P age B5
Iin; P ortland O bserver * S eptember 08, 1993
1^' V ' W
Visions Of Our Future Home
by Mattie Ann Callier-Spcars
and Kimberly D. Black
Greater St Stephen The church was
organized on June 5, 1984 in the
January o f 1970. He recalls, that at the
age o f seven, he w o u ld preach to his
Y oung, talented, focused and
d rive n are w ords that can be used to
home o f B ro and Sis. Charles Bembry.
O ver 25 persons united together fo r
describe Rev Gary L. B lack, I, re­
cently in sta lle d pastor o f Greater St
Stephen M issionary B aptist Church.
N ot only is the congregation, o f
prayer and seeking G o d ’ s dire ctio n
and organized the church w ith the
Rev A B ernard Devers, as the pas­
Greater St Stephen, excited about its
new pastor but they are also celebrat­
in g the n in th anniversary o f the church
A B rie f Look Backwards
The very firs t w o rsh ip service
was held on June 10,1984 at the A lle n
T em ple C M C hurch where the late
Rev. E J. Edwards was the pastor Over
85 persons were in attendance. Sub­
m o th e r’ s m op and broom , his b ro th ­
ers and sisters, his nieces and neph­
ews and the neighborhood ch ild re n , a
sermon e n title d “ H old The L ig h t” .
He was given the nicknam e “ Preacher
Dude” not k n o w in g that tru ly one
day, God w ould c a ll h im in to the
m in is try to pastor a church “ It has
and they are extra happy about m ov­
in g to a new and larger b u ild in g
Sunday, September 5, 1993, the
members and the pastor, his fa m ily
and many friends jo y fu lly marched
in to the doors o f th e ir new church
b u ild in g , w h ich is located at 3605 NE
M a llo ry , they dedicated and blessed
every inch o f th is new w o rsh ip center
“ Glory be to God For H is faithfulness.
H is mercy and lo vin g kindness!” . Rev
B la ck exclaim s
T h is b u ild in g o rig in a lly housed
the congregation o f the St N icholas
O rthodox Jew ish Synagogue The first
black church in the b u ild in g was the
N ew B irth F u ll Gospel, pastored by
E ld e r F. W arner, fo llo w e d by the
congregation o f the Greater F aith
C h ristia n Center, Rev. H. B ernard
Ings, pastor
The previous b u ild in g , o f Greater
St. Stephen, located at 3707 N. W il­
liam s Avenue, sheltered a fle d g lin g
and f la ilin g co n g re g a tio n w h ic h
served under three pastors and an
in te rim p a sto r before Rev. G ary
B la c k ’ s a rriv a l 11984-1986 Rev. A
B ernard Devers, the fo u n d in g pastor;
1987-1988 Rev A Bailey; 1988-1989
Rev C harles B em brv, in te rim pastor;
1989-1991 Rev. Robert E. Houston.
tor.
sequent services were held at Patton
C entral U nited M e th o d ist C hurch (6/
17/84). A n d fo r several m onths, ser­
vices were held at the N ew Jerusalem
M is s io n a ry B a p tis t C h u rc h , Rev.
Lee A rth u r J M adison, pastor (6/84-
8784). D u rin g Greater St. Stephen
residency at N ew Jerusalem, Pastor
Devers organized several key, w o rk ­
in g departments: Deacon and Dea­
coness Boards, M issio n Departm ent,
U sher Board, Nurses, Y o u th and
M u sic D epartm ent.
O n the nineteenth day o f A ugust
in the year o f o u r Lo rd nineteen h u n ­
dred and e ig h ty-fo u r, God opened the
doors at 3924 N o rth W illia m s A v ­
enue. Portland, Oregon, fo r the con­
gregation o f Greater St. Stephen M is ­
sionary B aptist C hurch.
Several firs t-e v e n ts o ccu rre d
w ith in Greater St. Stephens, such as:
firs t w edding, 9/2/84, G ary L. B lack
and K im b e rly D eLon K im m o n s; firs t
licensing, 9/24/84, Rev. R ayinon H
Edwards; firs t re viva l, 9/24-28/84,
evangelist. D r. W . Jerome Fisher,
L ittle Z ion M issionary Baptist C hurch
o f C om pton, C a lifo rn ia and choir.
“Preacher Dude”
Sr. J
“ There have been a lo t-o -m is -
takes made; but, there have been a lo t-
o-blessings, too T o know not then,
was one th in g ’ but, to know not now,
w ould really be a-shame” , Rev. B lack
recounts
I can just count m y bless­
ings ’’
The current-day Rev
Gary L
Black. I, was one of the original char­
te r m e m b e rs w h o h e lp e d fo u n d
Is Now A Shepherd
Gary B lack, the youngest o f th ir ­
Jesus [P h il. 3:14)
W ith these th o u g h ts o n the
congregation’ s m ind, Rev B la ck chal­
lenged the G reater St. Stephen fa m ily
to look back and trust God; lo o k up
and expect God, look around and
always been my dream to be a pastor;
fo r a long as I can remember” , Rev.
