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© 2012 s p e c i a l e d itio n
January II, 2012
Pastor Follows King Legacy
c o n t i n u e d f r o m page 3
Change Christian Center in north
Portland.
“We gather together, and we’re
strengthened collectively by each
individual’s faith,” Strong said.
As a spiritual leader in Portland
for more than 24-years, Strong said
the church is a place to help every­
one discover their true potential in
life to make healthy and positive
choices.
“What King was dealing with
was racial inequality, and the people
involved in the civil rights struggle
all felt the pain of it,” he said. “But
it was their faith, and King’s faith,
that gave them the impetus to make
change.”
According to Strong, a lot of
people talk of King as a great leader
that he was, but sometimes forget
he was Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King,
and his faith in Jesus Christ was
central in what he did.
“His sermons came out of scrip­
ture,” he said. “It was a core part of
who he was.”
photo by M indy C ooper /T he P ortland O bserver
Life Change Christian Center Pastor Mark Strong follows the legacy of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. by
sharing the power of the church to bring hope and positive social changes to the community and
members of his congregation.
As a graduate of Jefferson High different when he was young, espe­
School, Strong, 50, said growing up cially regarding the rise in youth
in north and northeast Portland was violence Portland has seen in the
Rev. Dr. M artin Luther K ine.lr. Tribute.
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"Keep Alive the Dream" offers a renewal of appreciation for
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past few decades. “There were some
tough spots, but it isn’t like it is
now,” he said. “And we would get
in fights and then be friends the next
day.”
Strong also said he didn’t always
know he wanted to become a pastor.
“My goal was never to be a pas­
tor what so ever. I was thinking more
business or athlete,” he said.
One Sunday morning, however,
when he was 19, Strong attended
church to please his grandma’s per­
petual wishes.
“During the service, God gripped
my heart,” he said. “And I started
weeping and crying.”
He said he remembers saying to
God in that moment, “If you want me
you can have me!”
After experiencing such a radical
transformation that day, he said his
attention became re-focused from
parties and girls to spirituality and
scripture.
“I got a real hunger for prayer
and the bible, and most of my time
was spent reading scripture,” he
said. “And my heart began to have
a real love and care for people— for
all of humanity.”
Like Martin Luther King ’ s teach­
ings of Agape, which translates to
universal love for all of human kind,
Strong said he also believes love is
not only a central part of the church,
but it also reminds people their ex­
istence has meaning.
“My passion was, I wanted to
share with people this wonderful
love Christ has put in my heart,” he
said.
“Like Agape, it is love for every­
body. That is what it is about.”
Strong said the embrace of com­
munity is one of the main reasons
people attend church.
He said, however, the church
m ust be proactive to help not only
those who are a part o f the con­
gregation, but also those who are
not.
“One thing Jesus says, ‘you are
the salt of the earth, the light of the
world’; but in order for the salt to be
effective, it has to get out of the
shaker,” he said. “One of the things
churches need to do is get out of the
shaker and apply the salt where
flavor is needed.”
According to Strong, even the
perpetrator never fulfills their po­
tential as a human being.
“When slinging dope and shoot­
ing people— they don’t reach their
potential they were created for,” he
said.
And as a result, there is so much
havoc and pain.
“The hardship it puts on a com­
munity and the terror people have to
live in is ridiculous,” he said. “Our
burden and desire is, how can we
mobilize the church in a simplistic,
yet effective, way to engage prob­
lems in our community— specifically
the violence.”
Ina proactive effort to bring posi­
tive change. Pastor Strong, along
with several other pastors and
churches from throughout the metro
area, created the 1145 Club, which is
aimed to help end gang violence
amongst youth.
At a recent press conference to
discuss the arrests of 31 gang mem­
bers, Strong said, the hearts of mem­
bers of the faith community were
very much present with the crime
issue.
He said, however, “It is not just
about punishment, but prevention
is equally important.”
The name 1145 Club, which be­
gan a little over a year ago, reminds
individuals they can spend one day,
one hour or 45 minutes, to make a
difference in each other’s lives.
The group, which currently has
more than 400 volunteers, grew
quickly, he said.
The goal is to get community
members to focus on at least one in
four areas, by being there, sharing,
caring or prayer.
Volunteers for the organization
can be seen wearing bright green t-
shirts as they walk through parks
and hot spots where violence has
been present.
“What I think is important is that
everybody needs to remember they
have something to give no matter
how insignificant they feel it is,” he
said. “But it is not just Life Change,
or one church. It must be everybody
working together.”
According to Strong, there is no
way one church could do the work
of the 1145 team.
“Faith gives you strength and
another way to address and look at
the problem,” he said, adding that
when everybody contributes, ev­
erybody is blessed.