Back in the Booth

This past Friday, I went back into the radio broadcast booth joining Chris Paddie of KMHT radio calling the Marshall Maverick games. I took off a year because Marianne was teaching English at Harleton High School. I wanted to attend the Harleton games with her and my boys, Andrew and Ashton. What a fun year we had watching the Wildcasts go two deep into the playoffs. Also being present when Coach Dennis Alexander notched his 300 career victory as a head coach. Good to see a fellow Kilgore High School graduate do good.

Friday night Marshall played Jacksonville at the historic Tomato Bowl. Marshall won 19-3. You never know who you will run into at a high school football game. I expected to run into CBS-19 news anchor Bryan Houston. Houston does the play-by-play for the Jacksonville Indians on the radio. He was my boss when I worked at KTRE in Lufkin many years ago and served as a groomsman when I married Marianne 21 years ago. But, I did not expect to run into Rory Dukes.

Rory was a senior at Kilgore High School when I was a freshman. Rory was a reciever who was described by Scott Elliot, sports editor of the Kilgore News Hearld, back in the 1970's, as "Rory 'Catch em in the Crowd' Dukes.

Rory was in the pressbox Friday night helping spot for the Jacksonville PA announcer. The last time I had run into Rory was at the graveside service for longtime Kilgore High School basket coach Donnie Oden some 10 years ago.

Rory is a lawyer praticing in Tyler and was helping out a friend in the public address booth. Rory played college football at Austin College who won a national championship. He spent a fews years coaching in the college ranks as well at his alma mater, Kilgore High School. A teamate of Rory's at Austin College was Mark Sartain. Mark is now the head coach at East Texas Baptist University. Small world.

Rory and I got a chance to catch up on old times during halftime. It was good to visit with and share what the Lord Jesus Christ has done in both our lives since leaving the halls of Kilgore High. God is good. I was excited about broadcasting high school football again, but a bigger blessing came through the unexpected. Seeing an old friend. Praise be to God. Relationships with fellow believers are eternal.

Real Baseball

I always enjoying watching the telecasts of the Little League World Series from Williamsport, Pa. To me, these 12 and 13 years old are playing real, pure, baseball. They are playing because they love the game. Today I watched a little of the Japan-Mexico game and then the last two innings of the Hawaii-Louisiana game. I was surprised to learn that Mexico beat Japan when I tuned in later to the Hawaii-La. game.

I feel for the La. team as they had a meltdown in the top of the six. But what drama. In the fifth inning, Hawaii's first baseman was sheding tears as La. was scoring runs. But those tears moved to La. when the final out was made, Hawaii had come back to win and advance to the World Championship game against Mexico.

I was blessed to see one of the Hawaii fans had made a sign that said, "With God all things are possible." Yes, they are.

I would like one day to take a week of vacation and go the the Little League championship week. What an experience that would be. With God all things are possible.

Who am I rooting for in the Championship game, of course, the team from Hawaii. Go USA! Go USA!

The Olympic Games

I wonder how many Americans are loosing sleep because of the Olympics? NBC is providing execellent coverage and it just makes you want to stay up the wee hours of morning. Of course, working Americans can not call the boss and say, "I want be in today, I watched to much of the Olympics."

I have seen many athletes exhibit class. The 41 year old lady swimmer from the United States really did something that impressed me about her. Yes, I saw the feature on how she trains and stretches as well as allow someone to walk on her to massage her muscles. But when she went to the judge to say, "Wait up." right before the start of a race was a fine display of sportsmanship.

The racer to her left had torn her high dollar razor suit. She told her about it. The swimmer with the torn suit went to change it out. The call had come to start the race. The American swimmer left the starting area to tell the official, "hey, we are missing someone, wait a minute."

One less racer in the race makes the odds of winning better. Like I said, her act, a great display of sportsmanship.

As Christians, we must be different then the world. We to can be an Olympic Champion when we extend the love of Christ by our Christlike actions.

Coach Kalmus

I read in the Longview News-Journal sports section this morning that Longview High baseball coach Joey Kalmus has resigned his post. Kalmus came to LHS in 1998 after being in Alvin for 15 years. He made the Lobo baseball team into a winner. Current Texas Rangers and Lobo great Chris Davis is one of his former players.

I first came to know Coach Kalmus when I was a sophmore at Kilgore High School. Kalmus was doing his student teaching in Bill Wylie's American History class. Kalmus also was good friends with then Kilgore Baseball coach Randy Cummings. Kalmus, who has spent time as a pitcher in the Philadelphia Phillies organization, helped us out during the baseball season. Later Kalmus would come back to Kilgore as the head baseball coach.

I will never forget one day during batting practice at Driller Park with Kalmus on the mound. It was my time for taking cuts in the cage and Kalmus was on the mound. I hit one out of Driller going about 340 over the left field fence. I was pumped. I had never hit one out of Driller Park. Did not matter if it was BP, I just felt like I hit a big league homerun off a former professional baseball player. Tom Todd was catching and he said to me, "What are you so happy about. It is just batting practice." Yes, but I had always dreamed of hitting one out of Driller Park with its major league deminsions and 10 feet high outfield fence.

