our video team to discover and implemented an on-line live video streaming service via the Facebook app so that our members could continue to engage in worship as a church body. Even though this was our first congregation total shut down experience, it was not our first time having to lift and shift quickly to a new way of worshipping. When hurricane Ike hit the Houston area in 2008, our city experienced massive flooding and massive debris along the pathway to our church; whereas we began using teleconference calls to continue to share the Good News of God’s Word to our church body by any means necessary.

As in all things, we thank God for the season as it allotted ministries to continue to serve the people in real-time in the name of the Lord, despite being affected by COVID-19. As we know, COVID caused a rather drastic interruption into our normal day to day operation of worship and living, but the resiliency of our church family to seek new and varying connection to get the Word out to His people with available resources by accommodating our parishioners never cease to amaze me! We still have not had all our members come back to church in person yet, but we are praying that they will return sooner than later and that the Lord will also send newer in-person members too.

2. Why is it taking so long for folks to come back to church?

In my opinion, based upon my own personal conversations and research, some congregates are being cautious about how they choose to gather in large crowds as this virus created a stigmatized population of people being mindful that the virus is still possibility contagious. As stated earlier, some congregants have underlined health conditions and fear embracing others in church again, as it was so familiar to us prior to COVID. Likewise, for some caretakers, they are also apprehensive to return to church being that most of their patients have underline health conditions and that is concerning to them.

Moreso, being that we are now in a post-pandemic state, for approximately 1-2-years futuristically speaking, it is with great apprehensible expectations that in-person attendance to churches on Sunday’s will not increase vastly anytime soon, as it once did, pre-pandemic; even though most church doors are now back open without social distance restrictions for collective worship. On the other hand, people have been coming back to church via hybrid and/or virtually online. This new culture of believers feels as though the mandated stay at-home order allowed them to worship the Word of God during Covid, at its highest peak at home and it should still be okay today to continue to partake in worship services online whereas worshiping in the sanctuary is no longer the only available option to worship when they can receive God’s Word via streaming online. Likewise, some congregates have also started Bible Study podcasting on their own, whereas they have several followers, birthing a new worship experience. Likewise, Bible studies, funerals and all the other worshiping experiences that church’s offers can also be done virtually. Furthermore, with church services being streamed virtually in most capacities, it prompted opportunities for many congregants to visit other church services on-line too, hearing various pastors and viewing various ministries while engaging in the worship experience; for some, those new experiences have sparked a kindred spirit within the online parishioner community to change their membership from one church to another. The pandemic also increased online giving of tithes and offerings securely electronically too.

3. How has it affected your ministry?

Consequently, COVID has affected our ministry in ways that has opened new opportunities for us to expand our ministry outside the walls of the church building; even though we have always sought new opportunities to meet the needs of our members in the church and our community. COVID just happened to have thrust us even more into the community to meet and greet others. Our on-going visibly in and around our church location has allowed us to meet more neighbors and local business owners in person; whereas we discovered there is still a diversiﬁed demographic population of people, eateries and other businesses within our community that have needs to be met. COVID-19 has also affected how we in-take new members, perform Baptisms and administer the Lord’s Supper. Let's start with new members joining our church. We begin accepting new members virtually in 2020 instead of in-person. This would occur during live

April-June 2023 stream, at the invitation period as the Holy Spirit led me, I would invite attendees to come to Jesus online. If they were without a church home, maybe they had been out of the church for a while or they needed to rededicate their life to Christ, they could join/reunite with our church. I would also ask that they send us a direct message via our church social media page and to include their name, phone number and/or e-mail address whereas a member would reach out to them.

Gratefully, individuals adhered to the call of the invitation virtually to give their life to Christ and/or rededication.

4. What are you doing differently to share the gospel & your ministry since the start of the Pandemic?

Well, I can say one of the things that we're doing differently now is being more intentionally focused on our ministries in everything we do. For example, we carried out Baptism during the pandemic where there could only be 2-3 immediate family members present to witness the baptism. Once the new member which may have been baptized or they joined by Christian experience, we orientated them virtually and we continue this same practice today.

