Go for the Gold

Dr. William H. Willimon

United Methodist Church Birmingham, Alabama

The Reverend Dr. William H. Willimon has been a Bishop of The United Methodist Church since 2004. He leads the 157,000 Methodists and 792 pastors in North Alabama. For twenty years he was Dean of the Chapel and Professor of Christian Ministry at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.

Dr. Willimon is a graduate of Wofford College (B.A., 1968), Yale Divinity School (M.Div., 1971) and Emory University (S.t.D., 1973). He has served as pastor of churches in Georgia and South Carolina. For four years, beginning in 1976, he served as Assistant Professor of Liturgy and Worship at Duke Divinity School, teaching courses in liturgics and homiletics and served as Director of the Ministerial Course of Study School at Duke, and Presiding Minister in the Divinity School Chapel. When he returned to the parish ministry in 1980, he was visiting Associate Professor of Liturgy and Worship at Duke for three years. he has been awarded honorary degrees from a dozen colleges and universities including Wofford College, Lehigh University, Colgate University, Birmingham-Southern College, and Moravian Theological Seminary. In 1992, he was named as the first Distinguished Alumnus of Yale Divinity School. He also serves on the faculties of Birmingham-Southern College as visiting Distinguished Professor and as visiting research Professor at Duke Univeristy Divinity School.

He is the author of sixty books. his Worship as Pastoral Care was selected as one of the ten most useful books for pastors in 1979 by the Academy of Parish Clergy. Over a million copies of his books have been sold. In 1996, an international survey conducted by Baylor University named him one of the twelve Most effective Preachers in the english-speaking world.

His articles have appeared in many publications including The Christian Ministry, Quarterly Review, Liturgy, Worship and Christianity Today. he is editor-at-Large for The Christian Century. He has served as editor and expositor (with his wife, Patricia) for Abingdon’s International Lesson Annual. He has written curriculum materials and video for youth, young adults, and adults. His Pulpit Resource is used each week by over eight thousand pastors in the USA, Canada, and Australia. A 2005 study by the Pulpit and Pew research Center found that Bishop Willimon is the second most widely read author by mainline Protestant pastors.

Bishop Willimon has given lectures and taught courses at many pastors’ schools and at colleges and universities in the United States, Canada, europe and Asia. These include the Belden Lectures at Harvard as well as lectureships at Princeton, Vanderbilt, Pepperdine, and Oxford. In 1998, he served on the theological faculty of the University of Bonn, Germany and in 1991, he was Distinguished Guest Professor at the University of Muenster, Germany. His books have been translated into eight languages.

He has served as vice chairman of the Board of trustees, Wofford College; chairperson of the University Council Committee for the Institute of Sacred Music at yale; and on the Board of overseers for Memorial Church, Harvard University, and the Boards of Emory, Birmingham- Southern, and Huntingdon Colleges. He serves on the editorial boards of The Christian Century, The Christian Ministry, Preaching, The Wittenburg Door, and Leadership.

Educational History (in chronological order) Wofford College B.A. (1968) Yale Divinity School M. Div. (1971) Emory University S. t. D. (1973)

Westminster College D. D. (1990) Wofford College D. hum.L. (1994) Lehigh University D. Litt. (1995) Campbell University D.D. (1996) Lafeyette College D.D. (1999) Colgate University D.D. (2000) Centre College D.D. (2001) LaGrange College D.D. (2005) Albright College D.D. (2006) Birmingham-Southern College D.D. (2006) Methodist College D. hum. Ltt. (2009) Mennonite Theological Seminary D.D. (2009)

Professional Positions (in chronological order) Pastor, Level Creek UMC, Buford, GA, 1971 Assoc. Pastor, Broad St. UMC, Clinton, SC 1971-73 Pastor, trinity UMC, North Myrtle Beach, SC, 1973-76 Assistant Professor of Liturgy and Worship, Duke Divinity School, 1976-80 Associate Professor of Liturgy and Worship, Duke Divinity School, 1980-83 Pastor, Northside UMC, Greenville, SC, 1980-84

Minister to the University and Professor of the Practice of Christian Ministry, Duke University, 1984-1989

Dean of the Chapel and Professor of Christian Ministry, Duke University, 1989-2004 Bishop, Birmingham Area of The United Methodist Church, 2004–Present

