Pastor's Blog

Maybe I should just start calling this “the late blog” as that seems to be my lot in recent days.  My apology.  (I could offer excuses but I will just own it and go from there)

Good day in our services yesterday.  I appreciate Bro. Abel very much.  He is always there for me and does such a good job!  I am blessed!

Zach Brown is the man!  Yellow jackets be gone!

Grant Tillman is, once again, allowing us to use his trailer for the concession stand.  Thank you, Grant!  By the way, he will be having surgery tomorrow.  Katie should be ashamed of herself!  Poor Grant!

Mary Anne & baby should be discharged tomorrow.  Keep praying!

I pray that you will have a great rest of your Thursday with Jesus.

First, I apologize for this way late entry.  We have been experiencing internet issues (no internet) for the past couple of days.  I have great internet when on GRACE Mountain in Guatemala and poor (at best) from my house.  Imagine that!

Second first, today is my older brother’s (Eddie) and his wife’s (Sue) forty-ninth wedding anniversary.  I pray that are having a great day.

Third first, I was wrong!  You are thinking, “is he serious!”  Yes, the newest addition to the Dueitt family is not named EHD III but Emory Michael Dueitt.  This is done in remembrance of Charles & Ann’s son, Michael.

Speaking of Harold & Mary Anne, visited them this morning and all is well.  They should be home by this Friday.  Pray for Mary Anne, Emory Michael and Harold.  Older sister, Isabella, is thrilled!

Grant Tillman will have surgery on his hand this Friday.  Pray for all to go well.  I figure that the next Katie tells him to do something that he will respond in obedience!  Just saying!

Our grandson, Jayden, did well through is procedure this morning.  He is home now and will go back to the hospital tomorrow.  Thank you for praying.

Lisa arrived safe and sound in Guatemala.  I am home alone!  O happy day!

I appreciate Bro. Abel filling in for me this morning.

I pray that you will have a great rest of your Wednesday with Jesus.

Mary Anne Dueitt gave birth via C-section to Emory Harold Dueitt III this afternoon at 1:03PM.  He weighed seven pounds and thirteen ounces.  Mother and son are doing well!  Thank you for praying!

Mary Anne Dueitt was admitted to the hospital late yesterday afternoon and will be induced this morning.  Then, the wait begins.  Lord willing, I will stick my head in the door and say a quick prayer.  I do not do babies simply because you never know the “when” of the birth.  Pray for Mary Anne and Harold today!  Pray for baby EHD III.

The surgery to replace Jamie Hatcher’s knee did not take place due to infection.  The surgeon removed the hardware from her previous knee replacement and will treat her with antibiotics for three or four weeks before doing another knee replacement.  Keep praying for Jamie and Chuck.

Our grandson, Jayden, will be put to sleep tomorrow morning in order to do some type of test related to possible allergies.  Pray for all to go well, please.  Thank you.

And I thought last Tuesday afternoon was fun!  Tonight, I get a double dose of middle school girls flag football as Nora’s team has a tri-match meaning her team plays at 6:00PM and 7:00PM.  Slow down my racing heart!  I love Nora and am blessed to be able to attend her games.  Did I mention that she was the leading receiver in last week’s game?

Regular schedule on our campus tomorrow morning and evening.

Bro. Abel and others have the soccer/football fields looking good!  Soccer this Friday night and football Saturday morning.  We need folks to support the concession stand as the proceeds benefit our students going to Guatemala in June 2026.  A drive thru will be available.  Good food.  Good cause.

Lisa departs for Guatemala in the morning.  I am excited for her.  Pray for traveling mercies.

I pray that you will have a great Tuesday with Jesus.

Our staff and students in Guatemala are actively celebrating Independence Day today.  Big doings yesterday and today.

Jamie Hatcher, Chuck’s wife, is presently in surgery.  It has to do with her left knee.  Pray for all to go well.

Mary Anne Dueitt, Harold’s wife, will be admitted to the hospital late this afternoon and they will induce labor in the morning.  Pray for a safe delivery of EHD III.

I am going to copy and paste from an article written by Pastor Jack Bailey earlier today.  “When I heard that Charlie Kirk had been murdered, I made the mistake of going to Google and there I saw what incensed me, “Right-Wing Activist Shot.” Immediately, they mentioned his support of our president and they called Trump a right-winger. Charlie Kirk was first and foremost a follower of Jesus Christ: and that is why he died heroically as a Christian martyr. Has the media mentioned his love and devotion to Jesus? I do confess that FOX aired his wife’s speech and they did give him some good press. But most of the very biased left-wing media tried to make it a political assassination. They made it sound like Charlie was into politics which he was not. He was a Christian Apologist with the skills of an Apollo, who could refute the Jews in public debate. He could take the scriptures and prove that Jesus was the Messiah and the Jews hated him. Charlie Kirk could take the scripture and show how sexual perversion is a sin and they hated him for it. His murder had nothing to do with politics.

Let me set the record straight: Charlie Kirk was NOT a “Right-wing Political Activist,” he was a CHRISTIAN APOLOGIST and the best I’ve ever seen or heard. I am not saying that he was more intelligent than C.S. Lewis, but Lewis never engaged in public debate. Charlie was next to Jesus in my opinion at confronting the lost world with the truth of the gospel. He was phenomenal. No one that I know of, since Jesus and Apollos could do what he did.”

