We Baptists have a unique system for hiring pastors, unlike our Methodist friends who have a bishop to superintend the process. The current nomenclature is “pastor search committee,” though we used to call them “pulpit committees.” I’m grateful I was elected a youth rep as a high schooler on our church’s pulpit committee and had some acquaintance with the process from the layman’s side. Of course, the proce ...

Love where we put others first https://youtu.be/keCik32LWgY ...

Sponsored Content By Laura Bryum In the past several years, the housing market has been up and down – and 2018 was no exception. What started with mile-high home prices and low mortgage rates for sellers has now moved to a more even playing field, where the growth in home prices has stalled. This means that the advantage has shifted slightly from sellers to buyers. What can you expect in 2019? Let’s look at ...

By Michael J. Brooks  It’s always interesting to note the celebrities we lost in the last year, and 2018 witnessed the passing of several. These include evangelist Billy Graham, President Bush 41, Sen. John McCain, journalist Charles Krauthammer and musicians Roy Clark and preacher’s daughter Aretha Franklin who taught us how to spell r-e-s-p-e-c-t! These deaths remind us of those who made an impact with th ...

By June Mathews For The Tribune Motivated by the motto “Never too young to make a difference,” a dynamic group of youngsters has become the driving force behind the 2019 Dancers Against Cancer Trussville Gala, set to take place Feb. 16 at the Trussville Civic Center. “We formed our Junior Board this year as a way for youth to take ownership and leadership in planning the Gala,” said organizer Emily Lombardo ...

By Richard Harp This past year has come and gone like a vapor. So, with the new year I am making something I call a “Vapor Resolution.” ​If you get the chance to hear the New Year’s countdown, it gives you cause to join in and may even give you pause for thought. While the ball drops and numbers ring out, I think about the potential of the coming year. Ten… “What will this year be like?” Nine… “What new adv ...

By Michael J Brooks The Roman goddess Janus had two faces; with one he looked behind and with the other he looked forward. How fitting that the first month in the year is named for him. January is a time we evaluate what we have experienced and make plans about what we want to experience. Looking back, we see a mixture of success and failure, prosperity and want, good choices and bad. We all experience bad ...

By Michael J Brooks A little girl found herself in the church Christmas pageant and sang the assigned carol with gusto, though in error: “While shepherds washed their socks by night / all seated on the ground / the angel of the Lord came down / and glory shown around / and glory shown around." Actually, the shepherds “watched their flocks by night”—an important job in ancient Israel. The sheep provided food ...

By Tyler Warner ​When the great interview host Larry King was asked whom he would interview if he could interview anyone who ever lived, he answered without hesitation: “Jesus Christ.” And the question he would ask? “I would like to ask him if he was indeed virgin-born. The answer to that question would define history for me.” While himself an atheist, Mr. King grasps the gravity of the Incarnation. ​The In ...

By Avery Ammerman, third grade Special to The Tribune by students of FCCS Marcia Irwin Jones was born in Yazoo, Mississippi, on Oct. 20, 1966. She has three sisters, Betty, Freda and Lynn. Marcia’s dad was an ironworker, so her family moved many, many times across the South. Her dad built the water tanks below the shuttle launch in Florida that cooled the concrete when it blasted off. He also oversaw the cr ...