We had to rethink communion because we were unable to gather in-person during Covid. We've always used pre-package communion cups with wafers. Initially we sorted our church membership roster by zip codes. Each deacon would take their appointed zip codes and deliver communion to our members’ homes. As we would live stream communion service, we would partake in the commemoration together, as one body in Christ including members participating via teleconference.

The following months after COVID’s initial stay-at-home- mandate, we designated a day of the week with a 2-hour window for members to stop by the church to pick up communion and be prepared to take it along with the church family during communion Sunday. For anyone watching online another option was to take a capful of grape juice if they were unable to pick up the communion package from the church. For we know partaking of the wafer/bread and wine/juice for communion is symbolic; yet we had to exercise agility and consider all circumstances.

On March 11, 2021, the President of the United States of America, Joe Biden presented First Lady Linda and I of the New Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church a Thank You recognition letter in person for our willingness and uncompromising efforts to serve and assist the citizens of Houston, Texas with the COVID relief and recovery efforts. As the President stated, “They represent the best of who we are as Americans, and it is important that we show our appreciation for the sacriﬁces that they are making. Thank you for being a part of my visit to Texas. I look forward to continuing the partnership between Federal, State, and local leaders as we recover from this disaster” of our ministry. You can tune in every Sunday morning at 8:30AM CST and every Tuesday is a Replay of the New Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church with yours truly, Pastor David L. Smith at 9:00AM CST. We additionally have our New Bethlehem MBC media ministry to share reels and ﬂyers on Facebook at New Bethlehem and Instagram social media sites @NewBethlehem. We text and email former visitors with a link to our YouTube channel and ask them to also share it with their friends, relatives, associates and neighbors. Our YouTube channel is at New Bethlehem MBC Pastor David L. Smith. You may subscribe to our page, please click on the link button at the bottom of the recorded video to let us know you made a visit.

5. Do you think Pastors should have a worldview or a local view when it comes to their ministry?

Since the pandemic, and well over a year now, we have been hosting a radio segment on Envision Radio which is another platform for sharing the gospel

I believe Pastors should have a world view and a local view respectfully when it comes to ministry. From my perspective, a worldview is a set of beliefs that underlies and shapes all human beings’ thoughts and actions globally as a society in which we must live and conduct ourselves. Since attending theological seminary, I’ve learned the importance of sharpening my skills and understanding the studies in systematic theology, ancient history of the Bible, culture and doctrines, just to name a few and how to build a framework of my own personal beliefs, thoughts and actions from the lens of a global world. I feel our ministry is extended worldwide, whereas it is available to reach the masses of those listening, regardless of location and it’s an encouraging Word of God to all.

As far as my local view perspective when it comes to ministry, this is closest to my heart because it affects my day to day living, with my wife, children, the future of my grandchildren, family and the people around me that I have been ordained to shepherd. I believe some people hear the Word of God and sees the Word of God working in us and through us by our speech and actions in the church and within our communities, which makes a signiﬁcant difference in the lives we meet and touch permeating the gospel throughout their lives as they go forth and touch other lives as well. In our community, we engage with the people for the common good of meeting the needs of all of God’s children’s and its beauty, ediﬁcation and revitalizing of the community in which we serve.

Since God is omnipresent, in our ministry here in Houston, Texas and abroad, just the same, our ministries try to stay focused on the mission of the church to “Saving Souls and Maturing the Saints”. We are in an underserved community; however, we have been able to thrive continually because we take our ministry outside of the four walls of the church to serve. We have a presence and view approach to engaging with our community. They see us working, ministering, and serving the people. They know us,they know our faces and names. In developing and sustaining an on-going relationship with our neighbors, we seek out to meet the needs of the people right where they are, notwithstanding their Christian beliefs, economic status and/or lifestyle preference.

6. Please tell us about your ministry and /or your church. How long have you been pastoring there and what does the future hold for your congregation?

