Written by, with featured photo by L. M. Land
Excerpts are from the book ‘The Master’s Touch, Find Your Gift’ by Pastor Kenneth R. Gillard
Pastor Kenneth Gillard was born dead. He was four weeks early, weighing a mere four pounds, to a 21-year-old mother. He was her fifth son.
Then God, the Master, touched baby Kenneth, giving him breath, so he could become an inspiration to others many years later.
This baby was in and out of the hospital for his first 18 months, wore braces for a twisted hip and had a heart murmur.
Having overcome many difficulties since, on Saturday, November 1, at noon, at Mount Olive M.B.C., Pastor Gillard will share his journey of personal transformation and faith, using biblical references to show how God touched his life in times of strife and self-doubt.
His book, “The Master’s Touch,” covers this journey and also includes ways to help others, trapped in their own doubt, to heal. With clear guidelines, Gillard uses biblical verse throughout to show that God does have a purpose and plan for you– as you uniquely are, just as he did for Gillard!
At 18 months of age, God touched baby Kenneth again by placing him in a loving foster care home with the widow Effie Bridges Gillard. Mrs. Gillard had already raised her own children, an adopted daughter, and she was one of the first Black foster mothers in Flint.
When Kenneth turned 8 years old, the agency put him up for adoption. After several trials, Mrs. Gillard adopted him, giving him her last name and finally becoming his official mother.
“This was the happiest day of my life,” Gillard states in his book.
Mrs. Gillard taught Kenneth the “four pillars—education, faith, work ethic and respect for others,” which became “the foundation” for his life.
Mrs. Gillard was his rock, who supplied a lifetime of support and encouragement until her passing. She was also wise enough to ask for help from Pastor Roy I. Greer, at Mount Olive Baptist Church. He and the men of Mount Olive took Gillard under their wings, teaching him how to dress, wax a car and shine shoes. Pastor Greer and JT Williams taught him about faith and leadership.
If you showed Gillard how to do something once, you need not show him again. He got it 100%.
Despite this, and his exemplary life of service as a minister and volunteer, Gillard’s life was plagued with an inability to read and write. Feelings of shame began in first grade, where he could not sit still or focus. He was placed in “Special Ed.,” creating additional shame. This self-doubt plagued him as he struggled in school, two colleges (which he couldn’t graduate from), getting a driver’s license (a situation in which he couldn’t read the forms) and many other life circumstances. He just did not learn the same way other children and adults did.
“Where there is inability, there is another ability.”- Pastor Kenneth R. Gillard
This self-doubt continued even though Gillard served with exemplary skill at Mount Olive for 40 years, serving the congregation in many ways, including as custodian.
At New Jerusalem, Gillard served as head deacon, trustee pastor and congregational pastor.
He was also pastor at Hill Road Baptist Church for four years (the first Black pastor), and a volunteer/mentor for 16 years at Genesee County Jail. He volunteered at St. Joseph Hospital, Hurley Hospital and many other places.
It wasn’t until he was 37 years old, having begun therapy, that he was diagnosed with ADHD – attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
“Those four letters explained my entire life.” said Gillard.
In Gilliard’s words:
“So my whole life changed. My life started to make sense as we continued to dig deep, discovering that there was a wall that was up, that had been built in my childhood, in my teen years and my young adult years.
“Colossians 3:23 tells us to’ work heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.’ For years, I misunderstood this verse. I thought it simply meant to work hard, to give good effort. But through my journey with ADHD and learning differences, I’ve come to understand it more deeply.
“The Master [had] touched every job I held, every position I filled, every service I rendered—using each to prepare me for ministry in ways I couldn’t have imagined. He was teaching me people skills through patient care. He was teaching me persistence through lawn maintenance. He was teaching me attention to detail through car washing. He was teaching me reliability through bus driving.
“When I drove the bus ‘as to the Lord’, it transformed an ordinary job into sacred service. When I cleaned the church ‘as to the Lord,” it elevated janitorial work to spiritual significance. When I washed cars or cut grass ‘as to the Lord,’ it turned simple labor into an expression of worship.
“None of it was wasted. None of it was without purpose. None of it was beneath me or unworthy of my best effort. All of it was preparation for the unique calling God had placed on my life—a calling that required precisely the experiences, skills and perspective I was gaining through work that some might have considered ordinary.”
Colossians 3:23 “doesn’t distinguish between types of work—professional or manual, white-collar or blue-collar, paid or volunteer. It simply calls us to pour ourselves fully into whatever our hands find to do, recognizing that ultimately, we serve Christ, not human employers or expectations.”
Gillard also evolved a five-step approach to help himself overcome life’s barriers, which he shares in the book.
“The first step toward overcoming limitations is accepting that we all have differences and challenges. Whatever yours may be, it’s what makes you unique.”
You’ll have to read Gillard’s book to learn more about the five practical, achievable and Bible-driven steps. The entire book is enlightening and accessible, and it includes self-reflection questions at the end of the sections.
The community is invited to join Pastor Gillard at Mt. Olive, from noon-3 p.m., on November 1, 2025, for an afternoon of inspiration, reflection and community. Light refreshments will be served. You will walk away inspired.
“The Master’s Touch” will be available to purchase via cash or cashapp.
Mount Olive is at 424 Kennelworth Ave, Flint, MI 48503, with Rev. Jevon Q. Catlett serving as pastor.
To contact Pastor Gillard, email info @KennethRGillard.com, or go to KennethRGillardAuthor on Facebook.
