Happy Thanksgiving!

To all of my spiritual brothers and sisters, I wish you a blessed and wonderful day of thanks. It's not what we don't have, it's what we already have that should make us more appreciative. At least we're here to see and share another day with the people that are important in our lives. And if we're alone, we still can be kind and courteous to others. It can be hard because these are some very stressful times for us all. It's also tough not being able to share this time with our loved ones who may be away from home working in hospitals, on the roadways, and on the battlefields or preparing to go to the battlefield. These people are making sacrifices that some of us take for granted. Then there are some that must work today to make ends meet. Regardless of the situation, let's appreciate what we do have and pass it on. Let's really try to keep the drama and conflict out of our lives during this season. Try to be understanding and tolerant with each other. Also, share a moment of silence for those that passed on because they will surely be missed. Again, I pray for you all to have a safe and great holiday!

Love

This is an excerpt from Romans 12:9-21.

Love must be honest and true. Hate what is evil. Hold on to what is good. Love each other deeply. Honor others more than yourselves. Never let the fire in your heart go out. Keep it alive. Serve the Lord.
When you hope, be joyful. When you suffer, be patient. When you pray, be faithful. Share with God's people who are in need. Welcome others into your homes.
Bless those who hurt you. Bless them, and do not call down curses on them. Be joyful with those who are joyful. Be sad with those who are sad. Agree with each other. Don't be proud. Be willing to be a friend of people who aren't considered important. Don't think that you are better than others.
Don't pay back evil with evil. Be careful to do what everyone thinks is right. If possible, live in peace with everyone. Do that as much as you can.
My friends, don't try to get even. Leave room for God to show his anger. It is written, "I am the One who judges people. I will pay them back," says the Lord. Do just the opposite. Scripture says, "If your enemies are hungry, give them food to eat. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. By doing those things, you will pile up burning coals on their heads."
Don't let evil overcome you. Overcome evil by doing good.

Rest In Peace, Mr. C. E. Cumming, Sr.

What If?

No matter how strong you think you are and want to be, you still have to fight sadness when past hurts come up. There is always something or someone to remind you. We try to focus on the positives and fight the negatives. It can be a constant battle for some. We might even wonder “What would it be like if……….? Accept the fact that there is a reason for everything. Those lies and deceits happened for a reason. Don’t blame yourself unless you know that you were responsible for the failure. We have to move on. We live and we learn. Yes, our experiences will have an impact on our future. But what do we want our future to be like? If we were betrayed or rejected, do we expect the same in future relationships? Do we put up thick walls as defense mechanisms? Can we continue the drama and stress that we just don’t have control over? My brothers and sisters in Christ, we all fall down. We all get hurt at one time or another. What we do with these disappointments is up to us. Grace and mercy stand us up! To me happiness is being at peace with myself. It isn’t what you have or don’t have. Ttry to find inner peace. People tend to push their unhappiness on you and you don’t have to take it. If you think it is for the sake of being in a relationship just to say you have somebody, well, you’re lying to yourself. Are you telling me that you would rather be unhappy in a failing relationship than being happy but alone? That is a problem. Face up. You can be in a great relationship if you both are at peace within. But, please be honest about it. Respect for each other and being secure about yourself and partner can truly go a long way. This philosophy doesn’t just work with relationships, it works with living! We are faced with various situations in life, it depends on our attitude how we deal with it. We are each dealt a different hand in life, it depends on how we play the cards. Wewill lose some and win some but we can only bluff for so long. Regardless, we must make the best out of whatever we have!

Enjoy Your Blessings!

Thanksgiving Day is coming up, but the focus from the media is on the day after, Black Friday! This is one of the most important days in retail to settle the year in the black. So, let’s be prepared to get up early Friday morning for the some of the best sales that stores can offer! It’s the best time to get some inexpensive Christmas presents, if you are willing to sacrifice your sleep time and deal with hundreds of other people over the same item. If you have a family and some love ones, it wouldn’t hurt to take an extra minute to be thankful for sharing a moment with them. Material things are wonderful to show our accomplishments and successes. But I can guarantee you that they mean nothing when the people you want around you to share them with you are not there. Thanksgiving can put your priorities in order. Those things that you thought were more important to you physical are nothing compared to the things that mean so much emotionally. Even if it’s just the two of you, enjoy life’s best! The more, the merrier, just as long as it is not a drama-filled day! If it’s just you, get out of the house, go walking, go to church, but celebrate life for yourself and joy for your past loved ones. I am asking that you do not give up and lose the meaning. We already have a problem for losing the true meaning of Christmas, Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and Veterans Day! I wish you all a happy and blessed day of thankfulness. Offer it to God first and appreciate the loved ones that He gave you! Do something special for someone, share your joy, and most importantly enjoy God’s blessings! If you can even read this, you are so much blessed than some. If you have access to the web, another blessing you might take for granted. All that we have are blessings, large and small, they are all gifts from God! Remember, when praises go up, blessings come down!

Hometown Celebration

Jesus is always on call and the doctor is always in. You don’t need any tickets to wait, He already knows you there, don’t worry, He’s never late. Heaven is rejoicing that another soul has come back home. One by one we are all returning home. It’s not any different than visiting a foreign land. This time you already know the people there, rest in His divine plan.

God Bless You, Mrs. Small

Another mother has moved on to her heavenly reward. Mrs. Louise Small, 85 years of age, left yesterday morning, November 16, 2009. One year later after Mrs Anna Sabb left, eighteen months after my mother and aunts, twenty months after Mrs Corine Burke. I'm not going to dwell on this. To my friends and me, these were wonderful, caring mothers who gave up so much for us. I don't need to tell you how much they are loved. The holidays are tough without them but we'll get through with the grace and mercy of God. I just want to take this time to recognize them and all the mothers that I have not mentioned and never knew. I'm not talking about the fathers this time, no disrespect. Some of them have played a very important part in our lives. But the mothers , they are on a different level. What more can I say?