Struggles. Fear. Dilemmas. Vicissitudes. Problems. Failing. Difficulties. Situations. Issues. Weaknesses. Miseries. Pain. Hurt. Falling.
Life can sometime throw hardballs that will cause you to question your faith. Doubt starts to creep in, anger builds and giving up seems the easy way out. Challenge yourself to use the negatives as opportunities to start afresh. Tie a knot at the end of your rope, rewrite your strategy and crawl if you have to - to reach the finishing point. Don't break.
Check out song#7 at http://www.whitneyhouston.com/.
27 August 2009
17 August 2009
Sermon notes (8-16-09)
No matter how late one stays out the night before, it is a ritual in most black families to be in someone's worship service on Sunday mornings. For the past seven consecutive Sundays, I have been a regular visitor at St John Baptist Church in Grand Prairie, Texas. Dr. Denny Davis is a phenomenal speaker who provides practical and relevant sermon subjects. Yesterday, he preached a sermon titled "Don't become disqualified". Thank goodness for the G1 telephone. I'm able to take notes during the sermon, and I'd like to share the message that he preached during the 11 o'clock service. Enjoy!
1 Cor. 9:16-27
Don't become disqualified
-Professional, college and even high school athletes who’ve used performance enhancement drugs have had their titles and victories stripped of them b/c they disqualified themselves
-We can spend a lifetime preparing for our moment in the spotlight while destroying that moment in the end
-Don't take any moment of glory for granted
-People have blown great opportunities and chances - unfortunately forfeiting life's achievement due to a mindless act
-Life can be compared to a sporting event
-Be mindful of the things that can disqualify me
-One thoughtless moment can cause me everything – even after developing skills, talents & abilities
-Don’t live life “in the moment” forgetting the investments and sacrifices incurred along the way to succees
Tips to surviving temptations & finishing strong:
1. Take some time to develop convictions
-Something should sustain, keep and restrain me
-I must develop the right principles (v17)
-I have been given a trust and I need to know how to handle my options
-Life doesn't owe me anything… not a sense of entitlement; there are others more deserving.
-God expects me to operate on his behalf
-He’s entrusting me to be a witness 24/7
-Privileges that are given is because God trusts me & the picture is bigger than me
-Always be a drum major for truth by demonstrating the right priorities (Galatians 6)
-Display right practices
-My goal should be to do whatever it takes to win one for Christ – as Paul mentions
-Live in such a way that I inspire someone else to come to Christ
-My life should not be about me but should be about other people.
-There is someone watching my footsteps. Am I living in such a way that someone would want to follow my footsteps? (1979 blizzard… son follow footsteps of dad home)
2. Take time to develop character (v23)
-Never assume that I'm going to grow old
-Don't live life with regrets
-Life is important, individual, and intense
-Give life and God my best… don’t miss any opportunities by worrying about who’s running against me
-The race is not given to the swift or strong but to the one that endures to the end
-Life is intense (v25)
-Great opportunities have been afforded to some, but not everyone can the handle spotlight because they lack integrity
3. Take time to develop consistency
-Life requires development
-Strive to be intentional in everything that I do.
-Do not go through life aiming without a target
1 Cor. 9:16-27
Don't become disqualified
-Professional, college and even high school athletes who’ve used performance enhancement drugs have had their titles and victories stripped of them b/c they disqualified themselves
-We can spend a lifetime preparing for our moment in the spotlight while destroying that moment in the end
-Don't take any moment of glory for granted
-People have blown great opportunities and chances - unfortunately forfeiting life's achievement due to a mindless act
-Life can be compared to a sporting event
-Be mindful of the things that can disqualify me
-One thoughtless moment can cause me everything – even after developing skills, talents & abilities
-Don’t live life “in the moment” forgetting the investments and sacrifices incurred along the way to succees
Tips to surviving temptations & finishing strong:
1. Take some time to develop convictions
-Something should sustain, keep and restrain me
-I must develop the right principles (v17)
-I have been given a trust and I need to know how to handle my options
-Life doesn't owe me anything… not a sense of entitlement; there are others more deserving.
