My full name is Dixie Howell Scott, II, but I go by Howell. A native of Lake Placid, Florida, I graduated from The George Washington University in 1988 with a B.A. in Political Science and from the Florida State University College of Law in 1991 with a Juris Doctorate. I was a practicing attorney for three years in Florida before answering God’s call in my life to the Gospel ministry in 1993.
My wife, Brenda, and I both attended The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY and graduated with Master of Divinity degrees in December 1997. After serving churches in Kentucky, Florida, Virginia, and New Mexico, we moved back to Virginia in August 2016 to begin our ministry at Ramoth Baptist Church in Stafford, where I serve as Senior Pastor. Brenda and I were married on July 18, 1992. God has blessed us with three boys: Stephen, Jacob, and Andrew.
When people ask me how I transitioned from practicing law to pastoring churches, the short answer is, “Well, God called me from law to grace.” That has always been a good conversation starter. In 2010, it also inspired the name for this blog, “From Law to Grace.” Because of my unique background as a trained attorney and now pastor, I use my education, training, and experience to offer analysis and commentary on issues affecting the worlds of law, politics, popular culture, and religion in America, especially when those worlds intersect and collide.
In addition to writing my own blog, I have contributed posts for SBCVoices and for sbc tomorrow. Some of my posts have been quoted in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, ESPN Magazine, the Huffington Post, and the New York Times. You are welcomed and encouraged to contact me with any questions or comments at howell88310@gmail.com.