James 'The Giant' Croft preaches from two pulpits

The 3-foot-10 Baker County commissioner is also a Southern Baptist evangelist

Posted: April 27, 2013 - 7:47pm  |  Updated: April 28, 2013 - 5:58pm

By Jim Schoettler

  

James 'The Giant' Croft preaches from two pulpits

The Florida Times-Union

Jim Schoettler

April 28, 2013 5:58 PM EDT

Copyright 2013 The Florida Times-Union. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

MACCLENNY | The budget brainstorming session started with few ideas and periods of silence before a man known as The Giant joined his fellow Baker County commissioners.

James Croft balanced himself on two canes as he slowly made his way to his chair. Croft apologized for being late to a meeting he called, pulled out a list and started rattling off ideas including, privatizing county workers’ jobs.

“We can’t be afraid to step outside of the box … to do things different than before,” Croft, 54, said during the mid-April session.

It’s the same passion the 3-foot-10 Croft speaks with from another pulpit: the church. The Southern Baptist evangelist has spread the gospel for 20 years in churches across the Southeast and on mission trips as far as Africa.

“This is the most important thing that I do because it will carry into eternity,” Croft said of his preaching. “What I do for the Lord Jesus Christ may get someone to heaven.”

He packs his sermons with folksy stories and a powerful oratory that captivates people, said Vernon Bennett, a deacon at the First Baptist Church of Glen St. Mary.

“It seems like when he gets before the church, the Lord just gives him the words to say and it just rolls out,” Bennett said.

Croft, given his Giant nickname as a radio disc jockey, served as a commissioner in the 1980s and won his seat again last year. While he saves most of his preaching for the pulpit, Croft believes in applying Christian principles to government and occasionally quotes scripture during meetings.

Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2013-04-27/story/james-giant-croft-preaches-two-pulpits#ixzz2RoZVhEcx

View additional photos for this story by Bruce Lipsky.

Lacoochee Revival Scheduled for October

I will be returning to First Baptist Church of Lacoochee beginning Sunday, October 27, 2013 to preach revival services.  The meeting will kick-off with a "cook-about" at 2pm on Saturday, October 26th.  The revival services will begin on Sunday, October 27th at 11am & 7pm.  The services will continue at 7pm nightly Monday-Thursday. The church is located at 21012 Bower Road in Lacoochee, Florida.  For more info call Pastor Eldridge Parrish at (352) 583-3445.

NOTE: For up-to-date information on my preaching schedule visit the schedule page of the JCEA ministry website. If you would like to receive schedule information via e-mail follow this link: Subscribe to James Croft Ministry Opportunities by Email.

Marietta, Georgia Meeting Begins Sunday

I will be preaching revival services in Marietta, Georgia for the first time beginning Sunday morning at Holt Road Baptist Church.  The services will begin at 11am & 6pm on Sunday and Monday-Wednesday, April 29-May 1, 2013 at 7pm nightly.  Special music will be provided by Brian Odum of Tampa, Florida.  Holt Road Baptist Church is located at 675 Holt Road in Marietta, Georgia.  For more information call Pastor Paul Russell at (770) 971-3052.

NOTE: For up-to-date information on my preaching schedule visit the schedule page of the JCEA ministry website. If you would like to receive schedule information via e-mail follow this link: Subscribe to James Croft Ministry Opportunities by Email.

Earth Day

In case you didn't know, today is Earth Day.  This has sparked a bit of reminiscing on my part.

During my first term on the Baker County Commission (1984-1988) I helped establish the first multi-county solid waste authority in the state of Florida. New River Solid Waste Association served Baker, Bradford and Union Counties. I began working for the association in March of 1989. During the next 17 years I helped permit a regional landfill, started recycling programs for the region and established a Certified Affiliate of Keep America Beautiful called Keep Tri-counties Beautiful. I often said I was a professional trash talker.

When I was called into the ministry in 1994, I told folks I was now a total environmentalist, my "day job" was to ensure that their environment on Earth is the best it could be and my ministry was to help ensure their environment in eternity would be the best it could be. These days the latter is now my full-time career.

I enjoyed my career in the "environmental business", because I always felt that it too was a ministry for me. I believed (and still do) that we should be good stewards of the planet God has entrusted us with, but we should never forget to worship the Creator. We can admire God's creation, but never worship the creation. Worship is reserved for God, and Him alone. A 2008 devotion in Our Daily Bread by RBC Ministries speaks of this.  I believe Jesus always gives us the example to follow and He was the first "recycler". After feeding a crowd of at least 5, 000, He asked them to take up the left-overs so that nothing was lost. You can read this in John 6:1-15.

