columns | Crestview News Bulletin

FROM THE PULPIT: Admit your mistakes and receive forgiveness

Written by archive on June 13, 2013. Posted in columns, Opinion, your-voice.

Editor’s Note: This column continues the story of Mary, Johnny and the broken glass statue, which appeared in the June 8 News Bulletin.

Grandma forgave Johnny for accidentally breaking her treasured glass bird statue, but the boy’s heart still harbored bitterness.

If Mary hadn’t startled him as he carefully lifted the figurine, none of this would have happened.

It was all her fault.

For a few days, Johnny avoided Mary. When he couldn’t avoid her, he spoke harshly toward her. When anyone else was around, he didn’t speak to his sister — except with his eyes, which would have burned holes through her if possible.

Grandma and Grandpa learned of this tension between Mary and Johnny, and noticed it was stemming from Johnny.

That evening during dinner, Grandpa asked Johnny about it.

“I’m very angry with Mary for causing me to drop Grandma’s statue!” Johnny blurted out. “If Mary hadn’t startled me, I never would have dropped it! It’s all her fault and I’m angry with her!”

Grandpa sat quietly for a few seconds before asking some questions.

“Johnny, did Mary put the statue in your hands?”

“No.”

“Did Mary pull on your ear or twist your arm until you picked up the statue?”

“No.”

“Did Mary do anything to make you pick up the statue?”

“No.”

Johnny could see Grandpa’s point.

Grandpa said, “So, it is safe to say Mary did not entice you in any way to pick up the statue. You did that all on your own…”

“Yes,” Johnny said.

Grandpa paused a few moments. “Johnny, at whom are you really angry?” he said.

Johnny had a revelation.

“I’m actually angry with myself,” he said. “Grandma said to not pick it up, but I went against what she said. If I hadn’t picked it up, Mary wouldn’t have scolded me, I wouldn’t have dropped the statue, and Grandma’s statue would still be sitting on the shelf. It was my choice. I just didn’t want to have to admit it.”

Johnny turned to his sister and said, “I’m sorry I tried to blame you. And I’m sorry I treated you so badly. I hope you will forgive me.”

She smiled and said she did.

Jesus said in Luke 17:3, “If another believer sins, rebuke that person; then if there is repentance, forgive. Even if that person wrongs you seven times a day and each time turns again and asks forgiveness, you must forgive.”

We must confess our mistakes. We must own up to our poor choices. And if someone hurts us, we need to forgive them.

This doesn’t mean we condone what was done; it means the power of the wrong action is lifted from us to bring new freedom in Christ Jesus, our Lord.

The Rev. Mark Broadhead is Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview’s pastor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: FROM THE PULPIT: Admit your mistakes and receive forgiveness

SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Turnover is a part of life

Written by archive on June 11, 2013. Posted in columns, Sports.

When Greg Watson was named Crestview High School’s boys basketball coach last week, he became the team's third coach in less than a year.

Watson replaces Ken Meisner, who coached the team last season. Meisner replaced Keith White, who had coached the Bulldogs three or four years before resigning last July to take Walton High School’s football defensive coordinator job.

There has been a lot of turnover in Crestview High School’s coaching ranks in recent years.

If memory serves me correctly, track and field coach Ernie Martin and baseball coach Tim Gillis are the only two Crestview head coaches who have been on the job more than five years. Tennis coach Ben Kimbrough might be a third coach that has been on the job that long.

Honestly, I've lost track of the number of softball, volleyball, girls basketball and boys basketball coaches who have called the shots for the Bulldogs in the 13 years I've been in the area.

Even Crestview’s wrestling team has been through four or five coaches in as many years.

Some coaching changes are a matter of economics: when a coach takes a higher-paying job somewhere else or county budgets force the elimination of certain positions. Those are the cold, hard facts of the world we live in today.

Other coaches leave because of pressure from parents or simply because they aren't a good fit for the program.

Some coaches just want to coach at their alma mater.

Indications suggest the coaching carousel could be ending at Crestview High.

