By Ron Phillips
Dr. Vance Havner was a traveling preacher whose straight talk, laced with humor, would often empty a church rather than fill it. A prophet to Christians before the prophetic movement as well as a prolific author, he wrote such classics as Repent or Else!, It is Time and Home Before Dark.
I had the privilege of hosting Dr. Havner in 1976 in my Alabama church. He was a peculiar man! He never owned or drove a car, and he loved bananas and corn flakes after the night services. Dr. Havner was actually the preacher to coin the now-famous phrase, “The church is a hospital of sinners and not a museum for saints.”
I remember one story he told. He and his wife were traveling by bus (remember, no car) to a speaking engagement. The bus made a rest stop at a country store and gas station. There was an old woman sitting in front of the store entrance. She was dressed like something out of the 1900s.
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Adapted from A God-Sized Future by Ron Phillips, D.Min., copyright 2012, published by Charisma House. Sharing relevant stories from personal experiences and the Bible, the author challenges you to move out of your comfort zone and shows you how to: determine the right time for change, allow God to initiate change, and harness super change through a Spirit-controlled mind, and a life of radical obedience. To order a copy click on this link:
