Bro. Olu Shabazz – Ministry in a Virus Hotspot

Dr. Olu Shabazz preaches for the Harlem Church of Christ in New York City, NY, in the midst of a virus hotspot. He visits with Bob Turner to share insight and hope for ministry in these difficult times. He also has served in patient relations in a hospital trauma center and brings this experience to bear in ministry in this crisis as well.

Key takeaways:

• Self-honesty: we don’t have any magic answers.
• It’s a time for compassion. Don’t judge the decisions of others.
• Rethink connectivity in these days. Call to ask if people are safe and healthy and have the necessities.
• Just as persecution scattered the early Christians to preach, we are now being forced from our buildings to carry the gospel online.
• Engage in proactive thinking: what will we look like a few months up the road? Staggered services to keep the groups small? Checking temperature at the door?
• There is beauty to think of ourselves as isolating not for our protection, but to protect others in case I am a carrier.
• When loved ones die without a chance to say good-bye encourage them to celebrate life and legacy and know that their loved one has transitioned and is no longer suffering.
• Dr. Shabazz meets with a group of ministers ministering to each other. For an invitation email Dr. Shabazz
• Jacob’s Well is a fund to help preachers in need. The fund is still being set up, but you may email Dr. Shabazz to express interest in giving.

Dr. Shabazz is currently the evangelist to the Harlem Church of Christ in New York City, New York, where he has served for nearly twenty years. He is recognized as a national evangelist to the Churches of Christ, having preached the gospel in thirty-eight states and three foreign nations. Over the years, he has become widely known in our brotherhood as being a church builder, sharp administrator and a biblical exegete. Shabazz holds several academic degrees from a number of various schools across the nation, which include two bachelor degrees (one in Biblical Studies and one in Christian Education), a Masters in Theology, and a Doctorate in Divinity.

Bob Turner preaches twice each month at the Church of Christ at White Station in Memphis. He has been with HST since 2009. He publishes a newsletter of curated resources for ministers called Footnotes. Subscribe here.

Harding School of Theology (HST), a seminary in Memphis, TN, has been equipping ministers since 1958. Accredited by the Association of Theological Schools, and offering degree programs at the master’s and doctoral levels, HST equips Christian leaders to higher standards of ministry scholarship and challenges them to a deeper faith in God. Combining academic rigor and interpersonal connections, HST emphasizes student engagement in ministry as they study. HST is associated with Churches of Christ, is part of the Stone-Campbell Movement, and is part of Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas.