Touched by a Fire

Over the holidays, tragedy struck a family four blocks from the church and reminds me on how fragile life is and how connected we really are, if we choose to be. As I watched the news and mourned with the family I wished I had some soothing words, a bundle of money and a way to help. My wife echoed my thoughts a few days later when we talked about it.

“Isn’t that near the church?” she asked. "Yep, it's about four blocks away."

We prayed. On Sunday, one of the associate ministers asked the church to pray for them before I brought it up because he knew them personally. They are going through some rough times right now and will have multiple funerals at a larger church down the street.

Please pray for the Smith-Wilson family.

My church (historicbereanbaptistchurch.org) is in a once rough part of Northeast Washington, DC, known as Brookland and Brentwood. In a small building that has been an auto dealer, and a bank for some time, we have converted it to a place of worship. The bank vault and reinforced glass were the biggest obstacles to remove but the greatest obstacle that needs to go is the stigma of churches today. For me, that means we need to serve this community and not just reside in it.

The foundational hub of our congregation is octogenarian African American gentry. It is my desire to blend this group into a community church represented and supporting “Brookland and Brentwood and Beyond.” These are the type of moments we need to serve. Please pray for the church as well as we seek to do God’s will.


A complete story of the incident is here.