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Tuesday, September 29, 2009

What About The Children?


Image Provided By Associated Press

Sixteen year old Derrion Albert was beaten to death last week at the hands of his peers. I heard about the incident through the grapevine but researched the news story myself and cringed as I watched the video of the incident at length. I was heartbroken and watched in disbelief as an innocent honor roll student was caught up in the middle of senseless fighting.

Gang violence amongst teenagers and consenting adults has gone too far. The lack of value for another human being's life is an abomination and unacceptable. The laughter and jeering that was heard on the videotape of what turned out to be this young man's last few breaths was an indication that this level of fighting has become the norm in our neighborhoods. It means that these type of brawls are just as common as watching a reality show or sitcom or as amusing as recording an event in real time and uploading it to YouTube for everyone to see. However, this time the rolling credits at the end of the video indicated that if viewers could "identify anyone in the video allegedly involved in the death of Derrion Albert, please call Chicago Police Dept. at 312-747-8272." Unfortunately, that's how the story of Derrion's life ended.

Our nation needs serious prayer and there needs to be a rallying of communties to win back our children. Our children need structure and guidance and if they can't get it at home they need structure and guidance at church, school, community centers, the neighborhood grocery store, the post office, wherever they go.

Prov 22:6 says, "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." If parents would dedicate their lives to training their children and sowing into their children as opposed to working constantly, spending excessive amounts of time glued to the cell phone, or out with friends, a huge percentage of behavioral problems amongst our youth would be resolved. We need parents that are guilty of slacking in their duties to stand up and be parents. It's not an easy task but there are support groups and tons of literature to help in the process.

There's also an old African proverb that says, "It takes a village to raise a child." It's up to everyone to help our youth. If you are not already involved in a child's life I encourage you to ask yourself, "What About The Children?" The children like Derrion, the children like those who took Derrion's precious life for granted, the children like those who stood around laughing. Make sure you are imparting your wisdom and love into a young child's life. If you know a parent struggling to raise a son or daughter, pour into that parent and help raise that child. Seek out organizations like the Boys & Girls Club, Youth Villages, Big Brothers, Big Sisters, Girls Inc., local schools, the youth ministry at your place of worship, community centers, etc. to volunteer your time throughout the year! Our future generation of leaders need guidance.

Let's be in prayer for our youth, the parents of our youth and most importantly for the family of 16 year old Derrion Albert. May He Rest In Peace & May His Death Cause People To Stand Up For What's Right Everywhere.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

TOXIC FRIENDS: How Many of Us Have Them?

People come in and out of our lives but not everyone deserves the title of friend. You’ve heard the saying, “Some people are in your life for a reason or a season.” Never has a statement been so true and anyone who fails to take heed to the lesson behind those words can end up with or probably already has toxic friends.

What is a toxic friend? It’s sort of an oxymoron because a friend wouldn’t normally be called toxic. It seems that anything considered toxic can’t be good. Toxic waste dumps, toxic bins to store previously used needles, and now toxic friends. In essence, a toxic friend is someone that can and will cause harm in your life. Thinking someone is a genuine friend when they are really toxic is almost as detrimental.

Let’s take a look at some toxic situations among so-called friends:

Toxic Situation 1
After a couple of bad experiences, Amy reluctantly decided to attend a party with her friend Bethany. Amy expressed to Bethany beforehand that they should stay together and watch each other’s back. Bethany reassures Amy that everything will be okay. As soon as the two enter the party, Bethany disappears with a guy into a dark corner. Later Amy sees Bethany taking shots of liquor with a group of strangers and tries to get her to leave. She claims that she is okay and that they would leave soon. Amy keeps a close eye on Bethany but is distracted by a fight. When Amy is clear from danger she searches frantically to find a non-existent Bethany. Amy resorts to sitting in her car hoping that Bethany would soon appear. After a few hours, Amy sees a couple of guys carrying out an apparently drunk girl. When Amy realizes that the girl is Bethany she rescues her from the guys in fear of what they had in mind. The next weekend, Amy receives a phone call from Bethany who wants to go to another party. What should Amy do?