Tim Hatten — named head football coach and athletic director in March — has a reputation of being a coach not in search of the next big gig.

Watson said he plans on being at Crestview for a while; that's good news for the Bulldog basketball team.

Andrew Black — who just finished his first year as the Bulldog wrestling coach — is a former CHS athlete, which speaks of being here for the long haul.

Kathy Combest enters her third year as Crestview’s volleyball coach and her second season as the girls basketball coach. She also coached the softball team last year, when former football coach Kevin Pettis resigned to take a job at Sebastian River. It is unclear if Combest will be in the Bulldog dugout next spring.

With each coaching change, the athletes suffer the most.

They must learn a new playbook and figure out the personality of the newest coach in charge.

Yes, change is a part of life, but I don't think it's too much to ask that student-athletes have some stability as far as their coaches.

After all, everyone's more comfortable and seems to perform better when surrounded by familiar faces.

Randy Dickson is the Crestview News Bulletin’s sports editor. Email him at randyd@crestviewbulletin.com, tweet him @BigRandle, or call 682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Turnover is a part of life

FROM THE PULPIT: Free yourself, confess your sins

Written by archive on June 10, 2013. Posted in columns, Opinion, your-voice.

Mary and Johnny explored all the old items in their grandparents’ house.

On one shelf in the dining room, Johnny saw a beautiful glass sculpture of a bird in a nest. As he reached for it, Grandma quickly intervened and said she didn’t want him touching it. The sculpture was very precious to her.

Johnny and Mary said they would leave the sculpture alone.

However, as the days progressed, Johnny couldn’t stop thinking about the beautiful piece. Each morning when the sun shone through the windows, the bird sparkled brightly.

One day, Johnny could not help himself. He carefully picked up the fragile glass bird and nest to admire it.

"Johnny! Put that down!” Mary shouted.

She startled her brother, who dropped the sculpture, which fell to the floor and shattered.

Carefully, Johnny picked up the pieces and carried them to his bedroom. He sat on his bed, looked at them and wondered what to do.

Should he hide the pieces?

Blame it on Mary?

Glue it back together?

Johnny realized he had to tell Grandma the truth.

He found her sitting in the living room, knitting a sweater. Johnny walked up to her and, unable to look her in the eyes, showed her the shards of glass.

"Grandma, I disobeyed you,” he said quietly. “I’m very sorry.”

Grandma carefully took all the pieces of glass from Johnny’s hand and asked, "When did this happen?"

"This morning, just after the sun came up,” he said.

"It is almost supper time now,” Grandma said. “Why did you take so long to tell me?"

"Grandma, I was afraid to tell you,” he said. “I disobeyed you and was trying to figure out a way to hide it. But I finally knew I had to tell you the truth. You are my grandma.”

Johnny finally looked Grandma in the eye. He saw tears.

"I’m very, very sorry! Please forgive me,” he said.

Grandma said, "Come here, Johnny. Sit in my lap."

He did as he was told.

"I saw what happened,” she said. “I was standing by the door and knew you couldn’t see me. I saw you were handling my statue very carefully so I didn’t say anything. I also saw how Mary startled you, which caused you to drop it. I know it was an accident. I was just wondering what you were going to do about the whole situation. And I can truly say you have made the right choice.

"And because you made the right choice and told me the truth of what happened, I certainly forgive you. You have learned a very valuable lesson and have done the right thing. I love you, Johnny."

Remember 1 John 1:8-9: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

There is freedom for your soul — and your conscience — when wrongdoings are confessed.

Thanks be to God for Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Rev. Mark Broadhead is Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview’s pastor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: FROM THE PULPIT: Free yourself, confess your sins

SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Summer drills now the norm

Written by archive on June 4, 2013. Posted in columns, Sports.

The 2012-13 school year ends tomorrow and the summer of 2013 is officially upon us. Students return to class Aug. 19 for the start of the 2013-14 school year.

That gives students just more than 10 weeks to soak up some sun, hit the beach, earn a few dollars and, for athletes, prepare for next year.

