Fourth Business Session - The 160th Session of the Virginia Annual Conference

Added: 2026-05-30

[00:00:00]Jesus, teach us, will you?

[00:00:03]Preach us, will you?

[00:00:06]Will somebody help me lift Jesus?

[00:00:10]Somebody help me lift Jesus. Somebody Somebody help me lift Jesus. Won't [singing] you to lift him higher, higher, higher.

[00:00:25]>> [screaming] >> I'll draw all men, draw all men unto me. I wonder who I wonder who Preach us, will you?

[00:00:40]Teach us, will you?

[00:00:42]I need somebody.

[00:00:45]Will somebody I need somebody to help me lift Jesus.

[00:00:54]Won't you lift him?

[00:00:56]Lift him.

[00:00:58]Lift him.

[00:00:59]Lift him.

[00:01:01]I'll draw all men, draw all men unto me.

[00:01:06]I want somebody.

[00:01:09]Somebody [singing] help me lift Jesus. I need somebody.

[00:01:15]Somebody I need preachers.

[00:01:20]I need teachers.

[00:01:23]Somebody, I need somebody.

[00:01:28]I want you to lift him.

[00:01:31]Lift him.

[00:01:32]Lift him.

[00:01:33]Lift him.

[00:01:35]I'll draw all men, draw all men unto me. Somebody help me lift Jesus. Somebody help me lift Jesus. Somebody [music] I need somebody.

[00:01:51]Clap your hands.

[00:01:54]Stomp your feet.

[00:01:56]Shout if you want to.

[00:01:59]I need somebody.

[00:02:02]Lift them higher.

[00:02:04]Higher.

[00:02:06]Higher.

[00:02:07]Higher.

[00:02:09]I'll draw all men, [music] draw all men unto me.

[00:02:15]Amen.

[00:02:17]Amen. Amen.

[00:03:40]>> [singing] >> I need thee Oh, oh I need thee every hour I need thee oh bless me now my savior I come [singing] to thee amen amen when I think of the goodness of Jesus and all he's done for me oh my soul cries out hallelujah I thank God for saving me yeah yeah when I think of the goodness of Jesus and all he's done for me oh my soul cries out hallelujah I thank God for saving me I thank God for saving me I thank God for saving [music] me oh my soul for the goodness of Jesus I thank God for saving me say that again I thank God for saving me I thank God for saving me when I think [music] of the goodness of Jesus I thank God saving [music] me When I think of the goodness of Jesus and all he's done FOR ME OH MY SOUL cries out hallelujah I thank God for I thank God for me >> [music] >> I thank God for me When I think of the goodness of Jesus I thank God for me I thank God for >> [music] >> me I thank God for me When I think of the goodness of Jesus I thank God for me on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way on my way >> [music and singing] >> Thank you. Thank you.

[00:09:06]Rough.

[00:09:07]Thank you.

[00:09:09]All right. God bless you. Thank you both of examiners.

[00:09:13]Boy, y'all fired up.

[00:09:15]Thank you. I hope everybody had a good lunch. Here we are.

[00:09:20]Uh Um thank you, Reverend Bowser.

[00:09:23]Um she ready to get out of here.

[00:09:27]I already got a copy of the disciplinary questions. All right. All right. That's good. You efficient. You ain't trying to rush us.

[00:09:36]Um but I hope everybody had a good y'all have been nothing but kind. Thank you God whoever you are.

[00:09:43]And that's the whole Virginia conference. Y'all have done a wonderful job. And Reverend led by Reverend Billy Hunter, Elder Hunter, thank you all so very much. Um I normally would call up the host church and the pastor and say some good things to the cooks and the drivers and all that kind of stuff, but I think everybody pretty much worked so well together that nobody wants to really be called out.

[00:10:13]Except Hunter since we are in the Portsmouth Norfolk district, right? No no actually we in the Norfolk Eastern Shore District. We in We where? Six individuals Six individuals? But who are the >> will send the location is we in the Norfolk Eastern Shore District. Saint John Norfolk is two blocks down the street. Oh, two blocks? Is that close?

[00:10:39]Really? I don't know my bearings.

[00:10:42]They brought me in here and I ain't been out since.

[00:10:49]Okay.

[00:10:50]All right. I didn't know Norfolk was that close I mean Saint John.

