Central Baldwin Chamber hosts 15th Prayer Breakfast

By John Underwood / john@gulfcoastmedia.com
Posted 5/8/19

SUMMERDALE, Alabama — Evangelist R.V. Brown challenged participants at the 15th Annual Central Baldwin Chamber of Commerce Prayer Breakfast held during the National Day of Prayer Thursday, May 2 at …

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Central Baldwin Chamber hosts 15th Prayer Breakfast

Posted

SUMMERDALE, Alabama — Evangelist R.V. Brown challenged participants at the 15th Annual Central Baldwin Chamber of Commerce Prayer Breakfast held during the National Day of Prayer Thursday, May 2 at Baldwin EMC in Summerdale to “Get to work.”

“You’ve got to get involved in the battle every day,” he said. “We cannot win by being benchwarmer Christians.”

Brown, the founder and president of Outreach to America’s Youth Inc., shared his experiences growing up the 16th of 17 brothers and sisters, lettering in five sports in high school before going on to play football at South Carolina State University.

“I had a goal that if I could not play in the NFL, I would coach in the NFL, so I made a plan when I graduated from college that I would make it to the NFL in seven years,” he said.

After started out as a coach and a special education teacher in the Chattanooga (Tennessee) Public School System, Brown said as his seven-year goal was coming to a close, he got a call that he was hired as a graduate assistant for the Atlanta Falcons.

But the day before his dream was to come true, the coach that hired him was fired by the Atlanta Falcons and his contract was cancelled.

“It was my destiny for that coach to be fired,” he said. “God called me to be an evangelist. People thought I was crazy. I mean, how many black evangelists do you know? You’ve probably never met one before today. But after ministering in 48 states and in 42 countries, you cannot tell me that my God is not great.”

Brown pointed to the American flag as a symbol of freedom.

“We honor the flag as a symbol of freedom, but it costs something to be free,” he said. “God can do great things for you, but you must first yield yourself to God.”