Good day, friends. In this episode of the podcast, I want to kind of break from our regular routine.

And I want to just spend a few moments offering words of tribute to John MacArthur, the longtime pastor of the Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California,

who I trust you probably have heard by the time you hear or listen to this recording has moved upstairs to his final reward

after serving one local church for 56 years.

I just want to take a few moments to offer some personal reflections about what Dr.

MacArthur's life and ministry meant to me.

We were not the closest of friends,

so I don't have a bunch of intimate stories to share with you

that others may have who knew him longer or better,

but throughout basically my public ministry as a pastor, even before I met him, the ministry of John MacArthur had a great impact on my faith walk and my gospel labors.

You probably already know that I started pastoring my first church at the age of 17.

And the year or so before, right at the end of my father's ministry,

some godly women in that church asked if they could start a morning prayer meeting that would go Monday through Saturdays at 6 a.m., he granted that request.

And that prayer meeting went on really through my entire pastorate and beyond.

Those sisters would meet every morning for prayer, covering me and the church in prayer. And at some point, however, someone started bringing copies of a book by

Benny Hen that was called Good Morning Holy Spirit.

I read the book. It is not a good book. But that book was spreading like hotcakes at the time throughout the church in America.

And it landed in my traditional Black Baptist congregation.

And very soon, charismatic phenomena started happening in our worship services.

People were quote unquote getting slain in the spirit.

People were speaking in tongues.

And the congregation was shocked to say the least by this and divided over it and looking to their young pastor for some direction.

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