LA Focus Article   H.B. Charles Make His Gospel Debut   H.B. Charles, Jr. – the widely respected pastor of 5,000 member strong, Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida – has operated with the title of “preacher” for decades. He can now add the title “recording artist” as his first solo album, Psalms, Hymns & Spiritual Songs, debuted in the Top-10 on the Billboard Gospel Sales chart when it was recently released. The single, “I’ll Fly Away,” is already cracking the Billboard Top-100. A program director in Mobile, Alabama calls the song “traditional Gospel at its best.” Produced by...

The following is a guest post written by DA Horton, who is a church planter and published author. Additional information on DA can be found at dahorton.com. I’ve read more articles and studies regarding the Millennial generation than I care to admit. It seems as if Corporate America, Marketing Firms, and colleges are all vying for the attention and dollars of this generation. All the while, the assumption within the Body of Christ is local churches need to overhaul their entire paradigm of ministry to attract millennials. To level the playing field, let me take a moment to identify just...

The following is a guest post written by Kevin Smith, Teaching Pastor at the Highview Baptist Church and preaching professor at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary - both in Louisville, Kentucky. Some preachers are not effective because they are unprepared. Faithful, biblical preaching is hard work, which requires preparation. Part (not all) of that preparation involves studying and learning. We must study the Word, even as we study ourselves for the purpose of greater godliness (1 Timothy 4:16). We must study the congregation, in order that we may properly feed them the Word of God (1 Peter 5:2). We must...

The following is a guest post by Cameron Triggs who is the Pastor of Youth & Young Adults of the Shiloh Church, where I serve as Pastor-Teacher. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” - Genesis 11:4 Recent studies by Pew Forum state only 20% of Americans are sharing their faith online weekly; less are Christians. Ironically, the amount of time spent on social media has consistently increased. Naturally, the question arises...

The following is a guest post by Dr. Melvin V. Wade Sr., who has served as the Senior-Pastor of the Mount Moriah Baptist Church in Los Angeles, California, for forty years. Check out the Melvin W. Wade Sr. Interview: Part 1, Part 2, & Part 3. The grace-given task of proclaiming the riches of a kingdom that is sure to come is an arduous task. No matter what one’s preaching niche or mode of presentation might be, preaching the gospel is a strenuous assignment. It is a physical, mental, and emotional drain. So how does the preacher develop and maintain the...

The following is a guest post by Cameron Triggs, Pastor of Youth and Young Adults at the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church in Jacksonville, FL. He blogs at camtriggs.com.   It happened again. No support. No budget. No promotion. No encouragement. No help. No volunteers. Few students. Exhausted Youth Pastor. Many churches struggle in this area. Most congregations still focus on their natural tendency to be adult-centered at the expense of excluding children & teens. In some sense, they are treated as a Junior Varsity team that few support. As youth workers, our job is to change that. We have to encourage the whole church...

The following is a guest post by Cameron Triggs, Pastor of Youth and Young Adults at the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church in Jacksonville, FL. He blogs at camtriggs.com.   “I’ve been thrown out some of the best churches in America.” Guess who said that? No, it was not Lecrae, Da’ Truth, Trip Lee or some other “rambunctious” rap artist. Actually, the man who uttered these words has also written monumental songs that can be found in those weird little red books called “Hymnals”. Need another hint? OK, he wrote a little song called “Take My Hand, Precious Lord”.  Are you...

The following is a guest post written by my friend Lance Mann  who serves as the Senior Pastor at St. Luke Missionary Baptist Church in Crockett, TX.  The first Sunday in December 2013 was like every other first Sunday. We arose this morning, attended Sunday School, participated in the baptism of a new member, and had a wonderful time in worship. But in actuality, this really wasn’t like any other Sunday. It was one year ago this Sunday, where I was introduced as the new Senior Pastor of the St. Luke Baptist Church, Crockett, TX. Our transition has had a few “bumps in...

Dr. Mack King Carter has transitioned from earthly labor to heavenly reward. For 27 years, Dr. Carter served as Senior Pastor of the New Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Fort Lauderdale. As featured speaker of a national broadcast and the National Baptist Convention Congress of Christian Education, Dr. Carter was a preacher's preacher. He was a model, African-American expository preacher, whose ministry and legacy should be celebrated. The following tribute to Dr. Carter is written by my friend , Dr. E. Dewey Smith, Senior Pastor of the Greater Traveler's Rest Church in Atlanta Georgia. In June 1988, I was blessed...

This post is a guest post by my friend, Charlie E. Dates. In 2011, at the age of 30, Charlie became the youngest pastor of the Progressive Baptist Church of Chicago's rich 93-year history. Charlie is married to Kirstie and is the proud father of their firstborn son, Charles Edward Dates II. To learn more about Pastor Charlie, click here. The Scene The place was packed. He grabbed the microphone and went to the pulpit. He pulled out his phone, read several verses from an Old Testament passage, and then put the phone back in his jacket. He was smooth....