Marsalis Ave Church of Christ Makes Transition at the Historic Congregation in Oak Cliff
On Sunday, August 24, 2014 David L. Lane, Ph.D., announced that he will be retiring as minister of the Marsalis Avenue Church of Christ at the end of this year. Dr. Lane has served as the Senior Minister of the Dallas church for the past 11 years. He came to Dallas after ministering to the Berkley Heights congregation in St. Louis, Missouri, where he labored for 27 years. “It was not my intention to take on another congregation when I moved to Dallas,” Lane admits. “However, the needs of the congregation aligned with my skills, and gave me an opportunity to have a working laboratory for church administration training needed for Southwestern Christian College ministerial students. God orchestrated the events and led me to Marsalis,” he adds. Dr. Lane will remain for the next few years as the resident retired minister of the Marsalis Avenue congregation. He will continue his national and international ministry of university lecturing, revivals, workshops, conferences, business and church arbitrations, as well as writing.
The congregation has experienced great spiritual growth under his tutelage. Under his leadership, the 400 member congregation established a Life Management Center, where a team of mental health professionals volunteer their time to provide counseling services to members, their families, friends and community members. The church has partnered with groups such as the Dallas Police Department, Lifeline Chaplaincy, and Victims Relief Ministries in a variety of efforts designed to transform lives to the glory of God. Dr. Lane’s leadership also led to the equipping and ordination of additional elders and deacons as well as the expansion of the church staff. In 2008, the congregation hired Lamont Ross as its full-time Family and Youth Minister.
On January 1, 2015, Minister Ross will become the Senior Minister of the historic church located on Marsalis Avenue and Grover C. Washington Avenue. “We brought Minister Ross back to Marsalis anticipating that he would become the Senior Minister at some point. We knew that if we were going to reach a new generation for Christ, we needed someone whose primary role would be to connect to Generation Y,” said Jewel Manzay, one of the six elders of the church. Minister Ross is known for his dynamic sermon illustrations and object lessons. He has the unique ability to reach Millennials, Generation X and Baby Boomers alike. Minister Ross envisions a church that is a reflection of the diversity of the greater Dallas area, specifically the nearby South Oak Cliff community.
After serving in Austin, Texas, Minister Ross, returned to Dallas where he has many family and friends. A native Dallasite, Minister Ross spent his formative years at the Marsalis Avenue congregation. “I am amazed by the providence of God. Only God knew that nearly 25 years later I
would return to minister to the people that my wife and I know and love,” he says. Minister Ross holds a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from the Austin Graduate School of Theology and graduated with honors from the University of Texas at Austin. He and his wife, Stacy, who also grew up at the congregation under the leadership of the late Grover C. Washington, have three children. An official installation service is being planned for January 2015 for Minister Ross.
Lamont Ross is the Family and Youth Minister of the Marsalis Avenue Church of Christ in Dallas, Texas. He holds a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from the Austin Graduate School of Theology and graduated with honors from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Communication Studies. He is currently pursuing a mastering in professional counseling. He served as the Youth Minister of the Eastside Church of Christ in Austin, Texas for six years. Brother Ross has been preaching since the age of seventeen and has been a featured speaker at lectureships, marriage seminars, singles workshops, youth conferences and at various church, community and corporate events. He served two terms as president of the Dallas Area Youth for Christ and is a Seminar Director who trains church leaders and counselors how to minister to couples using the Prepare/Enrich program. In addition to his work in the Kingdom, brother Ross served three years on the NAACP National Board of Directors and is the former co-host of “The Forum,” a weekly radio show for young adults on KAZI 88.7 FM in Austin. He and his wife, Stacy, have three children.