I have been pastoring the New Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church of Houston for greater than 30 years. On April 26, 1992, I preached my ﬁrst sermon as pastor. Overnight, I went from an associate minister to a full-time pastor. This appointment was new for my wife and I along with our 3 young daughters at that time, Tamara (12), Crystal (6) & Jessica (5). During my tenure, we have deﬁnitely “Walked by Faith and not by Sight”, according to II Corinthians 5:7. I believe in teaching that our greatest purpose as a living body of people is to "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15.

Since pastoring the New Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church, we’ve had a food pantry, providing fruits, vegetables, non-perishables, and food vouchers to all of those in need, in and out of our community. Likewise, we have also provided hot meals to seniors, churches, and schools within our local community area. I was asked if I would teach Bible Study at the W. Leo Daniels Tower senior living center, across from our church. I agreed and taught the seniors every Thursday evening for 3

In addition, the CARE ministry (Concern About Reaching Everyone) was birthed, whereas we go and visit the sick and shut-in in their homes and make hospital the station and cook it for them; in addition to inviting their families to join them on-site since ﬁre ﬁghters usually work 24-hour shifts for several days at one time which would take them away from their families for days at time. So, as a socially responsible community

In as such, on April 7, 2022, The House of Representative Congresswoman, Sylvia Garcia, of the 2944th District of Texas, presented Lady Linda Smith and Pastor David Smith a Congressional Record of Recognition for being up in a single-family home, my mother would read the Bible nightly right before going to bed. I was always asking her questions about being good and going to heaven. When she would read to me & my siblings, she would describe what heaven and hell was like as she studied the readings from the Bible and Sunday School lessons. So, as I begin reading and memorizing scriptures on my own, Matthew 5:8 became one of my favorite scriptures. Likewise, as a child, before I was saved, I read a commentary and realized that sin was tied to being bad.

Houston-area leaders that are selﬂessly serving their neighborhood.

Representative Garcia stated, "Many strong community leaders go unnoticed. They serve silently every day and draw very little attention to themselves, quietly doing their work. Yet through their service, they enrich and improve the lives of everyone around them. Pastor Smith and Lady Smith are both quiet, everyday heroes who put smiles on faces across the district particularly in the Eastex/Jensen Freeway community. Through their faith-based work, they spread positivity and hope to countless Houstonians”. To read more about pending legislation in honor of my wife and I, please visit Congress.gov >Congressional Record>April 7, 2022, > Issue: Vol. 168, No. 62 – Daily EditionAs for the future of New Bethlehem MBC I see our church family engaging more in bridging the gap between our youth and senior generations. It is so important to go back to the basics of our Christian foundational teachings no matter how the world changes, our moral and spiritual values will never change. New Bethlehem MBC will also continue evolving as a body of believers in Jesus Christ to deliver the Good News message locally and to the masses globally via the world wide web; yet adjust our methods of instructions that are being shaped and modeled. For we are to preach and teach God’s Word from the Bible.

8. Please share with us about your podcast on retirement and what prompted you to start it?

7. Please share your favorite scripture. My favorite scripture is Matthew 5:8 which reads “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God”. Growing

Our daughters Tamara, Crystal & Jessica encouraged us to start the podcast. As we were sitting around the dinner table talking, they thought we had a wealth of knowledge and experiences and they felt as though someone in the world needs to hear them. Therefore, they encouraged us to start podcasting to share our life experiences. We contemplated the idea for a while before undertaking the endeavor as our daughters helped us formulate relevant content for us to go into a studio and record our story.Our ﬁrst podcast was published on July 1, 2022, introducing ourselves and how we met back in 1976 when Linda moved from Smithﬁeld, Virginia to Houston, Texas. First Lady Linda, and I will celebrate 38 years of marital bliss this June 2023. We are the proud parents of three beautiful daughters with bonus son-in-law’s as they have their own families now and we are also greatly blessed with 4 grandchildren, Jayla (22), Tamia (17),

Chandler (16) and King David (5).

Nonetheless, Linda and I had corporate careers while I was also pastoring to God’s people.Once my wife retired, she jokingly began calling us “The Retired Party of 2”. She would also post and tag that title to our social media sites and it caught on like wildﬁre. There have beentimes when we are out in public, and people will come up to us saying…hey I know you; you guys are the Retired Party of 2. You can view our retirement journey on YouTube channel, Retired Party of 2 Podcast.

