Having ventured into pastoral ministry some 21 years ago, Apostle Lamoy Brown, aka Reggae Pastor, reflected on his journey and the impact that his ministry has made since it started.

Based in Mount Vernon, New York, Liberty Vision of Hope Restoration Centre was founded 10 years ago as a non-denominational ministry. It also caters to the unchurched.

“We carry out community outreach, where we distribute food and clothing to the less fortunate, and we also evangelise in the streets. I was able to assist a lost soul who turned his life around.

“While praying at my church during a midnight prayer session, a young man walked into the church, and I called him to pray for him. The Spirit of the Lord showed me he was about to commit suicide. I told him and he broke down in tears. The short version of the story is that he was affiliated with a gang and had criminal charges attached to his name that would have seen him spend a minimum of 15 years in prison. I travelled with him to all his court hearings and the judge gave him 1½ to 3 years for a gun and cocaine charge. He went to prison to serve his time and found favour. He came out in less than a year. He is now a certified mechanic and making a better life for himself while God is still working on him,” Brown shared in an interview with the Jamaica Observer recently.

The Reggae Pastor continued: “I have had many high points in my ministry, including ministering on two of the biggest stages in Montego Bay at Dump Up Beach at Jamaica Praise Fest and Youth Aid. Seeing the responses from the crowd, and how they soaked up the message, was really something to see.”

Brown grew up in Clark’s Town and Daniel Town in Trelawny.

Among his pursuits, he entered the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) Gospel Song competition on two occasions and was a member of the gospel groups Visioneers and The Loving Brothers.

After taking a 15-year break from recording music, Reggae Pastor is back with a new single titled Hustling, which was released on April 9.

The official music video was released on June 14.

He explained why he took a break from music.

“I am a firm believer in representing God and His kingdom. The representation must stem for a pure conscience and a true heart. The scripture tells me the, ‘He seeketh such to worship Him in Spirit and in truth.” I took a step back from pastoral and music ministry due to a relationship crisis which occurred right after I did the New York leg of the album release in 2011. I made a spiritual decision to recuperate and rebuild. The decision was to take a two-year break from music and pastoral ministry, but then relocating to the United States changed things. I found out that taking care of the family was more important, and the cost to do music would not have balanced out based on earnings at the time, so I focused on pastoral ministry,” he disclosed.

Among the artistes with whom he has collaborated is gospel artiste Jermaine Edwards.

Brown told the Sunday Observer that was the pastor of two churches in Jamaica.

“I got saved in 1995 and started pastoral ministry in 2005 where I was the senior pastor for the Harvest Army Church International located in Savanna-la-Mar, Westmoreland. I was then appointed to oversee the Montego Bay location in 2010, where I pastored both branches simultaneously. I served this organisation for 18 years before relocating to the United States,” said Brown.

Speaking about the song Hustling, he explained its inspiration.

“The term hustling simply means working energetically, moving quickly, or putting in relentless effort to achieve a goal. Growing up in single-parent home, and being the eldest, I had to ensure certain burdens were relieved from my mother. From working in a supermarket on weekends while attending high school, burning fire coal, driving taxi, washing pots in restaurants, and now a business owner where I operate my construction company and pastoring my church, life has not been easy, but the tenacity that the Lord gave me, through hard work, I can truly say there is light at the end of the tunnel. The song Hustling was written over 10 years ago and is a reflection of my life experiences.”

Hustling was recorded at Sound Resolution Media in Queens, New York, with Keville Rodney as engineer.

It was mixed and mastered by DaJourney Productions.