P age B3 T he P ortland O bserver • F ebruary 0 2 , 1994 B u ild in g O n A S o lid F o u n d a tio n by M attie A nn C allier -S pears In the book o f St. John, in the eleventh chapter and the fortieth verse, Jesus asks the question, “ D id n ’ t I tell you, that, i f you would believe, you would see the glory o f the God?” M any are wandering around, s till groping in the dark, wondering, “ What must I do to be saved: I accepted the Lord but I ’m s till not sure...” and the list goes on. This city o f Portland has been under spiritual construction fo r about ten years now. It w ill be awhile before the last brick w ill be put into place. Across the city and across the de­ nominations, there has been change. The time for change is...N O W ! This construction, that’ s under way, has employed new construction foremen. Each foreman comes to us equipped w ith a different skills; but, every last one-of-them is w orking on the same project. T o ilin g u ntil its completion. The foremen havccome- in from places like: C alifornia, West V irg in ia , Ohio, M issouri, Texas and other states-in this our United state o f America. U nited!... Words such as these ring in our ears from the verify fabric o f our national. Togetherness, unity weaving patterns, brotherly love and kindness are words pouring from the pulpits throughout the city. However, the construction fore­ men are not all located in the pulpits./ There arc many strong Christian lay­ men and women laboring out on the streets, down in the trenches and w orking under tremendous obstacles. They are reaching those reluctant workers who have chosen to take alternate paths. And--they are reach­ ing the ones who have fallen through the cracks in the sanctuaries on Sun­ day mornings because o f the folk, waggin tongues o f those pious blue collar, upper-class Christian w ork­ ers. Disasters surround us, yet..we stand. I sat and thought about a ll the dangers seen and unseen that could have ravaged our city u ntil the last liv in g being was eradicated-but, for some reason, God stayed his hand. Have you ever wondered why? Unlike so many port towns, Port­ land is underscored and surrounded by solid rock. A solid foundation. T he n-th e words to an age-old song sprang forth in m y mind: “ On C hrist a solid rock I stand. A ll other ground is sinking sand.” I was bom and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, a port town. It is a b uilt-up or fille d -in city which has a lot o f water under its foundation. When a bad storm comes, you have water above and below the foundation. The chances are slim so you learn how to swim. dedication To Allen LaShawn Cunningham January 2, 1977-December 21, 1993 A Gangster’s Prayer C alifo rn ia ’ s coastal and p o rtc it-*c re storms brewing on the horizon, ies are picturesque and lofty. B u t-th eH e had to stay on top o f the weather sand and soil is being washed away,reports because that in fo rm a tio n blown away and cracked away. vould determine what could be done For some reason, Portlanders, it the time. And it would also dictate God has given us not one chance but vhat crews would be needed and what many opportunities to straighten-up rhase o f the work could be done at and fly right. hat interim. We have been praying fo r just Being a foreman was serious this kind o f a favor. I can remember a business, the job description required time when my father, now deceased, ort’and- Dr. Otis . rown and its consistency were very im por- came ^ere *n t0 attend arncr tant to thequality, longevity and safety Bac' Bc College, then named Paci ic o f that building. He would get so Bible College. In 1943 he married angry when a company would send Johnnie Mae Hawkins from Birm ing- substandard concrete or cheaper steel ham, Alabama. Theydecidedtorna c beams or the wrong size rivets. Ev- their home here in the city o f Portland, erything was on a list. He expected T1,eY are lhe founders o t c only what was on this lis t and he Maranatha Church, w ic was en would not accept any substitutes be- under the auspices o l e urc o cause he did not want to be respon- God, Anderson Indiana ranc ,w ic sible fo r the construction fo r an infe- was the first established Church o f rio r product God among blacks in the states o f A t th is p a rtic u la r tim e , the O re g ° n and W a s h in g to n . They weather was very inclement. There Pastored nine years here in Portland, Greater St. Stephen M.B. Church Building Fund Committee Heavenly Father, forgive all m y sins. I want to change but where do I begin? Give me the strength to resist the w ild life I desire. Help me get away from the nightly gunfire. Will Be Sponsoring A Musical “Sing Unto The Lord” Please, God, bless my fam ily whose eyes silently plead, for me not to go as they watch me leave. And God, bless my M other, who cries every night, w orrying i f I ’ ll be kille d in yet another gang fight. SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1994 7 O ’CLOCK P.M. Heavenly Father, please answer my prayer. Let me know Y o u ’ re listening up there. When w ill it end? W hat is it all for? To prove to my Homies, “ Yea, I ’ m down, I ’ m hard core” . Sometimes I even wonder how I w ill die. By a bullet wound or a knife in my side. COME JOIN US FOR SOME TOE TAPPING, HAND CLAPPING, SOUL REVIVING GOSPEL MUSIC! AT 3605 NE MALLORY AVENUE If you, your choir or group would like to minister thru song please contact our