Having been without a fulltime pastor since July 2009, the members of College Hill Baptist Church took the recommendation of their pastoral search committee and voted to have Rev. Michael T. Williams serve as its full-time senior pastor. Williams is slated to begin his service Sunday, Oct. 10.
The Mississippi Link spoke with Williams via telephone to talk about his new assignment and relocation to Mississippi.
ML: When did you know you were destined to be in ministry?
Williams: I’ve known since high school. I was a typical high school student. I enjoyed sports and the like, but there was always something different about me spiritually.
ML: When did you accept your calling into ministry?
Williams: It was the second semester of my freshman year at Mississippi State University. I’ve been in ministry now 30 and half years.
ML: You have roots in Mississippi. Is that why you wanted to come back?
Williams: Yes, that is one of the reasons. I’m originally from Greenville, Miss. and I wanted to be closer to my family. My mother just recently turned 77 years old and while she’s in good health, she doesn’t get around as fast as she used to and I wanted to be closer. My father died in 2001 and I thought it was time for me to return.
ML: Will you reside in Jackson or will you commute from Greenville to Jackson?
Williams: I will live in Jackson. Jackson is a lot closer to Greenville than Erie, Penn.
ML: What are your expectations of College Hill?
Williams: I am ready for this assignment. I just want to be the best pastor that I can be and do all that God wants me to do. I want to be the shepherd that God uses to take the people at College Hill to new heights, to greener pastures.
ML: Are you nervous at all about starting your new ministry?
Williams: I’m not nervous at all. With God’s guidance, we are going to become an even greater beacon of light in the community, in the city, across the state and the country for that matter. I’ve been doing this for a long time. Look, my father was a preacher so I am ready for this assignment. This is like a homecoming for me.
ML: Do you know anyone at College Hill?
Williams: I looked up and saw Sis. Audrey Wiley. She and I served on the presidential search committee together while I was employed at Coahoma Junior College. We selected Dr. Vivian Pressley and she is still there today.
ML: May we ask you a personal question?
Williams: Sure, go right ahead.
ML: We understand that you’re not married. Were you surprised College Hill selected you?
Williams: No, not surprised at all. God can and does use whom He wants. He can use single people as well as married people. Most of my career, I’ve preached as a single man. You have to understand that in the church, Baptist church in particular; it was custom for married ministers to lead the congregations. Those were the early days. In these later years, people began to understand that those were man-made rules and traditions. There isn’t anything scripturally wrong with having a pastor that is single. Make no mistake about it, I believe in the sanctity and institution of marriage.
Williams returns to Mississippi after serving stints in Clarksdale, Miss., Ypsilanti, Mich., Raleigh, N.C., and Erie, Penn.
Debra McGee, one of the members of the pastoral search committee for College Hill said she is excited the process is over and greatly anticipates Williams’ arrival.
“This was a long process and we wanted to make sure that we did what was right and fair,” McGee said. “We wanted a God-fearing leader and I think we found that in Rev. Williams.”
College Hill, according to McGee, has a membership of over 700 active parishioners. “This was a very long and tedious process. We wanted to make sure that we followed policy and procedure and more importantly that we followed the directions of the Holy Spirit,” said McGee.
Efforts to reach Lee Collins who served as the team captain for the search committee were unsuccessful before press time.
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