A STRONG CHRISTIAN

What makes me weak? MY FEARS.
What makes me whole? MY GOD.
What keeps me standing? MY FAITH.
What makes me compassionate? MY selflessness.
What makes me honest? MY INTEGRITY.
What sustains my mind? MY QUEST FOR KNOWLEDGE.
What teaches me all lessons? MY MISTAKES.
What lifts my head high? MY PRIDE, NOT ARROGANCE.
What if I can't go on? NOT AN OPTION.
What makes me victorious? MY COURAGE TO CLIMB AND FAITH IN GOD.
What makes me competent? MY CONFIDENCE.
What makes me beautiful? MY EVERYTHING.
What makes me a man/woman? MY HEART.
Who says I need love? I DO.
What empowers me? MY GOD.
Who am I? I AM A STRONG CHRISTIAN.
...author unknown, taken from "The Flame" bulletin at my church, Bethesda Temple.

When It's Time to Quit

"It's ok to Quit....." By Motivational Speaker - Veraunda Jackson and shared by my cousin Alice Clark.


1. Quit arguing with people about the same old foolishness! Respect their position and keep it moving!
2. Quit telling people your secrets when you know they are not going to keep them! And if you keep telling them, then quit getting mad when they tell your secrets!
3. Quit trying to pull people on your journey who don't want to travel with you. Either they believe in you and value you....or they don't!
4. Quit complaining about things you can't and won't change!
5. Quit gossiping about other people! Minding our own business should be a full time job!
6. Quit blaming each other for things that in the big picture aren't going to matter three weeks from now! Talk solutions...and then implement them!
7. Quit eating things you know are not good for you! If you can't quit...eat smaller portions!
8. Quit buying things when we know we can't afford them! If you don't have self control, then quit going to the stores! Quit charging things, especially when you don't NEED them!
9. Quit staying in unhealthy relationships! It is not okay for people to verbally or physically abuse you! So quit lying to yourself! It is not okay to stay in the marriage for the children! Ask them and they will tell you that they really would prefer to see you happy and that the misery you and your spouse/partner are living with is affecting them!
10. Quit letting family members rope you into the drama! -Start telling them you don't want to hear it! Quit spreading the drama! Quit calling other relatives and telling them about your cousin or aunt! Go back to #5 minding your own business should be enough to keep you busy!
11. Quit trying to change people! IT DOESN'T WORK! Quit cussing people out when you know that they are just being the miserable and jealous people that they are!
12. Quit the job you hate! Start pursuing your passion. Find the job that fuels your passion BEFORE you quit!
13. Quit volunteering for things that you aren't getting any personal fulfillment from anymore! Quit volunteering for things and then failing to follow through with your commitment!
14. Quit listening to the naysayers! Quit watching the depressing news if you are going to live in the doom and gloom of it all!
15. Quit making excuses about why you are where you are or why you can't do what you want to do!
16. Quit waiting on others to give you the answers...and start finding the answers for yourself! If what you are doing isn't working for you...then quit it!
17. Quit settling and start making your dreams a reality!- Quit being afraid and START LIVING YOUR LIFE! CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT!
If you want something different than what you have had in the past...you must quit doing what you have done before and DO something different!
JUST QUIT IT ...... and START DOING something to create the experience you want!

What I've Got To Tell

Some of you have been reading my newsletters for almost two years. Others have been on board for a few months. I’ve shared blessings in my life, funny moments, or heart-wrenching events (such as my grandma’s dying months or my son’s horrific car accident last year). Despite the remnants of the crash scene, he has recovered and is wearing God’s tattoo on his arm to prove he survived.

A while back, I remember saying, “Lord, I want to see a miracle.” When I reflected on my request, I thought uh oh. Basically, I asked God for a testimony that is the result of a test or a miracle: a healing, a blessing, or saving our lives. Since we are big mouthed people by nature, we’ve got to tell somebody about something that happened. Hint. Here’s what I’ve got to tell:

In the September newsletter, I shared a story about how God could spared me from harm. This month, God intervened on Jared, my son’s behalf, again.
Simi, who lives on campus fifteen minutes from the house (yeah, I know it’s not far enough), decided to spend the weekend at home. Jared is an asthmatic and has suffered from bronchitis since he was diagnosed at the age of two. We lugged a portable nebulizer machine everywhere Jared went. His treatment plan called for him to inhale a solution mixed with albuterol two to four times a day. Recently, I told him, "Unless the Lord has healed you, you need to be under a doctor's care." This was my advice since he wasn’t taking any medicine. Since I'm mom and don't know what I’m medically talking about, he paid me no mind.

O-k-a-y. Fast forward some weeks. I’m away on a book tour when Jared comes home after work and goes to bed. He kept waking up every half hour because he couldn't breathe. The interruptions stretched until 2 am. He finally told Simi he needed to go to Walgreen’s, but he ended in the emergency room. Thank God she happened to be "spending the night," otherwise he would have had to dial 911.
By the time Simi got him to the hospital, his breathing was labored. The intake nurse knew he was in trouble when he could barely talk. They rushed him into a room and began treatment. The physician told him his heart was pumping much too fast and diagnosed him with asthma with acute exacerbation.
The testimony is Jared is still alive. Can you imagine returning home and finding your child (I don’t care if he is 24 years old) dead?

Am I over-reacting? I don't think so. According to the Mayo Clinic, more than 4,000 people die from asthma each year. Twenty four percent are African Americans. In conclusion, testimonies are always followed by the ‘what ifs.’ What if my daughter wasn’t at home? What if Jared had already moved into his apartment? What if I had been home, would I have known something was wrong? What if? Need I say more? I’ll take a testimony over a tragedy any day.

Food for Thought

To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.
When God takes something from your grasp, He's not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to receive something better.
The will of God will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you. Something good will happen to you today; something that you have been waiting to hear.
...on the flipside.

A friend of mine sent me this e-mail as a joke, then I realized some people may not steal, but make a presumptuous bad move and figure God will forgive them later. Hmmm, now I'm praying for more patience!
***When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bike. Then I realized that the Lord doesn't work that way, so I stole a bike and asked him to forgive me**