St. James AME, Brighton: A Small Church on a Big Mission that Supports The Christian Recorder

We greet you in the matchless name of Jesus and are excited to help The Christian Recorder reach its goal of 10,000 subscriptions. We’re also grateful for the opportunity to tell you a little bit about St. James AME Church in Brighton, Michigan.

God has kept our church for over 60 years, despite highs and lows, ebbs and flows in membership, and being the only African American congregation in the city of Brighton and Livingston County. Great is our God! Our testimony shows the power of faith and pressing forward. We truly lean on the strength of the Lord (Nehemiah 8:10). Our story also shows the importance of a pastor who believes we can do ‘MegaChurch’ work with God on our side! The members, stewards, and trustees believe that God sent the Rev. Yolanda Whiten to St. James for a reason. He has important work for us to do. We are all partners in the mission.

St. James was once a church that was mostly forgotten but now we praise God for community leadership and the chance to serve to our great Zion! In May of this year, the Rev. Whiten was unanimously elected as president of the Brighton Ministerial Alliance. In June 2015, St. James held a benefit concert and community-wide prayer service in Brighton for the victims of the Mother Emanuel Church shooting in Charleston. Several pastors from other churches in Brighton attended this service. The evening was a tremendous demonstration of unity. We thank God for every opportunity to be a light and blessing in our community.

We recently purchased 20 subscriptions of The Christian Recorder and we barely have 20 members! We proudly support our 165-year-old paper because we believe that history matters. If our small church can do this, then what can larger churches with faith, dedicated officers, and committed members do? Our theme this year is, “We Can Do More!” This is what Jesus said in John 14:12, “Greater works than these!”

Our church was once neglected but NOT anymore. We may be small but size has never been an issue. Remember that Jesus was one man with 12 disciples.

Stay woke! We need our printed newspaper. You can help ensure it stays solvent.

For more information about St. James AME Church or our community work, please contact Pastor Whiten at 734.657.5067 or revwhiten@yahoo.com.