 Photo by Jon Sailer on Unsplash I heard a sermon recently during which the preacher showed us a slide of his Mount Rushmore – four pictures of people who were instrumental to his spiritual growth. As is often the case with writers who hear something inspirational, I scrambled for a piece of paper. In chronological order, here’s my Mount Rushmore. Marlin Maddoux was a Christian radio show host I stumbled across during the Persian Gulf War as I was searching for news about the war. He had a talk show called Point of View in which he discussed the issues of the day from the Christian worldview. I’d never heard of such a thing. But soon, I found myself listening every afternoon and learned that the gospel was comprehensive. It began to shape my thinking. Larry Burkett had a show that came on after Maddoux’s. I’ll never forget the spiritual impact he made on my life one day in the early 1990s. I’d been feeling drawn to Christ but hadn’t gone all-in yet. And since I had nobody to talk to, Christian radio – and Burkett’s program specifically – became the voice I needed. Burkett received a call one day from a single mom who couldn’t afford to fix the brakes on her car. Larry advised her to give her church an opportunity to meet her need, but if they couldn’t or wouldn’t, he told her he would. That was the moment Christianity became genuine to me, and I’ll never forget it. My Uncle Warren (yes, that was his first name; I know it’s confusing) was a faithful Sunday school teacher in a small church my grandmother helped to found many decades ago. I wandered into that building one Sunday many years ago, feeling out of sorts theologically. He took me under his wing, answered my questions and gave me room to process. Even though I wasn’t in his class long, he left a lasting impression. Dennis was a Sunday school teacher who recognized me as a fledgling Christian who needed further guidance and direction. He was patient with me. On several occasions, he invited me into his home to answer my questions, never pushing too hard or expecting anything from me. I’ll be forever indebted to him. I’d love to hear who is on your Mount Rushmore. Leave a comment and let me know who is on it and why. Comments are closed.
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