It seems as if sports have become a year-round thing even for high school students these days. Maybe saying year-round is a stretch, but it's not far off the mark at the big schools and even some of the small schools.

Most local baseball teams have a summer program that will go through June. Basketball teams will head to camps and play in local summer leagues, as will volleyball teams.

Baker School football starts its off-season program next week. The Crestview High School football team hits the field for the first time in the summer on June 17. The teams will pretty much go until the end of the summer, with a week or 10 days off for the Fourth of July.

Football teams that don't work out in June and July will likely find themselves behind the pack in September and October.

The summer is always important for new coaches like Crestview High School's Tim Hatten. There's only a certain amount of the offensive and defensive packages a team can learn in three weeks of spring drills.

Hatten will take a sensible approach to the summer drills. He said the team will work out about two and a half hours each morning. He also hopes to participate in some sort of seven-on-seven games one evening each week.

That should leave plenty of time for players to enjoy the summer while getting in the necessary work to prepare for the upcoming season.

Baker coach Matt Brunson also takes a common sense approach to the summer. He works the Gators two or three hours each day three times a week.

I still sometimes wonder what happened to the good old summer time when high school athletes had a few weeks to just be kids and kick back and relax before fall practice starts in August.

That said, I know that without some sort of structured summer program, many kids wouldn't do the work that will make them better in the fall.

Although we didn't have mandatory lifting when I was in high school, I still made it a point to be at the school at least three times a week to get my work in the summer between junior and senior years. Lifting weights was about all we could do, as there were no team drills organized by the coaches.

It didn't help me much on the football field that fall, but I had a chance to bond with the few teammates who were also working out. And I did get stronger.

Now, everybody is lifting, running and practicing all summer long. Yes, young athletes in Okaloosa County will still find time to make it to the beach or hit one of the local rivers for a leisurely day of tubing or canoeing. And kids in other parts of the state and country will find the nearest body of water to cool off and relax with their friends.

Football and the other sports are still games at the high school level. But they are a little more like businesses than they were in days gone by.

I'm glad our local coaches understand that kids need a break from the game and time to simply enjoy being young on a nice summer day.

Randy Dickson is the Crestview News Bulletin’s sports editor. Email him at randyd@crestviewbulletin.com, tweet him @BigRandle, or call 682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Summer drills now the norm

FROM THE PULPIT: Don’t let greed choke you to death

Written by archive on May 28, 2013. Posted in columns, Opinion, your-voice.

A tale passed down the generations offers an enlightening lesson. It goes like this:

Once upon a time, a white knight seeking adventure found a village where legend told of an ogre in a pit. Several courageous men had climbed into the pit, but none returned.

The white knight declared he would battle the terrible ogre.

He noticed the pit’s narrow opening and stripped himself of armor and unnecessary clothing. He took only a long dagger, which he tied around his neck with a leather strap, and lowered himself into the hole.

Soon he felt the chamber’s cool, smooth floor. It took several minutes for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but he focused on a large mound. He noticed his predecessors’ bones, along with their assorted weapons.

Suddenly, the pit’s inhabitant surprised him. He didn’t anticipate that the ogre would be as tall as a rabbit. The ogre waved his arms and screeched with its squeaky voice, trying to appear as fierce as possible.

The white knight picked up a sword from the floor and prepared for battle, but quick as a rat, the ogre scurried into a hole.

The white knight followed, and soon happened upon a mound of grapefruit-sized balls of gold and plum-sized diamonds.

The little ogre lost its importance in view of this great treasure.

However, the white knight had a problem. How would he carry it out of the hole? He had no pockets. Who would believe him if he didn’t bring back at least one piece?

Hurriedly, he chose a large diamond that fit comfortably in his mouth, and he began the strenuous climb out of the pit.

His tongue held the diamond tightly against the roof of his mouth. He climbed higher and higher until the heavy exertion rendered him breathless. He would have to breathe through his mouth to get enough air. As he took in a large gulp of air the diamond slipped and stuck in his throat.