[00:10:54]Oh, okay. Y'all really downtown.

[00:10:58]All right. Well, let's go. We have today um Mr. Joe McClain.

[00:11:06]I've been knowing him for quite a while.

[00:11:10]Did I get your name right?

[00:11:13]Huh?

[00:11:16]Oh, wisdom of my Okay.

[00:11:19]I don't know where Oh, my hands my staff.

[00:11:22]Uh all right cuz you gave me a flyer. Do you have another one?

[00:11:26]Let me have it.

[00:11:36]>> Okay, thank you.

[00:11:37]Rooted faith, planting trees in sacred places. Praise the Lord.

[00:11:43]Um, this is a uh uh I'mma have him to tell you about it.

[00:11:50]Okay. What is your name?

[00:11:55]Yeah, Micah. All right.

[00:11:58]My nickname is Mike.

[00:12:01]I got to remember that to remember your name. Okay.

[00:12:05]All right, thank you, uh Micah Buckland.

[00:12:07]He been working with us. Always got some special project going because he is so gifted. But, uh he put us lights, he was doing energy savings on different buildings. And we had him to come to Alabama and outfitted our whole We had a two two-story elementary school that the district had purchased. And he came and did energy lighting throughout the whole two-story building. And saved us thousands of dollars. And I'm glad to say that before we left we were able to see some profit off of that project. And so, we have been in touch. So, he has a project that he wants the Virginia churches to know about because the grant received to plant trees is only for Virginia churches.

[00:13:05]Amen.

[00:13:06]And it's a grant. And so, I'mma let him tell you all about it. And he is going to take about 10 minutes.

[00:13:14]Okay, come on.

[00:13:19]He is a United Methodist minister.

[00:13:22]Thank you, Bishop C. Wright. So, he is a little shorter than AME Zion Baptist.

[00:13:27]As Bishop C. Wright says, I am the Reverend Michael McClean. I have the privilege of working for the National Council of Churches, which the AME Church is a very integral part of your former Bishop is our general secretary.

[00:13:40]Very grateful to have Bishop Vestal lead us.

[00:13:43]The environmental justice movement started at the request of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.

[00:13:50]In 2007, they realized all of the issues environmentally affecting African-Americans. There was no one talking to our people.

[00:14:00]During those years, you had a lot of clergymen that were part of the Congressional Black Caucus. They came to the National Council of Churches that we need help. They put together a program that was designed for the Black Church.

[00:14:13]I work on anything from land grants, from energy efficiency, water, air quality. We are always on Capitol Hill testifying. I spent the last years as the national faith director for our beloved President Joseph R. Biden.

[00:14:29]So, we are serious about environmental justice work. This grant is designed for African-American churches in the Tidewater area, Virginia.

[00:14:39]The grant is paid for.

[00:14:42]We're looking for churches who are willing to plant trees. Each church can get up to 10 trees.

[00:14:49]And so, I'll give you an example. If Mount Zion needed five and Mount Nebo could take 15, that would give us the 10. Also, what we're doing, churches that can only take one or two trees, we are giving the other trees to HBCU schools.

[00:15:05]Now, I'm fortunate or unfortunate, I'm the only one in my work that looks like me and you.

[00:15:13]So, I had to fight very hard for this grant.

[00:15:15]White churches want these trees.

[00:15:18]They're taking them. When we go go them, we don't have a argument, they raise it, yes, we'll take them.

[00:15:25]The church, the grant will pay for the trees, pay for the mulch. We have a stipend of $800 for 2 years that will help pay the water bill for the church. Now, the only pushback that I hear a lot and Bishop C right now I've talked about since Candle Lab, well, Reverend McClain, that's going to take a lot of work. We got to rake some leaves. Do you know how long it takes for a tree to grow to give you leaves?

[00:15:50]I'm 72 years old. Most of us in this room will probably be going to glory before those trees. You have young people, some of you have scout troops.

[00:15:59]Please take advantage of this grant.

[00:16:02]If you don't want You don't have to get trees that grow huge, you determine that. We don't tell you where to plant the tree.

[00:16:09]We don't tell you how many trees to plant. You have control over that.

[00:16:14]We just want you to plant the trees. How often do you get the $800? You get $400 a year for water.