B la ck recalls. “ Y o u ju s t d o n ’ t know
serve God; and, look ahead and praise
God
Each Sunday, in the m o n th o f
September, Greater St. Stephen w ill
hold special w o rsh ip services o f D e d i­
how m uch I thank God fo r using me.
I praise God because he chose me to
be one o f H is instrum ents.”
Rev. B la ck has spent a ll o f his
cation & Jubilee w h ic h w ill a llo w the
th irty -tw o years in the church H o w ­
ever, his personal accom plishm ents
cannot go unmentioned. He was the
class president at Seaside H igh School
in Seaside, C a lifo rn ia in 1978; gradu­
ated fro m N o rth Texas State U n iv e r­
sity, 7/80, w ith a B A degree in b u si­
ness A d m in is tra tio n . F o llo w in g c o l­
lege graduation, he enlisted in the US
A rm y . D u rin g w h ic h tim e, he re­
ceived “ The O utstanding Y o u n g M an
o f A m e rica ” award in 1983. He m ar­
ried in 1984. To th is union, three
c h ild r e n w e re b o rn : K im is h a
Jonayzetta (3/4/85), G ary L o n c ll, Jr
(4 /3 0 /8 6 ) and Lonisha D e l’O ra (9/6/
89). A n d S ta ff Sergeant B lack was
honorably discharged in J u n c o f 1985
co m m u n ity and the city a chance to
jo in them as they celebrate G o d ’ s
w o n d erfu l blessings A d in n e r w ill be
held, to close out the m o n th o f cel­
He was chosen fro m among over two
thousand employees, in the c ity o f
O akland, C a lifo rn ia , as “ The City
Em ployee o f the Y ear - 1991” w here
he was employed as the A d m in is tra ­
tive Assistant to the Park D ire c to r for
preach.”
Special prayers o f thanks to the
rem nant w ho hung in there, held
dow n the fo rt and believed God when
He said, “ I w ill give you the desires o f
your heart.” I f you fin d yo u rse lf w ith ­
ebration, on September 26, 1993 im ­
m ediately fo llo w in g the special three
o ’clock w o rsh ip sen ice
Everyone is tru ly in vite d to come,
w orship, praise and fellow ship.
“ I am honored that God has cho­
sen me and has given me the task to
lead his people” , says Rev. B lack. “ I
feel lik e I am a tool in G o d ’ s to o l box.
The more God uses a to o l, the more
God w ill fin d -o u t how easy it is to use
that instrum ent; and the m ore he w ill
use it. B ut m ore than a ll that has been
said, I w ant to liv e the life that I
Rev. Gary L. Black; his wife Kimberly D. Black; and children Kimisha
Jonayzetta, Gary Lonell, Jr. and Lonisha Del’Ora.
the C ity o f Oakland.
M a n y accom plishm ents, awards
L. Jeffrey, senior pastor o f N ew Hope
M issionary B aptist C hurch in Seattle,
W ashington (where he svas a member
tria ls and trib u la tio n s, w ith purpose
and forethought, bro u g h t Gary L.
B lack, I, and the congregation o f
and honors has e been purported; how ­
ever, none shall ever o ut-w eigh his
p o sitio n as pastor o f the Greater St
because o f his jo b tra n sfe rrin g h im to
the Seattle area). In 1990, Rev. B lack
and his fa m ily relocated to C a lifo rn ia
Greater St. Stephen M issionary B ap­
svhere his m in istry continued to bloom
and flo u rish at the Progressive M is ­
sionary Baptist church in Modesto,
d rive n Rev. B lack to be very in s ig h t­
ful. N o t o n ly d id he know fro m an
early age that God had intended fo r
h im to be a m in iste r o f the G o s p e l-
teen, grew up in the V ictory Tem ple
Stephen M issionary B aptist Church.
C hurch o f God in C h rist in Salinas,
In Novem ber o f 1987, Gary L.
C a lifo rn ia where his m other, M rs
O ra E. B ro w n and the late Bishop
B la ck was licensed to preach the gos
pel by Rev. Johnny Pack, IV , at the
S R M a rtin trained h im in the n u r­
ture and the a d m o n itio n o f the L ord
|Prov 22:6 & E hp 6 :4 |Y o u n g Gary
accepted the L o rd Jesus C h rist in
form s o f tria ls and trib u la tio n s ; it
comes to make us strong, and to bless
and to beautify us; and to give us the
m in d to press tow ard the m a rk fo r the
p rize o f the h ig h c a llin g in C h rist
New Hope Missionary Baptist Church
P o rtla n d , O regon O n O ctober 8
1989, he was solem nly and publicly
set apart and ordained by Res. Robert
C a lifo rn ia
N o s v -lik e a ca re fu lly w oven bas­
ket being m eticulously completed or
like an a rtis t’ s masterpiece before his
signature, God has in trica te ly, w ith
out a church home, make yo u r way
over to the new Greater St. Stephen
M issionary B aptist C hurch, 3605 NE
M a llo ry , P ortland, O R , or ca ll (503)
tist C hurch - together.
