memories of great joy. That is a good thing.

We drove south on Goodfellow ave. to CoteBrilliant street only to find that the four family flat where they one called home was no longer an edifice. A vacant lot between two houses brought a little sadness. Not far from that address was a school where Sue went to kindergarten. Although it appears that the building could use a bit of "fixin' up," it is still in use and is a very attractive place of memories for Sue. We then headed west on Natural Bridge to Brown road and drove to another elementary school where Sue was a student. That school was close to her home, which at that time was on Bobb Street. We drove by the house where Sue lived until she went to Oklahoma Baptist University (a poor choice of colleges when Baylor was available). The house on Bobb is still an attractive frame house and Sue and her parents recalled many joyful events that happened while they resided there.

We drove back to St. Charles on I-70 and had lunch at Cracker Barrel. It was fun for me to listen and watch mother, father, and daughter look back at their very special hereitage. One of the most special things that they enjoyed and still enjoy, is that Jesus is Lord and He has directed their paths.

A Week of Press Conferences

This had been a week of press conferences. Wednesday, MOHELA held two press conferenes, one at the Science Center in St. Louis and the other in the board room of the Metropolitan Community Colleges in Kansas City. Business, education, government, and labor leaders met to discuss national and state recommendations for addressing challenges in engineering, math and science. At these meetings MOHELA announced the details of new investments to help Missouri address these challenges. Following the meeting in St. Louis, we flew to Kansas City to announce the MOHELA initiative on the western side of the state. The press conferences were attended by a capacity crowd in both cities with television crews from three cities in Missouri as well as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Kansas City Star.

Today, a press conference regarding volunteerism was held in the Holiday Inn in Wentzville, MO. Rick Warren was very interested in what is taking place in the Westplex area of Missouri. One important announcement was that the city of St. Louis is joining in our effort. Governor Matt Blunt has already pledged his support. I made a presentation regarding the characteristics of serving leaders. John Howard, the great American cycilist was present and he shared a bit about his outstanding career and his winning endeavors in three olympics.

God has been opening new doors for me this year and I am grateful for that. It is a good thing to have the opportunity to represent Jesus in the secular world. When I speak of serving leaders, where could I find a better one than the Son of God.

Have a great Memorial Weekend!

NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER & A TRIP TO MISSOURI' CAPITAL

Yesterday was the National Day of Prayer. President Harry Truman (a Missourian) began that program in 1952. My day began by attending the St. Charles Mayor's Prayer Breakfast. Patti York is our mayor and she is a very attractive lady who has led our city in a very special way. My friend Ed Watkins was the MC of the event and he asked me to bring a "Dove Award" to the breakfast so we could honor Sue for her achievements. That was fun to hold the award up so all could see. Todd Worrell was the featured speaker. He is a former great relief pitcher for the Cardinals and later for the LA Dodgers. Todd is presently the pitching coach for Westminster Christian Academy in St. Louis. That school is outstanding and they are fortunate to have some fine students who are the sons and daughters of professional athletes who have been excellent in their field. Todd stressed the importance of relationships, especially having a relationship with Jesus.

After the prayer breakfast, Ed and I drove to Jefferson City to meet with some of the elected leaders of Missouri. We talked to Rep Sally Faith who is a WAJonian. Also we visited with Lt. Governor Peter Kinder, Senator Chuck Gross and Rep. Tom Dempsey. Tom had just returned from Springfield where he had accompanied Governor Matt Blunt to the Prayer Breakfast there. Former Senator and Attorney General John Ashcroft was the speaker and according to Gov Blunt and Rep Dempsey, he was dynamite.

I had scheduled an appointment with Governor Blunt for Ed and me. I talked to him, his chief of staff, and deputy chief of staff about the direction the Missouri Higher Loan Authority would be taking following the passage of Governor Blunt's "Lewis and Clark Program" in the Missouri House. The Senate has already approved it. We will be funding $350M to help colleges and universities in Missouri with some of their building projects. I believe it is a good program and will not affect any student from obtaining a loan from MOHELA. Ed shared some things that resulted from Rick Warren's visit to St. Louis a few weeks ago that involves volunteerism in Missouri. Governor Blunt was a good listener and said he would help us. He is 37 years old and looks about 25. More importantly, he is a great Christian. PRAISE GOD FOR THAT. It is special to have such a man as the leader of our state.

Ed came away so excited about our visit and the promises Governor Blunt made. It was a good day.

I will be glad to have Sue home for a while. She is special.