Honors and Awards

Phi Beta Kappa (Wofford, 1968) Aldgernon Sydney Sullivan Award (Wofford, 1968) First Distinguished Alumnus (Yale Divinity School, 1992)

Teaching Areas

Homiletics Liturgics Pastoral Care

Examples of Courses Taught

Introduction to History, Theology and Practice of Christian Worship Worship as Pastoral Care, The History of the Ordained Ministry in the Protestant Tradition, Worship in the Wesleyan Tradition, Research Seminar in Sacramental Theology, Introduction to the Church’s Ministry, The Rhetoric of Preaching, The Search for Meaning (First year Student Seminar), Ethics, Meanings and Morals (First year Student Seminar)

Scholarly Articles (numbering now, about 600) have appeared in:

Quarterly review The Christian Century religion in Life Worship, Liturgy Theology today review and expositor Journal of Christian education

Major Lectures

Claremont School of Theology emory University Union Seminary Columbia Seminary

Texas Christian University Atlantic Christian Magill University San Francisco School of Theology Iliff School of Theology

Perkins School of Theology Austin College Wofford College erskine College

University of Bonn (Germany) University of toronto Austin Presbyterian Seminary University of Muenster (Germany)

The Kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes sells all that he has and buys that field. (Matt. 13:44–46)

The Kingdom of God, says Jesus, is like a man who, while plowing a field, hears his plow hit something, bends down, scoops away the dirt and finds treasure. he quickly covers the treasure, leaves his plowing, runs to the bankers, sells everything he has, then goes back to the owner of the field and asks, “how much would you like for that rocky, barren field out there? Call me crazy, but I would like to buy it.”

Jesus says the Kingdom of God belongs to people like that.

Now some of you, because you are so very good, are concerned about the business ethics behind this wheeling and dealing. It’s business like this that led to the enron and WorldCom shenanigans. Isn’t the man who runs out and buys this field under some obligation to full disclosure and simple honesty?

Such petty, bourgeoisie moral concerns seem not to interest Jesus. Go for the gold! It is as if Jesus says: risk, connive, get that field, grab the treasure! Maybe that is why my favorite book was robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island when I was a kid. I read Treasure Island a dozen times. of course I identified with Jim, the kid in the story. But thinking back, I really loved the adults in Treasure Island. I didn’t know any adults like the ones who peopled Treasure Island, grownups who staked all, risked everything for nothing more than some map scrawled on a piece of paper. The adults I knew stayed home, kept their heads down, went to work and came back home again. In Treasure Island, they risked, lied if needed, and had great lives and exciting deaths.

Later on, I was a junior in college, thinking about a lot of things, none of which included the ministry. A friend talked me into going with him to a conference: “exploring Ministry.” I drifted through the weekend until late Saturday night, when a group of South Carolina pastors sat in a hotel room talking about their lives. Those were the days of the Civil rights Movement. one had been a victim of the Ku Klux Klan. had a cross burned in his yard. Another had a concrete block thrown through the back windshield of his car after a meeting. The wife and the children of another had been snubbed, persecuted, in a small Southern town.

I, in my low, undergraduate imagination thought to myself, “This sounds great! I didn’t know that being a Methodist was this much fun!”

Back then, anybody with a bus leaving to find buried treasure could count me in.

But then I got a degree, got a job, got tenure, got reserved parking, bedded down. Now, if Jesus had come up and said, “There’s treasure around the next bend in the road,” I would most likely have responded, “Does this include health insurance? Do you guarantee that my sacrifice will be worth it? Do we have seat belts?”

A friend of mine, an episcopal priest, was looking to buy a motorcycle. The salesman said, “This baby can go from zero to eighty in forty-seconds. Nothing can touch you when you are on this baby.”

Then the salesman asked, “And what do you do for a living?”

My friend answered that he was clergy. The salesman said, “This is a very, very safe motorcycle you got here.”

And I am haunted by what somebody said back at my graduation, “remem- ber one thing as you go forth into life: even if you win the rat race, you are still a rat.”

he was telling the truth. There is this relentless, virtually irresistible tendency of life to transmute from adventure into predictability. one day you are an angry young thing, ready to grab the world by the tail and twist, dying to set the woods on fire; the next day you are some old guy, slouched in an easy chair, complaining about how the kids are ruining the world. one day you are a kid, excited about the prospect of leaving home, abandoning your parents, and going to college where you can drink and think as you like and they can’t do anything about it. The next day, you’re just a college student going through the motions, trying to accumulate enough hours to graduate.