The white knight choked on his treasure, lost consciousness and fell to his death on the mound of bones below.

You see, the terrible ogre in the pit was no troll — it was greed.

1 Timothy 6:9 says, “But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.”

Consider what drives you. If you find the glitter of this world is more attractive to you than Jesus Christ’s love and grace, you may be heading for a terrible fall.

That would be tragic.

The Rev. Mark Broadhead is Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview’s pastor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: FROM THE PULPIT: Don’t let greed choke you to death

SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Thoughts on graduation day

Written by archive on May 28, 2013. Posted in columns, Sports.

In the next week to 10 days members of the Class of 2013 will take a final stroll across their high school campuses. And then, in one final short stroll across a stage to receiver their diploma and with a flip of the tassel they will be high school graduates.

It is a scene that is repeated hundreds of thousands of times each year and lifelong friends and teammates go their separate ways.

I graduated from high school on May 29, 1976, which was 37 years ago today and I still recall those feelings of youthful excitement and, yes, fear.

I believe each of us want to leave a legacy of some sort at our different stops along the way. The unspoken desire to have that legacy is what drives some students in sports, others in the arts and many to be the best they can academically.

The best of the best of those students excel in multiple areas as they shine on in academics and athletics while still finding time to reach out and mentor elementary and middle school students through their church or some civic organization. It's hard not to admire these young men and women that do so many things well.

For other students just being a part of the team is their greatest legacy. Let's face it, some of us aren't designed for what the world considers greatness in sports, the arts or academics.

But just because a student can't be the leading man in the school play doesn't mean his part in helping build the sets is any less important to the play.

My own high school athletic experience was one of being a part of the team. I was a third-teamer on the Gulf Breeze High School football team and one of the worst 2-milers in the state the one year I ran track. But even as I struggled athletically I was a part of something that was bigger than myself.

I still remember the games we won, and even more the games we lost. I can't tell you the scores of most of those games, but I still remember the high of winning and the low of coming up short.

Being a high school athlete taught me how to push myself in ways I never imagined. And those lessons I learned so many years ago continue to guide me and will do so until the day I die.

It is easy to see the greatness in the star athletes and performers, but often the grace and courage of the third-team player is overlooked or forgotten.

I wish I could get to know every athlete I cover and tell every story. I'm sure there are a lot of young men and women that, as I did, played simply for the joy of being a part of the team and the love of the game.

My wish for all of those young men and women is that the friendships forged in practice and competition, and the lesson learned as a high school athlete will continue to push and inspire you the rest of your lives.

Congratulations to the Class of 2013 for a job well done.

Randy Dickson is the Crestview News Bulletin’s sports editor. Email him at randyd@crestviewbulletin.com, tweet him @BigRandle, or call 682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Thoughts on graduation day

SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Open to suggestions for summer sports

Written by archive on May 24, 2013. Posted in columns, Sports.

The 2012-13 high school sports year officially ended last night as Crestview High School hosted Navarre and Escambia in a football jamboree.

This time of year, filling a sports section is more difficult.

Yes, I'll have coverage of Friday's action at Crestview in Wednesday's paper, but after that my story list gets mighty sparse for a few weeks.

I'll be OK once the various youth camps and off-season football workouts start the second week of next month. It's the two or three weeks between now and then that have me concerned.

So I'm asking for help in locating stories.

If your son or daughter played high school sports locally and is home for a few weeks, I'd love to catch up with them and do a story similar to the one in today's paper on Baker School's Morgan Jones.

I'm also interested in any sports camps your team or organization sponsors.

Let me know if your youth or travel league team wins a state tournament or qualifies for a national tournament.

I try to stay away from regular-season youth league sports, as it's impossible for me to be attend even a small percentage of the games. But I'll be happy to run any submitted youth-related content, as space allows.

I can only cover what I know about — and even then, I can only do as much as my time, and the space in the paper, allows. That's not to say I don't recognize there is always something that can be done better.

