Why Do, We Do, What We Do?

This story is sad, but not sad in a sorrowful way. No it's a sad commentary on the state of morality or ethics in America. It's bad enough that a kid would lie on an essay in order to win tickets to a Hannah Montana concert. What's worse is that her mom was complicit in the scam. As the mom said, «We did the essay and that's what we did to win. We did whatever we could do to win,» Yep, that sums up the mentality of way too many people nowadays. What is your thought on this? What kind of message is she sending to her child? Why can't we tell the truth?

Why Are You Talking About Me?

GOSSIP - small talk, hearsay, chitchat. Gossip apply to idle talk and newsmongering about the affairs of others. Gossip is light chat or talk: to trade gossip about the neighbors. It is rumor or general talk that is damaging to reputation; it is usually more or less malicious.

I have learned in my 50 years of life, “those who gossip to you gossip about you”. What is more surprising is that Christians engage in this SINFUL behavior with NO GUILT! It’s just Christian Tabloids!

It’s like a Christian who justifies an adulterous affair (and says, “but I love her”), or a Christian who legitimizes stealing from work and says (”because they don’t pay me enough”).

Romans 1:29 “Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip.”

2 Corinthians 12:20 “For I am afraid that when I come I won’t like what I find, and you won’t like my response. I am afraid that I will find quarreling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly behavior.”

Besides GOSSIP being a dark evil sin that we’ve all engaged in at some time, it’s bad for 3 reasons:

1.) It distracts us from doing the things that are really important; loving and caring for people, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, praying and reading the scripture!

2.) It is murder with the tongue. It seperates close friends, and it breaks relationships!

3.) It tears down people! Gossip produces nothing good in a persons life, period!

How to know when you’ve stumbled upon a GOSSIP:

1.) They gossip to you!

2.) The are unhappy. (typically about many things)

3.) The world is just out to get them.

4.) They do not have any TRUE friends. (have you ever had a friend gossip to you about another friend? That is not friendship!)

5.) Gossip follows gossips! (so if you are always in the midst of gossip… it’s YOU! You are the common denominator!)

Typically, gossipers attract other gossipers. So if you find yourself in a gossip crowd, I would recommend you inform your “friends” (if you can call them that) and challenge them that you want to be a true Christ follower and that you feel that gossip is not doing anything positive in or for your life and will discontinue partaking in the sin of gossip!

“Small people talk about others,
Medium people talk about things,
And big people talk about dreams and ideas”

Let’s be BIG PEOPLE!

Do You Fear Jesus?

If not you should since He is the one that give you the power to inhale and exhale.
Psalms 111:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His instructions have good insight. His praise endures forever.
Scripture tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Jesus later tells us to fear God rather than the world. We have been told that this is really telling us to have an awe and reverence for God. That's true in part, but I think we should have a real, genuine fear of the Lord as well. It will help us to maintain perspective.

Sometimes I think we get too uppity in our relations with God. We think of God more in the role of our friend than as the Lord of the Universe. He is both, but we limit our comprehension of Him and our relationship with Him when we focus solely on a friendship with God. We must also remember that he is not just our friend. He is our Lord, our master, our creator.

Revelation 6:15-17 Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the military commanders, the rich, the powerful, and every slave and free person hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. And they said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, because the great day of Their wrath has come! And who is able to stand?”

This makes me think of the people I know who say: "When I get to Heaven, I have some questions for God." You don't get that image from Revelation. You don't see people lining up to get all their questions answered. You see them quaking and trembling. They are beside themselves with terror when confronted face-to-face by God Almighty. We can't imagine what that's like. It is beyond our comprehension. But we should know that when the time comes that we stand before our Creator, the last thing on our mind is getting our questions answered. We can have assurance of our salvation. We can know that God loves us. But when we come before the father's throne, we will not only feel awe and reverence, we will be filled with fear at the sheer awesome scope of his glory, majesty and power, which we will find out is like nothing we could have ever dreamed.

Of course, people who say they have questions for God are really saying that they intend to hold God accountable for the way He designed the world and acted. Not very veiled is the implication that they could have done better and had some better ideas. They think they can hold God accountable.

This is what comes from having taking God too lightly, from seeing him as a friend rather than Lord. God doesn't answer to us. We answer to him — in fear and trembling.

What Do Your Life Smell Like Roses Or A Hog Pen?

If you were passing by your life, what would you smell? A bed of roses? or a hog pen full of slop ? Quite often, what our ears, eyes and hand miss our nose can detect. The sense of smell is also quite useful because it evokes memories.

When you get a whiff of something, you can be thrown back into a memory of something that happened, how it happened and whether or not you liked what happened. I am from the South so in the spring time when the honeysuckers are in full bloom that smell takes me back to my very early child hood. How growing up in the country will wild flowers every where and life being so simple. For the last couple of years my life have not smell like I want it to smell. It has been smelling like a hog pen and slop every where. I hope to smell the roses soon. So what have your life been smelling like honestly? Is it a bed of roses are you in the hog pen of life?

I can smell that hog pen miles away. I am at this moment trying to remember that rose scent. I am not were I want to be right now I am struggling with life. I have some changes I have to make in 2008 and some people want like but ,I got to put myself back in my own life. My son is looking at some time behind prision walls. I have worked hard at trying to keep my son from being a nother black man behind bars but, all my effort did not pay off. To me that is one of the hardest thing a mother can face. He will be sentence on Jan 7 that is not the way to start the year off. But, my prayer is for God to save him and use him in a mighty way for the Kingdom even if it is by the way of the system. So what scent are you smelling right now in life roses or a stinky hog pen?

Will You Kill Me?

I think that women should have the right to do what they want with their bodies. If they want to have an abortion that should be their right, not the state or government. But don't use abortion as a means of birth control. When I was younger I had a friend that had a couple of abortions I went with her once to a abortion clinic in Atlanta Ga and that was in the 70's. To me she was using that as a means of birth control. What I know now I would not have even went along with her. When is it alright to have an abortion? That is a hard question to answer.

Ya'll know that I like Keshia Cole reality show. I do think her sister had an abortion which is her right. But a report that I read said that more and more young black women are having abortion I don't know if that is the case or not. But we as a race of people has never done this before. We have always value life and had the idea that God would see us through any and every thing. What happen in the last couple of years that has effect/affect our way of thinking?

Have we became so none caring that life no longer mean anything to us? What about that day when we all must stand before that Great Judgement Seat Of Christ? That will be our counting up day. Yell I know that God will for give us for any and every sin that we have done if only we ask. But I know God can not be mock.

While others have contemplated the impact of a woman seeing the image of her unborn child as an individual matter, we need to look at the broader cultural and legal meaning of this technology. Ultrasound has exposed the life in the womb to those of us who didn't want to see what abortion kills. The fetus is squirming, and so are we.
The image of the unborn child revealed the basic horror of abortion. This is the killing of a child.