-God expects me to operate on his behalf
-He’s entrusting me to be a witness 24/7
-Privileges that are given is because God trusts me & the picture is bigger than me
-Always be a drum major for truth by demonstrating the right priorities (Galatians 6)
-Display right practices
-My goal should be to do whatever it takes to win one for Christ – as Paul mentions
-Live in such a way that I inspire someone else to come to Christ
-My life should not be about me but should be about other people.
-There is someone watching my footsteps. Am I living in such a way that someone would want to follow my footsteps? (1979 blizzard… son follow footsteps of dad home)
2. Take time to develop character (v23)
-Never assume that I'm going to grow old
-Don't live life with regrets
-Life is important, individual, and intense
-Give life and God my best… don’t miss any opportunities by worrying about who’s running against me
-The race is not given to the swift or strong but to the one that endures to the end
-Life is intense (v25)
-Great opportunities have been afforded to some, but not everyone can the handle spotlight because they lack integrity
3. Take time to develop consistency
-Life requires development
-Strive to be intentional in everything that I do.
-Do not go through life aiming without a target
15 August 2009
Race: Part I
If you have been watching the news lately, recall the recent headlines: Harvard professor played the race card; any good neighbor would call police, PETA remains skeptical of [Michael] Vick; considers protests at games, Is race driving the anger at these town hall meetings, and Georgia Office of Rep. Scott Defaced by Swastika. These headlines all indicate that America has her hands full with constructing better race relations in America.
In the later part of July, the Professor Gates' arrest was going away. In the middle of a press conference, on health care reform, a reporter interjected by asking President Obama’s opinion of the arrest. President Obama clearly misspoke by calling Officer Crowley’s actions as being “stupidly.” He later apologized. But Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck would not let the situation run its course.
In an interview with Greta Van Susteren, of Fox News’, Limbaugh mentioned: “We’re finding out that this guy’s got a chip on his shoulder. He’s angry at this country. He’s not proud of it… I think there are elements in this country he doesn’t like and he never has liked.” While Limbaugh and his conservative friends are entitled to their opinions of our president, I strongly refute Limbaugh’s remarks. Since February of 2007, and earlier, some conservatives have tried painting President Obama as someone who is out of touch with the founding fathers’ ideologies, as being un-American and have been on a mission to distort his presidency. While it is normal, and rather political, for the opposing party to counter each other’s agenda, it is also extremely disturbing for blatant lies to surface in hopes of twisting the truth. Limbaugh did not stop. He went on to say: “He's using the power of the presidency to remake the country.” Way to go Limbaugh! Each presidential candidate, in one fashion or the other, campaigns on reshaping the country.
In an interview, on Fox News’, Beck said, “[President Obama is] a guy who has a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture... I'm not saying he doesn't like white people, I'm saying he has a problem... This guy is, I believe, a racist.” Remarks such as this further divide our country. This infuses racial separations and makes it harder for us to create a nation where the color of our skin does not epitomize who we are as individuals. For an extended period of time, civil rights icons fought in hopes of establishing a country that does not judge the other based on their race. Since the election of the country’s first black president, the dialogue on race has resurfaced. I welcome this. We have so many people who are passionate about uncovering the deeply engrained, stereotypes and critical analysis of the black race. To an individual, there is much more than what you can visualize externally. As a nation that is full of people from all walks of life, with different backgrounds, different life stories and of all race – we have to get to a point where we can embrace people for who they are and accept them as is.
In the later part of July, the Professor Gates' arrest was going away. In the middle of a press conference, on health care reform, a reporter interjected by asking President Obama’s opinion of the arrest. President Obama clearly misspoke by calling Officer Crowley’s actions as being “stupidly.” He later apologized. But Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck would not let the situation run its course.
In an interview with Greta Van Susteren, of Fox News’, Limbaugh mentioned: “We’re finding out that this guy’s got a chip on his shoulder. He’s angry at this country. He’s not proud of it… I think there are elements in this country he doesn’t like and he never has liked.” While Limbaugh and his conservative friends are entitled to their opinions of our president, I strongly refute Limbaugh’s remarks. Since February of 2007, and earlier, some conservatives have tried painting President Obama as someone who is out of touch with the founding fathers’ ideologies, as being un-American and have been on a mission to distort his presidency. While it is normal, and rather political, for the opposing party to counter each other’s agenda, it is also extremely disturbing for blatant lies to surface in hopes of twisting the truth. Limbaugh did not stop. He went on to say: “He's using the power of the presidency to remake the country.” Way to go Limbaugh! Each presidential candidate, in one fashion or the other, campaigns on reshaping the country.
