Mississippi Pastor Sets Unofficial Record with 96-Hour Sermon

A Baptist pastor in Mississippi, Matt Olson, made headlines after preaching for 96 hours straight at First Baptist Church of Sharon. Olson’s marathon sermon spanned from Genesis to Revelation over four days, surpassing the previous record of 90 hours and 2 minutes held by Ananta Ram KC of Nepal.

Following Guinness World Record guidelines, Olson took five-minute breaks every hour or saved time for longer breaks to rest and shower. Despite surpassing the record, the church chose not to officially submit it due to the high costs of adjudication and concerns over using the Bible for publicity.

Olson’s inspiration came from a 10-day missionary training program where he spent 96 hours in a simulated hostage scenario without his Bible, realizing how much Scripture he needed to learn. Church leaders supported his idea, providing medical teams, technical crew, and prayer teams to aid him throughout the event.

The sermon was streamed live, and remains archived on the church’s website. Olson emphasized his efforts were focused on spreading the Gospel, not setting records, stating, “This has never been about a world record. It was only about proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ.” His dedication highlights his belief that “Jesus is Lord,” and he courageously spread the Gospel tirelessly for four days.