Jesus says a kingdom belongs to those with the guts to stake it all on the treasure.

I spent twenty years in academia. That’s where you go to step back, to reflect, to consider, to reconsider, not to get too emotionally involved, not to step out too far.

I wonder not only if I would be able to risk everything for the treasure hidden in the field, but also: would I even know the treasure worth risking everything for, if I came upon it?

Life is short; if there is anything worse than not reaching your goals, it is setting goals too low and reaching them.

We can get a life, but what about adventure, treasure, a life worth living? God help us. We sell out too quickly, settle for too little, make nothing more important than money, and thereby miss the treasure.

Jesus walks along a road one day, talking to people about discipleship, explaining the cost of following him. Jesus tells them that if they follow him, they could be rejected by their own families. everybody could turn against them. There might be jail time, beatings, or worse. he tells them there’s no way to follow him without a cross.

And guess what? Some, just at his warning word, dropped everything they were doing, deserted their parents, let the fishing business go down the drain, turned over the tables at the accounting firm, and followed him.

That’s what the Kingdom of God does to those who stumble upon it, says Jesus.

Fred Craddock swears this happened to him: he was visiting the home of one of his students after graduation and after a great dinner, the young parents excused themselves and hustled the kids off to bed, leaving him in the living room with the family pet—a large, sleek greyhound. earlier in the evening, he had watched the kids roll on the floor with this dog.

“That’s a full-blooded greyhound there,” the father of the kids had told Fred. “he once raced professionally down in Florida. Then we got him. Great dog with kids.”

Sitting there alone with the dog, it suddenly asked, “This your first visit to Connecticut?”

“No,” Fred answered. “I went to school up here a long time ago.” “Guess you heard that I came up here from Miami,” said the greyhound. “oh, you retired?” I asked. “No, no, I didn’t retire. I spent ten years as a professional racing greyhound.

ten years of running around that track with the others, chasing that rabbit. Five days a week, chasing the rabbit. But one day, I got up close and got a good look at that rabbit. It was a fake! I had spent my life chasing a fake rabbit! I didn’t retire, I quit.”

Inspirations Vol. 1, Chapter 14: “How Faith Works”

A visionary, a prolific author, and recently affirmed an Apostle of Faith, Frederick K.C. Price has influenced a generation of believers.

Apostle Price is the Founder of Crenshaw Christian Center (CCC) in Los Angeles, California. He began CCC in 1973 and, since then, the church has grown to become a world-renowned ministry which boasts the prodigious FaithDome. Being one of the largest sanctuaries in the country, the FaithDome is a refuge of hope and an oasis of beauty in South Los Angeles with a congregation of about 22,000.

After more than 35 years of service, the Apostle has stepped aside as Head Pastor to formally install his son, Pastor Frederick K. Price Jr., as his successor. He continues to serve at the helm as the Chairman of CCC’s Board of Directors, but has relinquished the daily duties of the pastorate to his son. Apostle Price not only ministers in the FaithDome, but travels the world, mostly in the United States, teaching the uncompromising Word of God.

Born on January 3, 1932 in Santa Monica, California, Apostle Price is the older of two sons of Winfred and Fred Price. He has one sister, Dr. Delores W. Jones.

Apostle Price graduated from Dorsey High School and attended Los Angeles City College for two years. He received an honorary diploma from Rhema Bible Training Center in 1976 and a Doctorate of Divinity Degree from Oral Roberts University in 1982.

Apostle Price is believed to be the first African American minister to broadcast on television with his powerful “Ever Increasing Faith” program. Today, “Ever Increasing Faith” reaches an estimated 15 million households each week, and airs in 15 of the 20 largest markets throughout the United States via “Ever Increasing Faith Television” (EIFTV). The ministry also hosts podcasts and publishes a quarterly magazine.

In 1990, Apostle Price founded the Fellowship of Inner City Word of Faith Ministries (FICWFM). Members of FICWFM include churches from all over the United States and various countries. The Fellowship meets regionally throughout the year and hosts an annual convention here at the FaithDome. Their mission is to provide standards of excellence in ministry.

In 2001, Apostle Price established an East Coast church – Crenshaw Christian Center East. The current membership is almost 1,000. Apostle Price travels to New York regularly to teach the weekly Bible Study and Sunday service.