Pro-lifers are often caricatured as stupid creationists who just want to put women back in their place. Science and free inquiry are supposed to help them get over their "love affair with the fetus." But science hasn't cooperated. Partial Birth Abortion procedure was understood by Congress to be particularly abhorrent because the baby is partially visible (and undeniably human) during the procedure. The more traditional methods of abortion dismember the baby in the womb, completely out of sight. But,with several states considering laws that would require a woman seeking an abortion to see an ultrasound image of her baby.

Critics complain that these bills seek to "bias," "coerce," and "guilt-trip" women. Come on. Women aren't too weak to face the truth. If you don't want to look at the video, you don't have to. But you should look at it, and so should the guy who got you pregnant, because the decision you're about to make is as grave as it gets. What do you think about Abortions, should government be telling women what to do with their bodies?

"Grace and Mercy" Saturday Random Post! Why My Son Won't Leave?

I found this article and thought it was a good example of what I am dealing with. What do you think about young people that want move out of your house?

There is a new and important stage in life in American culture, and it is not entirely clear that the Christian church understands or particularly knows what to do with it. I am talking about what scholars call "emerging adulthood." This is the time of life between ages 18 and 30, roughly, a phase which in recent decades has morphed into quite a new experience for many. Researchers in sociology, psychology, and human development have been investigating the contours of this new life stage and have some fascinating stuff on the subject, whose findings are well worth pondering for their implications for church and culture.

To grasp the significance of emerging adulthood, it is necessary first to realize that life stages are not naturally given as immutable phases of existence. Rather, they are cultural constructions that interact with biology and material production, and are profoundly shaped by the social and institutional conditions that generate and sustain them. So, "teenager" and "adolescence" as representing a distinct stage of life were very much 20th-century inventions, brought into being by changes in mass education, child labor laws, urbanization and suburbanization, mass consumerism, and the media. Similarly, a new, distinct, and important stage in life, situated between the teenage years and full-fledged adulthood, has emerged in our culture in recent decades—reshaping the meaning of self, youth, relationships, and life commitments as well as a variety of behaviors and dispositions among the young.

What are the social forces that have given rise to this emerging adulthood? First is the growth of higher education. The GI Bill, changes in the American economy, and government subsidizing of community colleges and state universities led in the second half of the last century to a dramatic rise in the number of high school graduates going on to college and university. As a result, a huge proportion of American youth are no longer stopping school and beginning stable careers at age 18 but are extending their formal schooling well into their twenties. And those who are aiming to join America's professional and knowledge classes—those who most powerfully shape our culture and society—are continuing in graduate and professional school programs often up until their thirties.

A second is the delay of marriage by American youth over the last decades. Between 1950 and 2000, the median age of first marriage for women rose from 20 to 25 years old. For men during that same time the median age rose from 22 to 27 years old. The sharpest increase for both took place after 1970. Half a century ago, many young people were anxious to get out of high school, marry, settle down, have children, and start a long-term career. But many youth today, especially but not exclusively men, face almost a decade between high school graduation and marriage to spend exploring life's many options in unprecedented freedom.

A third is the American and global economy that undermine stable, lifelong careers and replace them instead with careers of lower security, more frequent job changes, and an ongoing need for new training and education. Most young people today know they need to approach their careers with a variety of skills, maximal flexibility, and readiness to re-tool as needed. That itself pushes youth toward extended schooling and delay of marriage. Far from being happy to graduate from high school and take the factory job their father or uncle arranged for them (which probably doesn't exist in any case), many youth today spend five to ten years experimenting with different job and career options before finally deciding on a long-term career direction.

Finally, parents of today's youth are aware of the resources often required to succeed and seem increasingly willing to extend financial and other support to their children, well into their twenties and even into their early thirties. Housing, educational expenses and food over the 17-year period between ages 18 and 34, these resources help to subsidize the freedom that emerging adults enjoy to take a good, long time before settling down into full adulthood, as culturally defined by the end of schooling, financial independence, and new family formation.

These social transformations have helped dramatically to alter the experience of American life between the ages of 18 and 30. Studies agree that the transition to adulthood today is more complex, disjointed, and confusing than it was in past decades. The steps through and to schooling, first real job, marriage, and parenthood are simply less well organized and coherent today than they were in generations past. At the same time, these years are marked by an historically unparalleled freedom to roam, experiment, learn (or not), move on, and try again.

What's Your Addiction? Money,Drugs,Women,Men.....

For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.- Romans 7:14-20Why everything that’s s’posed to bad, make me feel so good?Everything they told me not to, is exactly what I would.Man I tried to stop, man I tried the best I could, but...What’s your addiction, is it money, is it girls, is it weed? I’ve been afflicted by not one, not two, but all three- Kanye West, "Addiction". Our addictions or the compulsory desires of the flesh can create a border wall between ourselves and the divine work we have been called to. We know what we should not do, yet we find ourselves doing it anyway. Some of us struggle with drug addiction which is a hellish condition(my son and husband). Since this kind of bondage is not necessarily common to the average Christian, it becomes easy to rail against it (similar to homosexuality). There was a time when preachers would harp on the sins of fornication and adultery even when they themselves were participating in these activities. Few are willing to be so hypocritical today and many feel that we live in such an oversexed society that strong rebukes against premarital sex do little to deter behavior and are more likely to negatively impact membership numbers.We do not need to shy away from conversations about sexual purity, but need to do so in a more open, honest and realistic way. I believe that money is the drug of choice that often goes unnoticed. Jesus addressed issues of money or what the Bible identifies as "mammon" much more than sex (drugs were a non-issue and wine was the beverage of choice). Christian love is not primarily about emotional connection, but is more so about economics and proximity. To what extent are we willing to share our resources and advocate for a more equitable economic system that diminishes poverty and the suffering that it produces? Are we willing to locate ourselves, so that we directly encounter those who are poor and disadvantaged so that we can affirm their humanity and not just write checks? With so many people in the middle class who also fall into that category that is known as working class, we may not have to go very far to minister to those who are under considerable financial duress. Addictions blind us to the needs of those around us. When we become consumed with getting our next fix which money can always provide; whether it be cocaine, a woman on the side, a new outfit, a nicer car, a bigger house or a private plane we are unable to see our surrounding social reality. When our lives revolve around money and what money can buy it makes us quite useless to God no matter how good of a personal relationship we think we have with Him. So, what's your addiction and what are you going to do about it? Christ is still able to deliver us from ourselves and the oppression of the world through the Spirit of God. The church can either be the facilitator of our liberation or an enabler of our addiction.

The 10 Truth!

10 TRUTHS BLACK AND HISPANIC PEOPLE KNOW, BUT WHITE PEOPLE WON'T ADMIT:
1. Elvis is dead.
2. Jesus was not White.
3. Rap music is here to stay.
4. Kissing your pet is not cute or clean.
5. Skinny does not equal sexy.
6. Thomas Jefferson had black children.
7. A 5 year child is too big for a stroller.
8. N' SYNC will never hold a candle to the Jackson 5.
9. An occasional BUTT whooping helps a child stay in line.
10. Having your children curse you out in public is not normal.



