Closed Mouths Don't Get Fed

I am the LORD your God,
         Who brought you out of the land of Egypt;
         Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. 

 “But My people would not heed My voice,
         And Israel would have none of Me.
 So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart,
         To walk in their own counsels. Proverbs 81: 10-12

Today’s Reading: Proverbs 81-83; Romans 11:19-36

There is this old saying that I used to hear a lot growing up:

“Closed mouths don’t get fed.”

So you might imagine that I laughed out loud when I read the passage above. “Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it” sounds strikingly similar. But tell me this ain’t real as steel.

Have you ever noticed how a lot of times folks get what they want if they stay screaming for it? We see this in babies and young children all of the time. The perfect example is the kid at the grocery store. You’ve seen him. You remember that one time you were walking down the cereal isle and you passed a mother fussing with her child in front of the Lucky Charms.

Oh how I loved me some Lucky Charms…

As a matter of fact I have been that kid. Unfortunately for me “spare the rod and spoil the child” was the rule of law when I was a lil’ tyke. That was before all of these newfangled parenting methods they have today…

But I digress…

So I have stumbled upon such a scenario several times at the grocery store. Mom rolls the cart down the cereal isle. The kid sees the colorful box from their favorite cereal commercial and they start clamoring for it. Mom almost always says no at first. I mean really, who wants to have the kid in kindergarten that already has cavities?

Usually the kid persists and tries to test the parent and keeps asking for it. If the parent has the proper amount of intestinal fortitude they will shut the situation down and continue to put the good food in the cart that they feel will best nourish this child that they love.

I look at God this way.

When it comes to pursuing our dreams God is ready and willing to feed us but too often we don’t have our mouths open. We turn away and try to figure out our own ways of achieving our goals without bringing God into the picture. Of course we don’t just sit and wait like chicks in a nest for Papa God to save the day but I believe it is important to include God in the process.

How do I do that? Good question.

The way that I do it is through what we are doing here. I look at the things that I want to do and I bounce that up against what I know God wants for my life. So let’s say I have the following goals.

1. Have a family.

2. Be able to support my loved ones.

3. Write for a living.

4. Sell drugs to fund my writing till I get published one day.

5. Run a marathon.

Clearly most of those things are good food that God will help me receive. If I go to Him during meditation and continually seek out His guidance then he will show me the best ways for me to direct my efforts in order to achieve the goals in line with his Word.

But one of those things is bad… There is nothing in the Bible to suggest that God will “bless” me by helping me destroy my community. This is one form of turning away from God. Pursuing that path would represent me turning away from what is good and nourishing, and going for what seems fast and easy (though clearly it is not… just stating that for the record. Please don’t read this and start selling drugs called Lucky Charms.. dang it… stopping now).

When we choose to heed his voice by doing what is right, and go to God for help with our plans he will open doors and provide ways for our dreams to be fed.

So don’t be afraid to go to God with an open heart, good intentions, and a good work ethic.

We do the possible, God does the rest. 

My Ficus Tree and Me

You have brought a vine out of Egypt;
         You have cast out the nations, and planted it.
You prepared room for it,
         And caused it to take deep root,
         And it filled the land.

The hills were covered with its shadow,
         And the mighty cedars with its boughs.
She sent out her boughs to the Sea,
         And her branches to the River. – Psalm 80: 8-11

Today’s Reading: Psalms 79-80; Romans 11:1-18

My mom got me this nice ficus tree three years ago when I moved into a new apartment. When it arrived at my door it was all nice and sweet; the leaves were all green and full of life. It was a happy tree.

According to the brief instructions the tree was well suited to be an indoor tree. But I swear that thing wasn’t in my apartment more than a day before the leaves started falling off.

Sigh…

So in my typical nerd fashion I scurried to the internet to find out what the haps was. Turns out that shedding leaves is normal for this kind of tree, but it didn’t stop! At first it was a few here and there. Then, the leaves started falling with increasing regularity.

Man where is Rogaine for plants when you need it?

I got it a new pot, new soil, moved it to different areas in the apartment (with varying levels of sunlight), and all kinds of other things to try to save the tree. I knew it was all bad when an old friend came by and said that the tree looked sad…

No bueno…

And I could feel it too. Sure trees and plants may not have faces like animals do, but you can feel when they are sad or in pain if you pay close attention. For whatever reason I couldn’t figure out how to give it what it needed to grow. It got to the point of no return and finally I tossed it in bitter defeat.

It was a sad day.

