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Spring-Summer 2003 Newsletter

Philippians 3:10

PARTICULARS PERTAINING to PRESENT PURSUITS

R.I.P., P.

YOUNG BROTHER CUT DOWN  "Pain in my chest is strong..."  Shocked to hear of the death of Preston Thomas, a young man who occasionally played the drums for the Youth / Young Adult Choir at Third Eternal Baptist Church.  I was told he was shot twice in the heart August 2nd in the 4400 block of Clarissa Street here in North Philly, apparently a case of mistaken identity.  Son was but 19 years old.  The funeral was a bit of a tough one in that the church was filled with a lot of his friends (he was b.k.a. "Sincere" to them), many of whom wore the customary street-style airbrushed graffiti "R.I.P." t-shirts (with his picture).  A group of these same young people even rented a stretch limousine for the day, and at various times — at the church, outside it, and at the gravesite —- were alternately stoic and inconsolable.  I spotted the limo as I drove back home through the neighborhood where Preston was shot (the Tioga-Nicetown section of north Philly), and I couldn't help but ponder what profound grief, loneliness and despair there must have been in the hearts of those teenagers 'n young adults when the limo driver dropped them off.  Lord Jesus, You're the God of the "Outsider" — by Your grace minister to these broken and empty young hearts, without hope and without God in the world.  Heal his family 'n me too, please . . .   

ANOTHER YOUNG BROTHER CUT DOWN  - While up in Maine I got a call from the mother of a 21-year-old whose best friend (Hakeem, age 20) died in his arms after being shot while they were out on the street.  Called her son jus' to talk for a bit.  It was a difficult convo.  How long, O LORD?

Tyree David Lytes at Streamside

YET ANOTHER YOUNG FRIEND'S LIFE CUT SHORT  "Pain in my chest is strong... (again)"  Deeply saddened 'n troubled by news of the June 2nd murder of friend Bro. Tyree Lytes (age 23) near his home in the West Oak Lane section here in Philly.  Seems there were two men who harassed and threatened him at gunpoint before shooting him multiple times.  Son died at Einstein Hospital at 11:07 p.m., about 45 minutes after the shooting, and police are looking for a 23- and 18-year-old.  [A former student of mine who lives a couple of houses away from Tyree's home told me there were about 30 9mm shell casings found on the ground.]  Tyree played the drums for some of the groups I used to play for, after I met him at the Streamside Youth Retreats years ago (used to him lug that heavy drum equipment all over the place).  Although I'd lost contact with him in the past couple a years, I'm really gonna miss his loyal friendship, quick smile, easygoing nature and unique personality.  Born prematurely and dying prematurely, his was a Jabez-style existence — 'n son fought the good fight.  I'm countin' on the Lord Jesus to be able to see him again on the other side, but right now, I really just don't understand.  It hurts.  Deep.

R.I.P., T.
- funeral program photo -

SORT of an UNSPOKEN PRAYER REQUEST - On May 6th I met with Dr. Manny Ortiz — one of my former professors at Westminster Theological Seminary (an internationally-recognized educator and author in the field of urban ministry) — and was given a huge 3-part challenge.  Accordingly, I solicit your earnest prayer regarding this matter — one that would be a great honor and privilege (not to mention a great challenge) to see come to pass.  Thanks for taking this matter to the Lord on my behalf.  Thank you!   

Calvary Chapel in northeast Philadelphia is my present church "home" where I've re-discovered the joy of worship and am enjoying the excellent and practical expository Bible teaching of Pastor Joe Focht.  Calvary Chapel is for me a much-needed sabbatical-type experience, and I'm still waiting on the Lord as to where He wants me to be.  Every other Sunday I am (still) at the Great Commission Church in Rosalyn, where Hal Hopkins, Sr. is the Pastor.  

