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Experiencing God
How do you personally know when God is speaking to you? Christians are known for saying, “Then God said to me…” or “The Lord told me…,” but what does that mean in real life? Do you hear an audible voice? Does it sound like rushing waters? Do you hear tingling bells? I have struggled with knowing God’s voice. Or at least that’s what I tell myself. I haven’t ever heard clanging bells or the cry of a dove, but I do know when He’s speaking to me. Participating in the Bible study Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby gave me good, practical application of discerning God’s voice from my own. I…
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Fitzgerald “Fitz Scandal” Fulcher
I’m not a cat person. Which I know seems odd, because I have a cat. I tend to be dramatic and deal with life in absolutes. I make statements and take stances that don’t have to be so extreme. After having my dog put down on Christmas Day 2017 due to illness, I proclaimed that I was done being a pet owner. Then along came Greg. I was looking at pictures of animals available for adoption in the central Arkansas area. I had decided to get a cat for several reasons. They take themselves to the bathroom. Aforementioned rat infestation in “Under Construction.” No rats in the house, but I…
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In the Whole World
Even though she is the quintessential definition of a Sour Patch kid, Sweet Baby just melts my butter. She is curious. She is dramatic. She is funny. She is inquisitive. And she never forgets. I didn’t realize how much she was listening to me. I was hugging her one day, and I told her she was the sweetest girl. Her reply was “In the whole world? You forgot that part.” I usually tell her that she is the sweetest girl in the whole world, but for some reason I left the last part out that day. But because she listens to me, she didn’t forget. I have been reflecting on…
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What is Forgiveness? Part II
Super heros are an amazing creation. It’s even more incredible when you know one in real life. To me, that person was/is my sister. For the majority of my life, I’ve seen her do the most difficult things with extreme ease. She is, by all accounts, the purest definition of black girl magic. I aspired in a lot of ways to make my sister proud of me. She was my first best friend and de facto parent when my mother wasn’t around. What does any of that have to do with forgiveness or finding out what it means you ask? Well, all siblings fight. And our biggest fight was surrounding…
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The Ties that Bind
Agreeing to disagree is difficult but sometimes necessary. I hadn’t ever really pegged myself as a person who was even capable of agreeing to disagree. Because if you don’t agree with me, you’re wrong. Or at least, I told myself that. My brother and I had an epic battle. A battle so huge that I packed up and moved into my unrenovated, moldy home. A small part of me was hoping that I would get really sick so I could stick it to all parties involved and say “Look what you did!” I’m just being honest. Our fight had far reaching effects. I drew a line in the sand, and…
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One Bite at a Time
“Can you eat an elephant?” A professor in graduate school posed this question to our class. My immediate thought was “nope.” So I was surprised when she said that we could, in fact, eat an elephant. One bite at a time. Honestly, it’s the one statement from graduate school that I reflect on most often. I’ve told you that I shy away from the big challenges. I step back when I think things may be too tough. I don’t want to fail, and I don’t want to fall. But you all know life has a way of making you stumble. So why am I so afraid of falling? I do…
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Best Foot Forward
Online dating is interesting. We live in a technologically advanced world. It’s only fitting that the current dating style reflects the world we live in. But it’s weird. I’m naturally an introvert so I’m not really into being aggressive. Which is probably why I’m single. Women are AGGRESSIVE nowadays. I’ve come to the conclusion that men are enjoying being pursued. That’s just not my style. Actually, there are probably lots of reasons why I’m single. It’s come to my attention that my flirting radar is not activated. During another smaller cousin council, my cousins informed me that I succinctly shot down a man who was trying to shoot his shot. …
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Worth the Wait
Music makes me happy. When I was younger, Boyz II Men was one of my favorite groups. Those brothers can SANG. Do you hear me??? I was thrilled when they were coming to Barton Coliseum. My mom got tickets, and we went to the show. The stagehands brought the roses on the stage…and Boyz II Men never came out. I don’t know why they didn’t perform, but I do know I was devastated. Two or three years ago, we decided to give Boyz II Men another shot. They were performing in Birmingham, Alabama. Birmingham is not that far of a drive. We love road trips. The night before the concert…
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Blessed Are We
When I was living with Ma Patra, each person present at the table said a scripture before we ate. I was too little to understand exactly what we were doing. All I knew was that before I could eat, I needed to say “Jesus wept.” Now that I’m older, I know that it’s the shortest scripture in the Bible. I was the youngest kid at the table, so the length of the verse fit me at the time. I don’t recall a time in life when my family hasn’t prayed over the food. It’s what we do. It’s who we are. And as much as we like to eat, that…
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Good Hair
Although it doesn’t often look like it, I’m invested in my hair. I mentioned previously that, at one point in my life, I wanted to be a pediatrician that did hair on the weekends. I could spend hours on the weekend microbraiding my doll’s hair just for fun. I perfected the side ponytail and would use my curling iron to “press” my new growth between relaxers. Baby, I was all about my hair. When I started my professional career in 2007, I decided it was time to go natural. I attempted to transition for about four months. And when I say attempted, I really mean that I didn’t get a…