The author of some 50 books on faith, healing, prosperity, and the Holy Spirit, Apostle Price has sold over 2.1 million books since 1976.
A devout husband, Apostle Price has been married to his wife, Dr. Betty Price, since 1953. He is also the proud father of four children and nine grandchildren, most of whom work in the ministry.

His daughters work alongside Apostle Price in ministry. The eldest, Angela Evans, serves as the President and COO of CCC; his second, Cheryl Price, is the Executive Vice President; the youngest, Stephanie Buchanan, is the Executive Administrator; and son, Pastor Frederick Price Jr. is now Pastor. In addition, Apostle Price and Dr. Betty have nine grandchildren: Alan Michael Evans (married to Carrie Evans) and Adrian Marie Evans, who all work in the ministry; Nicole Denise and Allen L. Crabbe, III; Tyler Stephen, Justin Eric and Sidney Trinity Buchanan; and Frederick Price V. They have two great grandchildren, Kamari Drake Stewart-Crowley and Akira Makai Evans.

Inspirations Vol. 1, Chapter 13: “Spiritual Formation And The True Nature Of Happiness”

J.P. Moreland (Ph.D., USC; Th.M., Dallas Theological Seminary) is one of the leading evangelical thinkers of our day as a prolific philosopher, theologian and Christian apologist. He is a Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the Talbot School of Theology and director of the Eidos Christian Center.

With degrees in philosophy, theology and chemistry, Dr. Moreland has taught theology and philosophy at several schools throughout the United States.

He has authored or coauthored over forty books, including Kingdom Triangle, The God Question, In Search of a Confident Faith, Philosophical Foundation for a Christian Worldview, Scaling the Secular City, The Lost Virtue of Happiness and Body and Soul.
He is coeditor of Jesus Under Fire and a frequent contributor to popular Christian magazines and scholarly journals. Dr. Moreland served ten years with Campus Crusade for Christ, planted two churches, and has spoken on over 200 college campuses, in hundreds of churches, and over 25 debates.

Inspirations Vol. 1, Chapter 12: “The Matthew Moment”

The Rev. Stanley S. Harakas, is a priest of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and is Archbishop Iakovos Professor of Orthodox Theology Emeritus in the field of Orthodox Christian Ethics at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, Brookline, Mass., U.S.A.

He received his undergraduate and theology degrees from Holy Cross. In 1965, he earned the degree of Doctor of Theology (Th.D.) from Boston University. In 1966 he began teaching at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology. He has been Visiting Professor at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Seminary in New York, Boston University School of Theology, John the 23rd Center in New York City, Boston College Department of Theology, and Emmanuel College in Boston and has lectured at the University of Thessalonike, Greece.

In 1986 he was appointed to the first endowed chair at Holy Cross as “Archbishop Iakovos Professor of Orthodox Theology.” He served as Dean of Hellenic College for five years, and Dean of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology for ten years, (1970 to 1980). During this time, both schools were accredited and new degree programs established.

A member of numerous professional societies, he has served some of them as an officer. He has been President of the Orthodox Theological Society, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Society of Christian Ethics. In 1988 he was elected to membership in the American Theological Society. Fr. Harakas was the inaugural recipient, in 1981, of the “Archbishop Iakovos Faculty Award.” In 1986 he was honored as a “Distinguished Alumnus” of Boston University School of Theology. In May, 2000 he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Divinity degree by Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology.

Fr. Stanley was a Plenary Speaker at the Seventh General Assembly of the World Council of Churches in Canberra, Australia, and from 1990 to 1998 served as a Commissioner of the WCC Unit III on “Justice, Peace and Creation.” He served as co-chair of the Orthodox Studies Group of the American Academy of Religion from 1992 to 1998. Fr. Harakas is the author of five pamphlets and fifteen books, both scholarly and popular, and over one hundred twenty published scholarly articles.
Since 1985 he has authored the article on the “Orthodox Church” in the annual supplement to The World Book Encyclopedia and, from1992-1999, wrote a similar article for the Encyclopaedia Britannica. For twenty-one years (1980-2000), he was a weekly columnist in the national Greek-American newspaper, The Hellenic Chronicle. In 1989 he received a grant from the National Endowment of the Humanities and in 1990 a grant from the Association of Theological Schools to work on an unpublished Greek manuscript. He has been a columnist and is a contributor to the Orthodox Observer. From 1997 to 1999 he was Editor of The Greek Orthodox Theological Review, published by the Faculty of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology. He was elected Courtesy Associate Professor by the Religion Department of the University of South Florida for the 1997-98 and 1998-99 academic years. As of October 18, 1997, he is a columnist for the weekend English section of the national Greek Language daily, The National Herald. He is a member of the Educational Committee of the American Foundation for Greek Language and Culture and in March, 2000 was appointed Honorary Professor of the Interdisciplinary Center for Hellenic Studies at Tampa’s University of South Florida.
Rev. Harakas has served as pastor of parishes in Lancaster, PA, Peabody, MA, Lexington, MA and Newburyport, MA. In each there were significant building programs. He has also served as Sunday supply priest at Holy Trinity Church in Lowell, MA, St. Nicholas Church in Enfield, CT. and the mission parish of St. Gregory the Theologian, in Sharon, MA. On January 13, 2001 he was assigned as the priest of Christ the Savior Greek Orthodox Church (the “Hellenic Orthodox Mission of Hernando County”) of the Metropolis of Atlanta, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.