PEOPLE to PERSONALLY PARTNER in PRAYER for

AUTO ACCIDENT - Pray for Dedot who was in a very bad car accident.  He returned home from the hospital but had to be readmitted to yet another one due to some complications — and now he 's finally back home again.  Gonna take some time for recovery 'n rehabilitation — his right hip was shattered, he's got a rod in his right thigh, his right ankle's broken and a cinder block (which came through the windshield) hit him in the chest.  It's nothin' other than the grace of God that he survived.  Took emergency responders an hour to extricate him from the car.

Happy 17th birthday, Robert (seen here with a friend 'n his 8-year-old sister).
It was a difficult day: the funeral of his cousin Preston, Dad's in the hospital,
and the anniversary of his grandmother's homegoin' a number of years ago.

ROUND THREE - Thank you all who have been praying for my Mom.  Doctors have started her in on "heavy-hitter" chemotherapy after some new lumps appeared after her being 3 months free from her second round of cancer.  Please continue in prayer for her, my Dad and my whole family as we go through this next new season of uncertainty.  Thank you for your intercession (past, present 'n future) in this matter.

TRAGEDY - Tom Sacher, the former Director of Camp Streamside, was hit by a car while walking and died from his injuries on May 20th.  Tom suffered from Alzheimer's and evidently wandered off the campground and was probably unaware of the danger he was in.  Please do pray for his wife Joyce and their children, and especially for the driver of the vehicle that struck him.  The Lord Jesus is gonna work this all out for His glory — it's just gonna take some time.  A memorial service is scheduled for June 1st at Streamside in the Poconos.  (Tom is the guy who first brought me into the ministry at Streamside in the early 1980's.)

AN NBA FAREWELL - David Robinson, center for the San Antonio Spurs, retired from the team after they won the 2003 National Basketball Association championship against the New Jersey Nets on June 15. It is the NBA's loss.  In a league dominated more and more by image-style-conscious thug-entrepreneurial playaz, David stood tall and apart.  He had quite a testimony all throughout the league and you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who has anything bad to say about him (other than he wouldn't act "hard" like a thug like almost everyone else does).  A strong witness for the Lord Jesus, David and his wife made the decision about his retirement before the 2002-2003 season started, and they'll be devoting their time to doing ministry and working with some educational endeavors they started (and fund) in San Antonio.  Thank you, David, for that rare find of role-model-worthy leadership and for standing true to Christ in a venue where many got their cross tattoos 'n ice but know nothing about taking theirs up, denying themselves 'n following Him.  

WORKING WOMAN MAGAZINE MODEL - Apryll A.'s been featured in the cover story of the May 2003 issue of Working Mother Magazine.  Apryll is the mother of one of my godsons (Jon).

FAMILY LIFE AT SEMINARY - Got a postcard from Kyle and Pam Canty and called them to hear that they're doing just fine in Louisville, KY.  Kyle finished up his first semester at S.B.T.S., lookin' forward to the fall semester and Pam's doing fine also.  She and Kyle are the proud parents of their firstborn, Micah Daniel Canty who came into this world at 3:00 pm on May 15, 2003, weighing in at 7 lbs. 8 oz. — and 19 inches tall.  (This photo shows Micah 8 weeks old and he's obviously one happy li'l fella!)  Hallelujah!  Do continue praying for them! 

PAST PERAMBULATIONS
( listed in reverse chronological order )

BLESS THE LORD JESUS for being invited to meet with one of Philadelphia's pre-eminent Pastors to discuss how to reach "those whose headz is in hip-hop."  We met for a couple of hours, and I'm absolutely amazed and stunned that this elder Caleb / Apostle-John-like saint — who's in his 70's and has seen and done so much here in the city of Philadelphia and literally all around the world — is yet seeking to stay on the cutting edge of ministry.  Rare.  Looks like it's gonna be an on-going high-impact ministry partnership.  The Lord also blessed me the next day to get over to Cathedral of Praise Community Church (64th and Haverford Ave. in West Philadelphia) at the invitation of Min. Ed Smith for their Youth Sunday service, where I also got to meet up with a Caleb / Apostle-John-like-type-in-the-making, Tony Benson II, 23-yeard-old son of Pastor Tony Benson who's up in Niagara Falls, NY.  I tell, ya, there are some really challengin' young (and ol') headz  out there, questin' for a challenge.  Haven't seen it for several decades now (since the 60's?), but it seems we might be on the edge of a time where folk are gettin' willin' to sacrifice their lives for something significant.

