Pastor Don Conley

09/10/2026

Back to Church Sunday
September 20, 2026

09/10/2026

After the First Whistle

READY

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” — Galatians 6:9 (NLT)

SET

Week 1 is in the books.

Some of you walked off the field grateful. Some of you walked off replaying one snap you wish you had back. A few of you heard it from the sideline. A few of you heard it from yourself all the way home. That is the hidden cost of this calling. The game ends. The evaluation does not.

Fellowship of Christian Athletes talks often about competing with freedom. Fellowship of Christian Officials has to learn the same lesson from a harder angle. We do not get the benefit of the doubt. We get the second look. We get the question in the parking lot. We get the quiet ride home when a crewmate needed us and we were a step late.

Here is the good news of Week 2: the first game does not get to write the whole season.

Paul did not say, “Do good as long as it feels clean.” He said, do not become weary in doing good. Stay in the work. Stay in the crew. Stay in the preparation. Stay calm when the game gets loud. Check the down again. See the whole play before you throw. Listen before you talk. Control your sideline without becoming part of the argument. Use common sense. It is still your best asset.

Weariness shows up fast in officiating. It sounds like, “They don’t appreciate this.” It sounds like, “Why do I keep giving Friday nights away?” It sounds like cynicism dressed up as experience. The gospel answers that weariness with a better why. We are not just keeping order. We are serving Christ in a place where peace is scarce and integrity is on display.

You cannot control the grade. You cannot control the coach. You cannot control the bounce. You can control whether you show up humble, prepared, and present. You can control whether you support your crew instead of criticizing them to someone else. You can control whether Week 2 becomes a better offering than Week 1.

Do not give up on doing good. The harvest is rarely instant. Sometimes it looks like a safer game, a younger official who needed your example, a captain who trusted you, or a quiet conscience when you put the whistle down.

The Master you are serving is still Christ. Week 2 is another chance to prove it.

GO

Where did Week 1 leave you weary — in your mind, your crew relationships, or your love for the game?

What is one “good thing” you will refuse to quit on this week: preparation, composure, support of your crew, or integrity under fire?

Who on your crew needs encouragement more than correction right now?

OVERTIME

Father, Thank You for bringing us through Week 1. Where I am tired, strengthen me. Where I am proud, humble me. Where I missed it, teach me. Help me not grow weary in doing good. Give our crew unity, wisdom, and peace. Let us work this week as unto You — with clean hearts, clear eyes, and faithful steps. Bless every official in Washington County. Keep us safe and keep us true. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Stay the course.

09/08/2026

“Sometimes you just need a good Tuesday smile. 😄 Hope your week is off to a great start!”

09/06/2026

“To be shallow is not a sign of being wicked, nor is shallowness a sign that there are no deeps; the ocean has a shore.” — Oswald Chambers

The shallow amenities of life, eating and drinking, walking and talking, are all ordained by God.

Spiritual maturity isn’t measured by how serious you can be. Sometimes one of the deepest expressions of faith is simply enjoying the ordinary gifts God has given you.

The ocean has incredible depths—but it also has a shore. A healthy Christian life needs both.

09/02/2026

Friends, if you’ve watched the recent coverage or the Netflix series, your heart is probably heavy. Mine is too.

A young woman who loved Jesus, led worship, and wanted to serve the church is gone. Mica Miller’s death was ruled a su***de. That fact does not make the story less tragic. It does not erase the allegations of control, harassment, isolation, and spiritual manipulation that followed her for years. It does not excuse a pastor using the pulpit to tell people that listening to a hurting wife is “a demon talking to you.” And it does not make the pending federal charges or the civil allegations that have followed any less serious. Those matters belong in court. Our calling is different.

We grieve with Mica’s family. We take mental illness seriously. We take domestic abuse and spiritual abuse seriously. And we refuse to pretend that putting “Pastor” in front of a name automatically makes a man a shepherd.

Scripture never romanticizes leaders. It warns us about them.