In an interview, on Fox News’, Beck said, “[President Obama is] a guy who has a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture... I'm not saying he doesn't like white people, I'm saying he has a problem... This guy is, I believe, a racist.” Remarks such as this further divide our country. This infuses racial separations and makes it harder for us to create a nation where the color of our skin does not epitomize who we are as individuals. For an extended period of time, civil rights icons fought in hopes of establishing a country that does not judge the other based on their race. Since the election of the country’s first black president, the dialogue on race has resurfaced. I welcome this. We have so many people who are passionate about uncovering the deeply engrained, stereotypes and critical analysis of the black race. To an individual, there is much more than what you can visualize externally. As a nation that is full of people from all walks of life, with different backgrounds, different life stories and of all race – we have to get to a point where we can embrace people for who they are and accept them as is.
Have you said "I love you" lately?
This morning, I woke up to an inspirational text message from my mom. It truly came from her heart. All she said was, "I am proud of you. Love you." The baby inside of me is tearing. Ah, I can make it through the weekend. Love you, moms!
10 August 2009
2007: State of the Black Union
One of my students sent this to me. I don't have time to comment right now, will do so later. Nonetheless, Dr. Julia Hare is very hilarious.
Ebay & General Motors
Are you looking to buy a vehicle? Then look no further than eBay. General Motors will begin selling cars tomorrow on the popular online auction site. This will be the real deal. The only catch is: you have to live in California. That sucks! According to Business Journal, “consumers will be able to browse showrooms, ask questions, negotiate prices and purchase new 2008-2010 vehicles”. Recently out of bankruptcy, GM is taking advantage of the market niche. A report titled, “Consumer Behavior Online: A 2009 Deep Dive” released by Forrester indicates that on average, consumers spend at least 12 hours a week online. This indicates that more people are less skeptical to goods online. For example, last month, instead of going into Best Buy or Circuit City to buy another laptop power surge for a hundred bucks, I went to the popular Froogle.com, and saved myself roughly $80. I ordered the surge online on Wednesday and it arrived by Friday. The power of the net!
06 August 2009
Twitter & Facebook Problems
Okay. I am having withdrawals. Before eating breakfast, feeding the dog or preparing for work in the morning, I have grown accustomed to regularly updating my Twitter. For some reason, twitter.com is not responding. I have even tried to update my 140-character status message using the Twitta service from my TMobile G1. Nothing is happening.
The way the world communicates has changed. Talking on the phone has become antiquated and has been replaced by text messaging. Although I’m not a regular user of Facebook, one of my friend text me and said she was having problems logging into the system. System administrators: We are not going to be able to survive the day without having access to our popular social networking sites. Please fix this fast! These withdrawal pains are not easy.
The way the world communicates has changed. Talking on the phone has become antiquated and has been replaced by text messaging. Although I’m not a regular user of Facebook, one of my friend text me and said she was having problems logging into the system. System administrators: We are not going to be able to survive the day without having access to our popular social networking sites. Please fix this fast! These withdrawal pains are not easy.
02 August 2009
Sunday's Song
I need just 10 minutes of your time. Please take a look at this video in its entirety.
01 August 2009
Civil Rights Movement = 2 Gay Rights Movement?
Last night, one of my good friends, and I had an extremely long discussion about whether it would be appropriate to equate the gay rights movement to the civil rights movement. In both movements, each party is (or was) fighting for the right to equality, and both parties have people who oppose their right to live free from discrimination. Ultimately, the two classes have different fights, but their bottom line goal was (and still is) to convince their counterparts that they have the right to be treated fairly. Gay people are attempting to convince some heterosexuals, while blacks convinced some whites that their being discriminated against was unfounded and unfair.