10 TRUTHS WHITE AND BLACK PEOPLE KNOW, BUT HISPANIC PEOPLE WON'T ADMIT
1. Hickey's are not attractive.
2. Chicken is food, not a roommate.
3. Jesus is not a name for your son.
4. Your country's flag is not a car decoration.
5. Maria is a name but not for every other daughter.
6. "Jump out and run" is not in any insurance policies.
7. 10 people to a car is considered too many.
8. Buttoning just the top button of your shirt is a bad fashion statement.
9. Mami and Papi can't possibly be the nickname of every person in your family
10.Letting your children run wildly through the store is not normal.



10 TRUTHS WHITE AND HISPANIC PEOPLE KNOW, BUT BLACK PEOPLE WON'T ADMIT:
1. O. J. did it.
2. Tupac is dead.
3. Teeth should not be decorated.
4. Weddings should start on time.
5. Your pastor doesn't know everything.
6. Jesse Jackson will never be President.
7. RED is not a kool-aid flavor, it's a color.
8. Church does not require expensive clothes.
9. Crown Royal bags are meant to be thrown away.
10.Your rims and sound system should not be worth more than your car.

TODAY'S PRAYER!

Dear God, Thank you for a new day. I know that everything I am and everything I have is a result of what You have allowed in my life. Sometimes life is very hard; other times it is full of happiness. I know you are always there and Your blessing is available…if only I will listen and obey. Please help me to recognize the gifts You send and the doors You open each and every day. Give me wisdom to see and do Your will. Thank you for the spiritual gifts You have given, also. I pray that You will use those gifts to work in and through me to minister to the world and draw people to You. In Jesus’ name I pray and give You praise. Amen.

Crunk In The Church! (Jesus Is On His Way Back!)

Where do the church go from here? Is this today's idea of church? When did Jesus leave the building? I know I am old school but, come on. This look like a Saturday night party in your local club. Every thing that the world can think of have come into the church. The church supposed to change the world not the other way around. I know when I talk about The Old Black Church I am really talking about the church that once loved Jesus. When Jesus was at the center. The church that cared about the souls that was on their way to hell. The church that cared enough to care. What happen to telling the people about the Cross and what happen on that Cross? What about telling people that Jesus is on His way back? When I see stuff like this clip, it hurts my heart. Jesus did not hang on a Cross with our sins for this.

Today's Quote! ~ Herbert Bayard Swope

I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure--which is:
Try to please everybody.

The Bell Keep It Moving!

THE BELL
I KNOW WHO I AM
I am God's child (John 1:12)
I am Christ's friend (John 15:15 )
I am united with the Lord(1 Cor. 6:17 )
I am bought with a price(1 Cor. 6:19-20)
I am a saint (set apart for God). (Eph. 1:1)
I am a personal witness of Christ. (Acts 1:8)
I am the salt & light of the earth (Matt.5:13-14)
I am a member of the body of Christ(1 Cor 12:27)
I am free forever from condemnation ( Rom. 8: 1-2)
I am a citizen of Heaven. I am significant ( Phil.3:20)
I am free from any charge against me (Rom. 8:31 -34)
I am a minister of reconciliation for God(2 Cor.5:17-21)
I have access to God through the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:18)
I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (Eph. 2:6)
I cannot be separated from the love of God(Rom.8:35-39)
I am established, anointed, sealed by God (2 Cor.1:21-22)
I am assured all things work together for good (Rom. 8: 28)
I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit (John 15:16 )
I may approach God with freedom and confidence (Eph. 3: 12 )
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13)
I am the branch of the true vine, a channel of His life (John 15: 1-5)
I am God's temple (1 Cor. 3: 16 ). I am complete in Christ (Col. 2: 10)
I am hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3). I have been justified (Romans 5:1)
I am God's co-worker (1 Cor. 3:9; 2 Cor 6:1). I am God's workmanship(Eph. 2:10 )
I am confident that the good works God has begun in me will be perfected. (Phil 1: 5)
I have been redeemed and forgiven (Col. 1:14). I have been adopted as God's child(Eph 1:5)
I belong to God
Do you know
who you are!?


Keep this bell ringing...pass it on

'The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make His face shine upon you
and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn His face toward you
and give you peace.'
Numbers 6:24-26

The Hat Show & The Black Church.

My grand mother and mother absolutely loved hats. This holiday season I am remember them in a special way. I am thinking about the many hats they would wear to church on Sunday morning. With it been Christmas I know that they would had been wearing some kind of red hat. My Granny would tilt hers' to the side a little bit. My MOM would pull hers' kinder low to the eye she looked fierce.

Growing up Baptist and a bit Judgmental I used to to think that my granny and mom outfits were just a bit flashy until I was exposed to the Church of God in Christ and realized those women took flashy to a whole nutha level. I almost stoped, when at a COGIC funeral, a sister came in wearing a Black sequined big brim hat cocked to the side.You know they even have a hat show in Memphis each November (disguised as Convocation). I used to shake my head at some of the outfits I would see on their way to Sunday service, but then I had to ask myself, "Where the hades else are they gonna wear that?"

It was the same thing with my gospel artists. I grew up listening to Mahalia Jackson, who was usually in a tasteful gown or simple choir robe or Shirley Caesar and Dorothy Norwood, who preferred bright, conservative suits. Imagine my shock when I discovered the Clark Sisters, Vickie Winans, Yolanda Adams, CeCe and others. I used to say who they singing too dress like they just left a bar. Ok... I realize these folks are performers, but some of the things they wear offstage are every bit as tacky. That's why growing up, the black church was something else. It always left you with such fond memories. That is why my heart will always been bent toward The Old Black Church.

Black Church Dictionary!

(1) Anointing: Used to describe any non-regular emotion (crying in the middle of a song when you forget the words, telling the church off (particularly when its over tithes and offering), doing the Olympic shout around the church (first one that hits the wall gets a white hanky tied around their neck!)


2. Trick of the Enemy: Used to describe anything that happens because you didn't do what you were supposed to, like your car getting repossessed cause you didn't pay the note, lights getting shut off cause you quit work to go on tour with the pastors choir, or your child repeating the first grade cause he missed the whole second semester to go on a 90 day/90 night fast and consecration.


3. Rhema Word: Any message from an out-of-town pastor or evangelist.


4. Prophetic Word: Same message from that out-of-town pastor, delivered 5 decibels louder, while the congregation is standing. Quiet organ music optional, but works better with silence.


5. Carnal: Used to describe a saint who goes to the movies. This term doesn't apply if you rent the same movie from Blockbuster.


6. Didn't God Move?: What saints say after a long service where the pastor doesn't preach and they just shout the whole service.


7. Unlock Your Blessing: What preachers say after they've finished preaching, and they say you must give $50 to "unlock your blessing." For a more dramatic effect, this offering can be started at $1,000 and worked down to $25.


8. He'll Do It If You Let Him (followed by inaudible tongues): Round one of shouting; will begin in 5 minutes. Organist get ready.


9. We Got To Move On: What the preacher says when he wants shout time to start up again. Organist, turn up the volume on the Leslie.


10. We Have Time for One More Testimony: Not really, we're just waiting on the pastor to come into service. If you're called on during this one, when you hear clapping, just stop talking, cause the pastor has walked in and people are no longer interested in what God did for you.


