Charles Lyons and his wife Georgia have been married fifty years, with five adult children and five grandchildren. Charles served as pastor of Armitage Baptist Church Chicago from 1974 to 2019, shepherding the same multicultural congregation for forty-five years. In 2020 Charles and Georgia founded City Hope International to multiply followers of Jesus in cities by discipling next generation leaders. As part of this work, Charles oversees a weekly outreach at Uptown Baptist Church, Chicago, which includes a service in which he preaches, a meal, and a discipleship class. He and Georgia are part of Hope Church Chicago, a church plant in the heart of the city.