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Praying for the Lord’s Day

June 1, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
O Lord, We commune with thee every day, but week days are worldly days, and secular concerns reduce heavenly impressions. We bless thee therefore for the day sacred to our souls when we can wait upon thee and be refreshed; We thank thee for the institutions of religion by use of which we draw near to thee and thou to us; We rejoice in another Lord’s Day when we call off our minds from the cares of the world and attend upon thee without distraction; Let our retirement be devout, our conversation edifying, our reading pious, our hearing profitable, that...
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GUEST POST: Help! I’m a Young Pastor… at an Old Church!

May 30, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
The following is a guest post written by my friend, Charlie E. Dates, who serves as the Senior-Pastor of the Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago, Il. God willing, I will celebrate the second anniversary of my installation as pastor of Progressive Baptist Church a month from now. In most historic black Baptist churches, the installation is the official start of the pastor’s tenure. It’s something like the president’s inauguration. I am fortunate to serve as the senior leader of one of Chicago’s historic churches. I am also fortunate – or some would say unfortunate – to do so as a...
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Notes from Sunday – 05/26/13

May 27, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
Happy Memorial Day! May the Lord grant you a blessed and safe holiday. Let's remember today those who have sacrificed their lives for the freedoms we enjoy. Memorial Day weekend is an anniversary, of sorts, for me. I preached at the Shiloh Church for the first time Memorial Day weekend five years ago (2008). I was only invited to preach. Before my trip, however, I was asked to do several meetings. Worst interviews ever! I preached two sermons and flew home Sunday afternoon. I thought the services were warm and the people were kind. And the message was received well. But...
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Saturday Shout-Outs: Augusta, Chicago, & Ministry Links

May 25, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
Happy Memorial Day weekend! Shout-out to Pastor Reginald Jones for the opportunity to speak at the Sharon Baptist Church in Augusta this week. I attended the 2013 Moody Pastors Conference in Chicago this week. It was great. I especially appreciate the messages I heard from Alistair Begg and Voddie Baucham. Looking forward to speaking at this conference next year! Thanks Shiloh for praying for my meetings this week. Can't wait to tell you about what the Lord is up to! Be sure to pick up my new book, "It Happens After Prayer."  The 2013 E.K. Bailey Preaching Conference is fast...
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Notes from Shiloh’s 138th Church Anniversary

May 20, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
We had a great weekend at the Shiloh Church as we celebrated our 138th church anniversary! Praise God for his faithfulness in sustaining the witness and ministry of this great congregation in Jacksonville for more than a century! And our dreams are even greater than our memories! Special thanks to our church staff for organizing the events of the weekend. I am glad to have you on our team and appreciate all you do! Likewise, thanks to all of our volunteers for serving so diligently this weekend. You make it happen! Saturday, we had a church picnic on the grounds....
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Saturday Shout-Outs: Charlotte, Phoenix, & Ministry Links

May 18, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
Thanks for reading my blog. You can sign up for email updates under the picture to the left. Thanks to all who have picked up my new book, It Happens After Prayer. May it motivate you to pray! Thanks for your comments on my post: A Wake Up Call for Gospel Artists. I hope it starts an long-overdue conversation. A shout-out to Michael Diduit for the opportunity to speak at the National Conference on Preaching 2013 in Charlotte. By the way, Don't miss the National Conference on Preaching 2014 in Atlanta. Shout-out to Pastor Alexis Thomas for the opportunity to speak...
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A Wake Up Call for Gospel Artists

May 14, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
I love Gospel Music. Traditional. Contemporary. Praise & worship. Choirs. Groups. Solo artists. Old and new. From Rev. So-and-So Presents… albums of the 80s to today’s Bishop So-and-So Presents… albums. I have even started to listen to some quartet and Christian hip-hop. I love music. And I especially love music that exalts the Lord Jesus Christ. But my true love for Gospel Music has broken my heart. In two ways… First, I am grieved by the excessive commercialism of contemporary Gospel Music. I can cite various examples of this illicit love affair with the world. But there is an explicit...
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Notes from Mother’s Day 2013

May 13, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
Happy Mother's Day! A Special Happy Mother's Day to my wife, Crystal, and to my mother, Ellen. We had a great day of worship at the Shiloh Church today. Grateful for all of our guests today. I even got to meet BrothaRollins' parents. Way cool. Praise God for the five persons who were baptized today. Our Genesis Choir (children) sang today. I preached "God's Graffiti" from Daniel 5, continuing my series through Daniel. I outlined the chapter in four movements:  The Foolish Celebration (Belshazzar) The Party Crasher (God) The Uninvited Guests (Daniel) The Tragic Conclusion (Dairus) I stole this sermon...
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Saturday Shout-Outs: Los Angeles, On Preaching, & Ministry Links

May 11, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
Saturday Shout-Outs is my weekly bulletin board of things I have found interesting over the course of the week.  Happy Mother's Day! Thanks for reading my blog this week. You can sign up for free email updates of future posts under the picture to the left. A big shout-out to Tim Challies for his review of It Happens After Prayer. Thanks to George Hurtt, Mt. Sinai Baptist Church, and my friends in Los Angeles who warmly received me during my book tour there this week. Shout-Out to Pastor L.A. Kessee and the Bethany Church of Los Angeles for the opportunity...
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On Consecutive Exposition

May 10, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
“People have short attention spans. So you really do long series through books anymore. People will check out on you after four to six sermons.” This authoritative claim is simply not true. People are hungry for the word of God. Consecutive exposition both satisfies people’s hunger for scripture and shapes it. Expository preaching is an acquired taste. Before people get it they don’t know what they are missing. But when they get it they don’t want anything else. Consecutive exposition is not the only way to preach faithfully. Jesus did not preach that way. Charles Spurgeon, the Prince of Preachers,...
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“That’s Not My Crowd.”

May 9, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
My pastor rebuked me yesterday. We spent most of the phone conversation catching up. And we exchanged prayer requests for upcoming speaking engagements. Then Pas brought up an event I preached not too long ago. He told me he was proud of me. He also asked me about my observations of the event. I answered the same way I answer anyone who asks me about it. "That's not my crowd," I said. Pas interrupted me. He firmly told me that he did not ever want to hear me say that again. He knew what I meant by the statement. And...
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Notes from Sunday – 05/05/13

May 6, 2013
By H.B. Charles Jr.
It was a long, good weekend at the Shiloh Church. Our Saturday morning men’s Bible study was great. Kingdom Man is challenging us. Our Kingdom-Focused Prayer Meeting was very moving. Saturday afternoon, we a mass wedding for 14 live-in couples that made the step of faith to get married. Our church adopted them. We counseled them for more than six weeks. And we donated everything for the couples. It was a great experience. Please continue to pray for these couples. Shiloh, thanks for your prayers, generosity, and service. You make it happen! Sunday morning, we celebrated the Lord’s Table in both...