College men: Rodney (Penn), Edwin (Yale) and Kevin (Cheyney)
Derrell with uncle Sam III,
grandpa Sam Jr. 'n uncle Tim
Sam
III (20)
enjoys the Bible school he's at, but he's looking for more depth.
He's doing a lot of in-depth study on his own, exegeting details in the
Scriptures worthy of a seminarian. He asked me to teach him New Testament
Greek, and we've been getting together regularly for the last month. He's picking it up
very quickly. As the Christian rapper The Activist he's also gotten
some recording done and had an album release party with co-rappers R-Swift
and G-Wade at
Oasis of Praise Ministries here in Philadelphia, PA on February 23, 2002.
We're God's Peeps
- spittin' a couple of Ac' pieces
No matter what you say, son, we're speakin' God's Thesis
You don't know God 'til you've met our Jesus
Please believe us - Matthew 22: Street Sweepers
Web site: www.flava4thesavior.com
Tim
Sam's
younger brother, Tim, said he feels called to the pastorate (a call he's had
since he was 7 or 8 years old) and he's looking for a way to go to Bible
college. He's willing to go into the military service to find a way to pay
for it, saying, "If God could bring me out of all my stupid situations, I
know He can bring me back" [from serving in the armed forces, even in a war
situation]. Wow. Interesting and convicting convo from an
18-year-old whose confidence is confidently in the Lord. Same convo
included a question son unexpectedly challenged me with —
a question one rarely gets
from someone his age: "Do you agree with the accommodation theory in how
the Lord reveals Himself to people?" Wow. He has his Bible in
one hand and his backpack in the other as he heads out the door to catch the bus
to his job at
Willow Grove Mall. Again, I say: Wow. We've been getting
together once a week for Bible study, and I wish I could convey to you the
colorful and creative both he and Sam exegete the Scriptures. I'll work on
getting a sample of that to ya. I'm trying to plug Tim and Sam into as
many ministry venues as I can find —
their testimonies and lives are
encouraging and impressive. The tenor of their lives? Sam and Tim are for Sam and Tim. Sam and
Tim are for Christ. They're
hardly perfect (just ask Dad), but they are being perfected.
An older sister requests prayer
for her 11-year-old brother whose attitude is troubling the whole family.
Adam Taliaferro carrying the
Olympic torch, December 18, 2001-02
Adam and his Dad Andre,
after completing his part of the torch's journey
What an incredible encouragement
and privilege it was to see, support and shake the hand of Adam Taliaferro.
This young man carried the Olympic torch for a couple of blocks
on South Street as it made its way through Philadelphia on its way from Athens,
Greece to Salt Lake City, UT. Adam's been through a lot. Playing the defensive
back position for Penn State's football team, he was critically injured Sept.
23, 2000, when his head hit the knee of an Ohio State running back. A bone in
his neck shattered, bruising his spinal cord. That ended his football career,
but Adam (who turned 20 on New Year's Day 2002) is now a student assistant
coach for the team and is back in school while continuing his rehabilitation.
His father, Andre, following him with a camcorder, said he was having a hard
time keeping up with him (He's moving faster than I am.). What a thrill to see
him walking again, (some doctors were doubtful) and we want to praise and thank
You, Lord Jesus, for restoring this young man's ability to do so. Click here
for a video clip of son's triumphant trek with the torch.
Dajuan with some young fans after the game at Temple
U.
Been a while since I've been able
to see Dajuan Wagner in a basketball game —
he's now playing for the University of Memphis under Coach John Calipari.
And he's doing well. He came to Philly with the team to play Temple
U. on December 20th — Lamar S. (who
recently turned 18) and I went
to see the game. Dajuan did not disappoint, although he
was held to only 15 points in the game (the Memphis Tigers beat the Temple Owls
64-54). He played well and is a joy to watch in both his fierce, focused on-court style of play as well as his gentle, almost painfully-shy off-court
demeanor. Son still takes the time to sign autographs for little kids!
The capacity crowd of 10,206 included a number of "celeb" types: rapper Jay-Z
(a.k.a. Shawn Carter),
many of the Philadelphia 76ers (including Alan Iverson, Dikembe
Mutombo, Raja Bell, Derrick Coleman and Aaron McKie
(who received the school's first Distinguished Professional Athlete Award as a
former Temple Owl), along with former NBA player Ron Harper and
others. I do want to give a big "thank you" to Sis. Doris J., for
getting those books to Juanny.
