We pause this week at the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church to thank God for five years the Lord has blessed us to serve him together as pastor and people. It seems such a cliché to say that time flies. But it really doesn't seem like it has been five years already. These years have been filled with good days and bad days. But through it all, our sovereign, good, and faithful God has richly favored our partnership in the gospel. I believe the Lord joins pastors and people together. And I am grateful that he has given me the privilege...

November 5, 1990. This is a date indelibly sketched in my heart and mind. It was a Monday evening. The congregation at Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles gathered to select a new pastor. My father, H.B. Charles, Sr., served the church for four decades. Eighteen months later, the church was ready to call a new pastor. I had no plans of attending this meeting. I thought it would be too difficult to sit through a meeting where a new man would be called to the church my father served for so long. But I changed my mind...

It was good to be in worship with the wonderful congregation of the Shiloh Church today! I led the congregation in corporate singing, which is always a joy. Glad to have all of our guests in worship today. We celebrated the Lord’s Table in both of our worship services. Our team prepared a video of the to mark the 5th anniversary of my call to Shiloh. Very moving. I continued my series on Revelation 2-3. I preached from Revelation 2:18-29 – “Be Careful What You Tolerate.” This text is the longest of the letters to the seven churches. But it...

Dr. George Waddles is the Pastor of the Zion Hill Baptist Church in Chicago, co-founder of WHW Expository Preaching Conference, President of the Bible Exposition Conference, and President of the National Baptist Convention USA Congress of Christian Education. Pastor Waddles is committed to expository preaching and seeks to train the next generation to rightly handle the word of truth. The following is an interview with Pastor Waddles in which we discuss his testimony, preaching, and ministry. Enjoy! Did you find this interview helpful? Join the discussion in the comments section. 

Praise God for the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary! It was a joy and privilege to participate in The Expositors Summit this week with Dr. R. Albert Mohler and Dr. Alistair Begg. Thanks to Dan, Jeff, and the entire Southern Seminary team for the invitation, great kindness, and wonderful experience. It was a blessing to spend time with Brian Croft of Practical Shepherding. A special thanks to Pastor C.J. Mahaney and the Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville for the opportunity to minister the word last Lord's Day! Thanks to Dr. Dennis Hollinger, President of the Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary for ministering the...

I was introduced to the ministry of Ray Pritchard through his books. I have never failed to profit from a Pritchard book. But I enjoy his preaching even more than I love his books. Ray is a clear and compelling Bible preacher, whose love for Christ and people is evident as he proclaims the word of God. Even though Ray is no longer in a full-time pastorate, he still has a pastor's heart. And it shows. In part 2 of my interview with Ray, we discuss preaching and pastoral ministry, along with things God is doing in his life and...

Saturday Shout-Outs is my weekly bulletin board of things I have found interesting and worth sharing this week. You can sign up for email updates of future posts under the picture to the left. Make sure you to check out part one of my interview with Ray Pritchard. I will post part two next week. Shout-out to my friends and staff who have helped me this week to plan the Cutting It Straight Expository Preaching Conference we will host at the Shiloh Church September 24-26, 2014. Thanks to Pastor Ricky Turner for the opportunity to preach the word to the Oak...

I started blogging because of Ray Pritchard. I bought one of his books and became an instant fan. When I looked up his church website, I found his blog. It was the first pastor's blog I had ever read. And I read it religiously after that. I read it so much that I decided to try my hand in it. So we can all blame Ray Pritchard for my blogging foibles. I shot Pritchard an email question one day. He respond. And thus began our friendship. In more ways than I can describe, Ray has been a friend, mentor, and...

We had a good day of worship at the Shiloh Church today. It feels odd not to teach my Bible Study Fellowship group this semester. But I am so glad not to have to prepare another lesson each week. Need the rest. As always, it was good to have all of our guests in worship today, including an old friend from Los Angeles. Praise God for the four persons who were baptized today! I continued my brief series on Revelations 2-3, "Let the Church Be the Church." The burden of this series is simply that the world at its worst needs...

Thanks for reading my blog. You can sign up for email updates of future posts under the picture to the left. Make sure you watch the Lance Watson Interview. We are just a little more than a week away from the SBTS Expositors Conference. Register before it's too late! SBTS Resources: Recovering the Vision: The Presidency of R. Albert Mohler Jr.  John Piper: Free PDF Download of Brothers, We Are Not Professionals  Charlie Dates: Why Should I Expect from My Preacher? Thabiti Anyabwile: Why You Should Care About the "Strange Fire" Discussion Tony Carter: The Need for Theological Preaching Bobby Gilles:...

Dr. Lance Watson is the Senior Pastor of The St. Paul’s Baptist Church, which meets at three locations in Richmond and Petersburg, Virginia. It is his first pastorate, where he has served for twenty-eight years. Watson is also a sought-after speaker, preaching extensively in churches and conferences around the country. The story of the Lord’s work in Pastor Watson’s life and ministry is truly remarkable. And I hope your confidence in the sovereign providence of God will grow as you watch the following interview. Did you find this interview encouraging? Join the conversation in the comments section. 

The following is a guest post written by my fried Charlie Dates, who serves as pastor of the Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago. There is a reason reality TV works. Unlike sitcoms, reality TV is inexpensive to produce. Very few sets and props have to be made. No script-writers need to be hired. The typical union fees associated with high caliber actors do not apply. It is full of drama. And perhaps most importantly, televised depravity is in high demand. Like some of you, I remember when MTV first aired the ‘Real World’ series in 1992. It was our generation's...