Sports go far beyond the bounds of traditional sports played at the high school or youth league levels.

Athletes of all shapes and sizes participate in everything from archery to water polo. OK, maybe we don't have water polo athletes in this area, but we might.

Ten months a year, I focus on traditional sports, but in the next two months, I can go as far as your suggestions take me.

If you have an idea for a sports story that you think would be a good local fit, contact me in the ways listed below.

I look forward to hearing your ideas.

Randy Dickson is the Crestview News Bulletin’s sports editor. Email him at randyd@crestviewbulletin.com, tweet him @BigRandle, or call 682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Open to suggestions for summer sports

FROM THE PULPIT: Pentecost and its beginnings

Written by archive on May 21, 2013. Posted in columns, Opinion, your-voice.

"Pentecost,” of Greek origin, simply means "fiftieth." Pentecost Sunday, the Sabbath day after a week's worth of weeks — 7 days times 7 weeks equals 49 — ended the Easter season.

Pentecost grew from a festival marking the Middle Eastern year’s first grain harvest and a sacrifice to the gods.

In ancient Palestine, once called Canaan, this first-fruit sacrifice linked to religions of the gods of power in farming and fertility. As Jews decided to follow the one true God, they were instructed to bring the wheat harvest’s “first fruits” in thanksgiving to God.

As Jewish kings started the centuries-long process of centralizing religious activity in Jerusalem, they brought this pilgrimage and sacrifice there. To them, the 50-day period was the week's worth of weeks after Passover.

Passover, using unleavened bread, recalled God’s rescue from hard times. Pentecost, which celebrated a blessing of harvest, was symbolized by leavening the bread.

The festival began to take on another religious role around the time of the exile. Because Exodus 19:1 describes the Jewish people’s arrival at Sinai as being about that time of year, Pentecost marked the giving of the Torah at Sinai. Over time, the Torah became more prominent in Feast of Weeks celebrations.

Fast-forward to Jesus' time.

As Luke states in Acts 1 and 2, more than 100 believers gathered after Jesus returned to the Father.

They talked, remembered, prayed and wondered what was next. On the morning of Pentecost, they told the people they met about Jesus.

Each person heard the witnesses speak in their own language — if they carefully listened; otherwise, they heard babbling. They spread, for the first time in full form, the good news of Jesus.

However, it was more than words. The Holy Spirit, in the ears and the hearts of those who listened, carried the words with power and authority. About 3,000 new people joined believers' ranks.

Pentecost wasn’t the first time the Spirit was active. The Spirit had been working all along in humans who listened.

However, Pentecost was the first day that the Spirit took hold of Christ’s followers as a group or "body," and came to stay.

For the first time, the Spirit's raw power was there in anyone who followed Christ.

The Rev. Albert Corey is Oak Ridge Assembly of God's pastor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: FROM THE PULPIT: Pentecost and its beginnings

SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Blue Wahoos worth cheering about

Written by archive on May 21, 2013. Posted in columns, Sports.

I finally made it to Pensacola for a Blue Wahoos baseball game last week.

For those of you who might not know, the Blue Wahoos comprise the Cincinnati Reds’ AA Minor League Baseball affiliate that moved to Pensacola last season.

The Wahoos beat the Chattanooga Lookouts 4-3 in extra innings. Ironically, the Lookouts are the AA team of my favorite Major League club, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Wednesday was one of those nights when I couldn't help thinking, "What if?"

The simple question has to do with former Crestview High School baseball teammates and 2006 graduates Anthony Brown and Blake Dean. Brown played three years in the Cincinnati organization. Dean walked away from baseball after two years with the Dodgers.

For a few moments I thought about what it would have been like to see the former Bulldog teammates reunited on the professional stage.

But we don't always get what we hope for in life.

I also thought about how my dad would have enjoyed the game with me, as would my granddaddy, Dad's dad. Granddaddy, who died at age 79 in 1972, instilled a love for baseball in me that remains strong to this day.

