Back in August I made a connection between my family history and my current place of service with Baylor University’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary.
This happened in a staff meeting. Our team conducted a word association activity centered on the name of George Washington Truett. Most offered words like pastor and evangelist, and one noted that he was a fundraiser for Baylor University. Someone said something like staid; one of the photos of Truett hanging in our building is of him looking serious, as so many did when photographed in the olden days.
In 1891, Truett began working for Baylor and proceeded to raise $92,000 over two years to keep Baylor’s doors open. That year, Truett was just twenty-four years old. He had been ordained the previous year in 1890 via congregational discernment by the people of Whitewright Baptist Church in Whitewright, Texas. In 1887, Truett was called to serve as pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas, where he would preach, shepherd, and lead for forty-seven years.
As we discussed Truett I recalled that my great grandfather, Loys Arnold, was converted to Christianity, baptized, and received as a member of First Baptist Dallas under the pastorate of George W. Truett in the 1920s. That night, I sent a general inquiry by email to FBC Dallas, asking if the church had a record.
I received an answer within a day. There it was. Loys Arnold was received for baptism on April 10, 1927, a Palm Sunday. Baptist people waste no time. He was baptized Wednesday, April 13. It was a good week for a baptism, with Easter straight ahead. Eight months later on December 7, 1927, Loys returned to Arp, Texas, where he would operate the Arnold Garage (the phone number was “1” for many years) and oversee a small Texas farmstead for the remainder of his days.
George W. Truett and the people of FBC Dallas made a difference in the life of my family. Now, I serve in an institution that is named in honor of George W. Truett. I’m thankful for that connection.