Kalmus was not as happy. He stormed off the mound and went to the showers so to speak after a sophmore took him downtown. I never knew if he was joking by leaving the mound or if he was truly angry at himself allowing a sophmore to hit one out.

The last time I had talked to Coach Kalmus in person was when Marshall played Longview at Lobo Stadium in 2005. I was helping Chris Paddie with the radio broadcast on KMHT. I ran into Kalmus in the press box. It was good to renew a friendship. He gave me an update on how his parents were doing, and his two brothers. I wish him well as the paper reported he will stay at Longview keeping his classroom teaching job.

School Days

It is amazing how much must be done before a new school year begins. At East Texas Baptist University where I work, the process to get ready for a new fall semester begin last May. Now with the first day of classes to begin August 25, one wonders if it will all get done. It will all get done.

Tonight I am at Marshall High School helping my English teacher wife prepare her room students. We have moved desks, filing cabinets, painted, thrown stuff away, and we still have more to do before the first bell on August 25. I am amazed at the hard work teachers do to get ready for their students. When I went to high school I never even thought about what the teachers did to prepare for students. Teachers have a passion to provide the best learning environment for their students. They do this because they want them to succeed, not only in the classroom but also in life.

The next time you see a teacher or professor, take the time to tell them, "Thank you for answering God's call to teach and also tell them, I am praying for you.."

Back To Hot Springs

Over 30 years ago I went to Hot Springs, Arkansas with my church youth choir. Our little choir from Forrest Home Baptist Church of Kilgore spent a week in the Hot Springs area. We sang at a little church in Hot Springs as well as a resort on Lake Ouachita. I went on the trip because one of my best friends, Bryan Mercer, invited me. Without him inviting me I never would have went. I was a high schooler who knew Jesus Christ as Savior but was not living for Him like I should. That trip made me begin to think I needed to give more of my life to Christ. I started to go back to church on a regular basis.

Matter of fact, that trip led me to preach my first sermon a year and half later. I was chosen to preach at Youth Sunday, because Bryan told our youth minister, Gary Bowden, "I want do it. You need to ask Mike." Bryan passed the buck not because he thought I was more spiritual, he was just scared to do it and besides, I worked at KOCA radio at the time as a DJ, and Bryan said, "Mike talks to people all the time on the radio."

I have just got back from Hot Springs but this time I took my family with me as we were on a three day vacation. We had a great time. We did the tourist stuff downtown, rode go-karts, played minature golf and spent a day at Magic Springs. Once again God used a trip to Hot Springs to speak to me again.

I am blessed to have a wonderful family. My two sons Andrew and Ashton were amazed at how hot the water was at the collecting pool at the Hot Springs National Park. The comment from my family after we all put our hands in the hot pool of spring water, "God did an amazing thing." God does amazing things all the time. Thank you Lord, for being amazing. Ask God to show you amazing things today?

KLTV's Mark Scirto

I worked for KLTV channel 7 in Tyler for five years from 1986 to 1991 . I did a little bit of everything at the station; directed newscast, special programs, edited and directed commercials, shooting sports video. While working at KLTV I was part of the first crew when KLTV started back it's early morning news show. The anchors were Lorri Vaughter (news) and Mark Scirto (weather) with Scott Findley as their producer. When you work with someone that early in the morning you naturally become friends. Scirto, after leaving KLTV for awhile, has been back as the lead weather man for many years now. My son, Asthon, who is eight, is very interested in weather. I emailed Mark and shared this with him. Last Friday, Mark invited me to bring Ashton to the station. Mark wanted to show him around the weather center. Ashton was thrilled to see the weather center in person as well as the green wall. The green wall is where through TV magic, weather maps, radar and etc.. appear behind the weather anchor during th weather cast.
Mark is walking miracle. Not to long ago he collapsed right before the 10 p.m. newscast. After tests in the hospital, a tumor was discovered behind his eye. He had surgery and the tumor was not cancerous. The Almighty God watched over Mark and his family during this time. KLTV was flooded with phone calls, emails, cards and letters, all saying there were praying for Mark. Yes, Mark will testify, that God does answer prayer. It was good to visit with Mark again. I am very appreciative that Mark is a giver. He gave his time to a little 8 year old boy, showing him around the KLTV weather center and news set. Mark, might have inspired a little boy even more to become a weatherman.

A Good Book for Football Fans

I have just finished reading "Quiet Strength". I recommend this book for all football fans who want to get the inside look of what it is like to be a assistant coach as well as head coach in the National Football League. The big plus about this book is that Tony Dungy shares about his relationship with God through His son, Jesus Christ. If you know a football fan that does not know the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior, get this book for them as a gift. It is a quiet way to provide a witness.

The First

I have friends that have blogs so I thought I would try it for awhile and see how it goes. What will I write about? My observations about living for Jesus Christ, serving him as a husband, dad, pastor and public relations director of four year Christian liberal arts university. During the last 18 years I have been involved in vocational ministry. I have had moutain top experiences as well as been in the wilderness while serving the Lord. My prayer, that I can be an encourager to those who read this blog.