Tony (Page 5)

As I drove through Shelby the other day, I had to chuckle a bit when I noticed a yard sign on a vacant corner near the hospital. The sign read, “No Yard Signs Without Permission.” It hit me as funny to use a yard sign to prohibit yard signs. Even so, that sign did what it was supposed to do, viz. it made me look at what the owner deemed important! Which is the heart of the word “significance.” The…

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you!” Matthew 7:7 For several years there was a television series by the name, “In Search of…,” during which the host gathered various experts, opinions, and evidence to try to explain mysterious events and hypotheses. The episodes provided interesting facts and ideas but rarely, if ever, actually came to any definitive conclusions. Thankfully, as we walk in faith as…

124 Years and Ready for More! On September 21, 1898, at 11:00 o’clock in the morning, our church was formed here in the Poplar Springs community as a home base for ministry and mission in Jesus’ name! Christ Followers from Cleveland County named the church Poplar Springs Baptist Church because they envisioned a “missionary Baptist church” near the tall poplar trees surrounding the springs at the foot of the hill. They constituted the new church with the following vision on…

At the college where I studied, the administration partnered with the student council to surprise the students one “secret day” during the Spring semester. About the time the dark ages (winter months) were easing up and the “study-itis” and “spring fever” was setting in, a note would be slipped under the dorm room doors announcing “Wonderful Wednesday” when all classes were canceled and special foods and treats were served and group games were scheduled in a festival of relaxation to…

Schools of all kinds are back in session this week and those start-ups remind us of how fast things change around us. Both of our grandchildren are now in the “school flow” and it is hard to believe how quickly they came to this time. It seems like we were just holding them in our arms at the hospital and letting them sleep on our shoulders. In fact, with our daughter’s birthday approaching next month, it truly seems like a…

A Month of Evening Prayers Every August in Shelby, the American Legion version of the “boys of summer” brings their national tournament to Shelby High School’s Keeter Stadium for the American Legion World Series. This week the next National Champion will have made their way to being crowned the best of the eight teams representing the regions from around our nation. The baseball heritage of Cleveland County gave me a bit of inspiration for putting together this devotional guide which…

Since the days of the early church, followers of Jesus have looked to Paul’s word in his letter to the Ephesian church as a reminder of what we can expect as we journey into the future. It’s a good word. A word on which we will hang our hopes and live into the vision for the ministry of Poplar Springs Baptist Church. It’s a word that describes well that which this dear congregation has known in Andy and Kim Oliver…