11. We Can Never Pay for the Word: Get your checkbook out, the auction will begin momentarily! This phrase always comes before the offering is taken for the guest speaker.


12. God Has Been Dealing with Me on Some Issues: I'm still doing what I was doing before I got saved, only now I just put in an extra $5 in my offering when I do it.


13. Is He Worthy?: Of course He is; why ask a question like that.


14. Let Us Go To God in Our Own Way: This is what you say when they ask you to pray in church and you don't know what to say.


15. Get Ready, Get Ready, Get Ready!!!: Don't really know what this one means, but if you're not careful, a shout could break out when you say it. It must be said three times to have real impact.


16. I Can't Get No Help: Preachers say this when no one says amen in the spot they thought would get a lot of amens.


17. I'm Blessed and Highly Favored: Said when a fellow saint asks "how are you?" Memo to saints: you CAN be saved and answer "fine" when someone asks how are you.


18. Where The Spirit of The Lord is, There is liberty: Whenever you want to disrupt service and holler out when it's quiet, use this statement to justify your behavior.


19. Get Ready To Go To The Next Level: This means the church will be hosting another revival in a few months.


20. Stand To Your Feet : This gives the illusion that the preacher is finished, but be prepared to stand up for at least 1/2 hour. May be cut to 15 minutes if the organist starts playing softly.


21. Give God a Shabach: Scream to the top of your lungs. Some church members may blow whistles and wave flags as well.


22. Every Head Bowed, Every Eye Closed: Quick! Everyone look around to see who's getting saved again this week.


23. Secular: Any person, place, object or event that's not in the church.


24. The "Yes Lord" Song: Signals the official end to shout time. Anyone still shouting when this song is over is considered to be "in self".


25. In Self: Used to describe someone who acts alone in church. For example, someone who is shouting alone. Add two more people to this display and its called...


26. In The Spirit: When three people are doing the same thing in a church service at the same time.


27. Prayer Partner: Phone buddy. 5 minutes of prayer, 1 hour of church gossiping.

41 Interesting Money Facts!

I found this list on Tomboutus a few hours ago and thought I would share it with you. Before you can ever start to increase your wealth or even save money for that matter you have to change the way you think about money. This list shows how Americans truly feel about the almighty dollar. How many of these psychological feelings about money do you agree with?

1. More of our fantasies are about money… than sex.
2. If we could have any luxury in the world (and money didn’t matter) more of us would choose to spend money on a butler and a maid than anything else.
3. 90% of Americans who own pets buy them Christmas gifts.
4. Money is the leading cause of disagreements in marriages.
5. 65% of Americans would live on a deserted island all by themselves for an entire year for $1,000,000.
6. For $10,000,000 most of us would do almost ANYTHING! Including abandoning our family and friends and our church. A very high percentage of us would, for that same amount of money, change our race or sex. And, 1 in every 14, would even murder someone for ten million bucks.What’s really strange about this is, the statistics remain the same whether it’s ten million dollars all the way down to three million. For three million bucks, most of us would do the same horrible things we would do for ten million. But, guess what? Few of us would do these things for a “measly” two million.
7. 92% of us would rather be rich than find the love of our lives.
8. Here’s a weighty one: Money (or the lack thereof) is the biggest stress inducer in the lives of Americans. We worry more about money than our marriages, our health, or even who’s going to win the Superbowl Game or come out on top in the latest Survivor TV show.
9. If you get your money out of a Hitachi ATM machine in Japan, it will be laundered. The way they do it is, they briefly press the bills between rollers at high enough temperatures to kill most bacteria.
10. Women have very fixed ideas on how much they are willing to spend on a bra. 38.3% of women won’t spend $30 for a bra. 28.4% won’t spend $50. 10% would pay as much as $75. And, only 3.5% would shell out $100. But, you know what? Almost 20% of women say they would pay almost anything for a bra. This is because they consider (and I guess so do a few men) that the contents of what those bras are encasing is of extremely high-value.
11. Nearly half of the people who sell their houses with furniture included will take all the light bulbs out of all the lamps when they vacate the premises.
12. Most people won’t bend over to pick up money lying on the sidewalk unless it’s at least a dollar.
13. Most Americans think pennies are a pain in the ass and the U.S. Mint should stop making them.
14. There is about 405 billion dollars in circulation. Only 32 million of that amount is counterfeit. That means, the percentage of counterfeit money in America is .0079%. And, $20 bills are more often counterfeited than $100 bills.
15. Do people care if their bills are crisp? Indeed, they do. Fresh, crisp, clean bills are considered much more valuable than those which are old, wrinkled and dirty.I once sent a ‘dollar bill thank you’ letter to a guy who sent a sincere letter back to me bitching the free $1 bill I sent him was wrinkled instead of crisp as I had described in the letter.
16. Let’s flip a coin and try to guess whether it will come up heads or tails. Three times as many people guess ‘heads’ than ‘tails’.
17. Here’s one I personally think really sucks: One out of every four Americans believe their best chance of getting rich is by playing the lottery.
18. How about this one for a shocking fact: 5% of lottery ticket buyers buy 51% of all tickets sold. (Trust me, none of these people belong to the “Einsteins of America Society”.)
19. A staggering 74% of us are influenced by how much we can win in a lottery as opposed to the odds of us winning.
20. That’s a good thing for the Government because the odds of winning a lottery jackpot are about 10 million to 1.
21. A person who drives 10 miles to buy a lottery ticket is 3 times more likely to be killed in a car accident while driving to buy the ticket… than… he is to win the jackpot.
22. Sunday newspaper coupon inserts are the second-most read section of the paper, after the front page.
23. Few people know it but, you can buy single-disease insurance.
24. Only 6% of people in America regularly buy clothes tailor made just for them.
25. Here’s one that’s really important: 63% of us decide NOT to buy a product advertised on the Internet… because… we think the shipping and handling charges add too much to the order.
26. Eight times as many Americans would rather use an ATM than deal with a real live teller.
27. This one’s going to blow your mind: 83% of Americans still pay with checks instead of credit cards!
28. Almost 30% of us say we would need 3 million smackaroos to feel rich. This ties in with the fact most of us would do anything for as little as $3 million… but… not nearly as many of us would do those identical things for a measly $2 million. (Hey, here’s your chance to take advantage of that situation. If you only want to pay $2 million to have something done, ask me if I’ll do it. The chances are, believe it or not, I WILL DO IT.)
29. Here’s another fact which is really, really important: 80% of Americans say giving personal information (especially their credit card information) over the Internet scares the living shit out of them.
30. Two-thirds of Americans say they wouldn’t let their spouse spend the night and have sex with another person for a million dollars. Many of these people are liars. There’s a big difference being asked if they would do it for a million dollars… as opposed to… handing them a paper sack containing the million fungolas and simply saying, “Here, you can have this if you’ll let me sleep with your sweetie tonight.”
31. The average wedding in America costs a staggering $20,000.00.
32. More than one-third of American women consider money more important than good sex to the success of a marriage.
33. According to Employee Benefits Research Institute 96% of all people who have jobs right now won’t be eligible for their full Social Security benefits when they reach age 65.
34. When it comes to houses, more than anything else, people want a state-of-the-art kitchen.
35. When people shop for a car, what they want more than anything else is reliability for the best possible price.
36. One of the best ways to raise money for a charity is to have a free dinner for a lot of people and have an empty envelope tucked under their plate… for the express purpose… of making whatever size donation they want.
37. People tip more on sunny days than they do on dreary days.
38. More than 80,000,000 people call the I.R.S. Information Hotline phone number every year. One-third of those calls go unanswered. And, according to the Treasury Department itself, 47% of the answers the ‘get-through’ callers receive are incorrect.
39. Almost two out of three people have modified their financial behavior because of their fears.
40. Almost three times as many people who live in the South worry about losing their jobs as compared to people who live in the Midwest.
41. Which would you rather do: Shop till you drop… or… have great sex?For men, this is a no-brainer.

