The Open Door

Saturday a week ago I boarded the “Georgia Baptist Express,” my pickup truck, to make a six-hour trip to Southeast Georgia. You can’t really go much further in Georgia and still be in Georgia. My destination was St. Mary’s, Georgia. In recent years, St. Mary’s has exploded with growth primarily because of the King’s Bay Submarine Base that is located there as well as the Coast Guard Station that is there.

Of course, I did my best to plan the trip so I would be hitting Savannah about suppertime. There are an incredible number of great eating establishments in Savannah, but a few years ago I stopped at a restaurant right on I-95 called “The Shell House” and have enjoyed eating there a number of times since.

The combination platter of steamed crab and shrimp is my favorite. There’s a big hole in the middle of the table that makes it very easy to keep things neat and orderly while crab and shrimp shells are flying everywhere!

After dinner, I headed south with a full tank of gas, ready to complete my journey. Sometimes folks will tell me how sorry they are that I have to do so much driving. I enjoy it. I love to get out on Georgia highways and see our beautiful state. Few places are more appealing to me than the coastal areas of our state. I love the stretch from the Florida line to Savannah and always enjoy being in the area.

Sunday morning I took Exit 3 off I-95 and drove the short distance into St. Mary’s. It may have been the fact that it was crystal clear and the warmth of the sunshine in the clear winter air was so refreshing, but it was unusually beautiful. If you have never been to St. Mary’s you need to make the trip. It is a beautiful coastal town with buildings dating back to the 1800s throughout the community.

The waterfront is made for enjoyment with nice areas to walk or run and beautiful piers with a large number of vessels moored and ready for fun. Since it was Sunday morning, the shops were closed, but it looked like there would be plenty of fun for those who enjoy browsing quaint shops for unusual treasures.

A turn onto the grass parking lot for a wide open parking spot at First Baptist Church was just right for my truck. As I got out of my truck and felt the balmy breeze and took in the beauty of magnificent oak trees, I just felt relaxed and “at home.”

Possibly that is because I lived in Jacksonville from the time I was five until I was ten. Dad was pastor at Main Street Baptist Church there and I loved my years in Jacksonville. St. Mary’s is so close to Jacksonville that Tim Tebow could probably throw a football from St. Mary’s to Jacksonville. Well, it’s almost that close.

Steve Kegley is pastor at First St. Mary’s and he greeted me as I came through the door. Steve and his wife Cindy have provided outstanding leadership in the church and the community. God has blessed their ministry in a huge way.

A pastor from earlier days and a friend, David Lundin, also met me and we enjoyed some good fellowship. David and his wife, Ann, were members at Main Street Baptist Church when my father was pastor there in the early 1950s and surrendered to the ministry and left for seminary during those years.

It was good to see the family again. Their daughter, who was a baby in the 50s, sang in the choir on Sunday morning. We had a good time talking about Jacksonville days.

John and Nancy Carr soon joined us. John is the associational missionary for the Southeast Baptist Association. After the service they took me to dinner and then I followed them to the beautiful new associational office building in Brunswick to bring the message for the dedication service on Sunday afternoon. The place was filled to capacity and there was a spirit of excitement among the good folks of Southeast Baptist Association.

After the dedication service, I made the drive back to Savannah where I would spend the night and then speak to a gathering of pastors of the Savannah Baptist Association on Monday morning.

We had an outstanding time of fellowship and fried chicken! It was so good to see so many of my friends there. We really had a good time catching up.

Another meeting after lunch and then a long drive to Rome, Georgia followed. They said we might have snow. Around Kennesaw I drove through some snow flurries, but nothing was sticking. After spending the night in Rome, I made my way to Shorter College where I was privileged to preach in the Chapel worship service.

The chapel was filled to overflowing. The downstairs and the balcony were packed and folks were sitting in chairs in the foyer. The chorale sang beautifully and I enjoyed more than I can say worshiping with the Shorter College family of students, faculty, and administration. The spirit on the campus is sky high!

Dr. Newman took me to lunch then drove me to see where the new college of nursing will be located. It is a very fine facility with room to grow, and I am confident they will grow. The college is growing with record enrollment every semester since the Convention was able to retain Shorter in the GBC family.

As I drove back to my home in Duluth, I rejoiced in all of the glorious experiences I had over the past four days. I must admit, after nearly one thousand miles, I was ready to park the truck for a few days, but my heart was full.