Introductions SoulFood (1)

What to say when introducing yourself?  In some settings it is made easy, like "Hello, my name is Andrew and I'm an ....." Since I shall be using this blog to express moral, biblical, and or ethical comments once a week (or if work pressures bite) every other week, I'd better say: "Hello, my name is Andrew and I've been a disciple of Jesus Christ since the end of the 60s."  I wish I could introduce myself as the perfect roll model for discipleship or even to say that my following of Jesus has been consistent without a flaw, but the best I can tell you is that, in this journey down the decades with Jesus, I have been a recipient of much grace.
       What more to say by way of introductions? "My name is Andrew and I am married to a godly woman named Carol who has not hesitated over the years to challenge my opinions." In the early years she said of our relationship: "being married to you is like the irresistible force meeting the immovable object."  I should add that I am the father of two sons, about as different from each other as chalk and cheese except for their ardent Christianity. Rich with two good daughters in law and five grand-kids.
      I used to be able to introduce myself as a marathon athlete.  I gave up those events, after 62 of them, when the costs involved became too rich for me. Now at 60 I'm just a runner.  Come to think of it, I used to be a biker, until I made the painful decision to sell it this year. When the big six oh comes up there are quite a lot of things you used to be, but its time for me to accept the advice I have dolled out for 40 years: "gracefully surrender the things of youth."
       I should introduce myself as a preacher and a pastor. I am much more the former and a lot less the latter. I am convinced that the king of preaching styles is what used to be called "the Expository Sermon."  Now its just called old fashioned and dictatorial.  Be that as it may, I have committed a lifetime to speaking about 49 times a year directly from a Bible chapter and the next Sunday following that with the very next verses. I don't consider the primary objective of exposition the teaching of the Bible. No, I believe the person in the pew has the right to ask: "what did God tell you to tell us from those verses this week?"  No clear answer = no sermon at all. As for pastoring, I am very limited, but major in clear solutions to personal problems.
       Politics - conservative.  Finances - live for cash.  Music tastes - declarative worship.  Pets - a retriever named Leo.  Cars - a Jeep.   Hobbies - travel.   Favorite places on earth: Hunterdon County USA, London England and Jerusalem Israel.  Military Service - South African Army Tank Corps.  Abilities (sort of) brass instruments, drawing, home repairs and writing creative English.
      That's about as much as you need to know. Send prayer requests and requests for my credit card number and personal loans to ajjpaton@embarqmail.com