As one who was saved by grace at an early age, I have had an opportunity to face and understand many of the daily challenges of the Christian life. While I was blessed with believing parents and a strong biblical foundation, I have not been immune to the slings and arrows of the tempter. Further, I have been tested and faced many of the trials common to man. All the while, God’s grace has proven to be sufficient. My experience in walking with God, and often choosing to be apart from Him, has provided the basis for my teaching for 25 years. Our class consists of many like me and many with a widely variant experience. This has allowed us to come together as a community of faith, in support of each other as we attempt to learn how to walk as Jesus told us to walk. Experiencing His grace, mercy, provision, protection, presence, and peace while sharing and encouraging one another in this experience—this is the foundation of our class. Along with Jana, my wife of 29 years, we pray and strive for spiritual maturity, holiness and unity in our own lives, our class, our church, and the church universal until Christ's return.
Ken Groce
9am
Rm 211
50s, 60s
My walk with the Lord began in December 1963 when after hearing the gospel proclaimed in the Air Force chapel, I gave my life to Jesus Christ. My wife Faye and I joined HBC in August 1976 and have remained members since then, except for a 9 year period when we lived in Muskogee, OK. I have been teaching adult SS classes since 2000 and have recently taught the Covenant Class. My desire is for the members of our class to see that the Holy Spirit is in the process of training the Bride of Christ to rule and reign with Christ even as we are already legally seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (Eph. 2:6). Our present trials and tribulations can open doors to God's blessing and serve the eternal purpose in thwarting the temptation to pride, decentralizing our personalities, and molding us into Christ likeness.
BJ Collins
9am
Rm 210
60s, 70s
I grew up in Southeast Texas farming and raising livestock. I've worked in logging and saw-milling, oil-fielding, heavy road and airfield construction, and tire and oil field equipment manufacturing. Thirty years of my work experience has been in industrial and construction management. My formal education includes short stints, and finally at 42, a bachelor's degree from Baylor University.
My Christian experience began at age 22. I did two years of Bible school studies almost immediately thereafter. I've pastored two churches a total of four years. I've been a Sunday school teacher, deacon, elder, and trustee. I was a "tent maker" in Alaska and Saudi Arabia a total of 17 years. I've been happily married to Kathy for 54 years with three grown children. As a class we aspire to know Christ, to grasp His will and purpose for us singly and corporately, and to worship Him and witness to His love and preeminence to each and all.
Kevin Verett
9am
College House
40s, 50s
I grew up in a loving and believing family in the South Plains of Texas. I have many happy memories of living and working on our family farm as a young child. After marriage, my wife and I knew there had to be more to the Christian life than what we were experiencing so we turned our hearts to seek and know God. He was faithful to put people in our lives who taught us the full Gospel of Jesus that we are reconciled to God through the death of Jesus but it is by his life that we are saved. The Lord gave me the gift of teaching and for many years I taught Bible classes and led home groups with my wife before she died in 2006. Since her death I have continued to teach in different settings as I have the opportunity. I have a passion in my teaching to be authentic about my own life and to help people come into the reality of Jesus Christ and the fullness of his kingdom here on earth. I have four children, three of which are living. They are Katie, Kinsey and Kirsten all of whom are adults living in Austin and Bryan. My oldest son, Keller, died in an accident in 2008 at the age 24.
Brenner Campbell
9:00am
Rm 210
30-somethings
Brenner Campbell has been married to Stephanie for 10 years. His pride and joy is his son Cole (Stephanie is a close 2nd), however, he and Cole are outnumbered because of identical twin girls (Clara and Elise) born in February. Brenner graduated with a degree in Religion from Baylor in 2000 and graduated this past December with his Masters of Divinity in Theology from Baylor University’s Truett Seminary. He is an officer in the USAF as a reserve Chaplain (he chose chaplaincy because he was too old to get a seat in an F-16 so single engine planes will have to do). Brenner started Children's Mission Network in 2006, which has 1000 acres in Zimbabwe where he helped start an orphan village. He develops real estate for a living and loves the flexibility of being at home with his family as often as possible. He desires to grow closer to Christ daily and see His kingdom come and His will done in his and his family's life. AMEN!
Daniel McAfee
10:30am
Rm 210
20-somethings
Daniel McAfee currently serves as the Adult Discipleship Intern at Highland Baptist Church. He graduated in the spring of 2009 with a BA in Biblical Studies from Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Waxahachie, TX; he holds a minister’s license with the Assemblies of God. The following fall, Daniel began work on his Master of Divinity from Truett Seminary at Baylor University. He is now in his third year at Truett with a projected graduation date of May 2013. He will have been married to his beautiful wife, Meredith, for three years this coming May; the two of them met in High School, fell madly in love, and got married just after college. In addition to being a student and working at Highland, Daniel also serves as a Resident Chaplain in the best Residence Hall at Baylor (Allen/Dawson). Daniel’s future plans include eventually pastoring full time. Meredith and Daniel have a standing agreement that as long as he does not get a motorcycle, Meredith does not get a dog and vice versa.