He is married to the former Emily G. Maniates of Boston, MA. They have had five children (four surviving), three grandsons, and three grand-daughters. The Harakas’ retired to Florida in July of 1995.

Inspirations Vol. 1, Chapter 11: “The Blessing Of Being Saved”

In 1996, Dr. Hunt served as President of the Pastors’ Conference of the Southern Baptist Convention. Dr. Hunt is currently serving as President of the Southern Baptist Convention for the term 2009-2010.

Dr. Hunt received a BA Degree-Religion in 1979 from Gardner-Webb College, Boiling Springs, North Carolina and was also voted ministerial student of the year in 1979. In 1981, he received a Master of Divinity Degree from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Wake Forest, North Carolina. The Chair of Church Growth at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary was named in Dr. Hunt’s honor on March 11, 1997. Dr. Hunt received an honorary Doctor of Divinity from Immanuel Baptist Theological Seminary of Sharpsburg, Georgia, and also Doctor of Sacred Laws and Letters from Covington Theological Seminary. He also received an honorary Doctor of Divinity at Tennessee Temple University.

Dr. Johnny M. Hunt was born July 17, 1952, in Lumberton, North Carolina. He is married to Janet Allen Hunt of Wilmington, North Carolina. They have two daughters: Deanna Hunt Carswell and Hollie Hunt Hixson. They also have three granddaughters: Hope Savannah Hixson, Addie Lee Hixson, Katie Hunter Carswell and one grandson, Carson John Carswell.

“Doing Good”
Inspirations Vol. 1

Bryan Wilkerson has served as Senior Pastor at Grace Chapel since September of 2000, having previously served for 16 years as Senior Pastor at Shelter Rock Church in Manhasset, New York.

Bryan is a graduate of Wheaton College and Denver Seminary. Additionally, he holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. Bryan is a frequent contributor to Preaching Today and The Leadership Journal and enjoys speaking at Camp of the Woods and other conferences.

Bryan’s life mission statement is “to lead as many people as possible to a joyful and growing relationship with Jesus Christ and His Church.” He is passionate about communicating God’s truth with clarity, warmth, and relevance to our daily lives. He enjoys the challenges of leading a large, vibrant church, and of working with a gifted, dedicated staff.

When he isn’t in meetings or preparing messages, Bryan can be found running or biking the back roads and trails of New England.

He and his wife, Karen, live in Bedford and have enjoyed 29 years of marriage. They have four children.

“Spiritual Disciplines: From Legalism to Liberty”
Inspirations Vol. 1

Dr. Steve Harper is vice president of the Asbury Theological Seminary, Florida campus and professor of Spiritual Formation.

He received a B.A. from McMurry University, 1966; a M.Div. from Asbury Theological Seminary, 1973; and a Ph.D. from Duke University, 1981.

Dr. Harper served as professor of Spiritual Formation at Asbury Seminary from 1980 to 1992. From 1992 to 1996, he and his wife, Jeannie, launched and developed a ministry to ministers called Shepherd’s Care, where they served until 1996, when The Upper Room in Nashville invited Steve to become the founding director of The Pathways Initiative, a ministry to spiritual leaders. He served with The Upper Room from 1996 to 1998 when he was invited back to Asbury Seminary to become founding vice president and dean of the Florida campus.

Dr. Harper has served as a youth pastor, evangelist, pastor and professor from 1966 to the present. He was an elder in the Northwest Texas Conference, United Methodist Church from 1972 to 2004 and then transferred to the Florida Annual Conference.