CENTER FOR URBAN THEOLOGICAL STUDIES - We finished up the intensive summer session, Postmodern Urban Culture on August 19.  Right now it's faculty meetings at CUTS and at Eastern University where I'm now an adjunct faculty member (at the Campolo School for Social Change).  Maybe a few days off before launching back into the fall schedule, but still having to finish up stuff from the summer session. 

SUMMER GET-TOGETHERS - Had the delightful opportunity top spend some time with some family members I don't get to see too often: my nephew Spencer and I did a bit of boating on the Delaware River (in an inflatable that took some doing to get out there).  The air pump motor burned out (back to the house), the outboard motor flew off the transom device and submerged into the water (fortunately I had tied it to the boat so was able to retrieve it).  Got a tow back to the boat ramp by a nearby Jet-Skier (Triple-A in this context means American Aquatic Association).  After we got the motor started again we did fine, working against a strong current goin' upstream then turning around and letting the boat just drift down the river.  Went about a mile past the landing then turned around again to go upstream to the landing when we ran out of gas!  The object of the game this day?  Perseverance.  Paddled wildly to the shore and decided to call it a day.  Nevertheless we had a great time.  I was also able to catch up with one of my godsons, Luke, a high school senior who was attending a summer urban missions program at Philadelphia Biblical University.  Happy 17th birthday, Luke! 

Also been enjoying working in the backyard garden — 6 tomato plants 'n 5 sunflowers, working on modifying my "Made in Maine" 2003 "Hummer" (photo essay here), doing some maintenance around the house and recovering from a severe case of poison ivy.

Bass Harbor Light

Far in the bosom of the deep,
O'er these wild shelves my watch I keep;
O ruddy gem of changeful light
Bound on the dusky brow of night,
The seaman bids my lustre hail,
And scorns to strike his timorous sail.
Sir Walter Scott

2003 MAINE COAST VACATION - Spent a good solid week camping out in the Maine woods on the "Quietside of Mount Desert Island" at the end of July.  Balsam-scented sea breezes, lighthouse foghorns up close and far off in the distance, couple of lobster dinners, blueberry-flavored Downeast coffee, fresh Maine blueberries, Earl Grey tea alongside evening campfires, hurricane lamp-lit tent walls, cerulean blue sky stretched out above sparkling deep blue sea — and answering the call of the sea by sailing around Southwest Harbor and out into Somes Sound in my 2003 "Hummer."  Wow!  Vacations really don't get any better than this!  Able to do some biking, exploring, lobstering (!), sight-seeing, prepping "Hummer" (a few finishing coats of paint and adding nautical hardware), resting, reading, writing, talking 'n interacting with a whole lot of folks.  Thank You, Lord Jesus, for the grace and favor You gave me with everybody: with Sue McIsaac (campground owner whose hospitality was so gracious), with Charlie Clark (the man who built my boat with some custom oars, taught me a lot about boat-building, sailing and the sea and then helped me launch it), with Linda (a Southwest Harbor shop owner) and her husband John Stanley (a lobsterman who thought it not robbery to take an eager student out into Somes Sound to pull up 20 lobster pots, showing Hep how it's done), with David Mills (lobsterman / tour guide at the Oceanarium and Lobster Hatchery), with Dave the lobster boat builder ("There ain't nothin' here to see," said he.  "Nothin' except that beautiful brand new 32' foot fiberglass lobster boat you have they-ah in the shop," said me), with Gene Thurston, the Harbor Master of Southwest Harbor (he allowed me to moor "Hummer" overnight after her maiden voyage.  Also, there's Sarah (thanks for the steak portion!), Steven (thanks for your friendship and sharing your boat-building and sailing knowledge), Eric (thanks for your help with my boat — was told that you're also a lobsterman), Emily (thanks for your patience as I gathered my stuff to leave) and a number of others.  Are there photos?  Oh yeah.  Below is a preview.  Go see the rest of 'em.