Joy Endsley
9am
Rm 206/212
Precept Study
I was born in Chicago, IL during WWII and moved to Texas at age five so my father could work on a family dairy farm. I moved to Waco in junior high, graduated from Baylor with a double major in biology and English. I married my high school sweetheart, Lindy (who played in the NFL). I taught school in Carrollton, TX, and have two sons and 4 1/2 grandchildren.
At age 10 God captured my heart in a little white church in the East Texas piney woods. I started personally studying God's word as a young mother when my father died suddenly. I was one of the first BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) leaders in Waco during the first six years it came to Waco, and then brought Precept Bible Studies to Central Texas. I taught Precept Bible studies in the first Bible Training Institute in the former USSR after Communism fell. I served as a Precept state trainer helping classes get started all over Texas until becoming Children's Minister at HBC in 1988. I still lead the inductive study today.
Tommy Kidd
9am
R.
30s, 40s
Growing up in both Virginia and South Carolina, Tommy was saved through the Navigators campus ministry. After studying at Clemson and Notre Dame, Tommy married Ruby and moved to Waco, TX to teach history at Baylor University. When he is not taking his wife on dates, spending time with his sons, or teaching a Sunday School class, he divides his disposable time writing books on history and religion and writing for outlets such as USA Today and Patheos.com.
Dan Pleitz
9am
C1 (Chapel)
30s, 40s
My name is Dan Pleitz, and I teach a class called “Understanding Scripture.” I grew up in a godly home. My dad was a Baptist minister for 60 years, and my mother loved being a pastor’s wife. I made a formal profession of faith when I was a child and have been active in the church my entire life. But I still have some maturing to do!
My life has been largely one huge blessing. I have a wonderful wife and three fine sons. I have practiced law in Waco for 35 years primarily in the area of public finance. I love all kind of sports, particularly everything having to do with any Baylor team or with Duke basketball. I am an enthusiastic golfer but not very good at it.
I love to study the Bible and believe that there are many layers to it that we barely reach. After a recent trip to Israel, I became convinced that one of the areas we don’t study enough is the positive impact of Judaism on our faith. There are many references in the Old Testament that bring new meaning and richness to Jesus, even beyond traditional prophetic references. The more I study, the more I realize that the Bible itself is a miracle. I hope our class can see the Bible in this same way, but more importantly grow in relationship to our Lord Jesus.
Randall Jean
10:30am
Rm 200
50s, 60s
Randall is an elder at Highland and is married to Jean Jean (yes, you read that correctly). He has been, at one point or another, a professor at Texas A&M, an inventor, a business owner, and currently a professor of engineering at Baylor University. Randall's goal is for his class to become contagious lovers of Jesus Christ.
Larry Anderson
10:30am
Rm 206/212
Precept Study
I was saved many years ago at the age of 13, but could not be baptized immediately because the river was too cold. We had to wait until summer when the water was warmer. Yes, I was actually baptized in a river, not the Jordan, but the Embarrass in Illinois.
Norma and I have been married 46 years, and lived from Illinois to North Dakota to Missouri to Alabama back to Missouri and now in Texas. There is a bumper sticker that says I wasn’t born in Texas, but I got here as fast as I could. That is pretty much how Norma and I feel about Texas.
We lead a open discussion group on Precept topics, and really feel the Precept concept is right for us. The are in depth Bible studies that concentrate on scripture, and not commentaries.
I have found that the more you study the Bible in detail, the more you can see how it all comes together with the purpose of placing Jesus Christ at the center of everything, and there is nothing in the word that should not be there. Everything from Genesis 1: 1 through Revelation 22: 21 is relevant and there for a purpose. It is our duty as Christians to find out and know as much about God’s word as we can.
We welcome anyone who wants a more in depth study of God’s word.
Marie Tipton
10:30am
Rm B24
50s +
During my childhood, my parents faithfully took me to Sunday School where dedicated children's teachers taught me about Jesus. Also, during that time period, one day my parents took me to Austin to hear Billy Graham preach on the capitol grounds. When the invitation was given, I went forward and accepted Jesus as my personal savior. Frank and I married when I graduated from high school, and we have been blessed with four children. I was called to be a Bible teacher when I was a young adult. I graduated from Bayor University with a major in Sociology and a minor in Religion. Presently, I am an instructor at McLennan Community College in the Health Science Division. I am so grateful to be the teacher of the Outreach Friendship Class here at Highland. My goal is to lift up the Lord Jesus Christ and give praise and glory to Him in each lesson that I teach.
