Remembering Mom

Hard to believe seven years have passed so quickly.  Today I'm remembering my sweet mom , Rena Andrews Ennis, who passed away 7 years ago on this date.  She made thousands of pots of coffee in an old percolator. I fired it up today in her memory. It brought back so many memories of my boyhood out in the country of rural Harnett County, N.C.
A few of the basic things my mother taught me as I watched her live her simple life.
Be there for your children and those you love.
Use common sense.  If something or somebody doesn't seem right--it's probably not right. Trust your judgment.
Stand up for your family--Lord knows there are plenty of folks who stand ready to tear them down--don't you do it.
Hold your head up, be proud of who you are.  No one is better than you just because they have more money or a nicer home. You are God's child. Live with honor and dignity.

Mama didn't have a lot of education-but she was wise; didn't have a lot of money--but was rich in so many ways. I thank my mom for the greatest gift anyone can give you--unconditional love. We still miss you mom.  You were one of a kind!

A Legacy of Joy

For the past two days I had the great privilege of hanging out with and getting to know one of the great sports icons of America: Meadowlark Lemon, the “Clown Prince of Basketball.” Meadowlark (yes, that’s his real name - actually he is Meadowlark Lemon III) won international fame as the star of the Harlem Globetrotters, the most beloved sports team in history. He has played more than 16,000 games in some 90 countries around the world.

Meadowlark was in town to speak at the South Hampton Roads Leadership Prayer Breakfast, a large regional prayer breakfast attended by local mayors, leaders from the police, fire, legal and military communities, as well as many wonderful citizens. Meadowlark became an ordained minister in 1986 and now travels the world to spread not only laughter from his basketball antics but the joy that comes from his faith.

As I spent time with him in a variety of settings, I was amazed at how people reacted to Meadowlark upon seeing him. I saw 40, 50, 60 year old (and older)men and
women become almost childlike upon meeting him. The common greeting was, “I saw you and the Globetrotters play in (Norfolk, Raleigh, Charlotte, New York City, Newark, Las Vegas, Alabama, Georgia were a few of the places named) when I was young. What a pleasure to meet you!” There were no reservations, no holding back when people met him - just pure joy. He brought back happy memories of childhood, special outings with mom, dad and friends. He brought joy.

A verse that Meadowlark shared reflected the theme of his life. John 15:11 “... so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”

In my career I’ve observed the personal interaction with the public of dozens of famous people: political leaders, entertainers, religious leaders, sports figures and high level CEO’s. And while people are often excited to meet these people because of their celebrity, it was different with Meadowlark - it was like seeing a dear friend from childhood that you hadn’t seen in 30 years. There was pure joy on the faces of nearly everyone he met.

Thank you Meadowlark for spreading joy wherever you’ve gone for more than 50 years. You truly have built, “A legacy of Joy.”

A Day of Hope for Virginia and America

This morning I had the privilege of attending the launch of the Virginia Commonwealth Prayer Caucus on the steps of the Capitol in Richmond. What a glorious day - dazzling sunshine and a bright blue sky.

Today was also a day of encouragement for so many who have prayed for our nation to turn back to God. It was heartening to hear the top leaders of the Commonwealth: Governor Bob McDonnell, Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli speak passionately about the need for a return to prayer by our nation. It was also inspiring to see a strong contingent of state senators and delegates there to participate in the signing of the Call to Prayer, "asking Virginians everywhere to pray that God will continue to bless this country and the freedom for which it stands; and that He will continue to bless the Commonwealth of Virginia."

In 2 Chronicles 7:14 God told King Solomon: "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Today I witnessed hundreds of God's people, led by the top three office holders in the state, humbling themselves, praying and seeking God's forgiveness and blessing. A great movement has begun in our nation, "A Call to Prayer" that is being led by Congressmen Randy Forbes (R-VA) and Mike McIntyre (D-NC), co-chairs of the Congressional Prayer Caucus. Already state legislators in Mississippi, Colorado, North Carolina and Kentucky are preparing to join Virginia with a prayer caucus in their states.

This is not a political movement or a social movement - but a spiritual movement fueled by people anxious to see our nation return to the Judeo-Christian heritage that helped us to become the greatest nation on the face of the earth.

(photo by Nancy Green)

Reflections on Selling the Old Home place

I recently ended the final chapter on the book of my youth. The time had come for me to sell the old home place in rural Harnett County, N.C. where I spent most of the days and nights of my growing up years. At the end, the old place wasn’t pretty. The old farm house hadn’t been occupied for years and it was rundown, paint chipping off, windows broken by vandals, the yard chest-high in weeds and the old barn out back ransacked by pillagers. The fields on either side of the house which had once been bountiful gardens were now thick with underbrush, briers and saplings.

As I made my final visit to the old place, memories of my boyhood flooded back. I remembered the sounds and feel of a hot summer’s night there. At night you could hear a cacophony of frogs, crickets, a distant hooting from an owl and whippoorwills singing in the trees close by. With no streetlights and the closest neighbors a quarter mile away—it was dark outside! You could look up and see a sky full of twinkling stars.

My dad had grown up on a farm and could grow anything. So not surprisingly our place had a big strawberry patch, several grapevines, as well as apple, plum, peach, fig and pecan trees. Our garden was always chock-full of tomatoes, corn, butter beans, snap beans, cucumbers, squash, okra, potatoes, peas, watermelons and cantaloupes. That garden served at least two purposes for my dad—it furnished our family (and others) with plenty of fresh vegetables-- and it provided plenty of hard work to keep a young boy busy. It also gave me a lifetime appreciation for watching things grow.

