Jovan Whyte – Giving Everything to God

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“Everything Lord belongs to you,

My desires and my dreams begin with you,

So take my will, my life it’s yours to use,

Everything Lord belongs to you”

Jovan Whyte “Everything Lord”

The gun jammed, I shouted out, “The Blood of Jesus!”

Another gunman shot after me. He missed.

I sat there, scribbling down notes as fast as I could.

I was speaking with Pastor Jovan Whyte, this edition’s Classic Man, and I could not believe what I was hearing. After hearing this man of God’s story, there will be no denying that miracles do happen, and if you believe anything is possible.

Pastor Jovan Whyte, a Jamaican native who hails from Kingston, Jamaica, is an ordained minister with over ten years of evangelizing experience. His work has taken him to islands around the Caribbean, Latin America, Brazil and North America. To date, he has baptized over 800 people who have wanted to give their lives to the Lord.

Along with his work as an Ordained Minister, he is also a: master guide, senior youth leader, songwriter, gospel recording artist, musician, and has served as the Chaplain for the Advent Fellowship Group, as well as on the youth advisory committee of the East Jamaican conference. A man of many talents, Jovan hosts a radio program called Healthy and Happy, which airs on N.C.U. Radio Saturday evenings at 6:30 pm, and a little later in this article, we will go into the depth of his musical talents, and their genesis.

He served as the Pastor for the Constant Spring District of Churches in the East Jamaica Conference, and is presently the Senior Pastor for the Windermere and Emmanuel Seventh-day Adventist Churches in Florida.

His pursuit for higher learning pushed him to enrol at the Mico University College, where he graduated with a Diploma in Secondary Education (Emphasis in Linguistics). After receiving the call to ministry, he enrolled at Northern Caribbean University, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Religion and Theology. He continued to achieve by completing his Master of Arts Degree in Pastoral Counselling, with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Counselling from Liberty University in Virginia.

Every great man needs an even more powerful woman by his side, and Pastor Whyte will tell you that he was blessed with one of the best. He is married to Dr Kahilah Whyte who is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and the CEO and Founder of Platinum Life Counselling in South Florida.

As he spoke, I was doing my best to get down the main points in his story. I wanted to ensure to capture everything, because this is one of those stories that has to be made into a lifetime movie.

“Being in the church has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember,” Pastor Jovan began.

“My father was a pastor, and my mother was heavily involved in the arts and music. She was an educator and Principal at Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts, and it was my mom who brought music into our lives.

From a very young age, I was fashioned into music, and it came quite naturally for me. In pre-school and in high school I played a lot of instruments including: the recorder, the piano, the saxophone and the violin to name a few. I also sang in the choir at church. My natural God given gift of music allowed me to do very well in competitions, including the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) Competition.”

Pastor Jovan shared with me that when he left high school, he wanted to study law, but that was not the path that God had chosen for him. He shares with me a dream that his mom had, and how his life took a turn after high school.

“My mom had a dream, and that I would be singing worldwide. To think, now that is exactly what is happening, but there was so much that happened before her dream became reality.

 I left church for a bit and was on the road. I was trying to find my truth, and during my time in college, I was faced with the first event that would change my life forever.

 I was involved in a lot of secular extra curricular activities that took me away from my faith. One night my friend invited me to a party, and of course I didn’t know the danger ahead.

 My friend was very flamboyant and was definitely a ladies man. The night that we went to the party, he was dancing with someone’s girl, and I guess whoever’s girl it was did not like it very much. While he was dancing there beside me, someone came up and stabbed him. All hell broke loose, and the person who stabbed him turned to me, somehow I got away in the midst of the mayhem.

 My friend died, and after that event, I knew that was it for me. I had to commit my life to Christ. I had to heed to the call on my life.”

That incident helped Pastor Jovan dedicate his life to the Lord. He attended Northern Caribbean University, and this led to his pastoral journey.

As a preacher, and musical pastor, he attended and preached at crusades across Jamaica. One night after a crusade in the Hills of Manchester, he was heading home from what was a great night of praise and worship. It was after 11:00 pm, and for the second time in his life, he was about to be faced with an event that would prove to him that God was always on his side.

“What I have learned is at the highest moments of our Christian life, that is when you are most tested by God.

During that time I was staying in a rural area, and the lights were out. It was very dark that night, and when I pulled up to my gate, something was off. Regardless, I headed through my gate, towards the house when two gunmen materialized from the darkness. One of them put a gun to my head and asked for my car keys and my backpack.

I faltered for a moment, and in that moment I wondered, ‘How do I leave a place of victory, and then come face to face with death?’ As soon as the thought came to my mind, it was replaced by the thought, ‘Didn’t you just preach, no weapons formed against me shall prosper?”

Right away I spoke, ‘Don’t you know about the blood of Jesus.’ The man with the gun to my head swore and pulled the trigger. The gun jammed, I shouted out, ‘The BLOOD OF JESUS,’ and started to run. The other gunman shot after me and missed. I heard one of the gunmen say ‘He must be an Obia Pastor,’ as I was running away.

After a testimony like that, how can I not believe in God’s word.”

The amazing thing is that the story does not end there. Three years after that experience, the same gunman found him at a convention. The man had gone to prison for burglary, and arms possession.

The man had heard that Pastor Jovan was sharing his testimony and wanted to meet him. In prison he found Jesus. He wanted to know who that man was who blocked the bullet. Through that experience God showed up for him and changed his life for ever.

“Through that experience,” Jovan shares with me, “I came to writing. Writing songs, singing my song. My aim is to provide music with a message. In 2020, when I wrote “Everything Lord,” I thought about all that God has done for me. My desires, and my dream begin with Jesus.”

His song speaks of his journey to the Lord, and now that I have heard his story, the lyrics make perfect sense:

“I’m the branch, and you’re the source

You give joy like strength, hope that endures

By faith, I’ll trust you with all my heart

As I lean on your everlasting arms.”