I am between flights, on my way home from Little Rock. Last night I finished three nights of preaching at the St. Peter Baptist Church, pastored by Robert Townsend. It was a good meeting. St. Peter is a good preaching place. They were attentive, patient, and receptive. This is a reflection of their pastor, R. Townsend. He himself is a strong Bible preacher, so I don't think his congregation expected him to bring in a preacher to feed them "popcorn." This was my second time preaching at St. Peter. Last year, before my arrival, Pastor Townsend sent me an information...

I listened today to an 9 Marks Ministries interview with Mark Dever and Phillip Graham Ryken of the Tenth Presbyterian Church in downtown Philadelphia. Dr. Ryken quoted Sinclair Ferguson about the faithfulness of God. In essence, the statement went like this: "Our confidence in the faithfulness of God is not just expressed in our thankful praise for what he is done in the past. It's also expressed in the works we endeavor to do for the Lord that require us to trust him in the future." I know that was not how the quote went, exactly. But that's the gist...

Monday night, I have the privilege of speaking in the chapel service of the Los Angeles Bible Training School. This training school is doing a great work, as it comes alongside local churches and assists in trains ministers and "lay people" to study, understand, and teach the word of God. One of the pastors of our church, George Hurtt, teaches a class on the Gospel of Matthew there. And two other of our pastors, Anthony Thompson and John Scroggins, attend classes there. The costs are minimum; but the rewards are great. The teachers are trained men who are committed to...

I am in Little Rock, preaching the "Vision Conference 2006" for Pastor Robert Townsend and the St. Peter Missionary Baptist Church. And you can call me "The Rainman." It has been raining much of the past week or so in Los Angeles. And I came here expecting it to be very cold. But when I arrived yesterday, it was in the seventies. My son called me and told me it was raining. I laughed and told him the sun was shining here. But I might have spoke to soon. When I woke up this morning and opened the shades, their...

I am still recovering from yesterday. I feel like one pastor who I heard say, "I spend four months in church every Sunday." Most Sundays are long days for me. But yesterday was unusually so. For starters, my Saturday did not go as I planned. That's my fault. But my anxious Saturday followed my into Sunday. And I really wasn't as mentally alert as I usually am. In fact, I locked myself into my office an hour before Sunday School and typed out notes for myself to take to the pulpit. I write out my messages word for word each...

As the Apostle Paul spread the gospel of Jesus Christ, there was a group of religious zealots (scholars call them "Judaizers") who followed him around "correcting" his teachings. These Judaizers contended that true salvation required both faith in Jesus Christ and adherence to the Mosaic Law of the Old Testament, particularly circumcision. Over and over again, Paul had to proclaim and defend the fact that God saves sinners by grace through faith in Christ, plus or minus nothing. I sometimes wonder if these men were sincere guys who just had some of the facts wrong. But one thing is for...

This past weekend, I published my 100th post on this blog. Happy anniversary hblogcharlesjr!!! I don't think this has any deep significance or anything like that. In fact, I only noticed it in passing as I was signing on to the "dashboard" of my blog. But if TV shows can throw a big party after 100 episodes, I can at least note the fact that I have been at this for 100 posts. My first post was on August 15, last year. I simply called it, "I'm a Blogger Now!" It was really just a test post to see if...

This past Sunday I was absent from my pulpit at Mt. Sinai. I preached for another congregation. This is something that rarely happens over the course of the year. And it even more rare that I am absent from my own pulpit to preach somewhere in the Los Angeles area. If there is any place I would be preaching on a Sunday besides Mt. Sinai, it would be Mt. Moriah Baptist Church, where my pastor (Dr. Melvin V. Wade, Sr.) serves. There are very few others places that I would go to on a Sunday morning. But this past Sunday,...

I am at Disneyland with Crystal and the kids. I am typing this post on my phone (a first for me). Crystal kept the kids out of school today so that we could spend some time together. Last year, we bought annual passes, so we are able to come to the park without it costing us a kidney each time. I have much work to do this weekend. But I probably would not be able to get much of it done without spending some quality/quantity time with Crystal, H.B., and Natalie. I love them. I miss them. And I am...

Thanks for your prayers. The Lord blessed me to preach both messages yesterday. And he sustained me both physically and spiritually. The host pastors and attending church members were very prayerful, kind, and encouraging. I am very grateful for the privilege of participating in this meeting. I recognize these men could have asked anyone to come to their city to preach to their congregations. I am thankful that the Lord placed me on their hearts and led them to extend this invitation to me for the second time. The citywide meeting officially ends tonight, with a youth emphasis service. I...

Please pray for me today. I am preaching in the citywide revival in San Francisco. I am the day speaker. The evening speaker is Dr. Marvin E. Wiley of the great Rock of Ages Baptist Church in Maywood, Illinois. There was a schedule conflict. And Dr. Wiley had to leave this morning to make it to another meeting. So I will be preaching both the day and evening session today. I have been struggling with voice/throat problems all week long. Last year, I caught a really bad cold here. This time, my voice has just left me. I don't know...

I am coming off a long and busy week right into another one. Last Wednesday through Friday, I preached at the St. Paul Baptist Church in Sacramento, where Dr. Ephraim Williams is the pastor. The congregation was warm, prayerful and encouraging. And it was a blessing to spend time with Pastor Williams, who has so much pastoral wisdom to share. Saturday morning, I flew home, changed clothes, and headed to Mt. Sinai to lead a funeral service for a dear and longtime member of the church. Afterward, I was pretty wiped out. I took a really long nap, and then...