WARNING: Slippery!

I'm up and I can't sleep. I felt compelled to write about slipping. You know, walking around and losing grip and swaying and moving about in a fashion that you might not have complete control of. What I thought was cool about slipping is when you slip, as long as you can find something sturdy enough, you can prevent yourself from falling! Wondering if anyone is catching on...

Donnie McClurkin sang about falling and getting up again. In order to get up you must have a firm or somewhat stable ground to rest upon and stand. If you get back up and you're on shaky ground, there is always a risk that you can fall in the same spot once again. The idea is to get back up and move on, walking on solid ground. Thinking if someone might be putting this together...

Is there anything, or hmmm anybody, that can be stable and sturdy and keep us from falling and yet be there every time to help us when we've fallen? Every time I turn around, Jesus is right there with his hand outstretched for times of need. Every time I lose my balance I can call on Jesus and that same hand is there to keep me from falling. The lovely part is what happens when we don't acknowledge him in all of our ways. We go down the shaky path of destruction and fall. We might be down in the dirt for a lil while. When we come to our senses, and realize that Jesus is the way the truth and the light, that same hand is still waiting for us to pick us up and place us on a solid ground to stand! Oh how wonderful is Jesus!

Scripture tells us that the most righteous man can fall and make mistakes. God is faithful and just to forgive us, as long as we acknowledge our error and place Jesus at the head of our lives! Don't forget to confess Jesus with your mouth, believe him in your heart. You CAN know Jesus for yourself!

I hope I've helped someone...

Elevated Expectations!

You know the Church of God in Christ has a reputation for having radical preachers. I have a cousin that tends, who is a National evangelist for COGIC, and when I go to hear him preach he tells me to listen and watch the audiences reactions. He likes to sneak realism under the radar and wants me to notice the congregation's reactions. One time he was speaking on be careful what you say. Then minutes later he shouted to say amen if you're a liar! Out of no where the church said amen! It was followed by silent chatter of people saying "did he just say that", lol! All of that to introduce what another preacher said this past Friday night at a yearly meeting. He was talking about being hurt and healed. Then he asked the church, "how many of you have ever been hurt in the church?" I kid you not in saying practically every hand was raised!

Why is it that the church, the house where the spirit of the Lord is supposed to dwell, is a place where people are being hurt. I had to sit back in my seat and remove myself from the service and ponder this. I began to think on certain accounts of people who have told me that church folk are nasty, they judge you, and that's why they don't go to church. Again, I asked myself, "Why?" Why is the church this way? I came to the conclusion which rests on the expectancy of people.

People have an image. They don't wish anyone to see the dirt in their yard, so they point out the dirt in someone else's yard to deter focus. Therefore, you keep your self appointed image. However, what has just occurred is you've just damaged somebody's character and discouraged someone from wanted to come back into the house of God. Its a very dangerous game and most church goers are playing it, and it's damaging the body of Christ. If we can remember that we all are human and are subject to making the same mistakes than we can focus on elevating ourselves to a higher level in Christ being the examples that we are meant to be instead of pretending!

What happens when you place someone on a pedestal, that's not God, and expect much from them, when they can't deliver, the world is over! Go tell Sista Soandso and Brotha Biznessminda. From an outside view, the church is no better than the streets, so why should the come to church? More damage to the body of Christ as well as a stunted growth! Worry about yourself and your relationship in God. Put your faith and trust in God, not in man! As man, we can fail. Not saying that we fail all the time but in Christ there is no failure! You cannot be disappointed in God! Psalm 146:3 says, "Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help." Proverbs 3:5 tells us to "Trust in the Lord with all of thine heart..."

Stop placing so much weight on people. Worry about you and your salvation and everything else will work out just fine. Work on being filled with God's holy spirit, which comes with love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance which will bring one another together in unity because we all will have god's spirit living within us!

Perspective

Lately, I've been going through some things. I've been sick in my body, unfortunate in affairs of the heart, missing chances that could change my financial status. I've seen the emergency room on more than one occasion, and seeing the dollar amount in my bank account decrease without significant increase. If anyone knows, it's harder to recover physically when your mental and emotional wellness are wounded. Subconsciously, I was building the blocks of a structure called depression.

I called friends, sometimes their words offered relief but none led me through the tough time. Slowly, the structure grew larger. I woke one day to silence. There was no noise in the entire place. Sun was shining in the apartment at about 6am. I dressed and went for a walk nowhere. I saw joggers, commuters, cars and buses. Eventually, I ended up at a park. I walked a ways into the park and sat on a bench, doing nothing. I sat and stared. I got up and walked some more. I then ended up at a lil pond with some benches next to it. It had a fountain in it, which was relaxing to watch. I sat. I relaxed my mind. I began to place things into perspective.

I thought about my health. I may be sick, with however many things I have wrong with me, but my heart still beats. I have full function of my body with all of my limbs. I thought about my money. I have a job. No, it doesn't pay a lot. Yea, it can be a headache sometimes! Yea, I could get more hours, but I have both Sunday and Thursday off for church. The shift they give me allows me to work a second job in the morning. Most importantly, I'm not broke! I was placing things into perspective!

I'm 24 years old and can only account for one major relationship. I'm a guy and we get lonely too. We long for company just as females do. I believe guys don't make as big of an issue as females do! I've silently wondered why I seem to have a difficult time finding a companion! I said companion because I really am looking for that 1 person that I can spend the rest of my life with. I got annoyed with the whole process of looking. I was angered after dismissing prospect after prospect. I had to then realize that i would rather dismiss than to settle. If I take my time and have more patience with selecting, I will have less problems in the long run! I need to wait.

After placing things into perspective, I must say that I don't have it bad. So many others have it worse than I do! I complain a lot; it's true! I want things when I want them; no denying that! I called a few people and I shared these thoughts with them and they advised me to just be patient. "Good things come to those that wait, just keep waiting!" "I've been there before, I thought it would never turn around but it did, just hold out!" "You're just goin through growing pains, It'll be alright!"

The purpose of this post is to pass along a lil bit of encouragement to those that need a friendly word. Sometimes things may be rough and may get hard, but place some things into perspective. Trouble doesn't last always. Keep moving on! Blessings are coming your way, just keep your faith and focus on God! We must be reminded that its not going to be peaches and cream all the time, there's gonna be some gruel sometimes! Victory has already been promised to us. Just as Christ has overcome the world, we who live in Christ have overcome it also! John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.