Seen here in the studio,
Anthony's become quite the producer.
What a tremendous blessing to
hear from Patersonian
friends Jermaine Floyd and Charles Young. Jermaine's
dividing his time between driving for New Jersey Transit and driving for several
school districts. He's doing great and I hope to maybe see him and Chuck
face to face (it's been 8 years since I left Paterson for Philadelphia). Charles Young called about a week or so after Jermaine to say he's getting
married in October to Lisa Clark. He's working with the Juvenile
Justice Commission serving a 5-county area in north Jersey, and indicated he's
considering a run for a councilman's seat! I hope I might be able to get
up to my old stompin' grounds there in Paterson for a revival at Faith Chapel
Reformed Church during the 2nd week of March.
IN THE
MILITARY Richard
Greene called to say that he and his wife Dameka will be off to
Missouri in November for basic training in the military. David
Brandon Ellison is serving our country as an Army hospital medic at Fort Riley in
Kansas. Prince Brown wrote to say he's making the D.C. area his
"final stop." Really looking forward to talking with him. Reggie
Schofield wrote to say he got married a couple of months ago! He's
in the Middle East right now, so please do pray for him. He's doing just
fine.
Sister Dorothy
Mae Ballard left this life suddenly on January 8, 2002. She was a
truly beloved 51-year-old public school
music teacher, gifted vocalist, choir director, joy-giving encourager (she
always had a smile for you). Oh, how we're gonna miss your gracious presence in
our midst and wait until He comes for us to see you again. The awesome
testament and impact of her life was demonstrated in her home church (Third
Eternal Baptist Church) was absolutely packed out (many watched the service
televised into the Ruth Washington Fellowship Hall).
I beseech you to seriously go
before the Lord in prayer for a 23-year-old (let's call him "Brother J.")
who's earnestly seeking to do the righteous thing after coming to faith in
Christ about 5 months ago. He's manifesting remarkable Christian growth
but struggles mightily with the strong temptation to occasionally turn back to
the fast money found in the "game" (dealing drugs). It's
tough. Dude has crossed over to the Lord's side and is there on the front
line for Christ -- and accordingly catching enemy fire big time. The Lord
Jesus must have some serious big plans for this young brother.
Minister
Antoine Brown and his wife Janice are the proud parents of their
firstborn Jared Lamont, born on November 1st. Little (?) guy came into the world at 21
inches and weighing at 9 lbs 1 oz!
Congratulations
also to William (The Ambassador) and Michelle Branch, who are the proud
parents of a brand new baby girl named Eden Lael, born December 10th in
Dallas, TX.
Juan James (a.k.a. enocK,
formerly with the Cross Movement) is back in Philadelphia after spending a
year-and-a-half in Columbus, OH where he maintained an
active speaking ministry and invested himself in number of young Christian
hip-hoppers lives. I've always been impressed by his lion-like-lamb-like
character.
Got a very encouraging email from
former CUTS student Jermaine Heath - he's gotten married to a young lady
named Janell on September 1st and is also finishing up his last semester
at Philadelphia Biblical University. Heard from a reliable source that
he's quite the preacher. Hope to hook up with him soon.
WHOA! Blessed,
rejoicing and humbled to hear once again from high-caliber 17-year-old Central
High School senior Chris A. (he used to be in our Youth Choir at Germantown
Christian Assembly). He's presently involved in a dizzying number of
pursuits -- among them being Vice President of the Former Central High School
Gospel Choir (rehearsing, ministering and touring with the group), taking Latin
and Pharmacology,
being on the gymnastics and track teams (although he's now tending to a foot
stress fracture), spending a few days up at Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH;
studying the martial arts, entering another talent competition (singing "Nothing
Else Matters" by Marvin Sapp), maintaining a 96.365 cumulative high
school average (C.H.S. is one of the top-rated high schools in the country [it
is the 2nd oldest high school in the country, founded in 1836], so
this is no small achievement). When asked what kind of reading he's been
doing, he replied, "I was studying the 2nd chapter of the book of Daniel
last night..." and broke the passage down for me. Talk about a Daniel
in our midst! Pray for this young man as he makes critical choices in
regard to which college to attend next year (Dartmouth? Cornel?
