“Fear not; for I am with thee:  I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west.”  

We arrived at the Hilton Garden Inn about 5:30 p.m. last Friday.  The bus was warming up its engine as we checked in and then boarded.  The bus was filled with pastors and their spouses, along with Presiding Elder Coleman and Rev. Melvin Coleman.  

The seats on the bus faced each other as city buses usually do.  

These preachers  were prepared to let go and have fun as was evident with Rev. Dr. Richard Allen Brown and Rev. McNeil Evans.  

The two referred to each other as Billy goats.  Everyone was caught up into their humorous insults back and forth.  

Of course, Rev. Willie Bell Thomas’s laughter caught on like lightning, and Rev. Joe Knowlin kept us in stitches with a “preacher’s” joke.  

It seems the preacher was dismissing the member from the choir because he had one complaint that the member couldn’t sing.  

The choir member was taken aback and asked the preacher if only one complaint could keep him from the choir.  

When the preacher answered yes, the choir member abruptly told him that the whole church said the preacher couldn’t preach.  

Now, you have an idea of the time we had on the bus.  

Rev. Carl Anderson sat at the back of the bus, and yelled his requests  to the front.  

Even the bus driver was having a good time as we reached the Dixie Stampede Theater.

We enjoyed a wonderful show, Cowboy style and a great meal.  

For those of you that haven’t been to the Dixie Stampede, it’s kind of set up like an amphitheater where you can sit and look down at the characters below.  

You are sitting in elevated rows and you are at mini tables by ticket numbers.

As you prepare to watch the show below, waiters are on hand at each section to find out what you want to drink.

Other waiters follow suit with a delicious soup and biscuit appetizer.  Still yet other waiters dish out delightfully browned Cornish hens, followed by waiters with corn on the cob and halves of baked potato in the skin.  

All of the food is eaten the old fashioned way without utensils.  

When you are done with this hearty meal, you are given a delicious flaky apple turnover for desert.  

Still as the meal comes to an end, you are given carry out bags for all you couldn’t eat, and a warm wet towel to clean those greasy hands.  

After enjoying the show and the meal, we boarded the bus for the hotel, but not until the driver gave us a tour by night of the downtown area.

We again gathered at  a room reserved for us at the hotel where some of us engaged in Bingo, Trouble, or Family Feud.  

Our host for Family Feud was Rev. Dr. Charmaine Whittleton, the pastor of Bethel AME.  Bedtime called and we were ready.  

Saturday morning  smelled of breakfast foods as we gathered together.  

After breakfast and a meeting with the Presiding Elder and a joke from  Rev. Willie Thomas, yours truly and Rev. Joe Knowlin, and remarks from  Rev. Carl Anderson, along with gifts for the pastors, we were on our way to do whatever pleased us.  

We departed with well wishes for each other and thankful hearts that King Solomon was right when he said a merry heart is like medicine.  

Thanks again to Reverend and Mrs. Anderson, Presiding Elder and Rev. Coleman and all who made the trip a success.  

To God be the glory.

Hopefully, you too had a wonderful weekend and week.  If not, then you know our duty is to pray one for the other.  My prayers are with you, that God will favor you with better days.

Trinity AME Church

Many thanks to Rev. Earl Campbell for a wonderful, soul searching, healing service at Trinity AME Church on Sunday, Feb. 21st.

 Rev. Campbell traveled from Florida to be with us, and all were truly blessed.  Rev. Herman Ford, Jr., is the pastor of Trinity.

Berniece Albertina King

Berniece Albertina King was born March 28, 1963 in Atlanta, Georgia.  

She is the youngest of four children born to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Coretta Scott King.  She graduated from Spellman College and received the Master of Divinity from  Emory University.  

She was ordained a Baptist minister early in 1990.  She served as assistant minister at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta where both her grandfather and father served as pastors.  

She is an attorney, public speaker and elder at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, GA.  

I attended a workshop once where Dr.King was the speaker.  She said some words that I shall never forget: “Better to be alone and be yourself, than to be in a crowd and be somebody else.”

Prayer

Please remember to pray for the sick and shut in, the bereaved, those in nursing homes and prisons, our men and women on the battlefield in Iraq and their families back home, those with incurable diseases, those with broken hearts, and for our children.  

Let us all continue to pray one for the other.  God bless you and have a wonderful weekend and upcoming week.

Afternoon Blessings

Don’t forget to join me on Saturday afternoon at 12:30 for Afternoon Blessings on 1470 AM WLMC Radio.