Category Archives: Church

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The 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington, A Too-Sexy Wedding Dress and other religious and or interesting news…

Hello World,

This dress is similar to the one the would-be bride wanted to wear on Aug. 10…

My new hubby and I are still adjusting to married life and moving in together so keep us in your thoughts and prayers…

So on to today’s blog posts, there are many stories that have caught my attention, and I thought I would list them so that you can be informed and entertained as well if you haven’t heard of them already…

Of course, people traveled from all around to our nation’s capital to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington where the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his impassioned and ultimately prophetic “I Have A Dream” speech. On Wednesday, Aug. 28, the actual anniversary of the march, President Obama will speak at 3 p.m., the actual hour that King delivered his speech, from the Lincoln Memorial.  Also, Bounce TV will be airing the television premiere of “King: A Filmed Record…Montgomery to Memphis” on Wednesday at 7 p.m. EST and 6 p.m. CST. “This rarely-seen 1970 film features historical footage of the event and includes appearances by Sidney Poitier, Diahann Carroll, Bill Cosby, James Earl Jones, Ruby Dee, Harry Belafonte, Paul Newman, Marlon Brando, Charlton Heston and other ardent supporters and friends of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. many of whom marched alongside him,” according to a press release. For more information about march commemoration activities, please go to 50thanniversarymarchonwashington.com. Also, go to MSNBC.com for photographs of this weekend’s events.

And some other stories caught my attention as well…

Antoinette Tuff and would-be school shooter…

2. If you live in Atlanta, you have heard of the heroism of Antoinette Tuff, a bookkeeper at Ronald E. McNair Discovery Learning Academy in DeKalb County, whom God used to talk a would-be school shooter out of using his AK-47 to kill and or harm her and the children…She credits her faith in God for enabling her to soothe this troubled young man and help him to turn himself in…To see an interview with Tuff, please go to wsbtv.com…this is evidence that prayer needs to return to school…

3. This story really caught my attention since it is about a wedding that was supposed to happen on Aug. 10, the date that I got married, but didn’t…After seeing the would-be bride’s scanty wedding dress, the pastor refused to marry her…When I saw a version of the dress, I agree with his actions…why marry in a house of God, when you look like a woman of ill repute? To read the story, go to americapreachers.com.

4. Americapreachers.com has been to the “go to” site lately…I recently read a story on the website about a pastor who refuses to allow his membership to wear weaves in church…Wow, what a controversial edict! To read the story, go to americapreachers.com.

5. Mother of slain, unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin, Sybrina Fulton collaborated with a gospel artist to release a song “Joy in the Morning” to encourage people whom have lost loved ones due to gun violence. To read the story, go to huffingtonpost.com.

6. I’m a huge proponent of eating healthy foods so this story about a United Methodist pastor who became a vegetarian after visiting a farm sanctuary caught my attention…”Eating in Truth and Action” at humanesociety.org.

7. I saw this story on TheOldBlackChurch.blogspot.com. A church in the D.C. area brought in an Atlanta dj to hype up morning worship…I can dig it…To see a video about the story, go to washingtonpost.com.

What has been on your radar lately?

Any thoughts?

 

 

 

 

 

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Did You Hear About the Pastor That Was Fired After Attending a Rick Ross Concert?!

Hello World

When I read this story on Americapreachers.com “Pastor Fired After Attending a Rick Ross Concert,” I knew I had to blog about it…Apparently, the deacons at Mt. Salem Baptist Church in North Carolina discovered that the youngest pastor in their 109-year history, Pastor Rodney Wills, 26, attended a Rick Ross concert on a Saturday night. The next morning he showed up at church only to find that his parking sign and his name on his office had been been removed…OUCH!

What went down here is my worst nightmare…I am a real Christian. By that I mean, I have trusted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior…I pray about just about everything…I read the Bible pretty regularly although I could probably read longer passages… You can find me in church every Sunday morning (although late…) I attend Bible Study…I pretty much do what is expected for Christians…but I also am probably not the traditional Christian in that I have some “worldly ways” I guess…I’ve had a life-sized poster of Tupac Shakur on my office wall since I was in my ’20s…I don’t have an iPod, but if I did, you would hear anything from Yolanda Adams to the Geto Boys…And there is more I could share, but I won’t…the point is…I’m not nor will I ever be a holy roller..All that being said, I do recognize that when you have increased responsibility for whatever reason (whether you’re in the church or in the world), you have to conduct yourself differently…For example, I am a teacher at L.A. Fitness, this means I must be fit…This means I have to be more fit than the people I teach…One of my biggest pet peeves is an out-of-shape fitness instructor!  And the Bible addresses this principle too…

“Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.” James 3:1

I asked my father, Dr. Denzil D. Holness, who has been a pastor of Central Christian Church in Atlanta for over 30 years, what he thought about it. He agreed that the young pastor did not make the best decision, but the deacons should have talked to him first before unceremoniously firing him without talking to him and giving him a second chance…However, I forgot to tell my father that the pastor had been spotted at a Lil Wayne concert nine months ago by some youth and young adults (Sidebar question: I wonder if these youth and young adults are members of Mt. Salem Baptist Church? If so, how are they going to tell on the pastor if they are there themselves? Hmm…)

Now that I’m a Christian author, I must admit I am more careful about my actions because the devil is real…Even though you may have innocent motives, he has a way of twisting situations to make you look guilty…I don’t think there is anything wrong with enjoying rap music as a Christian, but maybe, you should give up certain environments where some rap music is played because the situation could be misconstrued…

To sum it up, I feel sorry for the pastor, but I understand the actions of the deacons…And at the end of the day, all thing work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose…If this pastor has been called by God to be a pastor, God will use this situation to grow this young man up…I can say stuff like this now since I will be 40 years old next month…YIKES…Did I just say that?

Any thoughts?

 

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Tithing Declines In Historical Black Churches in Harlem…

Hello World, 

First of all on this Memorial Day holiday weekend, I want to thank the veterans of the United States, many of whom paid the ultimate price for me to be able leisurely write this post this beautiful summer morning…God bless and keep you and your families…

With that being said, I’m a history buff…I love to see how various events, trends, belief systems have shaped the trajectory of history…After reading an article in The New York Times, I am reminded why I tithe…I tithe because I recognize that every cent I earn could not be earned without the gifts, talents and opportunities given to me by the Father(and all of the resources of the world belong to God anyway)…I tithe because I want to demonstrate to myself and others that even with less, I can do more (it’s amazing how this works!)…I tithe because I am supporting God’s ministry through my church and supporting my church…Unfortunately, in Harlem, which has been a national jewel for the black community from arts to worship down through the decades, is experiencing a shift as many black churchgoers in Harlem are moving away and the ones that have remained are not tithing as they once were…And I believe what is going on Harlem is affecting all inner-city churches…

To read the entire article, go here – As Tourists Come and Go, Harlem Churches Lose a 10% Lifeblood.

Why do you tithe, and how has it affected your life?

Any thoughts?