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7 Things Praise Teams Should NOT Do

“7 Things Praise Teams Should NOT Do!” You probably know by now that I love hymns. That’s right.  If I hear the number 499, my eyes glaze over and I just start singing “Sound the Battle Cry” at the top of my lungs!! (That might not be totally accurate.) I

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The Great Controversy: Hymns Vs. Praise Worship

“The Great Controversy: Hymns vs Praise & Worship!” Intro: The battle is intense, bordering on comical. Praise and worship has been blamed for everything from declining church attendance to the Kennedy assassination.  And when some people hear “hymns”, they see bonnets and white beards. What’s a church to do? Last

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What Happened to My Hymns?!

What Happened to My Hymns?! I miss my hymns. That’s not nostalgia, that’s a need. “Let the word of God dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs…”  Colossians 3:16 So, I’m preparing for this blog and researching the most

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What Memphis Reminded Me

What Memphis Reminded Me Yesterday brought back strong memories. I can still see the face of the television newscaster fighting back tears and announcing, “Dr. Martin Luther King is dead.” Just 10.5 miles from my home in Memphis, Tennessee, Dr. King was cut down by an assassin’s bullet, April 4,

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Snoop! “Why We Need To Judge”

“Snoop! Why We NEED To Judge.” It has been an interesting week. Calvin Broadus Sr., a.k.a. Snoop Dog, released his new project, Bible of Love, and it broke the internet. From gangsta rap to gospel music?  It was a recipe for controversy. Snoop is an icon. Since his debut album

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Black Panther And The “Problem” Of Black Conferences

Black Panther and the “Problem” of Black Conferences Black Panther has inspired amazing interest in black consciousness, self-determination, and all- things African. For many, it wasn’t enough to buy a ticket to the movie, they bought entire African-inspired outfits, and posed for pictures in front of life-sized Black Panther posters.

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Adventists and the Wakanda Weakness

Adventists and the Wakanda Weakness By the time you read this blog, Black Panther will have reached $1 Billion dollars in box office sales. It was at $944 million world- wide on Wednesday, but it opens in China on Friday, (and I understand there are a few folks living there.)

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Black Panther and the Adventist Movie Myth

Black Panther and the Adventist Movie Myth I’ve been tricked! Hoodwinked! Bamboozled! …I think that’s a word. After a time of research and writing, it’s dawning on me that Ellen White never actually said that our guardian angels “stand weeping at the door of movie theaters.” (Actually, she came pretty

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Dr. E. E. Cleveland: A Black History Giant

Dr. E.E.Cleveland: A Black History Giant He was no more than 6’3, but to the world he seemed larger than life. Dr. E. E. Cleveland. I actually heard him before I saw him. As a child, we’d listen to the recording of his 1966 evangelistic campaign in Port of Spain, Trinidad.

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7 Artists Kirk Franklin Should Thank – Part 2

7 Artists Kirk Franklin Should Thank – Part 2 Last week reminded me how powerful and personal gospel music is. Musical artists we’ve never met can feel like family, because we’ve heard their voices as often as family. In short, these lists are personal and that’s what makes them so

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7 Artists Kirk Franklin Should Thank

“7 Artists Kirk Franklin Should Thank” My Public Evangelism class was about to start and we were discussing contemporary gospel music. Kirk Franklin will be in Huntsville this year during our annual Alumni Weekend here at Oakwood University. Franklin, of course, is arguably the most powerful figure in black gospel

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How To Keep Going

How To Keep Going Well, this is the first week of February and reality has set in. The health clubs are clearing out, the treadmills are gathering dust, and the diet is done.  Millions of people have discovered that resolutions are a lot easier to make than they are to

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