Grief Workshop is a free, community-wide event for anyone who has experienced or is experiencing grief in their life. This can be due to the loss of a loved one or a significant event in life (illness, job transition, past trauma, etc.) that led to grief in your life. Our facilitator is Dr. Rodger Murchison author of Guide for Grief who has led similar workshops with congregations, pastors, missionaries, and people both at home and abroad. The purchase of Dr. Murchison’s book is not necessary for participation in the Grief Workshop but will be a helpful tool. The book is available on Barnes and Noble, and participants who desire a copy may purchase it separately. There are also a limited amount of copies available for purchase at the FBC office for $10 a copy. The Grief Workshop will begin promptly at 6 p.m. and conclude at 7:30 on both Wednesday and Thursday nights. Both nights will be held at The Place located behind First Baptist Church Carrollton at 106 S. White Street. Light refreshments will be provided both nights. On Wednesday night only, all guests are welcome to join Wednesday night supper beginning at 5 p.m. and lasting until 6 p.m. in the fellowship hall. A reservation is required and can be made upon registering for the event. The cost for Wednesday night’s dinner is $10.
DR. RODGER B. MURCHISON
PERSONAL
Born September 3, 1946, Little Rock, Arkansas
Parents: Thomas O. Murchison and Florence (Burgess) Murchison
Married: Margaret A. Mitchell of Pine Bluff, Arkansas on July 17, 1976 B.S.E. Henderson State University, 1969 and Masters of Divinity, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1978
Children: Mitchell (6-8-82) and Rebecca (1-27-84)
Grandchildren: Margaret “Maggie” Hughes (5-31-12), Adeline Murchison (12-12-13),Lucy Murchison (11-11-15) and Ada Murchison (1-3-19)
EDUCATION
Public School: England, Arkansas School System, 1952-64 Graduate, England High School, 1964 Bachelor of Arts (Major in Religion), Baylor University, Waco, TX, May 1968 Masters of Divinity, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY, May 1972 Doctor of Ministry, Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, NJ, May 1995 Thesis title: Grief and Faith: A Study of Effect
EXPERIENCE
Associate Pastor, First Baptist Church of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Summer, 1965 Intern-Pastor, Elm Mott Baptist Church, Elm Mott, Texas January-May 1967 Youth Pastor, Sylvan Hills Baptist Church, North Little Rock, Arkansas, Summer 1969 Youth Pastor, Vineville Baptist Church, Macon, Georgia, Summer, 1970-71 Ordained, Coy Baptist Church, Coy, Arkansas 1972 Revival Ministry, Summer, 1972 Assistant to the Theology Dean, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1972-74 Assistant to the Provost Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1974-75 Director of Placement and College Relations, Southern Seminary 1975-82 Director of Capital Funding/Assistant to the President, Southern Seminary 1982-87 Associate Pastor, First Baptist Church, Augusta, Georgia 1987-2012
PUBLICATIONS
Leadership, “When the Grief-Stricken Get Grief-Stuck”, Spring 2003”
“Preaching Can Be Painful”, Lecture at The Mercer Preaching Consultation, Sept. 2011 Guide for Grief, Help in surviving the stages of Grief and Bereavement after a loss, 2011
NOTES OF INTEREST
England High School: Senior Class President; Junior Class President; Basketball and Track Baylor University: Senior Class President; Member of Sigma Tau Epsilon, Social-Service Fraternity, Pledge Class President Deacon at Crescent Hill Baptist Church, Louisville, KY, 1983-87 Board Member of Habitat For Humanity, Augusta, Georgia, 1989-91 Board Member of Ronald McDonald House, Augusta, Georgia, 1989-91 Member of the Exchange Club of Augusta, Georgia, 1990 – Present Member of the Augusta Country Club Augusta, Georgia, 1994 – Present Co-President of the Davidson Fine Arts School PTA, 1994-96 Sabbatical Study at Regent’s Park College, Oxford University, Oxford, England 1997, 2001, 2010 Augusta Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, 1999 – 2023 Augusta Housing Authority Board of Commissioners Chairman, 2001 – 2023 Lectured at Oxford and Cambridge Universities during the C. S. Lewis Summer Institute 2002 and 2005 Sabbatical Study at The International Baptist Theological Seminary, Prague, Czech Republic, 2006 Lectured at The International Baptist Theological Seminary, Prague, Czech Republic on Grief Ministry, 2006 Spiritual Retreat at Iona Abbey, Iona, Scotland. 2008 Lectured at Regent’s Park College, Oxford University, Oxford, England. 2008 Deacon at First Baptist Church Augusta, Georgia 2014-2018 Grief Ministry Seminar, AIPC (Antwerp International Protestant Church), Ekeren, Belgium. 2015/2023 Interim Pastor, AIPC, August – October, 2016 and February – April, 2017.
Mission Ministry in Ukraine January 2018/20/23 Preaching Assignment at The International Christian Fellowship Church in San Pedro Sula, Honduras November 2018, February 2019, March 2020 and December/January 2023 Interim Pastor, Rosemont Baptist Church, Waynesboro, Ga September – December 2020
Revised (July 2023)