Tuskegee? Yale?), and what it is the Lord's designed him to do (An animal behavior
specialist? A veterinarian? A medical doctor? Going into the
ministry?). Chris' life is impressive: he's wise beyond his years -- very
level-headed -- sharp as a tack -- a superb athlete. He exudes a
self-effacing humility and is very serious about the Lord and doing His
will. Oh, man! If ever you get discouraged about where young people
are at (or headed) these days, don't be. The Lord's got some really
encouraging youth and young adults tucked away, being prepped for His purposes
-- which is what Chris says he always wants to be ready for. The tenor of
his life? Chris is not
for Chris. Chris is for Christ. He's hardly perfect, but he is
being perfected.
The Hough family here at the
house
It was wonderful to see Michael
and Mila Hough and their two children, Micha (8) and Melody
(6) again as they came through Philadelphia for a brief visit in
mid-October. They're presently on furlough from their ministry in
Suriname, South America.
Here's a prayer request for a
particular set of people: please pray for the 3 members of a north Philadelphia-based
on-the-rise rap group called
Ghost Writers (as well as their crew and associates) — that they'd find the One
they don't know they're looking for, Who has already come and is looking for
them. Thanks!
PAST
PERAMBULATIONS
TAVIS
SMILEY PRESENTS: "WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? CHAOS or COMMUNITY? Black America's Vision for Healing, Harmony and Higher
Ground" - Held at Sharon
Baptist Church on February 23, 2002 this conference featured an impressive array of
African American leaders and thinkers from all over the country,
tackling such issues as racial profiling, reparations, education, defense spending, and the Bush administration's recent antiterrorism bill.
The day
was divided into two panel discussions and was broadcast on C-SPAN. Former
BET talk show host Tavis Smiley along with radio personality Tom Joyner brought in ( for the
a.m. panel ) DePaul
professor and author Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, Harvard Law professor Lani
Guinier, National Urban League president Hugh Price, NCAAP LDF
president Elaine Jones, NYC Riverside Church's Rev. James Forbes,
newspaper contributor 16-year-old Nashid "Ibn" Ali,
motivational speaker and author Rev. Dr. Bernice King, NYC comptroller William
C. Thompson, Jr. Philadelphia International Records cofounder Kenneth
Gamble, African American Policy Forum executive director Kimberle
Williams Cresnshaw and Harvard professor Dr. Cornel West. The
panel was moderated by MSNBC legal analyst Raymond Brown.
The afternoon panel was comprised
of columnist Stanley Crouch, psychologist and educator Dr. Na'im
Akbar, motivational speaker Iyanla Vanzant, Columbia professor Dr.
Manning Marable, Congressional representative Chaka Fattah,
ecumenical minister Rev. Bernice King, pre-eminent dean of American preachers Gardner C. Taylor,
poetess Sonia Sanchez, impressive
30-year-old Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, lawyer Johnnie Cochran,
Jr., activist Al Sharpton, 15-year-old Cincinnati, OH activist-organizer
Derrick Blassingame and Congressional representative Barbara Lee.
The afternoon panel was moderated by Harvard Law School professor Charles Ogletree.
Kudos and a heart-felt sense of
profound gratitude to Tavis for assembling so august an Aerogapus of African American
academicians, achievers, activists, administrators,
advocates, artists and authors. It was truly a first class event, one of the most
interesting I've had the privilege of attending in a long time. The discourse
was lively, engaging, enlightening, en pointe and even entertaining. For sure there was
some shaky, flaky, snaky stuff
said ( 'nuff said — the Apostle John said to test
the spirits in 1 John 4:1ff ), but Jesus Christ got represented in the house extremely well.
Rev. Bernice King ( Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s daughter )
nailed America's need on the head when she remarked that we need revival here in
America. Couldn't agree more.
FIRST BAPTIST
CHURCH of HIGHLAND PARK (MD) J.A.M. YOUTH RETREAT
- Middletown, MD - February 8-10, 2002 Four churches were represented (F.B.C.H.P. in Landover, MD, Emmanuel
Baptist (Washington, D.C.), St. James Baptist (Beverly, NJ) and Third Eternal
Baptist Church (Philadelphia, PA). Capably led by Deacon Ed Harrison
and Sis. Janice Edwards, and a host of other in-tune, on-time, in-touch
youth leaders, this excellent retreat afforded 180 or so young people grand
opportunities for instruction, fellowship, recreation and peer ministry.
