THE REV. S. WAYNE STOKELING

THE REV. S. WAYNE STOKELING

Born in Perry, GA, The Rev. S. Wayne Stokeling was called to preach at the age of seven.  He served the Lord at Greater Union Baptist Church, where he was youth minister and soon became a guiding force at area revivals for youth and adults alike.

Pastor of St. John Baptist Church in Brooklyn, NY, since 1986, He lead the transition of this ministry to organize as the New Journey Church of Brooklyn in 2010.

Rev. Stokeling is an outstanding community activist.  He led his congregation in the development of Project Return, a narcotics and alcohol abuse program; a Men’s Fellowship, which seeks to address the needs of the family; New York’s first Universal Sisters, a national women’s health conference; and programs for AIDS counseling, after-school and SAT tutoring, GED classes and a variety of other self-help and educational projects.  A long-term children’s advocate, Pastor Stokeling organized a mentoring program, Mind Your Mentoring, which has taken young, Black urban professionals into New York public schools since 1993.  In addition, he and his Neighborhood Prayer Watch spearhead Someone Is Praying for Me at St. John Baptist Church, monthly services to strengthen youth through prayer. He also sponsored the construction of a 178-unit apartment complex next to his church.

Prior to being called to St. John, Rev. Stokeling served as pastor of Friendship Baptist Church in Bowling Green, KY, and Friendship Baptist Church in Henderson, GA. A member of the Progressive Baptist State Convention, he serves as a lecturer on church history for this group as well as for the Empire State Baptist Convention and serves on the Board of Trustees for the National Baptist Convention.  Dr. Stokeling has preached and lectured around the world, including France, England, Trinidad and parts of Africa.  He frequently returns to Georgia where he serves as lecturer to the ministers of the Georgia State Baptist Convention and preaches across the state.

An academician as well as a theologian, Rev. Stokeling received a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Mercer University in Macon, GA; a Master’s Degree in Management and Finance from Georgia State; and an MBA from New York University.  Currently, Rev. Stokeling is pursuing post-graduate studies at Harvard Divinity School.  He also attended the Chandler School of Theology of Emory University in Atlanta, the London School of Economics ,the Theological Seminary at Vanderbilt University and Princeton Theological Seminary .  Rev. Stokeling has received numerous awards and honors including honorary doctorate degrees from Luther Rice Seminary in Atlanta, Georgia

Kwanzaa and Christ

Let's celebrate

First Fruits

The concept of presenting the first of your labors in the new year is as old as man. What will I give in 2011 to show my gratitude for the increase of 2010?

1.  Family- me
2.  Business-delegation
3. relationships-transparency
4. self-belief

I can go on and on. My top priority is in my relationship to God. More Praise.

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Thanksgiving In Retrospect: The Within and The Without

I assisted in feeding 500 plus men at a housing facility(shelter) for broken dreams, misplaced promises, unfulfilled commitments and trails of hurt. I saw myself in so many men on today that spiritual synthesis, I.e. self-assessment, soul-searching, kairos moment, and humility.

I saw the work of God. Today, His creations stood before me with everything that a man could ask for.

Please help me with all the answers about today. I have a member with pancreatic cancer who asked to help on today but was not able. He would help me to synthesis suffering. The within and the without.

I do understand that suffering on any level is not good or is it? Is fair or not fair?

I saw God at work on today. The Pilgroms' aftermath or ascent of the slaughter. We call it Thanksgiving.Abraham Lincoln's flight of civility during a bloody war between brothers. We call it Emancipation. I feed the hungry and did thousands across this country. We call it: Love/Social Gospel. I saw God today. I call it Hope.

Every man that stood on the other side of my spoon represented when God responds to the slaughter of innocents, destruction of family, desecration of divinity's finest: Don't ever lose the battle within.

He responds with hope.