{"id":27786,"date":"2020-09-15T19:15:00","date_gmt":"2020-09-15T23:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/?p=27786"},"modified":"2020-09-15T19:38:29","modified_gmt":"2020-09-15T23:38:29","slug":"the-challenges-many-african-american-pastors-are-facing-as-they-lead-their-churches-amidst-covid-19-and-social-unrest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/2020\/09\/15\/the-challenges-many-african-american-pastors-are-facing-as-they-lead-their-churches-amidst-covid-19-and-social-unrest\/","title":{"rendered":"The Challenges Many African-American Pastors Are Facing As They Lead Their Churches Amidst COVID-19 And Social Unrest"},"content":{"rendered":"

“Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.”<\/em> – Romans 12:15<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most, if not all, white suburban pastors simply cannot relate to what is required to pastor an African-American, inner-city church during these times of COVID and social unrest. \u00a0This is understandable. \u00a0The ministry context is completely different. \u00a0Your backgrounds are completely different. \u00a0The challenges, physical health issues, perspectives, access to health care, and sense of community and family are completely different.<\/p>\n

There is just a difference between exposure and experience.<\/strong><\/p>\n

INJOY Stewardship Solutions is currently conducting a four-week series entitled The Other Side Of The Giant: Beginning To Look Ahead<\/a>. \u00a0Each week, INJOY Stewardship president and CEO Joe Sangl interviews one of America’s leading pastors to get their thoughts on the challenges brought on by 2020 and more importantly, begin looking ahead to a brighter ministry future.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Bishop Walter Scott Thomas of New Psalmist Baptist Church<\/p><\/div>\n

Today’s guest was Bishop Walter Scott Thomas<\/a> of New Psalmist Baptist Church<\/a> in Baltimore, MD. \u00a0<\/strong>This great church had a pre-COVID weekly attendance of over 6,000. \u00a0Bishop Thomas is one of our nation’s greatest leaders and most brilliant thinkers. \u00a0During their conversation, the love Bishop Thomas has for his congregation permeated his discussion about the church’s approach to building community through technology, reaching people with the Gospel, and helping bring hope to a destabilized community.<\/p>\n