Paul told the Ephesian elders that “savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them” (Acts 20:29-30, NLT). Jesus said the same: “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves” (Matthew 7:15, NLT). James warned that teachers “will be judged more strictly” (James 3:1, NLT). The qualifications in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 are not suggestions. A man must be above reproach, self-controlled, not violent, not a lover of money, and able to manage his own household well. When those qualifications are ignored, people get hurt.

What appears to have happened in Myrtle Beach is a failure of character and a failure of structure. A charismatic leader with little real accountability, a culture that treated questioning him as disloyalty, and a twisting of Scripture that turned “submission” into control and “talk to Jesus” into isolation. That is not biblical headship. Biblical headship looks like Christ laying down His life for the church (Ephesians 5:25). It does not look like tracking devices, public humiliation, or using the pulpit to shut down a woman’s cry for help.

So yes — this story should make every church examine itself. Elders must actually oversee. Pastors must be answerable. Women and young people must be safe. Reports of abuse must be taken to the authorities, not managed as a PR problem. Charisma is not a substitute for character.

But here is the other half of the truth, and it matters just as much:
The failure of one man — or even a string of men — does not make the church of Jesus Christ a fraud.

We do not defend the indefensible. We do not baptize control and call it covering. We also do not hand the enemy a victory by letting one tragic, ugly story convince us that the whole body of Christ is rotten.

The church is still His. The Gospel is still true. Faithful shepherds still exist. And the same Jesus who will judge every misuse of His name is the same Jesus who still welcomes the broken, still binds up the wounded, and still says to His people, “I am with you.”

09/01/2026

09/01/2026

Ready for the First Whistle

READY
“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.” — Colossians 3:23–24 (NLT)

SET
There is something holy about Week 1. The shoes are clean. The flags are folded. The rule book has been opened more times than we want to admit. The field is still mostly green. And for a few hours on Friday night, a handful of men and women in stripes will walk into a stadium that does not belong to them and try to serve a game that is bigger than any one of us.

That is officiating. That is also ministry.

Fellowship of Christian Athletes has long reminded competitors that the arena is a platform. Fellowship of Christian Officials reminds us of the same thing from a different spot on the field. We do not wear a helmet. We do not call a play. We do not get the cheers. We get the responsibility. We get the hard look. We get the chance to bring calm into an emotional game.

Preparation is the key to success on the field. It is also the key to faithfulness. We study mechanics so we can see more from seven yards away than from one. We check the down with a partner every play so we do not miss what matters. We stay calm when players and coaches are allowed to get excited. We throw the flag with authority, not with attitude. We work as a crew. We listen before we talk.

All of that is good officiating. It is also good discipleship.

Because the Master we are serving is not the assignor, the coach on the sideline, or the loudest voice in the stands. The Master we are serving is Christ. When we prepare well, treat people with respect, refuse to threaten, stop abusive language, and get the call right even when it is hard, we are not just protecting a game. We are bearing witness.

Week 1 is a fresh start. Last year’s missed down does not travel with you. Last year’s bad night does not have to name you. In Christ, the old has gone and the new has come. Put the whistle in your mouth. Fix your eyes on Jesus. Work as unto the Lord. And remember: you are not out there alone. Where two or three are gathered in His name — even in a pregame huddle in a high school parking lot — He is there.

GO
1. Who am I really working for when I walk onto the field this week?
2. What part of my preparation — rules, mechanics, heart, or prayer — needs the most attention before Friday?
3. How can my presence this season make the crew, the kids, and the game better?

OVERTIME
Father, Thank You for the privilege of Week 1. Give me a calm spirit, a clear mind, and a willing heart. Help me prepare well, work as a teammate, and serve this game as if I am serving You — because I am. Guard my words. Steady my judgment. Let my presence bring peace. Bless every official in Washington County. Keep us safe, keep us humble, and keep us faithful. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Have a great season.

08/26/2026