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One of the required courses in the seminary from which I got my degree was apologetics. For those not familiar with the term, apologetics is not a course in which you learn how to say you are sorry in meaningful ways. The term comes from the Greek word apologia which means “to make a defense” and is found in the Apostle Peter’s first letter to the churches in Asia Minor. He exhorts Christians to turn away from evil and be zealous for what is good, and “in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy.” Knowing that such a life will be noticed in a world that does not honor Christ the Lord as holy nor is typically zealous for what is good, he continues, “always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.” The field of apologetics is engaged in teaching Christians how to defend the Christian faith.

Last week I was writing about my critics and this week I started scanning pages of one hundred-year-old copies of the Milton Gazette, which is now the Santa Rosa Press Gazette.  I found the following printed on May 1, 1925 – which could have been my column last week – just said in a different way…

Santa Rosa County Animal Services (SRCAS) is hosting a reduced-cost microchip drive-through clinic on Friday, May 9 from 12 – 2 p.m. at Santa Rosa County Animal Services, 4451 Pine Forest Road in Milton. Only cats and dogs are eligible to be microchipped. Participants must be residents of Santa Rosa County and will need to show an ID. All cats need to be in a carrier and dogs need to be on leash and collar.

East Spencer Field Road will be closed at the Highway 90 intersection in Pea Ridge/Pace for repaving of the turn lane beginning at 6 p.m. on Thursday, May 1. Weather permitting, the road will reopen at 6 a.m. on Friday, May 2.

Santa Rosa County Animal Services is hosting a Community Cats Day for Santa Rosa County residents on Tuesday, April 29 at the Santa Rosa County Animal Shelter, 4451 Pine Forest Road in Milton. 30 stray/feral cats will be accepted for free spaying and neutering.

East Bay Boulevard in Navarre is closed near Edgewood Drive as of Wednesday morning, April 23. The road is now expected to be closed for two weeks to install two crossings in the area.

I used to make my living as a professional guitarist, and there is a universally shared experience among guitarists who have played in bands. At some point in your performance, someone is going to shout out, “Freebird! Freebird!” For those who don’t know, Freebird is a song by the southern-rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and it features several iconic guitar solos. I have heard that request often and most of my 6-string colleagues have as well. For the many times we’ve been asked to play the song, you’d think that we would take the time to learn it. I never have, and neither have any of my guitar playing friends. Perhaps, deep down, we fear that, were we to play it, we would be disrupting a long-established order of things.