Thanks for reading my blog. You can sign up for email updates of future posts under the picture to the left. SPECIAL NOTE: I received news that Dr. Timothy Winters, longtime Pastor of the Bayview Baptist Church in San Diego passed away this morning. Pastor Winters was a faithful shepherd, sound preacher, and friend of preachers. I will always be grateful for the investments he made in him. Please remember the Winters family and Bayview Church in your prayers. I had the joy of speaking at the Watermelon Shed Revival in Tifton, Georgia, this week. Had a blast! Thanks to...

Thanks for reading my blog! Saturday Shout-Outs is my weekly bulletin board. Hope you find something useful here. Shout-out to Bailey Smith for the opportunity to speak a the Real Evangelism Conference this week in Charlotte. It was a great experience! It was way cool to host Youth Quake Live at the Shiloh Church this weekend. Check out my interviews Bryan Loritts and Phillip Pointer. Read my new post: "In Praise of Long Pastorates" Thabiti Anyabwile: Why We Should Reject Queen Bey's Depiction of Black Womanhood R. Albert Mohler: Inerrancy: a modern definition of an historic view John Piper: Some...

My orientation to pastoral ministry is bent toward long pastorates. My father served the church I grew up in for more than forty years. My adopted dad has also served his congregation for forty years. My own pastor has served his congregation for thirty-five years. And most of the men who have shaped my faith, theology, and ministry philosophy have had long pastorates. Of course, not every man is cut out for long pastorates. The calling of the Lord on each person’s life is unique. And some men are not divinely wired for long pastorates. Some pastors are called to...

Please pray for Dr. John A. Reed, his family and congregation, as he celebrates the homegoing of his wife of 52 years today in Oklahoma City. Shout-out to our youth pastor, Cameron Triggs, and his volunteer team for leading a purity conference this weekend with more than 100 teens from Shiloh Church. You can preorder my upcoming book, "On Preaching," which will be released May 1. Make sure you check out the A. Louis Patterson Jr. Interview. Read "On Praise Dancing." Ray Ortland: Faithful Pastor, You're Not Crazy Daniel Darling: What Pastors Owe Their People Nathan Busenitz: Are Tongues Real Languages?...

Happy Presidents' Day! We had a blessed day of worship yesterday at the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church. During our 10:30 service, we had Parent-Child Dedications for six families. Always a joy! As always, I am grateful for our guests who joined us in worship. I preached from Ephesians 1:7-10. I called the message, “The Blessing of Redemption in Christ.” The point of the message was this: Praise God for blessing us with redemption in Christ. There were two major sections to the message: The present blessings of redemption in Christ (1:7-8) The future blessings of redemption in Christ (1:9-10) Redemption...

Thanks to all of you who offered me birthday wishes this week. Very kind. Truly encouraging. Thanks again. Suzy Keith, a longtime member of the Shiloh Church church, passed away this week. She was 96-years-old. Her service, kindness, and faithfulness will long be remembered. Pray for my Pops, Dr. John A. Reed, Jr., his family, and the Fairview Baptist Church of Oklahoma City. This week, Pastor Reed's wife of 52 years, Patricia Reed, transitioned from earth to glory. My friend, Joe A. Carter, who serves the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, was to be our guest speaker this week....

It was a long, busy, and wonderful weekend of ministry. Friday evening, I had the privilege of speaking at the Jacksonville Pastors’ Conference hosted by Dr. Mac Brunson and the First Baptist Church. It was a privilege and an honor. Dr. Brunson has been a friend to me since I arrived in Jacksonville. And the Lord is doing a great work at First Baptist. Ligon Duncan’s conference message on 1 Kings 19 Thursday evening was stellar. I needed that message more than I can say. The combined choirs of the Shiloh Church and the First Baptist Church sang together before...

Shout-out to the members of the Shiloh Church for your participation in our 2014 Prayer Emphasis Week. It happens after prayer! January 19 is Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. I hope to see this coming week at the Jacksonville Pastors' Conference at the First Baptist Church, led by Dr. Mac Brunson. Ray Pritchard: 20 Sermons for Sanctity of Human Life Sunday Tony Merida: 9 Benefits of Expository Preaching Jared C. Wilson: In Praise of Fat Pastors Thom Rainer: 11 Things I Learned from Pastors' Wives Ed Stetzer: 5 Ways to Teach Your Children to Hate the Ministry John: Money: An...

This has been Prayer Emphasis Week at the Shiloh Church. Our simple goal is to begin our year in prayer, submitting to God's will and depending upon power. And it has been a great week! In past years, we have prepared prayer guides with specific targets to pray for each day. And we had a daily prayer meeting at noon to pray together. But we have done something different this year. On Sunday, members wrote prayer requests on cards and brought them to the steps around our pulpit. And we left them there, asking members to come throughout the week...

For many years, I served a church in the shadows of many so-called "megachurches" in my city. This was not a thing for me. I believed my congregation was, pound-for-pound, just as strong and healthy and fruitful as these larger congregations. But there were times when I felt the pressure to measure up to other congregations. This pressure was self-inflicted. At points, I foolishly accepted the deception that numbers, prominence, and apparent success were the signs of God's blessings on a church or ministry. They are not. During one of these periods, I discovered a truth that set me free:...

January 12-19 is Prayer Emphasis Week at the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church. We start the year in believing prayer for one another, our congregation, and our city. Between our two services, I taught a lesson entitled, “Pray for One Another,” about the importance of intercessory prayer. I intend to teach, “Pray for the Lost,” next Sunday. Shout-out to our new media team members for your service this weekend. Great job! We had a lot of guests in worship. Very encouraging. Praise God for the one who was baptized! The choir did a prayer medley before I preached that was fantastic....

January 12-19 is Prayer Emphasis Week at the Shiloh Church. Please join us as we begin the new year by giving ourselves and our needs to the Lord in believing prayer. A big shout-out to the brothers at the Reformed African American Network for the opportunity to do their Pass the Mic Interview Podcast. Check out the guest post written by Cameron Triggs, the Pastor of Students at the Shiloh Church: 5 Ways Christian Hip Hop Can Help Serve the Church The Jacksonville Pastors' Conference is just a couple of weeks away. You don't want to miss it! I will...