It is a blessing to be able to interview people for our
REvangelical podcast ministry who love the Lord and are making an impact for the Kingdom of God. I will soon be interviewing a couple more good friends of mine, and we will be sharing these chats with you in the near future. First will be Don Brock, pastor of Gateway Baptist Church in Irmo, SC. Don and I met while we were students at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX. Don and his wife, Mary, have two very talented and gifted children. Their daughter, Katie, is a professor at Auburn University, and their son, Mack, is a contemporary Christian music artist with a number of great songs sung all over the world.
It's a funny story how Don and I met. I was studying in the library on campus when Don approached me. We talked for a few minutes, and he thought I was a teenager, perhaps a son of one of the faculty members. I said, "Oh no. I have actually graduated from college, and I am a student as well here at seminary." Don and I still laugh about that. God has used Don and Mary in wonderful ways at Gateway. Don began serving there in 1992. What a blessing and example he is to me and so many.
I will also be interviewing Dave Owen soon. You will love hearing from him. Dave is one of the pastors serving at Providence Baptist Church in Raleigh, NC. He and his wife, Julie, have four kids, and he is on fire for the Lord. Dave and I met while he was a student and I was a professor at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC. Dave is a former college basketball player and golfer. He and I have played a few rounds together. Dave is close friends with pro golfer and US Open Champion Webb Simpson. In fact, Dave actually discipled Webb.
I know you will enjoy hearing from both Don and Dave, two wonderful men of God.
Who are some of your good friends? What a blessing that God would give us these deep and abiding friendships. Solomon, in our biblical text for today's devotion, says that in order to have friends, you must first be a friend. To be a friend means you have to invest time in the relationship. He says specifically that you have to be friendly. Being friendly is a great way to make and maintain solid friendships. Solomon also says that there is one friend who sticks closer than a brother. There are some friendships that have a closer bond than blood brothers actually have. Perhaps you have a best friend like that and can relate.
Someone has said that at the end of your life, if you can name five people with whom you are very close friends, then you have something to cherish. Do you have those men or women in your life? I am so grateful to God for the people in my life who are my dear friends. They make me a much better person, and I hope they can say the same of me.
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