    However, more women would actually rather have an unlimited shopping spree than spend a weekend with a fabulous lover. In fact, the #1 favorite fantasy of women is to have a blank check to shop at their favorite store.

    The favorite fantasy of men (at least in my opinion) is what we would like to DO to the sales girl… rather than… what we would like to buy from her.

Were We Call To Entertain?

Where we called as Christians to entertain? Where we called to use our “gift” to thrill people? or to stir emotions, let alone use talents and abilities we claim God has given us, to compete in a contest where the main objective is for someone to like us well enough that we are…the winner?

I just witnessed a sad and selfish display called Sunday Best a terribly misdirected attempt to capitalize on the trashy reality show/American idol craze, and put a Christian spin on it. It was all I could do to sit and listen to ( I like Kirk Franklin I have nothing against him) Kirk Franklin, Mary & Mary and Bebe try to pull scripture out of context to justify what is nothing more than sorry production to glorify the flesh. The contestants were obviously talented ( giving credit were credit is due ).

But I think about a spiritual upbringing some of these people have had ( Seeker Friendly Church) that has them convinced that what they are doing on this program somehow glorifies the Lord of Righteousness. What have they gone through or been taught in their lives? That part is heart breaking.

I heard a lot about being a star, being a super star, having a good performance, being an artist and hitting it big in the Gospel music world. I heard nothing about denying self, taking up the cross daily and following Him, Luke 9:23. Me personally I think that is was a bad display of a Gift. What happen to your gift will make room for you? And they tell every contestant may God Bless You and Good Luck isn't that an oxymoron? What do you think? This is my personal thought, I did not see Jesus Glorified did you?

Sheryl Underwood and Juanita Bynum Exchanges Some words About The Word.

What is Mrs. Weeks doing on a show like this? What they are talking about should not be talk about in public. view these clips and comment.

Hark The Herald Angels Sing.

This is one of the 1st Christmas Hymns that I remember hearing as a young child in Elementary school. Back then the teacher would play Christmas music doing the class period. My teacher were a Black Man ( that is hard to find now ) by the name of Mr. Walter Parker. For some reason that song and Go Tell It On The Mountian just stayed in my memory. That was back in the early 60's man how some things you never for get.

Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’angelic host proclaim,
“Christ is born in Bethlehem!”

Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Christ, by highest heav’n adored;
Christ the everlasting Lord;
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Jesus our Emmanuel.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Come, Desire of nations, come,
Fix in us thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conquering seed,
Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
Now display thy saving power,
Ruined nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to thine.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface,
Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.
Let us Thee, though lost, regain,
Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart,
Formed in each believing heart.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Hail the heav’n born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Ris’n with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Don't Throw Your Life Away!

The deal Esau made goes down as one of the worst of all time. I guess if you had been without food for 3 days, I might makes some bad decision too. Esau says what good is a birthright when I am about to die? Who told Esau he was about to die? Satan. Who told me I would not make it through college? Satan. I know he come to steal , kill and destory So Esau gave up privilege that went to the firstborn. But when he got older he remember what he gave up too late. He threw it all away in a moment of weakness. He went after the wrong things married the wrong women. His brother may have been a con-man but Esau was a fool. In the heat of passion he sold out for a quick fix. Some times I feel like I have forfeited my God-given destiny like Esau did. Some values in life are absolute. Don't throw your life away on things that don't matter. Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.( Rev 2:10 ).

Street Gangs Can They Be Compared To Fraternities?

I ran across this article gangs and fraternities. From reading this article I can see how a young person who have been in a street gang for a period of time. Then gets out and decide to attend college. If his mind has been shape by the gang, the fraternities life would look appealing to him. Therefore, I can see the attraction but, I would not go as far and say that they are the same. Even if they are coming from the street in to the college life. Across the country, young black men gather wearing matching colors, throwing up signs with their hands, and using unique calls recognizable and exclusive only to their circles.

Most would assume that this group is a gang. However, stepping onto a college campus would confuse anybody trying to identify these groups, because Greek-letter organizations share very similar customs.

The World Book Encyclopedia describes gangs as a group of people who associate with one another for social or criminal reasons.

A member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc said he has grown up around gangs and can see how some people would make the mistake of comparing them to a Greek-letter organization.

“I always grew up with gangs around me,” said Bowdre, 21, a senior finance student at Florida A&M University. “When I first came on campus I saw (a fraternity) with red jackets, and I thought they were Bloods.”

Bowdre admits to seeing similarities in the physical setup of the two groups, but he recognizes important differences in the purpose of each group.

“A gang’s purpose is to destroy other gangs and make money through crimes,” Bowdre said. “A Greek letter organization’s purpose is not committing crimes; the purpose is well documented, to serve the community.”

Camron Hawkins, 18, who said he is a member of the Crips gang, does not agree.

“There are people who haven’t been in a gang who commit worse crimes than us,” said Hawkins, a Tallahassee, Fla., native. “Its not always about violence, it’s about money.”

Hawkins considers gangs and fraternities to be one and the same, and even considers a family to be a gang.

Ironically, a lack of family structure is what draws many to join gangs in the first place.

Robert Corley, a North Carolina Crip for 14 years, has left his former lifestyle to become a church laborer in Tallahassee.

“We get with our own kind of people to form gangs because we come from a broken family,” Corley said. “We find people that we can relate to, and we unify ourselves to become an army.”

According to sociologist Daniel J. Monti, quoted in the book “Gangs” by Gail B. Stewart, the family structure provided by gangs helps to build young people the same way families, churches, schools and neighbors do.

However, Bowdre said he does not believe that sociologists can give expert opinions about things they have never experienced.

“While sociologists are at home reading their books, gang members are in the streets,” Bowdre said. “They probably don’t fully understand gang culture. You can’t only go off of an assumption.”

Although gangs provide a family structure, many question whether gangs are worth the destruction that they cause the wider community. That question is not frequently asked of Greek letter organizations.

“You can’t put us on the same scale,” Bowdre said. “The net sum of productivity of gangs and fraternities are completely different.”

Elizabeth Hollifield, a psychology professor at FAMU, agrees.

“I don’t think gangs and fraternities can be compared, because gangs have a very negative connotation and fraternities don’t,” Hollifield said. “It’s like comparing apples and oranges. They are both fruits, but they have very different tastes.”
What do you think? Do gangs and fraternities have the same purpose Yes/no but in a different way?

