Howard Payne University alumnus Dr. Dan R. Crawford will be holding a book signing on the university campus Wednesday, February 3, for his new book Ambassadors on Mission: The Priority of Prayer and Proclamation. The signing will be held in the lobby of the Mabee University Center from 12-1 p.m. Dr. Crawford will also be the guest speaker at HPU’s Chapel service at 10 a.m. in the sanctuary of First Baptist Church, Brownwood.

In his book, which was released in January, Dr. Crawford asserts that Christians are actually ambassadors, not warriors as they have been described for centuries. Ambassadors on Mission: The Priority of Prayer and Proclamation is written from the perspective that Christian ambassadors, who in the activity of representing their King in another kingdom, often are caught in the crossfire of the battle being waged “in heavenly places” and thus are in need of spiritual armor. Dr. Crawford maintains the warfare is not theirs, except that they represent their Lord, who has already claimed ultimate victory.

Dr. Crawford is a 1964 graduate of Howard Payne University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Bible and a minor in English. Currently, he serves as president of the university’s Alumni Association Board of Directors. Since graduating from HPU, he has been the pastor of three churches, served as the director of three collegiate Baptist Student Ministries, and has been the national evangelism consultant for the North American Mission Board. During February and March, he will be working with the “More Than Gold” Winter Olympics ministry in Vancouver.

Dr. Crawford is senior professor of evangelism and missions, chair of prayer, emeritus, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX. He is also an author/compiler of 17 books including Mud Hen in a Peacock Parade: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Heaven which features several stories from his time as a student at Howard Payne. He and his wife, Joanne, are retired and living in Fort Worth.