B eing a young man, God has
281-8117.
Motto:
A G ro w in g Church O f Love
W here Every body is
Somebody
And Deeply rooted In
but, in his firs t sermon to his congre­
gation, in July o f 1992, Rev. B lack
chose as his sermon topic, “ W hy The
G o d ’ s W o rd .
Rain?” He taught that ra in comes in
Good Leadership
“The Lord Told Us To Go”
I he N o rth Portland A ssociation o f C h ris tia n Educators is sponsoring
a seminar, "T h e L o rd T o ld Us T o Go,” on Friday, September 17, 1993 at
6:30pm and Saturday, September 18, 1993 fro m 8am to 2:45pm at
M o rn in g Star B aptist C hurch, 106 N E Iv y Street, P ortland, O R 97211.
We are in v itin g a ll youth leaders, parents, and a ll c o m m u n ity con­
cerned people to jo in us F o r fu rth e r in fo rm a tio n contact E am estine
C ellcstine at 285-2365 o r Beth Nance at 288-2919.
The C enter F or C reative Leader­
ship conducted a study on e ffective
leadership, and lists the fo llo w in g
potential problem s to watch fo r
w hen try in g to im prove leadership
s kills:
* C hoosing the w rong person fo r a
jo b . D elegating to the w rong per­
son spells disaster every lim e.
* A ssum ing airs o f superiority.
Leaders w ho aren’ t accessible lose
touch w ith those they are leading.
* L a ckin g se n sitivity to the needs
o f others. Keeping w orkers happy
•i—
3 9 9 8
M A L L O R Y
Evangelist Gregory Fobbs
AVE
HU E
SUNDAY SCHEDULE
Bible Study
9:30 am
M orning W orship
10:45 am
Men's Training Leadership
Women's Bible Class
5 00 pm
Evening W orship 6:00 pm
Attended nursery for all services
Wednesday prayer meeting
and Bible study
7:00 pm
* Ig n o rin g the need to have others
trust them. T ru st is the basis fo r a ll
Christ Memorial C.O.G.I.C. I
e ffective leadership.
* T h in k in g o n ly in the here and
now . Great leaders have a sense o f
Church Rummage Sale
w hat they are leading people to ­
1552 N. Killingsworth
September 17&18. 9am - Till
ward.
* Keeping too m uch co n tro l over
workers. E ffective leaders know
when to let people manage them ­
selves.
* B eing fle xib le to change to jo b
Call Ruth At: 286-9624/249-0649
may demand.___________
MT. OLIVET
BAPTIST C H U RC H
F U N E R A L
H a s m o v e d S u n d a y sevices to
Stone T ow er C hurch
N .E . Sandy Blvd. & 30th
Restoring New Testament Christianity
the City o f P o rtla n d fo r over 3 7 y u
Radio M inistry each Sunday, 8:00 a.m. on KBMS
^îlaul l i l t es tn n aru
^Baptist
8 1 0 1 N. Fiske Avenue
Church Phone: 289-0147
B ry o n C .N u d d
Sunday Service
Funeral Director
1 0 :4 5
Funeral Home • Cemetery • Memorial Garden
Sunday School
Portland Oregon 97203
Study Phone: 289-1911
503/281-2836
Mallory Avenue
Christian Church
9:45am
11:00am
7:30pm
Bible Study
6 :0 0
Evening Service
Lombard Chapel
3018 N. Lombard
Portland, Oregon 97217
(503) 283-0525
5211 N. Williams Portland, O R 97217
“Coma to ma all you who aro
weary and heavy laden and
I will give you rest.”
9 :3 0
Killingsworth Chapel
430 N Killingsworth
Portland, Oregon 97217
(503) 283-1976
r In your
hour o f need Vann & Vann arc there to serve.
Church O ffice 116 JN.E. Schuyler St. • (503) 284-1954
<7Ze
)Z/a/>e/ af-t/ic (f/ume&
DSI &/E C T O R S
Fam ily Owned a n d Operated Since 1954 Serving
Worship Services 8:00 a.m. & 11:00 a.m.
Church School 9:30 to 10:30 a.m.
Bible Study, Wednesdays, 116 N.E. Schuyler
10:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.
A Teaching C hurch With A Reaching M inistry
Dr. James E. M artin, Senior Pastor
288-1092
U h U H 4 JH
keeps the o ffic e running sm oothly.
7 :0 0 p m
Sunday School
Morning Worship
Tuesday Silblc
Study and Prayer
Interracial Congregation
Pastor, Re. JamesC E. Faulkner
Theme: Whatever your going to do for the Lore, do It now.
I Peter i v . l l
,*,■*•* »*» a * * * * * *
» « » *•*
« . . . » » « ».• - • • « * * » • « « A * » « • » • » • •} • • ♦ •
126 N.€. Alberto t Portland, OR 97211 t (503) 288-5173
’J-T-T-
4 ’
M *
* * *,■? t * * ' * ' * * “