I heard one of his best sermons I have heard all year long this past Sunday. Phil Placenti, one of the associate pastors of Mt. Sinai who leads our children’s department, preached his “annual” December sermon. I am usually on vacation the week after my pastoral anniversary. And in most recent years, Phil has ended up preaching for me on the third Sunday in December. So we just consider this Sunday his annual spot. Sunday, Phil preached a message on Matthew 5:33-37 entitled, “Tell the Truth.” It was a clear, challenging, and convicting message taken from Jesus’ Sermon on the...

In the midst of all that has been going on these past weeks, I have failed to note several days in December that have a deep personal significance for me.12/10 – Sunday, December 10, we celebrated my sixteenth anniversary as pastor of Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles. My friend, Romell Williams, who pastors the Lilydale Baptist Church in Chicago, preached our two Sunday morning services. And my pastor, Dr. Melvin V. Wade Sr., who leads the Mt. Moriah Baptist Church in Los Angeles, preached the afternoon service. Likewise, some of the “Sons of Sinai,” my brothers, joined...

The past several weeks have been quite eventful for me and my family, to say the least. The day after Thanksgiving, my father-in-law became ill at our home. And our family went through an almost two-week vigil, praying for his recovery. The reports we received about his condition seemed to change from day to day – one day good, one day bad. Ultimately, the Lord had the last say. And the Lord chose to call dad home this past Friday. This has been a tragic loss for us. But we praise God for dad’s salvation, for which we had prayed...

From my family, to yours, "Happy Thanksgiving!""Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!" - Psalm 100:4"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." - 1 Corinthians 10:31"Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!" - 2 Corinthians 9:15"And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." - Colossians 3:17"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of GOd in Christ Jesus for you."...

I have many reasons to be grateful today - health, strength, family, friends, provisions… But here are seven primary reasons I have to especially give thanks to God for his goodness to me.Life: I thank God that he has spared and sustained my life through another year. As I grow older (and more mature, I hope), I am experiencing an increasingly greater sense of my own mortality. I am still a young man. And I trust I have many more years to live and serve God. But I am also aware that life is “a mist that appears for a...

Here is the sermon skeleton from Sunday's message:Title: "You Can Trust the Bible"Text: Psalm 119:137-144Theme: The trustworthiness of the word of GodPoint: You can trust the Bible.Outline:I. You can trust the Bible because it is the word of God (119:137-138).A. The righteous source of scripture is God (v. 137).B. The righteous substance of scripture is faithful (v. 138).II. You can trust the Bible in every situation (119:139-141).A. It is worthy of your zeal (v. 139).B. It is worthy of your love (v. 140).C. It is worthy of your remembrance (v. 141).III. You can trust the Bible to provide what you...

This past Friday night, the Pastor’s Aide Team of Los Angeles honored me as their “Pastor of the Year.” The service was held at MSMBC. And several pastoral colleagues and sister churches were here to encourage me and others pastors. I deeply appreciated the kind gestures. But, most of all, I really appreciated the presence of Mt. Sinai. I have served this congregation for almost sixteen years. They are the ones who really know what kind of pastor I am, good or bad. But even though I enjoyed the service, it was rather draining for me. Being in those kind...

Here is the sermon skeleton from Wednesday night's message:Title: “Embracing the Wonder of God’s Word”Text: Psalm 119:129-136Theme: The wonderful word of GodPoint: You can move beyond the common life by embracing the wonder of God’s word.Transitional Sentence: Embracing the wonder of God’s word will transform your life in specific three ways.Outline:I. The word of God will renew your mind (119:129-131).Verses 129-131 shows us three attitudes you must in order to experience the power of God’s word to renew your mind.A. An attitude of reverence (v. 129)B. An attitude of openness (v. 130)C. An attitude of longing (v. 131)II. The word...

Early in my pastoral ministry, a wise professor warned me to make sure my preaching was more like roots than like pipes. The water and other nutrients a tree or plant needs are found passes through the roots. And as the roots feed the tree, the roots themselves become stronger. However, water passes through pipes without the water benefiting the pipes in any way. The water helps others, but not the pipes. In fact, the longer the water passes through the pipes, the more rust and decay corrupt the pipes. So those of us who preach and teach the word...

This past week, I spoke at the last three meetings outside of MSMBC that I have scheduled for 2006. Tuesday (11/7), I spoke at the Perfect Peace Bible Church in Los Angeles, where Charles Ashley is the pastor. Wednesday through Friday (11/8-10), I spoke at the Union Evangelistic Baptist Church in Chicago Heights, where Pastor James Flint has served for over thirty-five years. Pastor Flint began his ministry under my father, many years ago. And it was an honor to have this opportunity to preach to the warm congregation of the Union Church. I also had the opportunity to meet...

I spoke at the Perfect Peace Bible Church in Los Angeles Tuesday night. Pastor Charles Ashley asked me to come several months ago, when we saw each other at a convention meeting. But we failed to talk again after that. So there was somewhat of a scheduling conflict. But I was able to speak Tuesday night. Pastor “Scruffie” Shiggs and the Love Lifted Me Church family were also in attendance. MSMBC partnered in ministry with this congregation some years ago. And it is such a joy to see how the Lord is continuing to work in and through this unique...

Over the past week, America has had a front row seat to see Christianity on display at both its worst and its best. Last week, Ted Haggard, the former pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs and former president of the National Association of Evangelicals, was confronted with allegations of gross sinful behavior. And though he claims that all of the charges against him are not true, he admits that enough of them are true to warrant him being removed from his various ministry leadership posts. In a letter read to New Life this past Sunday, Haggard described himself...