About
My name is Frank Gantz. Formerly, I was a local church pastor for about 15 years. Now I work in the business world — most notable the hotel industry.
So, I have preached in the pulpit and now I listen in the pew. This blog provides perspective from one who has been on both sides of the front aisle of the church. This perspective will focus on matters concerning the church and culture.
Readers will gain insight into one living life as a follower of Jesus who relates with people in a 21st century culture.
- I am thrilled to call Suzette (Suzie) my wife since 2004.
- I am blessed to call Cameron, Leah, Carlton and Bethany my children.
- I am happy to call Michael (married to Leah) and Amanda (married to Carlton) my son-in-law and daughter-in-law.
- I am proud to call Heath and Caleb (Leah’s sons) my grandsons.
Heath and Caleb
- I am honored to call Eugene and Lillie my parents.
Churches in which I have served in leadership capacities:
- Assistant Pastor – Kitzingen-Wurzburg Baptist Church (Germany)
- Pastor – First Baptist Church, Red Rock (Oklahoma)
- Pastor – Greenfield Baptist Church (Greenfield, Arkansas)
- Pastor – West Rock Baptist Church (Little Rock, Arkansas)
- Pastor – Trinity Baptist Church (Louisville, Kentucky)
I have been a guest preacher in Oklahoma, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, South Dakota, Texas, Indiana, Florida and Kentucky.
I have also preached and taught outside of the U.S. in Germany, Switzerland, Guatemala and Russia.
My formal education took place at the following schools:
- Oklahoma Baptist University (Shawnee, Oklahoma)
- Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Religion and History
OBU
- Mid-America Baptist Theology Seminary (Memphis, Tennessee)
- Master of Divinity (MDiv)
Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary
- Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville, Kentucky)
- PhD studies in Church History
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Hotels in which I served in leadership capacities:
- The Brown Hotel (Louisville, Kentucky) – Front Office Manager
The Brown Hotel
- Embassy Suites (Louisville, Kentucky) – Assistant General Manager
Embassy Suites - Louisville
- Comfort Suites (Louisville, Kentucky) – General Manager
Comfort Suites
- Boardwalk Inn & Suites (Daytona Beach, Florida) – General Manager
Boardwalk Inn & Suites
- Best Western West Palm Beach Airport Hotel (West Palm Beach, Florida) – General Manager
Best Western West Palm Beach Airport
Growing up as a military brat and then working in ministry and hotels, I have lived in the following locations:
- Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Kadena, Okinawa
- Cheyenne, Wyoming
- Mt. Vernon, Arkansas
- Abilene, Texas
- Austin, Texas
- Aviano, Italy
- Ft. Worth, Texas
- Sapulpa, Oklahoma
- Lawton, Oklahoma
- Kitzingen, Germany
- Shawnee, Oklahoma
- Red Rock, Oklahoma
- West Memphis, Arkansas
- Greenfield, Arkansas
- Little Rock, Arkansas
- Louisville, Kentucky
- Daytona Beach, Florida
- West Palm Beach, Florida
- Chattanooga, Tennessee (current)
For more info about me:
- Autobiography (part 1): The Early Years
- Autobiography (part 2): Early Manhood – Years 16-21
- Autobiography (part 3): The Pastoral Years
- Autobiography (part 4): The Dark, Scarlet Letter Years
- Autobiography (part 5): The Winding Road Years
To contact me, please send me a note below:
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Morning Frank,
Well for another three minutes I can call it morning. I am, well let’s see, how do I describe me…I guess “Pew 2 Pulpit”, no perhaps a better handle would be “Pew 2 Field”. I’m going to be 67 in December and have all my life attended a Bible believing church, actively participating in leadership as a layman. About 15 years ago God started opening doors and as I followed through those doors am now working on my ordination in the Nazarene Church denomination. That is not the most significant point…the real point for me is God teaching me to get out of the church and into the fields where the harvest is. Oh, I haven’t disowned the church it is vital to my life and growth and that is why I am actively involved here at Hillcrest on staff. The main emphasis of my ministry is to persons in various care facilities as a pastor/chaplain. Doors continue to open and a significant portion of my time and energies are devoted to caring for the caregivers of people with dementia. Learning as much about the diease as possible clinically, and discovering ways to effectively love and serve them is one of my main priorities.
Blessing on you as you minister in the unique and exciting way God is leading you.
Blessings,
Dick
[Reply]
Frank Gantz Reply:
October 12th, 2009 at 5:02 pm
Dick, thank you for the wise words. I appreciate you reading and responding.
[Reply]
Just stumbled onto your blog via google with ‘pulpit and pew’ in the search engine. You certainly bring a unique perspective to the blogosphere with having been behind a pulpit for many years and now sitting in a pew. Great name for your blog!
Keep up the insightful posts Frank.
[Reply]
Frank Gantz Reply:
January 19th, 2010 at 9:58 am
Thanks, Erik. I look forward to interacting with you in the future.
[Reply]