He is a member of the Theta Phi Honor Society and the 2004 recipient of the Francis Asbury Award (GBHEM). He has authored 12 books and co-authored six others. His latest book is Talking in the Dark, Praying When Life Doesn’t Make Sense.

Dr. Harper and his wife, Jeannie, reside in Winter Springs, Fla. They have two adult children and two grandchildren.

“Finding The Missing Peace”
Inspirations, Vol. 1

Christian author and speaker Doug Batchelor has experienced great extremes. His journey from anti-social, drug-using hermit to soul-winning evangelist has helped shape him into an engaging, popular speaker whom audiences all over the world can identify with and understand clearly even on the most complex Bible topics.

Today he is the senior pastor of the Sacramento Central Church in Sacramento, California and the president of the international media ministry Amazing Facts. He hosts the weekly television program Central Study Hour and the Bible Answers Live radio program, which broadcasts live every Sunday. He can also be seen weekly on Amazing Facts Presents and heard Monday through Friday on the Wonders in the Word radio program.

But as the teenage son of aviation tycoon and philanthropist George Batchelor and show business mother Ruth Batchelor, even though young Doug Batchelor had everything money could buy — he couldn’t find true peace and happiness. A troubled youth, he fought at school, entertained suicidal fantasies, and eventually ran away from home by the time he was just 15 years old.

Disgusted with his life and convinced it had no real meaning, Doug was determined to experience the humanistic lifestyle with reckless abandon. He turned to drugs, committed crimes, and spent time in jail, while also living on high adventure from stormy seas to blistering deserts. But years later, a remote cave high in the mountains above Palm Springs became his home. And even though his father owned a yacht, a jet, and a Rolls-Royce, Doug found himself scavenging for food in garbage bins.

The happiness Doug searched for continued to elude him for years — until the day he found a dust-covered Bible someone left in his cave. What happened next can only be described as a miracle! As he read, he believed in and accepted Christ as his Savior! You can read about his remarkable conversion story in the best-selling book The Richest Caveman.

Today, Pastor Doug Batchelor is an energetic speaker of vision and deep spirituality, with an unusual ability to communicate not only to church-oriented people, but also the secular-minded. His spontaneous, lively humor and down-to-earth approach to living the Christian life engages and reaches hearts in a way that few others are able.

As president of Amazing Facts, he can be seen on national cable networks and heard on more than 125 radio stations across the United States. He is also becoming increasingly popular around the world by those who see him on international satellite and cable stations.

Doug and his wife Karen have five children. Currently living in Sacramento, his hobbies include guitar, scuba diving, and racquetball. Like his father, he is also an aviation enthusiast and pilot. His other books include To See the King, How to Survive and Thrive in Church, and The Truth About Mary Magdalene, The Woman at Jesus’ Feet.

“When Heaven Is Silent”
Inspirations Vol. 1

Michael has served as Senior Pastor of Sherwood Baptist Church, Albany, Georgia since 1989. The church has 3,000 members and has averaged one hundred baptisms each year.

Thousands have joined the church from Albany and 29 surrounding communities. The church has changed from a neighborhood church to a regional, multi-ethnic congregation with members from eleven nations. Sherwood has three campuses covering 130-plus acres—the main church campus, the lower school campus and the upper school campus. An 82-acre Sports Park is currently being developed with tennis courts, soccer fields, baseball fields, equestrian center, fishing pond, pavilion and other facilities to reach the community through sports and recreation.

“Path to Truth,” the weekly broadcast of Sherwood’s services, is seen in over ninety markets around the country and is also available on the web and via podcast at www.sherwoodbaptist.net.

In 2003, Michael began a conference focused on revival and the victorious Christian life. ReFRESH™ is held annually in Albany, Georgia, and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Pastors from all over the country have attended these conferences.

Michael frequently contributes to his blog and you can find more information about his ReFRESH™ book series at www.michaelcattbooks.com. Michael is the editor of www.2ProphetU.com, a resource website developed with Warren Wiersbe designed to encourage pastors and lay leaders. Because of his heart for pastors and churches, he is a frequent speaker at conferences around the country.

Michael is also the editor of two websites established to maintain awareness of the ministries of Vance Havner and Ron Dunn.

This ministry of Sherwood began with a conversation between Michael and Alex Kendrick on a back lot tour of Disney World. That conversation birthed a very “out of the box” church outreach.