Toxic Situation 2
Derek has been involved with his new girlfriend for about three months. His friend Jason is known to be a bit of a ladies man and has a reputation. Derek doesn’t pay attention to the rumors that he has heard about his friend Jason. On one occasion, Derek needed Jason to pick his girlfriend up from the airport. Jason was happy to help and put on his best outfit, his favorite cologne and headed to the airport. When Jason arrived, Derek’s girlfriend April noticed how strangely Jason was acting. Jason used every possible opportunity to stand a little too close to April or flash his winning smile. Everything Jason did made April extremely uncomfortable. When April was home, she called Derek to explain the situation but he refused to believe that his friend of 8 years would try to flirt with his girlfriend. Who should Derek believe?

Sometimes it’s hard to pinpoint a toxic friend and it’s even harder to end this type of friendship. Therefore, in choosing friends consider what Jesus said in John 15: 12: “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.” So you should love your friends as Christ has loved you and your friends should do the same. In any situation if a so-called friend does not have your best interest at heart they are a toxic friend. If you continue to deal with that person they will soon get you into a situation that can be dangerous to your life.

Keep your eyes open and your hand in God’s hand to recognize warning signs of toxic friendships. I Corinthians 10: 13 reminds us that “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way of escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” In other words, God always gives us a way out especially in toxic friendships. When people come into your life use your best judgment, choose wisely!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Remaining Faithful

You've gotten the breakthrough that you wanted and so you can exhale just a little bit. Your prayers were answered and your storm is now over! You can relax and catch up on the latest news with your co-workers on your lunch break. Right? Not so fast.

How long will you remain faithful as a prayer warrior, serving at church, testifying everywhere you go and do so just as diligently as you did when you were in need of God's mercy and grace? After the waves of life that throw us and jolt us have calmed down, we tend to turn away from the same God that kept us in the midst of our storm. Why is this?

We get complacent and think that we have arrived. Another reason may be that we often feel so beat up and shipwrecked after our storm that we just want to be "normal" again. After a while, we begin making excuses about how busy we are on the same job that we asked God for and received. We use the same gifts that God gave us in every other capacity BUT to build up the Kingdom. We fail to give to God and others with the very same provisions that God has bestowed upon us. We begin to be our biggest problems. Sometimes being "normal" or being in a relaxed mode can mean being distracted by things that separate us from our number one love. No matter what, we must REMAIN FAITHFUL in doing those things that keep us connected to God.

According to the Dictionary, remain means "stay the same, especially after something else has been removed or not used up; continue in a place, position, or situation; persist". Therefore, the faith that you had when you were trusting God to deliver you should still be strong and present even after your storm has been removed. You've heard the saying, "You're either in a storm, headed to a storm, or on your way out of a storm." That is a sheer indicator that remaining faithful in praying, serving and inspiring others is absolutely necessary ALL THE TIME!.

1 Thessalonian 5:17 says, "Pray without ceasing." Remain faithful by praying for the storm you're in and the storm you'll be in next week, next month or next year. Serve at your church and in your community whether your storm is over or not, remain faithful to serving other people because your testimony can impact someone else life or their testimony will inspire you. Instead of always joining your co-workers for lunch or watching TV for hours on end after work, study God's word, sing hymns of praise and continue doing those things that strengthen your relationship with The One who loves you most; The One who always remains faithful to you. "God is faithful (reliable, trustworthy, and therefore ever true to His promise, and He can be depended on)..."1 Corinthians 1:9

Are you remaining faithful during this season of your life?

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Practice What You Preach

Have you ever had to take your own advice? Scary isn't it? It's easy to give advice to another person when everything in your life is in tip top shape. When our friends and family members are going through rough times, we quickly tell them to trust God, to look to the hills from which cometh their help or any other religious colloquialisms that we can think to share. However, when we face a personal trial trusting God can seem like a daunting task but it's really a test to see if we practice what we preach.


Jesus warned us not to be like the Pharisees in Matthew 23: 1-3: "Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 'The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.' " You may have thought that the saying, "Practice What You Preach" was a cliche but those words came straight from Jesus! Matthew 23: 1-3 displays the danger of telling people one thing and doing another. To avoid being like a Pharisee just be yourself. Only give advice on things that you truly know about. It's okay to reflect on Jesus' power to deliver, heal, restore, provide, and so on but be sure you can speak of your own experiences and most importantly that you know where these promises are in His word. One day you will be faced with a trial of sickness, a familial issue, a financial problem, or something else and you will have to tell yourself all the things that you've said to encourage others.

God wants to know that we can practice what we preach. When tests come our way we won't wither or fall by the wayside. We will be able to tell ourselves to trust God, to hold our head up, to keep our hand in the hand of the Master and so on. Remember Practice What You Preach and Your Words Will Always Have Validity!