[00:16:20]Oh, but see, make it clear. Okay. Cuz somebody be thinking 800 a month.

[00:16:27]I mean, you know. Oh, yes, he's correct.

[00:16:29]He's correct. And now you're saying $400 per year. Right. And I thought you said $800 per year. No, no. But see, get the facts. Yeah.

[00:16:40]So, you're talking about $400 per year, which averages about $48 Yeah.

[00:16:53]And trees don't require a lot of watering because the Lord's going to give you the water anyhow. We're just trying to help you. Some churches are using this money to pay a caretaker just to go around and check on the trees.

[00:17:05]So, you're not And it's not a lot of work.

[00:17:08]If you have youth, they'll be glad to get involved. I know a lot of us are older now, we don't want to do the work, I get that.

[00:17:14]But this tree grant is available. The only stipulation is I must get your address because you must be within what the federal government calls a disadvantage zone.

[00:17:27]And unfortunately, some of our fortune some of our churches are not in those zones. Depending on what your zip code is where the church is located. But 90% of the churches that we go go with, they meet the qualifications for the grant. I have the flyer. I have a business card.

[00:17:42]I need you to take it and just contact me. We'll set up a set up a zoom meeting with you.

[00:17:47]Now, we have arborists in this area that will come and meet with the church.

[00:17:52]They will listen to you. They will do what we call a pre-planning diagram.

[00:17:57]They will go on your property if you need that. They will show you where it's best where they think the tree would grow best. And they'll recommend you what tree they would they feel would grow in your soil content cuz we're not tree experts.

[00:18:11]I don't want to mislead you, but I'm not.

[00:18:14]But it's a good grant and everything is paid for.

[00:18:18]You don't have to fill out any paperwork or anything. All the paperwork you fill out for us, you'll tell us where to send your check every month.

[00:18:24]That's it.

[00:18:26]Any questions? Yes, ma'am.

[00:18:31]Any what now?

[00:18:35]Right now, just this one.

[00:18:38]And I'll be meeting with Bishop C.

[00:18:39]Wright's conference next week in Charlotte because we also have a computer grant, but that's strictly for North Carolina.

[00:18:46]Yeah.

[00:18:49]A computer grant? Remember what I was telling you about? The computer training for seniors. Oh, yeah.

[00:18:53]>> Yeah. Okay.

[00:18:55]All right.

[00:18:57]Reverend McLean, if I could just speak, we St. John's has already begun working with Reverend McLean and his staff uh for their Is it fall planting, Reverend McLean? And I just want to let everyone know just how real simple this program really is. And all you have to do is mention to Reverend McClain your interest and his staff will work with you. We are part of a larger project and as Reverend McClain said, even if you only have space to plant two trees, you make space for HBCU to receive trees. Um and so I highly encourage the members of the conference to join with Saint John's and Reverend McClain in this project.

[00:19:37]Thank you, Reverend Savage. Well, you know all the now we yesterday we had two sermons on trees.

[00:19:45]God be praised.

[00:19:48]Now, wasn't that something?

[00:19:51]Reverend Medley and Bishop Byrd preached about trees, saw, and then isn't it ironic that a person would come here today, Reverend McClain, to talk about giving us the opportunity to plant trees. I believe God is up to something.

[00:20:13]So, Reverend Medley, you got land to plant them?

[00:20:18]Yeah, so you there's one to sign up.

[00:20:21]All right. Who else got some land? Does you know you got land? All right. We have to make sure it's in the zone.

[00:20:29]Matthew Shannon?

[00:20:31]Yeah. I bet if they were talking about pine trees, y'all be saying, "Ooh, yeah.

[00:20:36]I can we can harvest those in 20 years."

[00:20:40]Can you harvest these?

[00:20:42]That's up to what you plant. That's up to you.

[00:20:44]Cuz remember, you control which tree you want on your land. Oh, you can choose pine?

[00:20:49]>> Yes. Oh, shoot. That's like gold growing in the ground.

[00:20:53]What about pecans? Yes. You can choose pecans? Yes. Is pecan a native tree of Virginia? Yes.

[00:20:59]>> Well, let me make me sure you understand pecans.

[00:21:04]>> [laughter] >> But I mean, this is serious stuff.

