Can you believe the Southside Lectures are only six weeks away? For the 24th year in a row, the month of June will bring a week of spirited singing, Bible-based preaching, reverent worship, and times of refreshment and revival to the members of the Southside congregation. Some of you have been here for all twenty-three. But what will this year’s lectures mean to you?

The dates: June 16-19. I know that the schools seem to be letting out later and later and starting up earlier and earlier, but there’s still plenty of time during the summer to plan all your activities. You want to take a family trip to Disney World. There’s football camp, band camp, not to mention camping camp. Why not schedule all those things around the third week of June? Some of our people use their vacation time from work during Lectures so they can come to the morning sessions. Even if you’re unable to do that, won’t you make a decision right now that you will come to every service that you possibly can? The benefits you will derive far exceed the ones you would receive doing anything else.

The speakers: Sewell Hall, Robert Jackson, Jason Moore, and Buddy Payne. Of course, R. J. Stevens will return to lead the singing; it just wouldn’t be the Southside Lectures without him. This year’s cast of speakers promises to be one the most powerful groups assembled to preach on our lectures. Each one is distinguished and highly regarded among our brethren around the country and throughout the world. Yet, each one possesses a genuine, humble disposition and the spirit of a servant. You would be hard-pressed to find any better preachers, much less any better men. Ask Jason, he’ll tell you.

In addition to that, all of the men are making some personal sacrifices to come to the lectures. It is not uncommon for R. J. Stevens to be on the road five or six weeks in a row, but he still made room for us. Sewell Hall has just moved to New York City to begin a new work. The demands on his time in trying to convert people in our nation’s largest city are enormous, yet he has agreed to come. Robert Jackson recently had back surgery. But he did not use that as an excuse to excuse himself. In addition to being a preacher, Buddy Payne also works as a mathematics professor and was just appointed as an elder. Still, he is committed to being here for the lectures. Jason Moore, who will have a “home-field advantage” over the other speakers, is having to prepare his material for his four sermons without neglecting all the other planning and preparation duties—brochures, postcards, schedules, etc. In light of these things, don’t you think making some sacrifice for the lectures is in order on your part?

The theme: “Choose Ye This Day.” That’s taken from Joshua’s address to the children of Israel in Joshua 24:15. It calls upon all of us to make a decision regarding who we’re going to serve—God or self? Choices are so vital in determining the course of our lives that we best not make them hastily, without consideration of how they will affect our relationship with God. “Choosing a Master,” “Take Time to be Holy,” “As For Me and My House,” and “Choosing the Way of Escape” are just a few of the subjects that will address this year’s theme. Make the decision today that you will start praying and preparing for these timely sermons.

What will 2003 Southside Lectures mean to you? The choice is yours.