The Power Of The Spoken Word
For 2.2 billion people around the world, the Easter weekend is a central focus of their faith.
For me, on Easter Friday, shortly after I’ve woken up, a particular 3 minute section of a sermon jumps into my head. It’s by S.M. Lockridge.
‘It’s Friday, But Sunday’s Coming’, and whether you identify as Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist or Atheist, it’s worth a listen, if for nothing else, to allow yourself to captured by an incredible orator.
S.M. Lockridge (born Shadrach Meshach Lockridge, March 7, 1913 — April 4, 2000) was the Pastor of Calvary Baptist Church, a prominent African-American congregation located in San Diego, California, from 1953 to 1993. He was known for his preaching across the United States and around the world. Lockridge was born in Robertson County, Texas, the oldest of eight children and the son of a Baptist minister. A graduate of Bishop College in Marshall, Texas, he worked for two years as a high school English teacher. In 1940 in Dallas, he felt led to preach. In 1941 he married Virgil Mae Thomas but they never had any children.
It’s not often you hear someone speak as S.M. Lockridge does. Passion, pause, melody, rhythm, power. I’m not formally trained in the art of drama and speech, but I do recognise that he was a master of the spoken word.