When I walked into the old kitchen I remembered my sweet mama making her famous (to the family anyways) chow-chow. When she made it—the pungent smell of onions, green and red peppers, green tomatoes, cabbage, and a vinegar base would permeate the whole house. I also recalled that Mama was a master at throwing together a meal from scratch or leftovers. If unexpected company showed up at meal time, and back in the old days they often did, she could produce a great meal in nothing flat. Every Saturday night she made a cake and every Sunday, she like many of the women of that time, cooked a full Sunday dinner with Southern fried chicken, homemade biscuits and all the fixings. I also realized that my mama cooked three full meals every day, that’s just the way things were in that place and time.

As I walked into the living room, I could see the huge old black and white TV where we regularly watched shows like “Gunsmoke” on Saturday nights and “Bonanza” and “The Ed Sullivan Show” on Sunday. We only got two channels which at the time seemed like plenty.

That last visit a few weeks ago to the house, the barn, the fields, brought back so many memories, most of them good. It’s sad to know that now the old home place is out of my life forever—except for that special place that exists in our hearts and minds, where our childhoods live forever.

Is There a Storm Coming?

You know how the bread, milk and water shelves are all bare at your local grocery store when a hurricane or snow storm is on the way? I experienced something of the sort this weekend when I went to some local stores—only I wasn’t looking for bread or milk.

I visited a couple of gun stores this past weekend and what I saw amazed me. At one store I was told they did not have a single box of pistol ammo of any type available—they were totally cleaned out! At a second gun store (much larger) the story was almost the same. All the popular types of handgun ammo were totally sold out—their very extensive ammunition shelves were bare.

Since Barack Obama’s election, gun and ammunition sales have skyrocketed. There is a tremendous shortage of ammunition all across the country, according to Lawrence Keane, senior vice president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Background checks required when people buy guns at gun stores have raised dramatically. The FBI reported more than 4.2 million background checks from November 2008 through January 2009—a 31 % increase from the prior year.

Why are law-abiding citizens buying up every bit of ammunition they can get their hands on? What has caused this dramatic increase in gun and ammunition sales? Is it feared that the Obama administration will take steps to significantly tax and regulate all ammunition and enact strict new gun control measures? Are Americans afraid that they are in danger of losing their Second Amendment Rights?

The people I saw at the gun stores on Saturday weren’t a bunch of crazy gun nuts.
The people I saw were a tapestry of America - white, black, Asian, Hispanic, men, women, young people, and older people. You could almost sense their panic as they looked upon the bare shelves.

Is there a storm coming?

Let Palin be Palin!

In the 1980 presidential campaign staffers and speechwriters for Ronald Reagan realized after the first debate that instead of over coaching him, the best practice was to “let Reagan be Reagan.”

Tonight, during the vice presidential debate in St. Louis we finally got to see “Palin be Palin.” After weeks of watching Sarah Palin being tentative and restrained during hostile interviews with Katie Couric and Charlie Gibson as she tried to remember her talking points, it was refreshing to see her turn on her charm and showcase her down-home values to score a significant victory!

America watched her up close and personal for 90 minutes—and they liked what they saw. She came across as a real person, a hockey mom who got involved in her home town of Wasilla, Alaska because she didn’t like the way things were being run in the city. She talked about middle –class family struggles to make ends meet—and it was believable. Untainted by Washington, D.C.’s political culture, she hasn’t learned how to lie smoothly (and we hope she never does) like Sen. Joe Biden who was caught in at least ten “misrepresentations” tonight according to Karl Rove.

Sarah Palin came across as a warm, humorous, down to earth person tonight. Yet she was able to go head to head with a veteran senator with 35 years of congressional experience. She connected with much of middle America and showed that she has what it takes to be a trustworthy leader.

Win or lose this election, we’re going to hear a lot more from Gov. Sarah Palin in the future. The McCain campaign handlers just need to step aside and “let Palin be Palin.” She is a winner!

A Tribute to Oliver North

Last week Lt. Col. Oliver North spoke at Regent University’s Executive Leadership Series. More than 600 people came to hear him speak about radical Islam and “The Greatest Challenge Facing America.” I had the privilege of hosting and getting to know him.

I remember when North first burst upon the national scene. It was July 1987 when he was called to testify in the Iran Contra hearings. The Democrats on the congressional committee were licking their chops as North was called to testify. They planned to take him down and if they played their cards right—the administration of President Ronald Wilson Reagan.

Most of us over the age of 30 remember watching some of the hearings that summer. North testified in his Marine dress uniform resplendent with row after row of combat–earned medals, short cropped hair—looking every bit the epitome of a clean cut All-American Marine. Making his testimony all the more striking was a two-tiered dais filled with more than 25 representatives and senators, plus staffers, arrayed in a menacing semi-circle about him. They looked like wolves closing in on a kill.

An amazing thing happened during those hearings. Americans watched the proceedings like it was the World Series and were soon cheering for the patriotic, God-fearing, courageous, highly-decorated war hero. An American icon was born.

Since that summer 21 years ago he has run for the U.S. Senate, written 12 books, written a syndicated column, hosted War Stories on Fox, visited the combat zones of Iraq and Afghanistan 14 times since 9-11, and founded the Freedom Alliance, a foundation that provides scholarships to the children of service members killed in action.

Last week I was privileged to observe North up close for one night and nearly a full day. I found him to be noble, generous, caring, kind and compassionate. He made a special effort to greet the family of a Make-a-Wish kid and posed for pictures until they got tired. He took time to pray for our University and our founder during a special 30th anniversary celebration (both of these were unscheduled). He was a true gentleman who treated everyone with respect. He shook every hand offered, signed and personalized nearly 200 books.

Lt. Col. Oliver North became a hero to me in 1987. However, sometimes when you meet your hero in person you’re disappointed.

I was not disappointed. Having spent time with him, he remains a hero to me. Semper Fi, Col. North.