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH of HIGHLAND PARK (Landover, MD) AWANA CAMP - Skycroft Conference Center in Middletown, MD - July 18-20, 2003.  Once again, the saints from F.B.C.H.P. put together another excellent camp for about 100 children, under the leadership of Deaconess Debbie Crabbe and volunteers from the church.  F.B.C.H.P. is a church where the adults take their youth 'n young people seriously (many of the counselors are teenagers who attend the J.A.M. retreats at Skycroft during the winter).  I had the honor of leading worship and praise and help Deacon Ed Harrison with teaching the 6th and 7th graders.

Tall Turf Crew

YOUTH LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE - Camp Tall Turf - Walkerville, MI - July 15-17, 2003.  What a fantastic time we had with about 40 leadership-focused older teenagers and their leaders at this neat camp (located about 70 miles NNW of Grand Rapids, MI).  Although it was "whirlwind style" (5 sessions inside of 2 days), "youf hung tuff" and were not only receptive but even ready to roll when we were done!  They were eagerly asking about coming to Philadelphia to do ministry near the end of July and the first week of August!   Gave 'em a few numbers to call 'n prayerfully some church or ministry here in Philly'll find themselves as bountifully blessed as I was in meeting up with this unique crew.  They really take the Lord seriously.  Thank you, Denise, Lydia, Jack and Kelvin for having me out there to meet with and engage 'n encourage this already encouraging set of young people.  Y'all really blessed my heart big time — I'm probably gonna be talkin' about 'em for some time.  Just as fantastic was the opportunity to spend some time with my good friend J. Kelvin Jackson (in the hat, crouching in the lower right corner of the picture) and see what the Lord Jesus has got him involved with there in Grand Rapids (a.k.a. "Gun Rue").  What a time, what a time, what a time!  Update: A number of the Leaders in Training from the group above (along with a few others) came to Philadelphia to do some practical hands-on ministry at Third Eternal Baptist Church during the last few days of of July into the first week of August.  Pictures from Michigan posted here.  

CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP EVANGELISTIC CHURCH - I was invited to present a 5-evening version of The Gospel / The Street Seminar at this dynamic church in the 2300 block of Clearfield Street in north Philly - July 7-11.  We went at it for a couple of hours each night — a whole lot of challenging material about how to reach out to young people who've been impacted by hip-hop culture.  Found myself excited and encouraged by the receptive response from the church's leaders that attended (other leaders from other churches also were present).  Thank you, Min. Kevin Outterbridge, for setting up this event, and thank you saints, for your perseverance through the heat and some deep material.  Great church — great character — great heart!

MONTCO BIBLE FELLOWSHIP FAMILY CONFERENCE - Black Rock Retreat - Quarryville, PA - June 6-8, 2003.  Had another great time with the saints from M.B.F. for the church's annual retreat, led by Pastor & Mrs. Fred Garnes.  I had the inestimable privilege of speaking to the teens (ages 12 to 17) and am very impressed with what God is doing in their lives, as well as in the life of this dynamic youthful church located in Lansdale, PA (Pastor Tony Hart is the Senior Pastor there).  What was really exciting for me was to be able to connect with not only the teens, but also with a number of keen ministry-minded young adults, parents and senior saints.  Had a wonderful time and looking forward (the Lord willing) to next year.  I was saddened to learn that one of those senior saints I had the privilege of connecting with, Rick Mahoney, entered into eternal rest on Monday, June 16, 2003.  His life beautifully illustrates the fact that God's got some of His best stuff hidden away in senior saints, and if we younger'ns would just take the time to sit down wit' 'em, we'd come away richer and deeper for having done so.  [By the way, senior citizens and teens have a lot more in common than people think.]  I'm profoundly grateful to the Lord Jesus for the extended convo Rick 'n I had during that retreat.  

