Pint-Sized Preachers



Recently, I saw a young man called Kanon Tipton on a few news programs with his parents.  Kanon, for those of you who missed his rounds on the news shows, is a third generation preacher of the gospel. 

No problem there, right?  Spirit moving through generations of families is common. 

However, Master Kanon Tipton is four years old.  Yes, four.  At an age where kids are developing their fine motor skills, learning how to socialize with other children and how throw temper tantrums after an afternoon nap, he is preaching the gospel...and people are not only listening to him, they are really listening to him.

I watched video footage of the young man preaching and he is certainly charismatic, engaging and has a passion for the gospel.  And his parents, to their credit seem to acknowledge that while God has touched their child, some of Tipton's preaching is actually him simply mimicking his father and other people he has seen preach the gospel.

Don't worry.  I'm not going to ride out on a four year old.  Tipton seems to be honest and sincere in his endeavor to preach the gospel.  What's more, the Bible is full of people called to the ministry in their youth.  We know that Jesus was preaching in and around temples at 12.  Mary was around 16 when she was pregnant with Jesus.  Samuel, David and Daniel were all very young when God called them.

So, I get that God can call young people for kingdom building.  But, usually Spirit calls people because they have experiences that help illustrate Spirit's greatness.  Take the Apostle Paul for instance.  He was a zealous persecutor of Christians, a Roman citizen and also Jewish.  Spirit converted Paul and used him to illustrate, among other principles, the concept of redemption--that someone can be moving in the wrong direction for a very long time, and with Spirit's help, immediately move in the right direction and do great work.

Now, I don't know Tipton.  I'm sure he has a bright future and time will tell what his ministry is all about.  I am interested, however, to hear or see why Spirit called him.



Mid-Week Meditation: The Audience of Worship...

Every so often, I try to visit others as they gather to worship.  I do so because it is good get out of my primary place of worship to worship with others.  I have found that I can learn a great deal about people when I see them in their respective worship communities.  For most people, church or temple is the place in which they can "be themselves," whatever that term means.  It is also good to witness diverse worship styles and services.

Recently, I attended a church's anniversary celebration in the city in which I live.  Like my church, the church is within the African Methodist Episcopal communion.  On this occasion, the presiding bishop of the episcopate of which the church is connected, was in attendance (he actually was the speaker for the program), as was the bishop of another communion.  He happens to also be my presiding bishop as well.

The effort to secure the bishop of an episcopacy within the AME church for a program in our city was not lost on me.  In a city where some local churches have two or three bishops in their pulpits, getting a "bishop" to attend a local church function is perhaps easy.  However, bishops in the AME communion (or any communion with an episcopal structure) oversee 400-500 churches in various regions and countries.  They have unfathomable travel and preaching schedules and are always busy doing Spirit's work.

Securing the attendance of the bishop I am amenable to is particularly notable.  While he is accessible to a fault, he is very well liked, has a national profile, and even advises the president on spiritual matters.

What is more, his words, his ministry and his actions--by all accounts--align so that he is not a walking contradiction, but rather the model of a kingdom builder and poor righteous teacher (Five Percenters, let me have this one, just this time).

I will get ribbed for gushing about another man this way, but he gives me goosebumps whenever I hear him speak.

At this church anniversary, I was listening to my bishop speak, I reflected on how many individuals were there simply to see him speak or to wish the church well on their anniversary.  I reflected on how careful the bishop was to keep the attention of the audience off him and on Spirit and the scriptures he was exegeting.  It was most impressive to witness.

Ultimately, the anniversary made me reflect on the hundreds of thousands of worship services that occur weekly just in this country alone.  I have heard many individuals say that they are attending a worship service or church to get "fed" spiritually.  Conversely, I have heard many of the same individuals say they have moved from a church or chosen not to participate in a worship service because they are not getting "fed" spiritually.

Is getting fed spiritually the point of worship on Saturdays or Sundays?  Is an individual's need to receive encouragement, spiritual nourishment, or a more profound understanding of the scriptures, the point of worship?  Is only coming to a worship service if we receive something out of it the point of worship?  To be sure, clergy who lead worship will be accountable to Spirit if worship services are not also nourishing for the pew.  But, it seems to me that, worship by definition, has very little to do with us getting fed spiritually, but rather paying reverence to God and Spirit. 

We can get fed at a potluck or Bible study...