I must have mourned that tree for several days, wondering, what in the heck I did wrong. Why couldn’t I save it? Why couldn’t I nurture it? It’s live was in my hands and I let it slip away.

I’ve come to realize that our dreams are the same way.

Most of us had dreams when we were children. We wanted to be doctors or astronauts or ball players. Some of those dreams we were not well suited for, but others were and are within our grasp. What happens though when you start to see leaves falling off of the tree off the branches of your dreams? Maybe you had an idea six month ago that you didn’t jump on. Maybe you had an idea for a TV show several years ago and now a new show popped on TV that is similar to it. Maybe you wanted to lose weight but got on the scale and found out that you gained five pounds in the last week.

These things can be discouraging. But much like a tree our hopes and dreams need to be nurtured so that they can grow.

We need to water them with encouragement and time. We need to put them in the good soil of hard work and perseverance. We need to expose them to the sunshine of our persistent faith.

But most of all we cannot give up.

Our dreams die only when our faith in them has dried up.

So keep the faith. Keep on marching. Don’t stop until the job is done. You can do it.

Let’s get it!

Why I Am A Christian

But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says,“Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.” – Romans 10:8-13

Today’s Reading: Psalms 77-78; Romans 10

Yesterday I talked about why I believe in God… I spoke about how I see God in everything no matter how bad things get. There is always something that I can look to that provides me with evidence of God’s love, purpose and existence.

Coincidentally (if you believe in coincidences) we have come across one of those key verses of Christianity: Romans 10:9-10. It’s one that is often quoted. Whether or not you are a Christian you have probably heard it:

that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

There is a deeper meaning here that the casual reader may not see. For the past few chapters Paul has been setting up these verses. He has talked about the imperfection of human beings and how we cannot live up to the standard of any laws. No matter how hard we try we cannot be perfect. And as the rules dictate, everyone must pay a cost for the mistakes we make. Then he talks about how Jesus came to be that payment, the perfect sacrifice to end all sacrifices.

But what is the underlying theme here? What is compelling about all this spiritual mumbo jumbo?

For me it is Grace.

Grace, in this sense, is defined as unmerited favor. It is the notion that one can receive something and not deserve it.

I too believe that I am not perfect and that there is no possible way I can achieve perfection on my own. I also believe that God is perfect. So, how can I possibly connect with something that is perfect?

I imagine it like having a glass of pure, clean water. That is God. That is perfection. And imperfection is like a drop of red dye. No matter how small the drop it will corrupt the entire glass. If any imperfection is to come into contact with perfection then what was once perfect will be rendered imperfect.

So how do I connect with God, be “at one” with God, when I am the one bringing the imperfection? I cannot do it through my actions because I can never hope to be perfect. What qualifies me? What makes me special?

Nothing at all of my doing…

But what’s’ interesting about the Jesus story is that He claims to have bridged the gap. Through His life and death and rising again he paid the price of imperfection and became that bridge that I can cross to reach God.

Ok fine Clarence. You just inundated me with all these ridiculous fairytales. So go on, why is it important to you to believe this stuff?

Well for me, my faith represents taking a step across that bridge. Sure I am imperfect and God is perfect. And sure the whole Jesus thing may be this bridge that connects the two; but if I don’t take the leap of faith then I will never cross that bridge.

I can never get to where I want to go if I don’t first take the steps necessary to get there.

So that’s what it is for me in a nutshell. I know that I am imperfect. I believe that God is perfect. And for me, my faith in Jesus is what bridges that gap. This faith is the firm ground that I can walk on as I embark on the path of the purpose for my life.

With each leap of faith I take one step closer to God, and one step closer to the man that I am becoming.

Why I Believe in God

We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks!
         For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near. Psalm 75:1

Today’s Reading; Psalms 74-76; Romans 9:16-33

Some of you who have been reading along might wonder why I believe in God. What proof is there? How can I believe in something that cannot be touched, heard or seen?

Well I can tell you why.

Several years ago when I was in the depths of my doubts I looked around and asked myself the same question. There is so much misery in the world. There is so much pain and tragedy. No matter how hard we try it seems as if humanity is more inclined to destroy than preserve. Look at all of the violence and the pollution. Look at what we have done to the planet. Look at what we do to each other and ourselves.

There must not be a God right? If there were we wouldn’t be surrounded by all of this sadness and destruction.

When I presented myself with these same arguments I couldn’t help but to see the other side. When I looked into the eyes of children I could see a pure spark of goodness and wonder. When I looked into the eyes of teenagers and adults I saw the glimmers of faith and hope behind the lenses of pain. When I walked by homeless people in Downtown Los Angeles I saw love light up their eyes when we spoke.