The following are 60 comments from Bishop Walter Scott Thomas during his interview with Joe Sangl which illustrate The Challenges Many African-American Pastors Are Facing As They Lead Their Churches Amidst COVID-19 And Social Unrest. \u00a0These are a must-read for anyone in ministry or just wanting to understand the plight of inner-city pastors during these times.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \u201c(My antena about COVID) went up in February.\u201d<\/li>\n
  2. \u201cI thought we would have a two-week problem.\u201d<\/li>\n
  3. \u201cI\u2019ve been a pastor 45 years. I\u2019ve never seen anything like this.\u201d<\/li>\n
  4. \u201cThe virus attacked us and we had to respond on a variety of levels \u2013 programmatic, physical. There was a deeper burden the church faces \u2013 the emotional burden of connection.\u201d<\/li>\n
  5. \u201cProximity plays a role in the sense of belonging and fellowship. Being close to people enables us to bond to people.\u201d<\/li>\n
  6. \u201cHow do we create bonding when we are not together? How do we create digital reality, a mixture of physical and digital?\u201d<\/li>\n
  7. \u201cIf they could see them (online) they could transcend the distance. I had to make it a phygital reality (physical presence and digital).\u201d<\/li>\n
  8. \u201cThe chat room becomes the primary space for this phgital reality.\u201d<\/li>\n
  9. \u201cOxytocin is released in our brain when we are together.\u201d<\/li>\n
  10. \u201cWhat makes us a strong church is not the budget or a building but the bonding.\u201d<\/li>\n
  11. \u201cEvery service (on Facebook Live) is live (not taped).\u201d<\/li>\n
  12. \u201cThe church is different than interacting with content. It is about absorbing the content so it can transform you.\u201d<\/li>\n
  13. \u201cPeople are not joining a digital church. They are joining a digital church that releases oxytocin that makes them want to know this Christ.\u201d<\/li>\n
  14. \u201cIn April I said we\u2019ve got to bring new members into this experience.\u201d<\/li>\n
  15. \u201cI can\u2019t get to the funerals because my highest and best usage to the church is to stay alive.\u201d<\/li>\n
  16. \u201cOne of the principles I\u2019ve built my life on is trusted advisors.\u201d<\/li>\n
  17. \u201cMy faith is in God. It\u2019s not in opening and closing.\u201d<\/li>\n
  18. \u201cWhen I realize I couldn\u2019t get good data from government and government sources, I went back to my trusted advisors.\u201d<\/li>\n
  19. \u201cI could see Congress was in no way ready to tackle this pandemic.\u201d<\/li>\n
  20. \u201cI have a huge amount of elderly people in my church.\u201d<\/li>\n
  21. \u201cWe\u2019ve chosen to wait even longer (to open).\u201d<\/li>\n
  22. \u201cVery few of us have state memberships. We have community memberships and we don\u2019t have transference information on our community.\u201d<\/li>\n
  23. \u201cA zip code is broad and doesn\u2019t give you the breakdown of our sub-community.\u201d<\/li>\n
  24. \u201cThe majority of my church is African-American. They have less access to health care.\u201d<\/li>\n
  25. \u201cWe tested 300 people (on the first day of COVID testing) for free.\u201d<\/li>\n
  26. \u201cWe tested 3,000 people or more. We try to test 300 or more every day we test.\u201d<\/li>\n
  27. \u201cWhen the government shut down last year, we learned there were people in need who we never thought would be in need.\u201d<\/li>\n
  28. \u201cI thought the corona despair was rough. The scenes in the streets were destabilizing.\u201d<\/li>\n
  29. \u201cWhen you see images of black men dying coupled with white persons accused of the crimes going to McDonald\u2019s or going home for months\u2026 I saw in my own congregation a level of hurt and despair that corona was not able to take.\u201d<\/li>\n
  30. \u201cWe are not just licking our wounds. We are trying to teach people how to make change happen.\u201d<\/li>\n
  31. \u201cWe are encouraging everyone to find a political home. Not just Democratic or Republican.\u00a0 But one who is advocating the change you are hoping for.\u201d<\/li>\n
  32. \u201cChange has to take place and this is the moment.\u201d<\/li>\n
  33. \u201cWe sit in the company of God (people at the church during worship services) and we feel safe.\u201d<\/li>\n
  34. \u201cAll the years when our churches were burned our safeness was shaken.\u201d<\/li>\n
  35. \u201cThis virus does not care what color you are\u2026 but it knows how to take you down.\u201d<\/li>\n
  36. \u201cThe church is where people come to church to feel safe. I can\u2019t open and have people who cry because of the death of loved ones, cry because of death in the church.\u201d<\/li>\n
  37. \u201cWe will open as a seed. It will become a harvest over time when we are gone.\u201d<\/li>\n
  38. \u201cWe have overestimated people and underestimated God. This is His church and He operates through His people.\u201d<\/li>\n
  39. \u201cGod has found a way to keep us solid.\u201d<\/li>\n
  40. \u201cThere has to be some shackles removed that are preventing us to dream.\u201d<\/li>\n
  41. \u201cGod has used the pandemic to show us what He has never shown us before.\u201d<\/li>\n
  42. \u201cWhat kills most dreams is they get unthought.\u201d<\/li>\n
  43. \u201cGod gives so many of us just the idea and says to go make it happen.\u201d<\/li>\n
  44. \u201cThis is a surprise to us but not to God. He knew all of this was going to happen and prepared us.\u201d<\/li>\n
  45. \u201cHe does plan to grow us through this.\u201d<\/li>\n
  46. \u201cDon\u2019t wallow in your shortcomings. Guilt is unproductive.\u201d<\/li>\n
  47. \u201cGod is teaching me something. Let me slow down and learn something.\u201d<\/li>\n
  48. \u201cWe feel our cup is not runneth over but running low.\u201d<\/li>\n
  49. \u201cI\u2019m not hesitant to call persons when I\u2019m down.\u201d<\/li>\n
  50. \u201cThis is the will of God concerning me. He is not going to answer.\u00a0 He is waiting for me to answer.\u201d<\/li>\n
  51. \u201cThis virus-environment is the perfect opportunity to become the person we were meant to be. Our hiding places are gone.\u201d<\/li>\n
  52. \u201cWe have the opportunity to deal with us.\u201d<\/li>\n
  53. \u201cThe giant is an obstacle in a journey you were already on.\u201d<\/li>\n
  54. \u201cWe are developing people to be evangelistic apart from them bringing people to hear from me on Sunday.\u201d<\/li>\n
  55. \u201cWe are a church where connections are made. I see our people knowing why connections are important\u2026 and how to become a connector.\u201d<\/li>\n
  56. \u201cThe value of conversations. Everything starts with a conversation.\u201d<\/li>\n
  57. \u201cMost churches are trying to figure out how to get out content. Content won\u2019t change hearts.\u00a0 It\u2019s for the head.\u00a0 You change hearts by engaging people in conversations.\u201d<\/li>\n
  58. \u201cIt\u2019s the giant that makes leaders aware and see the resources God has given the people they are leading.\u201d<\/li>\n
  59. \u201cCorona has taught me God has provided all of our needs according to His riches in glory.\u201d<\/li>\n
  60. \u201cPeople are looking for where they find both conversation, Christ-comfort, and the content of the Kingdom.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    What is one quote you read from Bishop Thomas which gave you a different perspective on pastoring an inner-city church?<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

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    The contents includes Winning\u00a0Cultures,\u00a03 Types of Teams,\u00a0Strategy and Competition,\u00a0Recruiting,\u00a0Rivalry Games,\u00a0Personal Performance, and much, much more. \u00a0Click HERE<\/a> to get your complimentary copy today! \u00a0Trust me – this resource will make you a better leader.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” – Romans 12:15 Most, if not all, white suburban pastors simply cannot relate to what is required to pastor an African-American, inner-city church during these times of COVID and social unrest. \u00a0This is understandable. \u00a0The ministry context is completely different. \u00a0Your backgrounds are completely different. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27788,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[346],"class_list":["post-27786","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-church-leadership","tag-pastors"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Unknown.jpeg","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27786"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27786"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27786\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27793,"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27786\/revisions\/27793"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27788"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27786"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27786"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briandoddonleadership.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27786"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}