chairman at 281-8117. Thank you for your forgiveness, Lord. And fo r s till being there... M ost o f all, Thank Y ou, for listening to this sinner’ s prayer. Amen “SERVING THE LORD WITH GLADNESS” DEC. R. JOHNSON, CHAIRMAN REV. G.L. BLACK I, PASTOR 103 NE Morris St., Portland, OR 97212 Church Phone Number 287-7457 M allory Avenue Christian Church "Com« to me all you who ore weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.” ■ Sunday School -9:30am ■ Sunday Morning Wor­ ship Service -1 1 :00am ’ Sunday School Teacher's Meeting Tues - 6:30pm • Bible Study Wednesday - 6:00pm • Prayer Meeting Wednesday - 7:00pm ences. The Johnnie M . Brown Evange­ listic Association, Inc., w ill continue its’ outreach ministries under the lead­ ership o f its’ founder, Dr. Johnnie M . Brown, w hile Dr. Otis F. Brown w ill be doing research on black presence in the Bible and in biblical history. Dr. O. Brown w ill jo in others in de­ veloping improved Sunday School materials that relate to assisting m i­ norities in developing a healthier self- image. Dr. O. Brown has been preach­ ing for 53 years, and Dr. J. Brown fo r 40 years. Along w ith this longevity, they have been married (to each other) Drs. Otis F. and Johnnie M. Brown fourteen years in Seattle, Washington and the last eighteen years in Detroit, Michigan. The Browns have now retired from the pastoral m inistry, but w ill continue in other avenues o f the m inistry,in the areas o f w riting, w ork­ shops, se m ina rs, r e v iv a ls , as campmeeting and convention speak­ ers, and facilitating various confer- for 50 years. A time o f reflection and fe llo w ­ ship w ill be held at the Maranatha C hurch, located at N E 13th and Skidmore, on February 12 at 7pm. Come and participate in welcoming the Dr. Browns back to the northwest. Everyone is welcome. J&L ijjjaul iU tssio itarn ^Baptist (GJjurrij 8101 N. Fiske Avenue • Portland Oregon 97203 Church Phone: 289-0147 Study Phone: 2L 3-1911 Sunday Service 10:45 Sunday School 9:30 6:00 Evening Service 7:00pm Pastor. Re. JamcsCF. Faulkner Kisa d/iuxali ▼ Continued to page B7 Bible Study Heavenly Father, please hear me tonight. Give me courage and strength to live may life right. Show me the light. Help me give my heart peace, So I don’ t have to fight. < ¿ 4 4 ax (z iBap,tl±t perfection. “ I f you are going to work under me, you got to do it by the book. I f you can’ t fo llo w instructions, leave” , he bellowed. Portland is under spiritual con­ struction but the foundation has to be carefully laid. Be careful not to go too The Return Of Pastors Heavenly Father, please hear me tonight, I Need so much guidance to live my life right. Sometimes the pressure is so hard to bear,I often wonder i f anyone cares. How can I wake-up and face each day, knowing I have to live my life this crazy way? ¿St. o f the actual structure before the foun­ dation had been allowed to settle. Needless-to-day, there were some very disgruntled workmen. Why?They had to tear down all those beams, glass, walls, flooring, tile, ceilings and ev­ erything. “ Tear it a ll dow n! N ow ” , he shouted! Those men hated m y dad because he was such as stickler for ncously. Dad would drive from site to site inspecting the work and he would entrust the responsibility o f assistant to someone he handpicked. Some one who he felt thought and felt about the project as he did to supervise in his absence; u ntil he returned. W e ll-th e work was on schedule and the buildings were going up. Pour­ ing the foundation wasn’t the only problem or the most important. I found out that i f you did not allow the foun­ dation to settle properly, you would have irreparable damage. A t two o f the sites, Dad found dangerous cracks in the foundation. He went back over the materials and the time spent be­ fore putting on the structures. There was the mistake. Someone had jumped the gun and started the construction CHURCH 3 9 0 8 OF M A L L O R Y Bible Study 9:30 am Morning Worship 10:45 am Men's Training Leadership 9:45am Sunday School 11:00am Morning Worship 7:50pm Tuesday Bible Study and Prayer C H R IS T A V E N U E Women's Bible Class 5:00 pm Evening Worship 6:00 pm Wednesday prayer meeting and Bible study 7:00 pm 288-1092 In te r-ra cia l C o n g re g a tio n 126 N€ Alberta Portland, OP 97211 (503) 288-5173 Restoring New Testament Christianity Dr. Joe S. Hardie, Pastor We Invite You To Come And Worship With Us. le Church Where Everybody is Somebody And Christ Is All. MT. OLIVFT BABTIST CHURCH H as moved Sunday services to Family Life Center, 8725 N. Chautauqua Blvd., at Willis Blvd. Worship Services 8:00am & 11:00am. Church School 9:30 to 10:30 am, Bible Study, Wednesdays, 116 NE Schuyler, 10:30am & 7:00pin Radio Ministry each Sunday, 8:00am on KBMS A Teaching Church With A Reaching Ministry Dr. James E. Martin, Senior Pastor Church O ffice 116 NE S ch uyler St. • (5 0 3 ) 2 8 4 -1 9 5 4 We W elcom e You to The F U N E R A L D IR E C T O R S F am ily Owned a n d Operated Since 1954 Serving the City o f P o rtla n d fo r over 3 7 years In your hour o f need Vann & Vann are there to serve, 503/281-2836 5211 N. Williams Portland, OR 97217 (êrcatcr jSaint Stephen ¿fifiissitmary ILiptist OUrjurctj “Serving The Lord With Gladness” Psalm 100:2 Sunday School 10am Morning Worship 11:05 Wednesday Prayer & Bible Study 7pm Rev. G.L. Black I Pastor 3605 N.E. Mallory Ave. (503) 281-8117 Portland, OR 97212 Rev. and Mrs. G.L. Black I I