Change has come at Full Gospel B.C. Fellowship Int’l.
20th July 2015 · 0 Comments
By Charmaine Jackson
Contributing Writer
Bishop Paul Morton makes final appearance before retirement
It was three years ago, when Bishop Paul Sylvester Morton, Sr. heard a word from God. As founder and presiding bishop of the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship International (FGBCFI), he stood before multitudes of conference attendees in Louisville, Kentucky, to announce he would retire in 2015 as presiding bishop of the organization that he founded in 1994. A planner by nature, Bishop Morton heeded to the divine plan and created a succession plan.
“You have to know when to pass the mantle,” Bishop Morton said. Based on votes from the FGBCFI Bishop’s Council, Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III, pastor of Mount Zion Baptist Church, in Nashville, Tennessee, was chosen to become the next mantle bearer as FGBCFI presiding bishop.
“Like Paul, I’ve fought a good fight. I believe I’ve accomplished so much,” Bishop Morton said of FGBCFI.
Growing up in Windsor Ontario, Canada, as a son of a bishop who pastored “one church in two locations,” one of many goals achieved as leader of the FGBCFI is “bridging the gap between the Baptist and the Pentecostal traditions. In addition to promoting key initiatives such as church and community development, leadership and entrepreneurial growth, economic development, and foreign missions, Bishop Morton’s leadership in the FGBCFI “affirms the role of women in ministry to include them as pastors, preachers, elders, teachers, and bishops,” which was rarely witnessed in church congregations decades ago.
Bishop Morton’s vision to empower the church with the right to choose, “a freedom based on the belief that the Gospel of Jesus Christ must be promoted by recognizing the free expression of the gifts of the Spirit as a viable part of the Body of Christ,” has led to a massive movement that has garnered a multi-cultural and multi-denominational fellowship, representing more than 10,000 leaders of faith, more than 2,000 churches and countless members, partners, and associates, both nationally and internationally.
This year’s conference, titled Changed!, returned to its birthplace of New Orleans, and was held at the Smoothie King Arena. “This is where it all started,” Bishop Morton said, which marks 21 years as presiding bishop of the FGBCFI. “It’s such a joy to come back after ten years,” he continued. A biblical number and symbolic for the occasion, the number of years Bishop Morton has served as leader added together equals three, which means completeness.
The conference was a historic event and a retirement celebration amalgamated to honor his service, School of Ministry classes, worship services, and community outreach efforts.
Part of the celebration started at the mother church, Greater St. Stephen in New Orleans East, when Bishop Morton made yet another historic move, by recording his last solo project, named Legacy, live, before a sold-out crowd of devoted fans. Joining him in concert were gospel legends, such as 11-time Grammy Award winning singer, Shirley Caesar and Stellar and Dove award-winning vocalist, Rance Allen, as well as other gospel stars like Motown Gospel/Universal recording artist, Tasha Cobbs, Stellar award-winning vocalist, DeWayne Woods, Grammy award-winning singer, songwriter, and producer Donald Lawrence and PJ Morton, son to bishop, who is a member of Grammy award-winning rock band, Maroon 5, among others. Also featured in the concert was the sound of Greater Change Mass Choir and Greater St. Stephen Choir.
In the 1970s, Bishop Morton said he had a dream wishing someone would play his music on the radio. This dream has manifested to the highest degree. He is not only is an established name in gospel music, but has earned many accolades.
Bishop Morton, a six-time Stellar award winner, among many other awards, was the 2015 recipient of the 2015 James Cleveland Lifetime Achievement Award at the 30th Annual Stellar Awards and selected as a 2015 honoree by the Gospel Music Association, two prominent honors.
With more than 33 years of serving the masses through his ministry of music, Bishop Morton says he wants to step back and play the role of a mentor and invest in aspiring musicians. As CEO of his record label, Tehillah Music Group, Bishop Morton noted he would like to use his influence to help give aspiring musicians and singers the coveted big break. He recalled a man named Thomas Whitaker ushered in his big break, into the gospel music scene.
“Seek the Lord’s face, don’t seek a hit,” is Bishop Morton’s advice to aspiring musicians and singers wanting to pursue ministry. “I believe the songs come from the testimony,” he added.
Pastoring for 40 years, Bishop Morton is not ready to leave the pulpit. “Five more years,” Bishop Morton says before he will retire from preaching. Until then, he, with the help of his wife, First Lady Deborah B. Morton, will continue to stay true to bishop’s legacy, while charging forward.
This article originally published in the July 20, 2015 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