When Should The Pastor Tell Your Business Before/After Something Happen?

A pastor who says Stacy Peterson confided in him a few weeks before she went missing spilled details of their alleged conversation on national TV a few days ago.

Was that ethical?The president of the seminary that trained him says he can’t imagine “what would prompt that breach of confidentiality.” The confidentiality clause for pastors is real clear keep your mouth shut.


Schori is a former pastor at Westbrook Church in Bolingbrook, occasionally attended by Peterson, 23, and her ex-cop husband, Drew Peterson, 53, a suspect in his wife’s October disappearance. Peterson says his wife had a crush on Schori. Schori said Stacy Peterson called him in August. He agreed to meet her at a coffee shop. That’s inappropriate how you going to meet another man wife in a coffee shop or any place without him and it not look questionable? He takes what should be a professional relationship and set it in a social context that's wrong. What about the privacy! people over hearing what you are talking about.

He said Peterson blurted out that her husband had killed his third wife and was being investigated. Schori said he feared for Stacy Peterson, but didn’t contact authorities until she disappeared. At that point, he also talked to the media — a move that some Christian ethicists question. If a person is in imminent danger, that supersedes confidentiality. Why did he go on CNN? He should have called the police. He's said that he didn’t take action earlier because he didn’t want to put Peterson at risk. Sound like she was crying out for help.

After the coffee shop meeting, he said a message from Drew Peterson was waiting on his voice mail. Peterson said he knew Schori had just met with his wife. He wanted to see him, too. He never reached out to him, fearing for his own safety.

3rd Sunday( Woman Day ) Recitation!

WOMAN! that is who we are
strong, black, beautiful, bold,
warm, blessed, faithful.

Women are God's created.
We are made in God's image.
We are daughters of God.
We live the sacred life.

Women are special!
We are happy, sad, passive, energetic,
Imaginative, elaborate, beautiful
We all exist in God's glory.

Women are daughters of God!
Strong and well and whole
We live the sacred life,
Teach and learn and do ministry

Women love themselves
We love ourselves well
Living regal queens
We are God's chosen in the world

Praised be to God!
Praised be to God!

3rd Sunday( Woman Day ) Welcome!

To the pastor, other distinguished pulpit guests, officers and members of The Old Black Church, sister and brothers in Christ Jesus, and invitation to meet in God's house is always a blessed time. We have come to praise God, to celebrate our community, and to celebrating being women. We, the women of The Old Black Church, stand together in the name of Christ Jesus and welcome you. We welcome you to our divine goodness in song, scripture, and the preached word. We arise, with God's help, as women of courage, ready to do God's will, to do justice, walk humbly, and befriend our neighbors. We unite as women to serve the community and ourselves. Through Christ's loving grace, we leap over oppression from the outside and the inside.

3rd Sunday( Woman Day ) Prayer

Father, grant all women a deep abiding understanding of Your purpose for their lives. You have made women strong, yet loving decisive leaders yet nurturers you have made women in your divine image. For this, Lord, we are most grateful. Please now grant women the fortitude to burst loose. Help them to throw off any shackle that might be holding them in bondage. As Your divine helpers shield them from fear as they realize that You are with them unto the ends of the earth.Amen

Today Prayer!

Father,
I bless you and praise your holy name for you alone are worthy. With out you, the heavens would not light up and the earth would be cold. Father I thank you just because you are. I thank you for being my hedge of protection because I would be lost without you.

Father I ask you to help me submit to your will. You are in everything. While I am being shaped, help me to hold out until I am shape to your plan. Help me to hold on when I am faced with struggles during the shaping. I honor you Lord, for your faithfulness. I bless you Lord for your covenant with me and being Lord of my life. I pray Father, as I continue in this walk of faith you would bless my family, friends, and each and every person I am connected too. Even bless the visitors on this website.

I glorify you for being the creator and sovereign… able to handle all and slow to anger. I thank you each and everyday for not turning your back on me while I made mistakes, for you are forgiving and loving above all.
Continue to strengthen me as I grow in You. I pray that those who do not know your love would be introduced to your presence, will, and way. I pray that as they learn more about you the desire to be with you will be overwhelming and it will draw them closer to you.
I thank you and bless your holy name for what you have done, for what you are going to do, and for what is to come. Amen!

Grammy Award Nominations In Gospel Music. MY PICKS ARE:

Here are the Grammy Award Nominations in the areas of gospel music. The Grammy Awards will be aired on Feb. 10, 2008 on CBS. My picks are (1). Best Gospel Performance: The Clark Sisters ( 2 ) Best Traditional Gospel Album: The Grand Final Donald Lawrence. (3) Best Contemporary and R&B Gospel Album: Free To Worship by Fred Hammond. Do you have a favor in Gospel Music if so who?

Best Gospel Performance

(For solo, duo, group as collaborative performances. Singles or tracks with vocal containing Gospel lyrics. All genres of Gospel music are eligible.)

East To West
Casting Crowns
Track from: The Altar And The Door
[Beach Street Records/Reunion Records]

Blessed & Highly Favored
The Clark Sisters
Track from: Live - One Last Time
[EMI Gospel]

Never Gonna Break My Faith
Aretha Franklin & Mary J. Blige (Featuring The Harlem Boys Choir)
Track from: Bobby: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
[Island Def Jam]

With Long Life
Israel And New Breed Featuring T-Bone
Track from: A Deeper Level
[Integrity Music]

He Set My Life To Music
CeCe Winans
Track from: She Was Country When Country Wasn’t Cool - A Tribute To Barbara Mandrell
[BNA Records]

Best Traditional Gospel Album

(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of VOCAL tracks.)

Live - One Last Time
The Clark Sisters
[EMI Gospel]

The Grand Finale’: Encourage Yourself
Donald Lawrence & The Tri-City Singers
[EMI Gospel]

Life Changing
Smokie Norful
[EMI Gospel]

Thirsty
Marvin Sapp
[Verity]

Church
Bebe Winans
[Koch Records]

Best Contemporary R&B Gospel Album

(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of VOCAL tracks.)

Grateful
Coko
[Light Records]

Free To Worship
Fred Hammond
[Verity]

V2…
J. Moss
[Gospel Centric/Zomba Gospel]

T57
Trin-I-Tee 5:7
[Spirit Rising Music/Music World Entertainment]

Alone But Not Alone
Marvin Winans
[Pure Springs Gospel]

I Am A Target!

"By this I know that thou favorest me"( Psalm 41:11). Satan doesn't want me to know that the favor is upon my life, and I have been blessed by God and given all the good things I enjoy. Actually he doesn't want me to think that God done anything for me. His lie is that I have no purpose, no power and no potential. You know that Satan really got me on those for years until I understood better. I understand I don't have a thing that God did not give me. I have blessing because the Lord is on my side. David understood that his enemies were attacking him because they could see the favor of God on his life. Do you understand that too? When I am under attack I don't under stand the reason for the attack and don't know how to respond. I be saying to my self why me Lord what did I do. I am blessed, that's why I am a target! They're jealous because of what God has done for me. How come they see it, but I don't? Have you been a target for Satan if so how did you respond?

