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Raising Your Worship to the Next Level
Can you believe that we are already into week nine of our study of the book of Nehemiah??? Every Sunday, the sermon takes us higher and higher. We are constantly challenged to look at ourselves and do the work to become better. You already know this week turned it up a notch. Let’s jump into the sermon recap. Week nine means that we are going through the ninth chapter of the book of Nehemiah. The children of Israel are assembled together and fasting. They do not look pretty or desirable. As a matter of fact, they dressed in sack cloth and have ashes on their head. Why the dusty appearance? …
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Blanket of Protection
Quilting is a huge thing in my family. For as long as I can remember, everyone has had at least one in their home. They feel like magic to me. They are so warm and embody the essence of love and care into each woven square of fabric. I’ve never doubted that God existed and my first time realizing he was real was most likely under those blankets. I can recall when I was younger, maybe 5 or 6, that it would take my mom or dad sitting next to me in bed with their hand on me for me to go to sleep. I needed to feel that…
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A New Tradition
I like traditions. There is a comfort in knowing that some things will be just as they always have been. If you have not guessed by now, I lean towards order. A place for everything and everything has a place. But I know that life can be unpredictable. Traditions start and stop in response to the changes in life. Black Friday shopping is one of the traditions that has come and gone. Shopping has long been a passion of mine, but I did not go shopping on Black Friday. That all changed one Thanksgiving many years ago. I heard my aunt and cousins talking about the deals that were being…
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Happy Thanksgiving!!!
Happy Thanksgiving!!! Bible Study Brother has been chugging along and giving it all that he has. He has passed roses to people that have touched him along his journey through this life. Bible Study Mama chipped in yesterday to eloquently express her gratitude. While I am appreciative of them both, I could not let today pass without sharing with ya’ll the things that I am personally grateful for. This year has proved to be challenging on many different levels for people. Some of us have had to shelter in place with our loved ones. Some of us discovered that we are essential when we had not been called that before. …
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Blessing on Blessings
Every time I turn around. Blessings on blessings. Every time I turn around. Blessings on blessings. Sing Anthony Brown and Group Therapy!!! This song came to my mind as I was thinking about what to write for Bible Study Girl’s blog on giving roses. There are so many people who deserve roses but the one that I want to focus on is Jesus Christ, himself. This has been a year filled with grief, anxiety, loss after loss but through it all a year to focus on gratitude. Most of us would never know or appreciate sunshine if not for rain; joy if not for sadness and pain; or happiness if…
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Building A Legacy
I wasn’t always the most confident guy. I’m still not to be honest with you. God gave me my own talents, but they are things I feel anyone could do. I write moderately well, and I’m an amazing lyricist. By lyricist, in layman’s terms, I mean an amazing rapper, and I’d go so far as to say songwriter if you pushed me on a ledge. I got to this point with hours upon hours of just writing rhymes and focusing only on being the best me I could be. What I want to share with this post is how I got the foundation to be who I am today. Back…
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Rise Up and Be Strong
Sermon recap time is upon us. Although I am enjoying my break from daily writing, I must admit that I know that this platform is definitely a part of God’s plan for my life. The time away is showing me just how special this opportunity is. Enough of the mushy stuff. Pastor continued our study of the book of Nehemiah. When we last left, the wall was completed but the inside of the city was in shambles. With some elbow grease and perseverance, the city was restored. This week left us with great tips on how to build our strength after we have finished the wall and worked on our…
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Center Stage
It’s oxymoronic to be an introvert who also wants to be seen. At least that’s how I see it sometimes. Mostly because I’m not the loud, confident, and all in your face person that I assume this would create. There’s one exception to this rule of mine. Whenever I am on stage or asked to do something in front of people, I feel at home and have never shied away from it. I’ll have to take you back into a time machine for this. Back when I was in 2nd grade, one of the homeroom teachers for our grade, Ms. Laura Smith at the time now Mrs. Young, was in…
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Crème de la Crème
For my 18th birthday, my mom and I went on a road trip to St. Louis to see my cool Aunt Pam. Now the reason she’s cool is our birthdays are two days apart, and she’s just amazing because of it. That year we basically shared our birthdays together and I got the experience of a lifetime. This was still during my culinary dreams phase in life, and I was debating on whether I should go to college or just go to culinary school. Being the genius that my Mom is, she brought me up to the Lou to experience my Uncle Vincent’s cooking. Now just so you know, Uncle…
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Finding Forrester
My all-time favorite movie is Finding Forrester. I stumbled across it on HBO around 2005 or 2006. I don’t remember what compelled me to watch it or anything. I hadn’t heard anything about it, seen any promo, or had anyone tell me to check it out. It opens in New York with hip-hop playing in the background and a young man doing spoken word as he looks into the camera. At the time, I was really into writing poetry so immediately this hooked me in. The movie is about a young black man by the name of Jamal Wallace. He is a brilliant kid who doesn’t want to appear too…