And I have to say, it was one of the most stress-free youth retreats I've ever
been on — and this was the first time we've had a group come from my home
church. I was tremendously encouraged to see the 10 young people that came
from T.E.B.C. exercise their gifts and leadership throughout the weekend.
Wow. They really blessed my heart, as well as Sis. Mary Washington's
and Bro. Dwayne Garner's. (
For more on this
great weekend, click here for a retreat recording of AMAGOH
and here for photos ).
CHRISTIAN
STRONGHOLD BAPTIST CHURCH MISSIONS CONFERENCE - November 19. A
wonderful day of fellowship with the saints at this great church in West
Philadelphia shepherded by Rev. Dr. Willie Richardson, Senior Pastor and
Founder. The highlight
for me was talking with some people I haven't seen for a while: Doris J.
(former Streamside counselor, now Temple University senior), Cynthia Haynes (Young
Life staff member), Tonita C. (former C.U.T.S. student now leading a
Bible study with a crew of teenagers in Delaware), Derrick Mason one of
the ministers at C.S.B.C.), and of course, the marvelous Marva Washington
who puts this event and everybody together each year.
SOCCER
UNCLE My dear goddaughter, Carolyn W. was quite the high
school soccer phenom this season (her senior year). Her soccer team won three titles this
season -- the NBIL Division 1, Bergen County, and Group 3, North 1.
Unfortunately they didn't get the sweep in their last game, the Group 3 State championship.
But oh, how well she played! Now she's finishing up an equally spectacular
basketball season.
BETHEL
BAPTIST CHURCH MISSIONS CONFERENCE - Wilmington, DE - November 9 -
Had a wonderful time with some really keen, talented, well-discipled,
missions-minded, encouraging high school students at a Friday night coffee-house
at this extremely "youther-friendly" church. Thank you, Agnes
S., Russ B., Jean and Pastor Ryle for inviting me to
be with your fine crew of young peeps (and thank you, young
people, for your ministry to me. Rollin' up to 'n wit' this church's crew
was a spiritually oxygenating experience.
NEW CHURCH
YOUTH CHOIR Tried
establishing a youth choir at The Temple of Prayer in West Philadelphia, where Pastor Bill Groomes
and his wife, Debbie are laboring. Didn't work out exactly
the way we expected, but Pastor Bill told me some new stuff got started as a
result of our interaction at this non-denominational
fellowship.
MANNA
BIBLE INSTITUTE STUDENT/ALUMNI RETREAT - Black Rock Retreat in Quarryville, PA - November 2-4.
Glad to get together with the saints from M.B.I. again for their 29th Annual
Retreat. Thanks again, Sis. Maria Burton and Sis. Cleonia Walker
for putting me in with the crew. Emanuel Lambert, Sr. (Executive
Pastor of the
Sharon Baptist Church in Philadelphia) was the retreat speaker. He's also the
father of Cross Movement-affiliated rapper T.R.U.T.H.. They had me in to
do the praise and worship and lead the retreat choir.
ST.
MATTHEWS BAPTIST CHURCH MISSIONS CONFERENCE -
Williamstown, NJ - October 27. Highlights of this event were 1) Bro.
Tim H. and I having the opportunity to address a group of 13-16-year-olds in
a session entitled, "Peer Outreach," and being able to catch up with
people I don't get to see all that often (notably Pastor Hal Hopkins) and
meeting others in various ministries. Thank you again, Sis. Elaine
Siryon, for having us out to speak to some of the dear young people you have
at your church. Press on, Shawn, Malcolm and Carlos!
59th
STREET BAPTIST CHURCH YOUTH MEETING - Philadelphia, PA - October 26.
Thanks, Brian, for having me back again at the church to work with your
dear young people. Had a great time once again. I praise God for
the "youth-er friendly fellowship y'all got going on there. Thanks,
Wayne Williams, for your ministry there also -- and congratulations on
becoming a "walking" deacon. Wayne also invited me in to
participate musically in their church leadership conference on January 26, 2002.
![YUBM [' yueb-oum ] pr.n.: Young Urban Black Male : distinguished tribe : distinctive vibe : uniquely positioned for a strategic role in redemptive history.](YUBMLog1.gif)