My friend, who I will refer to as “John”, believed that the civil rights movement was extremely different, in context – which I agree. Our disagreement stemmed from whether the movements were the same sort of lobbying. I presented several analogies. One of the basic: if I’m told to dig a hole in Atlanta, and you’re told to dig a hole in Dallas – no matter where we’re digging holes at, at the end of the day – we both dug holes. John believed that black people were discriminated based on what a person could see – the color of their skin. And he is absolutely correct. Gay people are discriminated based on their sexual preference, whether you can immediately recognize a gay person would be based on a case by case analysis; however, each group is being discriminated against.
I was really taken back by how he could not see that they were both fighting for different rights, but yet both fighting for rights. Because of the extremely sensitive content, race and sexual preferences, our conversation quickly turned from whether they were both “equal rights” to whether gays should even have rights at all. Again, we differed. Our entire discussion began with a marquee from a church in Texas that read: “Gays right are not civil rights”. And I wholeheartedly disagree with this pastor’s opinion and personal assessment. This pastor can morally choose to disagree with a gay person’s lifestyle; however, it becomes extremely absurd when he beings to advocate denying certain people the right to equality. Neither should he use the pulpit as a punching bag to seclude a particular group of people. Being rooted and grounded in one’s personal beliefs does not exempt one from treating people fairly or cautious of their feelings.
John believed that gays should refrain from causing uproar because being gay is a preference, whereas being black is not an option. On the contrary, I expressed that individual classes should be able to live without lawmakers setting parameters within their freedom to choose. Whether one falls within the pool of diversity of being physically disabled, male or female, rich or poor, young or old, white or black – we as people should have the liberty of expressing ourselves as unique and different individuals. After all, this is what makes us the great melting pot of groups, ideas and citizenships.
By surrounding myself with people who come from different backgrounds than me, with those who have ideas that does not always align with mine has taught me that at the end of the day, we have something in common – we just want to be happy and free of worries. Because we sit in different sections of the aisle does not mean we cannot find that uniting bond that holds us together. While my atheist friend is guided by his personal convictions and my Muslim friend’s lifestyle are shaped through her ideologies, we are able to create civil discourse and merge our differences and ultimately realize that we are one.
My friend, who I will refer to as “John”, believed that the civil rights movement was extremely different, in context – which I agree. Our disagreement stemmed from whether the movements were the same sort of lobbying. I presented several analogies. One of the basic: if I’m told to dig a hole in Atlanta, and you’re told to dig a hole in Dallas – no matter where we’re digging holes at, at the end of the day – we both dug holes. John believed that black people were discriminated based on what a person could see – the color of their skin. And he is absolutely correct. Gay people are discriminated based on their sexual preference, whether you can immediately recognize a gay person would be based on a case by case analysis; however, each group is being discriminated against.
I was really taken back by how he could not see that they were both fighting for different rights, but yet both fighting for rights. Because of the extremely sensitive content, race and sexual preferences, our conversation quickly turned from whether they were both “equal rights” to whether gays should even have rights at all. Again, we differed. Our entire discussion began with a marquee from a church in Texas that read: “Gays right are not civil rights”. And I wholeheartedly disagree with this pastor’s opinion and personal assessment. This pastor can morally choose to disagree with a gay person’s lifestyle; however, it becomes extremely absurd when he beings to advocate denying certain people the right to equality. Neither should he use the pulpit as a punching bag to seclude a particular group of people. Being rooted and grounded in one’s personal beliefs does not exempt one from treating people fairly or cautious of their feelings.
John believed that gays should refrain from causing uproar because being gay is a preference, whereas being black is not an option. On the contrary, I expressed that individual classes should be able to live without lawmakers setting parameters within their freedom to choose. Whether one falls within the pool of diversity of being physically disabled, male or female, rich or poor, young or old, white or black – we as people should have the liberty of expressing ourselves as unique and different individuals. After all, this is what makes us the great melting pot of groups, ideas and citizenships.
By surrounding myself with people who come from different backgrounds than me, with those who have ideas that does not always align with mine has taught me that at the end of the day, we have something in common – we just want to be happy and free of worries. Because we sit in different sections of the aisle does not mean we cannot find that uniting bond that holds us together. While my atheist friend is guided by his personal convictions and my Muslim friend’s lifestyle are shaped through her ideologies, we are able to create civil discourse and merge our differences and ultimately realize that we are one.
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