The words in italics are Pastor Jack’s and I appreciate his viewpoint.

I pray that you will have a great rest of your Monday with Jesus.

Late entry.  My apologies.

As long as the Lord allows me to live and have my memory, I will never forget the events of this day twenty-four years ago.  My prayer this morning was for the families of those who lost family members on that most tragic day.  May we never forget.

My second prayer this morning was for the family of Charlie Kirk.  Wow!  I am not even going to share my thoughts but instead just focus my prayers on the Kirk family.

Today is Blake Jenkins birthday.  So why are you mentioning this, pastor?  Because Blake has a twin brother who will celebrate his birthday tomorrow, 9/12.  True story!

I pray that you will have a great rest of your Thursday with Jesus.

Good Wednesday morning to all thirteen of the readers of the blog.  (Actually, our number has dipped to eleven but we are going to continue to use the thirteen figure)

Regular schedule on our campus this morning beginning at 10:00AM and tonight beginning at 6:30PM.  A very special “thank you” to Bro. Abel for stepping up and teaching our students on Wednesday nights.  I am grateful.  Our adult chaperones for the next three Wednesday nights are Brad, Jonathan & John Milton.

Speaking of Bro. Abel, he will be going to Guatemala in a few days to host a soccer clinic and to introduce them to flag football. All of this will take place on GRACE Mountain.  It will be a Gospel centered, high energy time!  Pray for this ministry opportunity!

My wife, Lisa, will be leaving for Guatemala one week from today in order to be there to help celebrate Audrey’s eleventh birthday on 9/22.  Do not worry, my other wife will remain at home on the kitchen counter.

The seventeen folks from Grand Bay who have been on GRACE Mountain should have returned home yesterday.  I pray they arrived home safe and sound.

As it presently stands, we have a precious few openings on our June 11 – 18, 2026 GRACE Ministries trip to Guatemala.  Ditto for our December 2 – 9, 2025 trip.  Time is of the essence so contact me if interested or more information is needed.

I am dealing with some delicate matters – prayers appreciated.

I pray that you will have a great Wednesday with Jesus.

The air temperature this morning is not as low as yesterday morning’s but it is still nice.  Yesterday’s early morning air temperature was fabulous!  My digital girlfriend who stays on our kitchen counter tells me it is presently seventy-three degrees with a relative humidity of eighty-nine percent.  I will take it but, as you know, I am always about cooler (cold) temperatures.  Thank you Jesus for this breath of fresh air that has come our way.  (Holland, MI is at a nice forty-eight degrees this morning – talk about nice!)

Regular schedule on our campus tomorrow morning and evening.  Bro. Abel will teach our students in the evening.  We will be in Titus 3 in the auditorium.

Deacon nominations are taking place now.  Friendship family, you know the routine.  If you do not, contact Henry Wyse or me.

We should have tickets ready this Sunday, 9/14, for our fellowship at Presley’s on Sunday, 9/21.  Three dollars per person.

Today is a shared birthday by Ross Genzink & Dave Scholz.  Ross is now seventy and Dave is seventy-five.  Folks, that is old!

I pray that you will have a great Tuesday with Jesus.

P.S. – Regardless of where you attend church take time to pray for your pastor today!  He needs the prayer and you need the practice!

This entry is late – duh!  Internet issues at home and since I have been in the office (little before 8:00AM) I have been covered up.  Sorry!

Good day in our services yesterday with the two highlights being the public profession of faith by Lane Lofton in our morning service and the baptism of Sadie Baggett in our evening service.  Praise the Lord!

It was great having Jeanette Bates back in our services yesterday.  She was missed.  Obviously, I am very thankful to Kim Tillman for her flexibility during Jeanette’s absence but we are best when both of these ladies are present.  I thank God for our musicians.

Thank you to Keith Barrett, Blake Jenkins and Judson Fanning for trimming the hedges in front of the auditorium and cleaning up the back forty on Saturday.  Nice job!

Also, thank you to the guys who worked last week to get the men’s restroom functional for Sunday.  Not totally finished but it was functional.  Really, who needs to wash their hands?

How about the weather this morning?  Nice reminder that Fall is coming – all three days of it here on the Coast.  LOL!

I pray that you will have a great Monday with Jesus.

Tony Blackwell was doing “better” yesterday morning but still needs our prayers.  He remains hospitalized.

Regular schedule on our campus Sunday morning and evening.  Hope you will join us!

Church fellowship at Presley’s Outing on Sunday, 9/21, beginning at 4:00PM.

Special “Refresh” offering on Sunday, November 9.

I need four or five men to meet me at 6:30AM tomorrow morning to trim the shrubs around the auditorium.  (Bro. Abel, Henry Wyse & Jason Fosmore are excluded from this invitation).  If you will join me, please send me an email today.  First come, first served.  What if no one responds?  I will fly solo.  Bring hedge trimmers, rakes, and weedeaters.  Should be done and gone in less than an hour.  Any takers?

I “think” the men’s restroom in the auditorium should be open Sunday.  By the way, check out the CAB with the new paint scheme.  Go big purple!

I pray that you will have a great Friday with Jesus.