Here's something else for you to consider. You and I, because of sin, were really "waste" (Isaiah 64:6). We were bound for the "landfill", or to be more precise, the "incinerator" (Rev. 20:15). We needed someone (Jesus) to "recycle" us (Romans 5:8). To "recycle" means to use again, so if we are "born again" (John 3:3) we are now "reusable" (2 Cor. 5:17). As a born-again believer we are now to be used by God (Rom. 12:1-2). We also have a new "eternal destination" (John 14:1-3).

Have you been recycled by Jesus? He's the ONLY way (John 14:6)!

If you would like to know more about God's "recycling plan" visit Do You Know? or view the video. You can also e-mail me and I'll try to answer your questions.

Thank you Lord for allowing us to take care of the planet you have given us. May we do better in caring for Your Creation and even more to honor You!

Cudd Services Begin Sunday Morning

I will travel to South Carolina later this week to preach revival services at Cudd Memorial Baptist Church.  The meeting will begin Sunday, April 21, 2013 at 8:30am, 11am & 6pm and continue Monday-Thursday, April 22-25, 2013 at 6:30pm.  The Thursday night service will be held in the Christian Life Center with a dinner followed by a service featuring comedy and testimony from "yours truly".

This will be my third time preaching at Cudd Memorial Baptist.  We had great services there in the past two years.   You can read about the past events in these previous posts blog 2011 & blog 2012, and view photos from the events at 2011 photo gallery & 2012 photo gallery.  I also created a humorous video with the help of three of the church's youth called "Revival Security" that can be viewed here

The church is located at 1301 Boiling Springs Road in Spartanburg, South Carolina.  For more information call Pastor Danny Garrett at (864) 542-0908.

NOTE: For up-to-date information on my preaching schedule visit the schedule page of the JCEA ministry website. If you would like to receive schedule information via e-mail follow this link: Subscribe to James Croft Ministry Opportunities by Email.

Starke, FL Revival Begins Wednesday

NOTE: For up-to-date information on my preaching schedule visit the schedule page of the JCEA ministry website. If you would like to receive schedule information via e-mail follow this link: Subscribe to James Croft Ministry Opportunities by Email.

Survey: Doctrine remains a struggle in churches

NASHVILLE (BP) -- While many Christians have a grasp of important doctrinal positions, some church-goers struggle with basic truths about salvation, the Bible and the nature of God.

A LifeWay Research study on "Doctrinal Positions," released April 5, shows 81 percent of churchgoers agree, in regard to salvation, that "When you die, you will go to heaven because you have confessed your sins and accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior."

Yet 26 percent of church-goers concurrently believe that "If a person is sincerely seeking God, he/she can obtain eternal life through religions other than Christianity," while 57 percent disagree.

"Consumers in America are accustomed to having endless combinations of choices for every want in life," said Ed Stetzer, president of LifeWay Research. "Biblical truth is radical because it teaches that eternal life is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ alone."

Read more of this story on Baptist Press.

Grace Baptist Revival in Starke Next Week

I will be preaching revival services at Grace Baptist Church in Starke, Florida next week.  The services will be Wednesday-Friday, April 10-12, 2013 at 7pm nightly.  The meeting will end with a Gospel Sing on Saturday, April 13, 2013 at 2pm.  The church is located at 13393 SE 100A (Griffis Loop) in Starke, Florida.  For more information call Pastor Todd Foster at (904) 796-2530.

NOTE: For up-to-date information on my preaching schedule visit the schedule page of the JCEA ministry website. If you would like to receive schedule information via e-mail follow this link: Subscribe to James Croft Ministry Opportunities by Email.

The Lord's Church on Sunday

I will be preaching a Pastor Appreciation Service for Pastor Bobby Griffin this Sunday at The Lord's Church in Taylor, Florida.  Dinner-on-the-grounds will follow the service.  The church is located at 26674 CR250 (the intersection of county roads 125 and 250 in Taylor.

NOTE: For up-to-date information on my preaching schedule visit the schedule page of the JCEA ministry website. If you would like to receive schedule information via e-mail follow this link: Subscribe to James Croft Ministry Opportunities by Email.
Sunday, April 7, 2013 at