An ordained minister, Phil J. Baker is founder and CEO of Hosea 4:6 Ministries, which is dedicated to exhorting Christians to learn about the Bible, American history, church history, and current events and to become active in the political and cultural issues of America. He retired in April of 2008 after almost 30 years in the newspaper industry to pursue full-time ministry. A 1977 graduate of Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville, Tenn., Phil has garnered numerous writing awards through the Alabama Press Association and has also been recognized for his writing by the Alabama Medical Association and the Alabama Association of School Boards. He was a 2003 finalist in the Amy Foundation national awards for religious columns. Phil and Sandra, his wife of 28 years, have two grown daughters. Katie is a graduate student at the University of Montevallo in Alabama. Shelly and her husband Michael live in Nashville, Tenn., where Michael is youth minister at Christ Church in Brentwood, and Shelly works in the Spanish ministry and tries to keep up with their 2-year-old daughter, Nadia. "Phil Baker's life is one that so many of us baby boomers can identify with. His life experiences, like ours, are both joyful and painful. Phil has the God-given gift of being able to take his "rear-view mirror" experiences and turn them into practical road maps for his own life as well as our own. Superb " - Daniel A. Moore, nationally known sports artist and author "Lessons in the Rear View Mirror" is a powerful book that drives home the realities of the gospel. This book is great for a sit-down read or to be used as a daily devotional. Phil does an amazing job communicating the principles of scripture, in a real life way. - Keith Hodges, pastor of Liberty Church, Arab, AL