Michael’s goal is to change the world from Albany, Georgia. While that may seem like a radical, even ridiculous, statement from a pastor in Southwest Georgia, it has, in fact, become a reality through Sherwood Pictures. Michael has served as the Executive Producer of Flywheel, Facing the Giants and Fireproof, as well as several music and video projects.

In order to help churches use movies as a resource, Michael, along with Stephen Kendrick, has worked with Provident Films, Outreach and LifeWay Resources to develop Bible studies in conjunction with Facing the Giants and Fireproof.

Michael has been interviewed by magazines and newspapers including Christianity Today, Leadership Journal, The Los Angeles Times, Atlanta Journal Constitution and other print media. He has appeared on Dr. Phil, The Fox News Channel, CNN Headline News, The Glenn Beck Show, Janet Parshall’s America, American Family Radio, The 700 Club, TBN and Richard Land Live!.

Sherwood Pictures, has been featured in over 400 articles and features including The Drudge Report, Baptist Press, AP Radio, American Family Radio, Focus on the Family, Good Morning America, Agape Press, Christianity Today, CNS News, National Public Radio, Purpose Driven Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Laura Ingraham Show, The Michael Reagan Show and The Conservative Voice.

Michael is the author of six books, including the best selling Fireproof Your Life and Prepare for Rain. Fireproof Your Life was the fastest selling book in the history of CLC Publications. Most recently, he has released the three-part ReFRESH™ book series with Broadman & Holman, including The Power of Desperation (released May 2009), The Power of Persistence (released September 2009), and The Power of Surrender (to be released in March 2010). He has also co-authored the Love Dare Curriculum. Michael is the author of numerous articles and a contributor to several collections of sermons and a book on evangelism. A prolific writer, Michael wrote a weekly column, “From the Cluttered Desk,” for many years which was read by thousands of believers and leaders around the country.

Michael served as the President of the 2008 Southern Baptist Convention Pastors’ Conference, representing over 42,000 churches. He has spoken at conferences, colleges, seminaries, rallies, camps, NBA and college chapel services, well as The Billy Graham Training Center at The Cove. He was also honored to be the sole Southern Baptist representative at a small group meeting with President George W. Bush in the oval office in 2002.

Michael has served the Southern Baptist Convention as an IMB Trustee, President of the Georgia Baptist Convention’s Preaching Conference and as Vice President of the Georgia Baptist Convention.

He is currently a Regent at the University of Mobile. He has served as a Life Coach for other ministers under John Maxwell’s ministry. He is the recipient of The Martin Luther King Award, The MLK Unity Award and a Georgia Senate Resolution in recognition of his work in the community and in racial reconciliation.

Michael’s life verse: “For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake.” (2 Corinthians 4:5)

Michael’s vision statement: “Whoever wants the next generation the most will get them.”

Michael holds degrees from Mississippi College, Luther Rice Bible College and Seminary and Trinity Seminary.

FAMILY: Michael and his wife Terri have been married since 1974. They are the proud parents of two grown daughters, Erin and Hayley.

“Second Chance God”
Inspirations Vol. 1

James Merritt is the Senior Pastor of Cross Pointe Church in Deluth, Georgia. He was born and raised in Oakwood, Georgia and surrendered his life to Christ as a 9-year-old boy. At age 21, he committed to full-time Christian ministry, and went on to pastor five churches.

He has preached around the world to hundreds of thousands of people through television and radio.

As a popular Bible teacher and respected voice of the Christian faith, James has been interviewed by media outlets including 60 Minutes, The New York Times, ABC World News Tonight, Time Magazine, and Hannity and Colmes. Each week, Merritt’s messages are broadcast in all 50 states and 122 countries around the world through Touching Lives, a television and media ministry.

From 2000-2002, Dr. Merritt served as President of the Southern Baptist Convention, the world’s largest Protestant denomination, as well as serving in other key denominational positions.

Dr. Merritt earned his bachelor degree from Stetson University and his Master of Divinity degree and Doctor of Philosophy degree from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. He has published several books including Friends, Foes and Fools and How to Be a Winner and Influence Anybody with Broadman and Holman publishers. His heart for pastors has also resulted in PastorsEdge.com, a ministry resource and PastorsEdge Mentoring Conferences.

James and his wife, Teresa, have been married for more than 30 years. They have three sons and one grandson.