[00:21:07]>> Yeah. You better get you some walnut trees.

[00:21:10]Yeah. And >> And we have fruit trees. You If you want fruit trees, you can plant fruit trees.

[00:21:15]Yeah, get you a little orchard.

[00:21:19]Yeah. We have a Baptist church in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that has a orchard. They're planting 20 fruit trees. They already have 30 already.

[00:21:29]Now, it doesn't take many years to grow peaches and apples. I think it just take a I planted a peach tree and a apple tree. The peach The apple tree died, but you know, one year there was so many peaches on that tree.

[00:21:44]I got to tell you this. I planted a peach tree in Maryland.

[00:21:48]And my peach tree bid good. And I said, "I'mma let them stay on the limb for at least another day and let them get a little bit more ripe."

[00:22:00]I went to the store, bought my flour and everything, and butter and everything. I thought, "I'mma make me a peach cobbler." Went out to the tree and there wasn't a peach tree around. I'm a peach around. I accused my neighbor. I went to my neighbor.

[00:22:17]"Did you see my peaches?"

[00:22:22]I was upset. I went to neighbors, "What happened to my peaches?" And then I saw a little peach seed on the ground. I said, "Oh, the squirrels.

[00:22:33]They ate my peaches the day before I got ready to pick them."

[00:22:38]I was so hurt.

[00:22:40]And they ain't bad no more peaches.

[00:22:43]But anyway, that's life.

[00:22:46]But thank you. So, if you can I didn't know all of this.

[00:22:49]>> sir.

[00:22:51]Shoot.

[00:22:52]>> The only stipulation is it has to be a native of Virginia. In North Carolina, we did the same thing in Greensboro, Charlotte, uh Durham, Pittsburgh, and Pennsylvania. Now, Philadelphia was tough.

[00:23:05]I got an idea.

[00:23:07]>> Pittsburgh was tough. Why don't you plant six for the bishop on your land and let me come down and harvest the peach?

[00:23:21]All right.

[00:23:21]>> So, I'll be around. I'm going to I'll If you want me to I can move over to the back.

[00:23:26]>> Yeah.

[00:23:26]>> see me, give me information, I'll take it down and get in touch with you. Oh, I didn't know you could just pick out your tree.

[00:23:31]>> Oh, yes, you have control of that. As I said, the only stipulation, it must be a native tree for Virginia.

[00:23:38]The main reason is you may want a palm tree. Palm trees don't grow in Virginia.

[00:23:43]Right. So, you planting is going to die.

[00:23:45]Yeah.

[00:23:47]Y'all got that? Y'all know what I'm talking about? I bought a It's the Hampton Roads, Virginia. Right, right.

[00:23:58]The Hampton Roads.

[00:23:59]>> Not the whole state. Boy, this show restricted, but no palm trees.

[00:24:04]You be all in that. Okay.

[00:24:07]But thank you, Reverend McClain. Thank you.

[00:24:13]You just give me your address and I'll run it. I've got it all in my computer.

[00:24:16]>> It's truly a blessing.

[00:24:18]And it's all free.

[00:24:20]Yeah.

[00:24:21]You know how much pecans cost?

[00:24:27]I make fruit cakes, y'all know.

[00:24:36]Y'all know I make fruit cakes.

[00:24:38]Old fashioned.

[00:24:43]And I put walnuts, pecans, and almonds in them.

[00:24:49]But there's one thing I do soak the nuts and fruits in them.

[00:24:54]Rum.

[00:24:56]Uh so, I warn you.

[00:25:01]I ain't had nobody to tell me, "Don't use it."

[00:25:08]All right.

[00:25:09]I'm I'm tired and getting kind of silly now. All right.

[00:25:13]Okay. Reverend Andre Scott.

[00:25:21]What is a neckbone casserole?

[00:25:25]It's coming out in my book.

[00:25:32]I'm serious.

[00:25:33]Every time I cook it, somebody wants the recipe.

[00:25:38]Yeah, it's good.

[00:25:43]It's real good.

[00:25:48]I'll be in the kitchen cooking and the Holy Spirit give me all kind of recipes.

[00:25:52]All right. Okay. Thank you. Now, next Um, what other reports we have? Do we have We have pastors um Uh, presiding elder Siring upkeep.