Highly Favored!

The angel went to Mary and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you”. She was chosen to bring forth the Son of the Most High. She was young, virgin, and soon to be married. Can you imagine the uncomfortable feeling Mary must have had? She had to face her fiancé, tell him she was pregnant, and then convince him the child was a Holy child. Her repercussions could have meant a sure death. There was nothing in that moment to confirm her story… no DNA test to verify this babe was from God. We are always asking for the favor of God, yet are you prepared to accept His favor when it is not convenient to you?

Mary would have felt much better if the Lord had waited until she was married, then consulted both her and her husband. They could have sat together, broke bread, and had an invigorating drink over the issue. That is how we think. We want it to be comfortable. Sometimes God cannot bless us in comfort. He wants to see our acceptance, obedience, and trust in the worst moments of our lives. Mary said, “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be to me just as He said.” Because of Mary’s submission, blessings abounded. Not just for her, but for the Kingdom of God for our Savior was born. Today, we celebrate the season of Christmas because Mary stood in God’s favor birthing the world’s hope for salvation.

When God blesses you it is always good. It might be uncomfortable; it might be a tight situation. But, if God has blessed you when things are not where you think they should be, embrace the favor of God and run with His vision. He will cover you, open doors for you, and turn your discomfort into pleasure – your sadness into joy. Let this season remind you of God’s timely favor! Rejoice with gladness because His word will not return void and we have been blessed with eternal life in Him. God wants you to know you are highly favored because you are His. Have a blessed, joyful, and loving Christmas season.

What Kind Of Heart Do You Have?

Often in our lives we encounter individuals with a lack of training and respect. As a matter of fact, meeting people totally opposite is like a refreshing rain during a drought these days. It seems with the changing of the times there have been a change of heart status. The more people have to deal with, the colder and harder their hearts become. Have ya'all notice that too?

As Christians, we tend to echo the world sometimes. We get mad at our sisters and brothers; our hearts begin to harden toward them. We don’t talk to them. We don’t love on them. If they give us a compliment, we see it as a cover to whatever we feel they really mean. We even have named it as “hatin’ ”. But the Bible clearly states that we should not allow the sun to set on our disagreements with our brother or sister in Christ.

Typically, we should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger (James 1:19). The key phrase is “quick to listen”. Maybe, your sister or brother did not mean to cause you any amount of anger or pain. Once you listen to the words, and you allow God to decipher their meaning then you can speak on them properly.

Why do we christian act like the world? We should have supple hearts open to reflection, teaching, and understanding. In what area do you need to work on your hardened heart? What does a hard heart represent to you? What are you going to do to change your heart status?

Would You Vote For Some One Who Is Not A Christian?

A poll conducted immediately following presidential contender Mitt Romney’s faith speech last week found that about one out of six Americans still say they would not support their party’s nominee if that person was a Mormon. Being a Christian would you are could you vote for a Mormon? I would have to answer a no and a no to Huckabee to. If Mike Huckabee will throw Jesus under a bus what will he do to the America Public?

17 percent of Americans, including similar proportions of Republicans and Democrats, responded they were unwilling to vote for a Mormon presidential candidate even if the person was “generally well-qualified” for the position, according to The Gallup Poll released Tuesday. My question is would you Vote for a none Christian? If Yes/No why?

The Old Black Church Give Keyshia Cole Some Love.

I love me some Reality TV as long as it is in good taste. The Way It Is , Run's House and Salt & Pepa. Kesha and her family has a lot of issues that I can relate to. I hope that her sister don't go through with killing her baby. What do you think about the show are do you watch it?

That’s just the way it is. From 6 to 60, it seems like everyone is watching the BET hit docudrama, Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is. Give much credit to Keyshia and her compelling life story and how she was able to rise from a very rough and tough beginning in Oakland, CA, dealing with a drug addicted mother, and sister and lots of other drama to become a critically-acclaimed, platinum-selling R&B superstar. The Young man that produce this show is the same one that did Run's House.

The first season gave viewers insight into Keyshia early life’s and how she got to the top of the music charts which was an amazing story all by itself. Keyshia Cole was created for reality TV. She appears so real, so unaware of the cameras and like her or not, she’s just being who she really is and her fans get to watch the “realness” or some say “ugliness” in her life unfold on national TV.

This season, Keyshia has invited several members of her family to live in her multi-million dollar Atlanta mansion, including her mother, recently released from prison after serving three years for drug-related charges, and her sister, Neffie, who suffers from alcoholism. As you might imagine, no good can come out of this especially since the star is also trying to deliver her next CD. Keyshia takes her mother and sister into her home, too me that is love. “The issues the mother still has and the sister still has and Keisha having to bear this on her shoulders while trying to put out a new album and still trying to advance her career that is pure love.”

The first show, Keyshia’s mom and sister have to play by her rules -- one of which includes no men in the house. Their response: "No company? Are we just going to look at each other? Are we in prison? We don't get no conjugal visits?" says Neffie.

what was sad to me was when Frankie says I still feel locked up, that's not a good way to feel especially since I'm free. I don't want to feel locked up, so I gotta do me. Keyshia soon questions whether her efforts to provide her family with such a cushy existence are really worth the toll it is taking on her personally. When she realizes that she cannot balance the pressures of her career with trying to help her mother and sister adapt to their new surroundings and sobriety, she seeks professional help that is love. Love is what love does.

Worship ( Tuesday ) How Do You See John 3:16?

I had an interesting conversation with my daughter the other day. She asked me why people always use John 3:16 on signs at stadiums, on bumper stickers, etc. I told her that many think of that verse as a good summary of God's Word. She said, "I know that, but WHY do they do that?" What she was asking was WHY use it? She had seen it on a shopping bag given out by a popular clothing store.

Her question was a good one and one with a couple of answers. 1st of all, the owner of any store is free to put any kind of message he wants on his customers' shopping bag. 2nd, the owner is most likely a Christian and believes that John 3:16 is a verse that will lead his customers to read God's Word. But what I took away from our conversation is my daughter questioning the purpose of a widely-accepted evangelical practice of stamping John 3:16 on everything.

We didn't end up condemning the use of John 3:16 (the word and numbers, not the actual verse), but that verse no longer carries the sole weight that it once did for me. I don't turn to that particular verse to summarize God's Word. To me, a good summary must clearly illustrate the law and the gospel. How do you summarize that verse after seeing it uses?

Worship ( Tuesday ) Charlie Brown Christmas.

How many remember Charlie Brown Christmas? I always had a heart for Charlie Brown especially when he got that sorry tree.
A Charlie Brown Christmas Tonight at 7 o'clock I will gather in front of the tube for a full hour with Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus and Lucy, Sally, Pigpen, Schroeder, and the rest of the Peanuts gang as they present the fortieth second annual televised presentation of A Charlie Brown Christmas. I was Young when this special first aired. I don't know that I've missed it more than a time or two since then.

