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JONI B. HANNIGAN
Managing Editor
It was one of those awkward hallway moments when a great leader squints at your name tag and tries to place you. Adrian and Joyce Rogers paused outside of the elevators on a high floor at a hotel in New Orleans.
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Returning from a session of the 2001 annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, Dr. Rogers and Joyce were staying just one door down from our hotel room. Peering closely at my press badge, Dr. Rogers said: “Well hello, Joni, I didn’t recognize you right away. How’s old Jim Hefley doing?”
It was like moments of recognition I have enjoyed countless times since covering Southern Baptist news. Launched into the world of journalism by prolific writer and my mentor, James C. Hefley, who penned The Truth in Crisis series on the Conservative Resurgence, I was always happy to give people an update on his health prior to his passing in 2004 in Hannibal, Mo.
But what came next was even more heartwarming. Catching Dr. Rogers up at his request on “what the Hannigans’ are up to” my husband told him he had just finished seminary studies at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City and was serving on a church staff in Georgia.
“John, I am going to nominate you to be the next president of the SBC!” Dr. Rogers quipped.
The good-natured remark still resonates with us especially now as we reflect on Dr. Rogers’ passing and contemplate how thankful we are for those who have assisted and encouraged us in ministry.
The same warm feelings caught me by surprise at our annual convention in November when my heart was full with the wonder of what Florida Baptists are doing to extend God’s Kingdom.
Finally, flying into Hannibal, Mo., for a one-day meeting of the board of trustees of Hannibal LaGrange College at the end of the month, I was again reminded of those who were such a vital part of my preparation for ministry—including Jim and Marti Hefley.
Crunching fall leaves underfoot, I marveled at the progress HLG has made since being called a “tiny fundamentalist” school in the heart of America. I thought deeply about the many people God has brought into my life.
As a result of leaders like Adrian Rogers, Jim Hefley, and others, I have grown in my understanding of fidelity to Scripture and what it means, really, to live a Christian life.