[00:26:04]That's where I was going, sir. Okay.

[00:26:06]Yes, sir. We have the uh support of the presiding elders.

[00:26:10]Rayac, prayer ministry were the last three.

[00:26:16]Yeah, come on, prayer ministry. I think we stopped with y'all. Yes.

[00:26:27]All right. Presiding elder Sassement.

[00:26:32]All right. And what other one?

[00:26:35]We've had the prayer ministry.

[00:26:38]Uh economic development.

[00:26:42]You got one. Okay.

[00:26:44]Those new ones?

[00:26:48]Don't we have representatives?

[00:26:53]Okay.

[00:26:56]>> Okay.

[00:26:57]You got the prayer minister?

[00:26:58]>> Yes, sir. Okay.

[00:27:23]Also abandoned property getting place.

[00:27:26]Christian education getting place as well.

[00:27:29]Christian education?

[00:27:34]And Reverend Sparrow has a report, right?

[00:27:37]Okay, now we going to wrap them up because if we can get out earlier, I can get to my episcopal room earlier.

[00:27:44]Amen.

[00:27:46]All right, thank you.

[00:27:50]Who is this, Reverend? All right, go ahead, prayer. Sorry about that. Uh good afternoon. I am Reverend Marie Murphy. I stand to give my first report as the second district Norfolk Eastern Shore prayer ministry along with Sister Gwen Davis on the I'm sorry. The Norfolk Eastern Shore and Sister Gwen Davis, who is not here right now, is part of the Norfolk Eastern Shore prayer ministry and we represent uh the Virginia Annual Conference on the second district. Uh this ministry was started after Bishop's 90 days of prayer and presiding elder and presiding Hunter asked us to lead this ministry. So, I stand to give my first report as a second district uh committee member and on the Virginia prayer ministry of the Virginia Annual Conference. We have served weekly to assist the second district prayer ministry which meets every evening at 6:00.

[00:28:54]We We held our first prayer service on Thursday, May the 7th, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. The National Day of Prayer via Zoom the with the Virginia Virginia Conference Christian Education Department. We had people to pray for seven arms of the seven arms of prayer for the nation, the military, family, media, government, education, and the church. Our desire is to place a great desire and fire within the heart and the belly of the people, young and old.

[00:29:31]Place the burden of prayer on their hearts, personal lives, homes, and throughout all aspects of their life. We will accomplish these goals by holding prayer training on both districts, which is already in effect with the Christian Education and Prayer Directors. And we're going to hold two prayer trainings starting with our young people on both districts for this next annual conference. And we're going to encourage those churches that do that have not started a prayer ministry, that we will assist them in implement implement implementing their prayer instruct and pray with them and encourage them and help them get materials. We also asking if you have a prayer ministry and a church don't have a prayer ministry, maybe y'all could join together. And those that already have prayer ministries continue to pray as we have been doing. Amen.

[00:30:35]>> Amen. Reverend Merfitt, thank you so very much for taking this seriously.

[00:30:40]We Prayer is a I don't know why we shy away from prayer when when we talking about celebrating Pentecost Sunday and uh the celebration of the birth of the spirit on the church and and um and like Dr. Gunn's this morning, we had a wonderful institute with him telling us how we have taken Pentecost and made it uh an event rather than actually a happening for the life of the church.

[00:31:09]And I mean that Jesus, this was his directions. The same author that wrote Acts wrote Luke. And he's Jesus told them in Luke, go to Jerusalem and wait until you have been endued with the power.

[00:31:26]Then he turned around in Acts 1:8 says, "When the Holy Spirit has come upon you, then you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaritan, and in what? The uttermost parts of the world."

[00:31:40]And then in the second chapter, the Holy Spirit came.

[00:31:44]And then it came in like a mighty rushing wind.

[00:31:48]And they ALL STARTED SPEAKING in other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance.

[00:31:55]As the spirit.

[00:31:56]>> As the spirit.

[00:31:58]Not standing on no carpet until you got it.

[00:32:01]But as the spirit gave you utterance.

[00:32:05]And then it put them all on one accord.

[00:32:07]By the time you get down to Acts 2:42 through 47, they were all gathered together. But what happened? It was 121 20 of them gathered in the upper room 50 days after Jesus ascended back to the Father.