What Does Christian Hope Look Like? (Part 4: A 90th Birthday Tribute to Ted Waller)
One of my greatest heroes of faith is Ted Waller, my grandfather. He turns 90 today. My mom's family has gathered here in Lebanon, Tennessee to celebrate.
In one sense, Ted Waller should never have been born. His mom & dad were on the verge of divorcing after two kids and several years of a failed relationship. But he was still born.
His childhood wasn't easy by our modern standards of comfort and safety, but he grew up with faith and a dream. When he met a young Christian woman from the West Virginia hills above the Ohio River, a dream began to take on flesh. After finishing a Bible degree at Abilene Christian College, he began to preach in the Ohio Valley, believing that the river towns would be economic and cultural magnets for their regions. He and my grandmother eventually settled down in the steel city of Canton, Ohio.
Ted Waller discovered God's grace well before many of his contemporaries. His personal experience and his passion for logic shaped his understanding of God's mercy. His contemporaries held generally identical positions on most matters of church doctrine, but Ted was willing to question common wisdom when it didn't seem to be right.
One specific example should help illustrate this. He grew to disagree with the standard view in Churches of Christ that divorce (for any reason other than infidelity) and remarriage to someone else was an unforgivable sin. His belief stemmed from a close study of Jesus' teaching on divorce. When challenged by a nearby C of C preacher to a written "debate" on the issue, Ted put together a short book on the subject. The other preacher never wrote out his position -- he simply used Ted's writings to publicly rebuke him.
This simple document, however, became a great source of hope for many people. Lynn Anderson, well known preacher and author, counts this as one of the most helpful books he ever read. This just goes to show how some courageous honesty can bless the lives of countless others.
I'll write more later...
In one sense, Ted Waller should never have been born. His mom & dad were on the verge of divorcing after two kids and several years of a failed relationship. But he was still born.
His childhood wasn't easy by our modern standards of comfort and safety, but he grew up with faith and a dream. When he met a young Christian woman from the West Virginia hills above the Ohio River, a dream began to take on flesh. After finishing a Bible degree at Abilene Christian College, he began to preach in the Ohio Valley, believing that the river towns would be economic and cultural magnets for their regions. He and my grandmother eventually settled down in the steel city of Canton, Ohio.
Ted Waller discovered God's grace well before many of his contemporaries. His personal experience and his passion for logic shaped his understanding of God's mercy. His contemporaries held generally identical positions on most matters of church doctrine, but Ted was willing to question common wisdom when it didn't seem to be right.
One specific example should help illustrate this. He grew to disagree with the standard view in Churches of Christ that divorce (for any reason other than infidelity) and remarriage to someone else was an unforgivable sin. His belief stemmed from a close study of Jesus' teaching on divorce. When challenged by a nearby C of C preacher to a written "debate" on the issue, Ted put together a short book on the subject. The other preacher never wrote out his position -- he simply used Ted's writings to publicly rebuke him.
This simple document, however, became a great source of hope for many people. Lynn Anderson, well known preacher and author, counts this as one of the most helpful books he ever read. This just goes to show how some courageous honesty can bless the lives of countless others.
I'll write more later...
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