Layne Rouse, Rebekah Pickens, and I at my parent's house over Homecoming weekend.  

ACU Homecoming

My trip to Abilene was entirely too short. But it’s always wonderful to spend time with my family. We did a lot of eating. And—of course—we did a lot of laughing, too.

Bekah Pickens, Layne Rouse and I were able to go to the musical together on Friday. It was good to be together again (see picture). While I got to see many special friends, I also had the great surprises of seeing Jeff Nelson, Ginger Morby, and Emily (Crews) Brannam.

I’m glad I was able to go to Homecoming because there were several special things in honor of my great-grandfather, Dean Walter Adams. He served ACU for a long time and touched many lives—it was great to see how they have honored him as a part of the Centennial Celebration. (Maybe within the year I’ll spell “Centennial” right on the first try.)

And now I'm gearing up for another Homecoming. That’s right, this weekend will be my first trip to Searcy, AR. Since I’ve made so many friends from Harding, it will be enjoyable to see their stompin' grounds. Hopefully, I can find enough non-ACU apparel to get through the weekend. :o)

More on the ZOE Conference

One of the coolest moments for me at the ZOE Worship Conference was the following statement by Leonard Sweet: “Reason leads to conclusions; emotion leads to actions.” Let that sink in for a moment. Now let me tell you why this statement resonates with me so deeply.

In our churches, we have done an excellent job of pursuing the “knowledge” aspect of our spirituality. Consider the value we attribute to Sunday school and preaching. Our heritage carries great emphasis on how much we know about God and the Scriptures. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with this, in our pursuit of knowledge I believe we have neglected the “emotional” aspect of our spirituality. And as Dr. Sweet mentioned, emotions and passions are what lead to actions. And I believe he’s exactly right.

Can I ask you some tough questions? I think Christians all KNOW that we’re to share our faith. But how many of us actually do it? When was the last time you shared your faith with someone who doesn’t know the Lord? But we KNOW we’re supposed to do it. Or is there a behavior in your life that you KNOW is sinful and destructive, but you’re not taking any steps for accountability or purging? Do you understand my point? There are many things we know about God and many things we understand about our spirituality, but what good is extravagant knowledge if we apply very little to our lives?

Worship ministry speaks to the emotional side of our spirituality. When we truly encounter the Lord, and have our spiritual eyes opened to see who He is—and who we are—there are emotional convictions. Action is the only response.

Thoughts?

Porche Announces Posting Regularity to Improve

I’m going to update my blog more frequently. I’m grateful to all of you who continue to stop by. The ZOE Conference was a very rich experience—as always. I like to think of it as a spiritual buffet. What a feast! The most powerful experience for me was Donna Hester’s solo drama about the women in Jesus’ lineage. Wow. I also had a number of sweet reunions and wonderful times of praise. I’m quite refreshed. I will post more about this experience.

And if that weren’t enough, I leave EARLY in the morning for Abilene! I’ll be at Homecoming through Saturday afternoon…perhaps I will see some of you. You can find me at Taco Bueno, Los Arcos, or Harold’s barbeque! Ha! I can’t wait to see my family and to spend time with special friends. I will post more about this experience.

In other news, you will all be thrilled to learn there is a young lady in my life. Her name is Claudia, and she is absolutely amazing! We’ve been dating for a couple weeks now, and we’re having a blast together. I will post more about this wonderful-ness.

Thanks to all of you who called, emailed, or commented with very kind birthday wishes. Twenty-four sounds better than twenty-three. Don’t you think?

I hope to see lots of you in Abilene this weekend!