I noticed in the TV listings that it will show again in December, for those who want to double-dip. I don't know about the repeat broadcast, but tonight stretches into a full sixty minutes (commercials included). ABC follows up with Charlie Brown Christmas Tales, featuring a vignette of each Peanuts character.

There may be more sophisticated animation, faster pacing, or deeper drama in other Christmas shows and films, but I can't think of one seasonal offering I welcome more. After all these years, I just learned something new. According to the trivia link, "During his famed speech, Linus, who is well known to be dependent on his 'Security Blanket', actually lets go of it when he recites these words: 'Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,' which is from Luke 8:10 [sic; should be 1:10]."

"Fear not!" The Church is not a "family special," but a special family. All who, by grace, are part of it are blanketed with the security of forgiveness, life, and salvation which are our nativity gifts from the One Incarnate God, our "Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (Luke 1:11 ESV)" In your Father's house, you can come to Him, letting go of your worthless human "security blankets," and cast "all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7 ESV)" How many remember growing up watching Charlie Brown?

Prayerful ( Monday ) Jesus In A Big Box!

One of Washington state's biggest congregations opened its largest church campus on Sunday. For the church, it's a greater opportunity to bring more people to Christ. For others, it's another "big-box building."

Christian Faith Center is the third-largest building project in Federal Way, Washington – only smaller than the city's Crossings shopping center and Wal-Mart Supercenter. Its main building is 219,000 square feet and includes a sanctuary that seats 2,500 which can be expanded to 4,500 seats. And that's only the first phase of the $70-million building project.

Like many megachurches, Christian Faith Center houses a production studio, a cafe, espresso stands, a book store, Bible school, and a game room.

"This isn't big for Microsoft, this isn't big for Boeing, this isn't big for the Seahawks. So why's it big for a church?" asked co-pastor Casey Treat, who says the competition isn't other churches but such large venues as Disneyland and the mall, according to KOMO TV.

With an average weekly attendance of about 8,000 at two campuses, the Christian Faith Center congregation has been eight years in planning for the new Federal Way location and not all have welcomed the megachurch.

"It's too big," said Shirley Gulbraa, who lives near the church, according to The News Tribune. "To me, that’s another big-box building."

Controversy over the size of a new megachurch building and fears of increased traffic are nothing new for churches seeking expansion. But former Federal Way Mayor Ron Gintz believes the community will benefit from Christian Faith Center.

"The people that go there hear a good message and go out and act on that message,” he said, according to the local newspaper. That means helping people in need through food banks and other programs, Gintz explained.

To ease traffic, the megachurch is paying $6.5 million to widen the street and improve road and traffic conditions, which are required by the city.

Christian Faith Center had begun with 30 people, most of whom were drug addicts and ex-alcoholics, in 1980. The founding co-pastor was a former drug addict himself.

Now one of the largest churches in the Northwest, the megachurch has held simultaneous Sunday morning services with co-pastors Treat and his wife Casey shuttling between two church campuses in a helicopter. Casey Treat is planning for a helipad at the new Federal Way location.

Closing one of its two original campuses and opening a larger facility in Federal Way, Christian Faith Center is aiming to expand its reach in the Northwest.

"It’s the opportunity to bring more people into the body of Christ,” said James Gossler, 43, of Federal Way, according to the local Tribune.

Christian Faith Center is celebrating the new opening over the next two months with special events and services. The megachurch is scheduled to build a $12-million K-12 private school on the new campus next year. My question do the church need game rooms and book stores?

2nd Sunday ( Song ) by: Ce Ce Winans O Holy Night

2nd Sunday ( Song ) by: Soul Children of Chicago Silent Night.

2nd Sunday (Question ) Can You Become an Ex - Gay? G Craig Lewis Says No.

I found this clip of Lewis talking about gays in music and in the church. I have a problem with Lewis attack on people in general. If professionals say it is more to being gay than just being in our mind why the attack.
I am a heterosexual woman and I don't understand how someone can say I will change my sexual desire for men to a desire for women just by saying it. That is why my self I don't stand and judge people because we just don't know. It is easy for me to say they can change because I am not the one dealing with that choice.

For many years mental-health professionals have taken the view that since homosexuality is not a mental disorder, any attempt to change sexual orientation is unwise. But for healthcare professionals to tell someone they don't have the right to make an effort to bring their actions into harmony with their values is wrong. If a person want to make an attempt to change their way of thinking why not let them.

There are no scientifically rigorous outcome studies to determine either the actual efficacy or harm of "reparative" treatments, according to the American Psychiatric Association. However, there are numerous reports of individuals who have claimed to change, those who claim that attempts to change were harmful to them, and others who claimed to have changed and then later recanted those claims.

While some have noted cases where people have had bad experiences with "reorientation" approaches. They acknowledged that in other cases, individuals have "felt they were helped by having therapy available that took their religious values seriously."

The Church remains divided on the issue but is showing growing tolerance for the homosexual lifestyle. A recent poll revealed that for the first time in its polling, the majority of Americans (56 percent) said they do not believe sexual orientation can be changed. What do you think? Do you think you can change your sexual desire by saying I want to change?

MegaFest Goes To Africa.

After a yearlong hiatus, MegaFest – the hugely popular family-friendly festival that has drawn hundreds of thousands of people to Atlanta – will return in October 2008, this time as MegaFest International.

"At the previous MegaFest events, we had people attend from all over the world, all ethnicities, all religions; so many different cultures were in the room," said Jakes, senior pastor of The Potter's House in Dallas. "As I looked out, the feel was so much more aligned to an international event than a U.S.-specific event."

MegaFest launched in 2004 at the Georgia World Congress Center as an experience for the entire family, featuring concerts, seminars, and speakers. The inaugural event drew an overall record-breaking attendance of 560,000 and had an economic impact on the city of up to $125 million. The highly successful festival returned to Atlanta the following two years but attendance fell.

A 2007 MegaFest was cancelled along with plans for a 2008 event until Wednesday's public announcement.

"I am so excited about the return of MegaFest and the fact that it will be in South Africa, makes it that much more special," Jakes said in a statement.

Earlier reports revealed possible plans of taking MegaFest to Dallas where his support base is, but Jakes mentioned to The Dallas Morning News that they have not been able to overcome the "logistical issues" of holding the event in that city.

Jakes also clarified that the ministry's decision to not return to the festival's original launch site "does not in any way reflect negatively on Atlanta."

"I believe the true purpose of the ministry is to go beyond your traditional walls and minister to the world," he said in Wednesday's statement. "MegaFest International provides us with that platform."

MegaFest International is scheduled for Oct. 11-12 and is part of an 11-day tour across South Afri

Gambling On The Church.

I know there are some churches that sponsor bus trips to the casino to gamble is this right? The Church see divorce as regrettable, family violence as detrimental. The church tell us about alcohol, tobaaco and other drugs. But not about gambling Why? Gambling is a menace to society deadly to the best interests of moral social encocomic and spirtual life and destructive. I know that gambling is a poor stewardship of God's gifts. Gambling has caused financial ruin for millions has destoryed families relationships and lives. I know alcohol has destoryed families too I am interested to see what most people of the church think about Gambling as a whole. What are your thoughts on this?