And I've shared most of my favorite baseball moments with my dad. We were even present at Tim McCarver Stadium in Memphis, Tenn., when Bo Jackson picked up his first extra-base hit as a professional baseball player.

Dad, whose health has improved in recent weeks, and Granddaddy were with me in spirit Wednesday night. Even without the former Bulldogs on hand, my first time at Bayfront Stadium was a great experience.

It's easy to understand why Baseballparks.com named Bayfront Stadium the 2012 Ballpark of the Year.

The park sits on Pensacola Bay, so long homeruns over the left-field wall could find the water.

The shiny new stadium has no covered seats, which on a rainy or hot day might present some problems. At least you don't have to worry about missing a thing as you stand in line for a hotdog or soft drink; concession stands are within the field’s sight distance.

The stadium feels fresh with towering palm trees surrounding the outside of the park. And you won't find any catacomb concourses running beneath the stands as you do in older stadiums.

Parking around the stadium is plentiful. The stadium lot itself charges $10 per car. Right across the street parking is $3.

Free parking also is available along some downtown Pensacola streets. And a free shuttle service is available for those who don't want to walk back to their car.

I'm already looking forward to my next trip to Bayfront Stadium. And as the old song, “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” says, "I don't care if I ever get back.”

After one trip to a Blue Wahoos game, you'll be hooked too.

Randy Dickson is the Crestview News Bulletin’s sports editor. Email him at randyd@crestviewbulletin.com, tweet him @BigRandle, or call 682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Blue Wahoos worth cheering about

SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Treasuring the moments

Written by archive on May 14, 2013. Posted in columns, Sports.

As much as I hate to say it, I'm a bit of a softy. I still tear up over “The Waltons” or “Bonanza” reruns.

And it's really tough to watch another group of seniors head off for great adventures in life.

Last Tuesday night was one of those emotional nights as I watched Crestview High School’s baseball team walk off the diamond for the last time in 2013 after losing to Mosley in the Class 6A region semifinals.

For some strange reason, I didn't want to leave the field. Maybe not as much as the players or their parents, but I really didn't want the moment to end.

The Class of 2013 was in kindergarten when I started at the Northwest Florida Daily News on Dec. 28, 2000. Class members were in the seventh grade when I came to the News Bulletin in the spring of 2008.

It’s humbling and frightening to think that in some small way I've had a part in the way these young men and women see sports and perhaps even a bit of themselves.

Yes, I have enjoyed watching the teams, but more than that, I've enjoyed watching the athletes as teammates.

I'll long remember watching Baker School’s volleyball team win most of its 10 straight district championships and Crestview’s baseball team taking two district titles in three years.

However, I'll remember these special young people long after everyone forgets the records.

I've typed the names of countless athletes — including Baker's Haley Wagner, Katie Wickery and Garrett Sanders, Crestview's Micah Reed, Roman Donofro, Tate Sweatt and Kerrie York and Laurel Hill's Tommy Calloway, Garrett Alford, Haley Meeks and Nichole Bailey — more than any other sports writer in Okaloosa County.

Each time I've written these names, and the names of every other young man or woman I've covered, it has been a labor of love.

As parents, grandparents and others have tried to slow each moment for the Class of 2013, most class members have been anxious to move ahead and take their places on college campuses, in the military or the workforce.

Those of us who have been around the block a time or two — or three — can tell this class how quickly the years will pass and to hold tightly to each dwindling day.

But they won't believe how quickly time passes any more than we believed it when our parents and grandparents told us the same thing so many years ago.

Before they know it, these young people will be watching their kids or nieces and nephews preparing to graduate. When that time comes, they will try to warn the Class of 2038 or 2043 how quickly the years pass and to treasure each moment.

I have treasured these moments covering the Class of 2013, but then again, I'm just a big old softy.

Randy Dickson is the Crestview News Bulletin’s sports editor. Email him at randyd@crestviewbulletin.com, tweet him @BigRandle, or call 682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SIDELINE OBSERVATIONS: Treasuring the moments

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