9. You and First Lady are also authors please share with us why you wrote the book & where can we buy it.

First Lady Linda and I always wanted to write a book, but we just kept procrastinating the idea. Around 2018, while attending the Thomas A. Dorsey National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, we attended a book writing class, facilitated by Julia Royston of BK Royston Publishing. I wanted to write a book or tell our story to leave a legacy for our grandchildren and generations to come after we are gone to glory.

Therefore, we contacted Mrs. Julia Royston and asked if she would assist us with writing our ﬁrst book. She agreed. Mrs. Julia Royston was instrumental in assisting us until the book was ﬁnished.

My wife and I wrote this book with a biblical view in mind. We want our readers to know there is a biblical structure for the family. It should always start with God being the Creator, the head, followed by Man being the head/priest of his household. As the man follows Christ then the wife shall follow him, which allows the children to follow their parent’s leadership and training.

As authors, Linda & I have also had the opportunity of being featured at the National Black Book Festival in October 2022 as well as for the holidays we were featured with our publisher, B.K. Royston virtually on the Author

Showcase Books in November 2022. We are grateful to God as He sees our needs to have the Brownstone Book Club reach out to us as well, they chose our book as the book of the month February 18, 2023, highlighting us as authors to come out and personally share our story of how family really does matter at Grimaldis Pizza in Sugarland, Texas. You may ﬁnd our book Family Matters by David L. and Linda H. Smith on Amazon, Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble, eBay, Walmart or Gumroad.com/The Smiths and Cash App us at $SmithFamilyMatters. As it’s always said you can choose your friends, but not your family. Family is Family! Always remember Family Matters and a family that prays together stays together!

10. Please can you give some advice to young Pastors starting out in ministry. My advice to any young pastor starting out in the Christian ministry is to make sure to have and keep a personal relationship with God ﬁrst as well as to have a fervent prayer life. Moreover, the pastor should continue to be a student of the Word and to stay engaged in the ministries of the church. Pay attention to the ever-evolving cultures of our youth, engage in dialogue with them and listening to the wisdom of our seniors. The pastor needs to also under girth himself with a mentor, conﬁdant that will minister and pray with him, hold the young pastor accountable for what is said, actions taken in the church and their actions outside of the church too. Every pastor needs a pastor. Here are a few additional suggestions to consider:

● Likewise, a young pastor should also make every effort to build a positive relationship with the elders of the church, deacon board, trustees, and associate ministers.

● Meet with the elders/deacons of the church often to review the bylaws that governs the order of the church.

● The young pastor needs to discipline themselves to always remember, God ﬁrst, family and then the church, in that order. I would tell him to keep in mind, the parishioners are watching your every move and actions taken.

● Do not neglect the welfare of your wife and/or your children. Remember, family matters.

● Take time to study and prepare for Sunday morning worship and Bible Studies. No Saturday night specials (Waiting until Saturday night to prepare a sermon). People souls are at stake.

Spike Davis

Comedian Host Actor Writer

Comedian Spike Davis, born and raised in Louisville, KY but now resides in Atlanta for the past 12 years. Over the past 30 years, Spike has toured the country with some of the hottest names in the comedy business. Most notably, he appeared with Steve Harvey, Jamie Foxx, and Ced The Entertainer just to name a few. Also, Spike has made several national television appearances on HBO, Showtime, Comedy Central, and BET. He has been rocking comedy club stages from coast to coast and now sea to shining sea. Over the past 6 years, Spike has elevated to himself one of the most requested comedians on the high seas. Working cruise lines and performing to sold-out rooms nightly. With his intelligent and witty comedic style coupled with the ability to work off the crowd, he leaves the audiences with a lot to laugh about and tons to think. His well thought out sets include humor mixed with poignant messages of hope, inspiration, healing, and inclusion all with a silly twist.

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EnVision Magazine April-June 2023