Big Momma, Church Hats and the Glory of God

I recently had a conversation with a dear brother in the Lord and I was sharing my heart about my concerns for the African American church – one of which is the general lack of expositional teaching. What he said to me was something I didn’t expect to hear. He said, “David, just about every week, I hear stories of African-American men pursuing pastoral ministry who grieve over the lack of solid exposition in the pulpit. But the biggest problem you’ll face in the African-American church culture is an acceptance of complementarianism.”

That answer caused me to significantly reconsider my approach concerning my desires for the African-American church culture. One of the greatest tragedies, due to sin, in the African-American culture is the lack of fathers in the home. Statistics have been recorded about how the African-American community has been and is affected by the absence of strong male leadership and the church is not immune. It is because of this very reason that women have had to step up to be the “momma” and the “daddy” of their homes and in the culture. So we can see how this gets messy in matters of the church. While we applaud the women and Big Mommas in our culture for taking necessary responsibility, we must understand that God’s way is better and His way is for men to lovingly lead their families for the stability of society and ultimately for the glory of God.

Continue reading: Urban Resurgence.