PEEP THIS THOUGHT-PROVOKING ARTICLE from the Wall Street Journal On-line Edition: "Street Theater: Gunfire kills another rapper. What an awful image for black America" by John McWhorter — Friday, May 30, 2003 12:01 a.m. EDT.  Click here.

WEDDING BELLS SOUND OUT in the CROSS MOVEMENT CAMP - A joyous coming together of the CM family to witness the union of Virgil R. Byrd & Randall K. Fitzgerald in holy matrimony on May 24 at Woodland Presbyterian Church in West Philadelphia.  Fam came in from all over — from England (M.O.D. members Rob 'n Efrem), Texas (the Ambassador), Detroit (Dennis Talbert, DJ Rodney 'n Keith) and many others.  A full page of CM fam photos can be found here. 

I was afforded the wonderful opportunity to speak at 2 TIMOTHY ACADEMY CHAPELS on May 23.  What a time, what a time, what a time!  First were the Pre-Ks through 4th-graders, followed by the 5th through 8th-graders.  Praise the Lord Jesus for the endearing, receptive and ready-to-respond young people who attend this Christian school at 4th and Lehigh in the Fairhill section of north Philly.  Thank you, Bev Tuttle and Michelle Alexander for inviting me in.  My soul was wonderfully refreshed to see what all's going on there at the school.  The Lord bless y'all!   

TASKER STREET MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH - Invited in by Sis. K-lee Johnson, I had the privilege of accompanying the church's youth choir for their monthly Youth Day service.  Had a wonderful time — the choir did well, Min. Kristopher Reese (a former student of mine and now at Philadelphia Biblical University) preached and John and Erica Tate ministered powerfully in mime as well as a number of  other youth doing significant ministry.  Rev. James A. Lovett II is the Pastor of this dynamic "youther-friendly" church in South Philly.  Also need to mention that I had an extremely interesting, intriguing and insightful quid pro quo on-the-street convo with high school sophomore Amrah D. (a drummer and rapper) after the service.  

The CENTER FOR URBAN THEOLOGICAL STUDIES Spring semester is finished.  I was privileged to teach Contemporary Apologetics (a new course for me), New Testament Studies (Acts — also new) and Foundations of Christian Thought (a core curriculum course) from last January through to May 15th.  Really enjoyed the students and the sessions.  Little did I know that the CUTS FIRST ANNUAL STUDENT BANQUET would prove to be a bit of a surprise: I was honored with a presentation from the graduating Class of 2003 for being "an enthusiastic, innovative educator."  Praise the Lord for His goodness, mercy and grace.  

MONTCO BIBLE FELLOWSHIP MISSIONS CONFERENCE - Had a fantastic time up in Lansdale, PA with the saints at M.B.F. on May 2 and 3.  Participated in a talk-show-style missions panel Friday night and was honored to lead a workshop Saturday morning ("Witnessing 101").  Great to see and talk with Pastors Tony Hart, Sam Butler and Fred Garnes and their wives, Henry Sekawungu, Lucienda Smith, James Murray, Christine Wigden, Jennifer Smith, Christine Hart and many others.  Some serious stuff is going on there at that church -- I was particularly encouraged by the powerful ministries some of their youth and young adults are engaged in.  Thank you, Sis. Avis Taylor for all your hard work in putting the conference together, and thank you, M.B.F. saints, for refreshing our hearts and for your fellowship and partnership in the work of the Gospel. 

Sample album snippets are available here

CROSS MOVEMENT "HOLY CULTURE" ALBUM RELEASE CONCERT - Calvary Chapel of Philadelphia, PA - April 26, 2003.  The program started off with the evening's emcee Rasool Berry (Howard U. Impact Movement campus staff member) narrating an interactive capsule history of hip-hop — beginning with DJ-ing (featuring DJ Official doing a live mix) break-dancing (also live), a short bit about graffiti (featuring a video montage as well as a large original graf piece hanging as a backdrop).  After that a posse of 8 or 9 rappers gathered in a street-corner style circle (including all 4 CM members geared-up incognito in oversized sweathoods).  Several did some freestyling as the Ambassador did his patent human beatbox beat, and at the end of the session the Cross Movement crew took off their sweathoods and launched into their first set: songs from previous albums but now backed with a live band (drums, bass and keyboard [some members of one of Philly's first Christian rap crews, Poets 4 Christ]).  Rappers T.R.U.T.H. and FLAME did a couple of solo spills, followed by the CM launching into their new material from "Holy Culture."  Vocalist J.R. did a self-guitar accompanied solo and then joined the CM crew in doing more material from the new album ("Cry No More" was accompanied with a video flash presentation).  The Tonic spoke between a couple of songs about the concept behind Holy Culture and the Ambassador spoke near the end of the program, sharing the Gospel and extending an invitation.  Praise the Lord!  A number of people responded came forward.  The CM crew wound up the evening with a rambunctious rendering of "Know Me" from the Human Emergency album.  All told, the event was rugged, fun, serious and a testament to the desire of Cross Movement to stay en pointe with the message of the cross.  Photos posted here.

It was really great to see Earthquake, Melissa, Holly, Missy, the CM office staff Laurie, Shera, Tony, Kim, jd; Rodney, K.K. and Chris Johnson, Shirley, Mama Du, members from The Process, R-Swift, J-Silas, Tubbs, Kevin 'n a host of others.  From what I heard, folks came from as far away as Florida and Boston, MA (and perhaps even points further).  The Cross Movement is not about just having fans, but being fam.  A real big "thank you" to Pastor Joe Focht and the staff of Calvary Chapel for hosting this event. 

The Phanatik looks on as The Tonic records in the sound booth, LIFE sits at the board,
and Vince (recording engineer at The Studio) works at the computer.

Click to hear "Cry No More"

The Retreat Choir singing on Sunday morning in Word of Life's Conference Center

NEW LIFE BIBLE INSTITUTE RETREAT - Word of Life Conference Center, Schroon Lake, NY - March 20-23, 2003.  Come into Your Season was the theme of this annual retreat, capably led by Sis. Joyce Burton.  Again, Pastor Victor Kirk (from Sharon Baptist Church in Philadelphia, PA) brought God's Word to the group of 85+ saints, who in turn represented a number of churches throughout Philly.  Again, it was another great and grand time of teaching, singing and fellowship, and I am a blessed man for the privilege of being able to participate in this event.  The Lord privileged me to lead the worship and praise as well as the choir (along with Evangelist Cheryl Johnson).  Can't really get into all that went on (particularly on Saturday), but suffice it to say that the Lord Jesus worked some stuff out in the area of racial reconciliation in connection with another group that was present at the same facility.

PRAYER PRE-VIEW

LABOR DAY WEEKEND RETREAT (Streamside Conference Center) - Stroudsburg, PA - August 29 - September 1, 2002

CENTER FOR URBAN THEOLOGICAL STUDIES - Philadelphia, PA - Fall semester - teaching Postmodern Urban Culture, Foundations of Christian Thought and Old Testament Prophecy

WARMDADDY'S - Philadelphia, PA - Christian Hip-Hop Night - invited to play keyboards for AB (Christian rapper) for his set on September 15, 2003 (Tentative: awaiting confirmation)

Thank you for your faithful love, prayers, patience and support,

His ‘n yours, with much love ‘n respect,

HEP

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