CREATIVE BIRTHDAY GIFT

 


What can a person my age give to a younger brother who keeps having birthdays so he can try to catch up with me?

It’s not easy.

So, here’s what I did this year. When my father passed away thirty years ago, I inherited his files of sermon outlines. Last spring I sorted them into three piles, Old Testament, Gospels, and New Testament (the rest of it beyond the Gospels.) Then I started typing. I became increasingly grateful that Dad had typed out most of the outlines because his handwriting was never easy to decipher.

When I finished the Old Testament sermons I had enough for a manuscript of about 250 pages. 87 sermons in all. With the help of Kindle Direct Printing, I published a book called “The Collected Sermons of Dr. A. W. Allen: Old Testament.” I sent the first copy to my brother’s wife, Cindy, and asked her to wrap it up and give it to him on his birthday.

Then I sent copies to my two sisters with a promise. When Dorothy has her next birthday, all three of my siblings will get a copy of “The Collected Sermons of Dr. A. W. Allen: Gospels.” When Peggy has her next birthday, all three will receive “The Collected Sermons of Dr. A. W. Allen: New Testament.”

Now I’m back to typing. I have a long way to go.

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