When I meditated at the beach I saw every possible color painted across a miraculous horizon. I felt the warmth of a nurturing sun and the softness of countless grains of sand. When I walked to work I saw clusters of palm trees growing at angles so as to allow space for each of them to breathe. I saw streets with canopies of trees that met in the middle without touching; as if by some unspoken agreement.

I have never failed to see order in the chaos, truth in the lies, and hope in the pain of this world. No matter how dark it gets there is always a glimmer of faith within everyone that gives us the courage to get up out of bed and go out into the world.

I never stopped seeing love, and I never stopped loving. For me, love is the beginning of connecting to God. And no matter how bad things seemed or how terrible things got, love never disappeared. It was everywhere and in everything.

I’m not sure what the wondrous works were that the Psalmist spoke of. But I know that the wondrous works that I see are founded in love.

God is love. 

Pushing Through

Truly God is good to Israel,
         To such as are pure in heart.
But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled;
         My steps had nearly slipped.
For I was envious of the boastful,
         When I saw the prosperity of the wicked. Psalms 73:1-3

Today’s Reading: Psalms 72-73; Romans 9:1-15

I’ve been struggling with Psalms 73 all day long. I started reading it in the early afternoon but couldn’t get past the three verses above.

For some reason things kept getting in the way. At first I lost focus. I would get to the third verse and then my mind would go somewhere else. I didn’t like the music I was playing. And then I was hungry, so I made some food. And then after that I started gchatting and tweeting.

Then about an hour later I tried to read it again and started yawning before I finished the third verse. My eyes got heavy and I felt really tired so I decided to take a break.

After all I had already written a post today. This was number two. It can wait right?

So I started watching some programs on Netflix. Of course my fatigue disappeared immediately. Then I talked on the phone for a while and took a super long nap (really it was sleep but can you really call it that when the sun is out?).

So now here I am at home on a Saturday night staring at this passage again. I’ve talked about this issue before. Envy is like a cancer. When it overtakes us it whittles away at our energy and our drive. We end up spending the time that we should be using to pursue our dreams on focusing on the success of others.

But we’ve discussed this before right? So why am I so stuck on this Psalm? Is it because I think I have learned the lesson but I really haven’t? Is it because there is a hidden aspect to it that I still need to see?

I wasn’t sure.

What do I do in such situations? I ask for help (of course after I’ve exhausted myself with avoiding it through TV, chatting, and sleep). Fortunately for me the homie Kofi was online. I hit him up and we start talking about our weekends so far. Then I bring up my challenge and how I feel like God is trying to tell me something and won’t let me let go of this passage until I learn it.

Then Kofi says “yeah man, He doesn’t want us to frustrate his grace” and sent me this passage from Isaiah:

Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you;
       he rises to show you compassion.
       For the LORD is a God of justice.
       Blessed are all who wait for him! – Isaiah 30:18

I was immediately hit with the answer. Yes the Psalm is very important for me to understand. We all need to be careful not to fall into the trap of envy.

But also what I learned today is that often times through avoiding what is right in front of us we can be our own worst enemy. We can be the ones who are standing in the way of our dreams.

Hopefully the next time I experience a challenge like I did today it won’t take me all day to follow through on the task set before me. Hopefully I will have the strength to push through when I feel the initial resistance.

No one said that the journey would always be easy.

Sigh…

We Will Not Lose

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:37-39

Today’s Reading: Psalms 70-71; Romans 8:22-39

I love this. Paul is so absolutely ride or die with his faith. This is one of those spiritual pep talk scriptures for Christians.

But there is an important thing to remember here. The part of this passage that hits me the hardest is “through Him who loved us.”

Paul lists off all of these things that seem to be more powerful than us: death, life, angels, principalities, powers. Against these things we are to be more than conquerors. We shall persevere through the trials of the present and the future. There is nothing that can separate us from God and what God has for us to do.

But this statement isn’t a statement of one’s own power. It is a statement of what we can do when we connect with the love of God. That’s what “through Him who loved us” means to me. When we tap into that love that goes beyond human understanding then nothing can stand in our way.

Proof of this for me is the example that I always go back to; the Civil Rights Movement. It must have seemed so strange when black folks in the south and their allies from various cultural backgrounds resisted the violent policies of Jim Crow intimidation with peaceful measures. I remember learning about it as a kid and thinking that it was crazy.

But I get it now. As King said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

It takes a love beyond my understanding to live like this; and for me, that love can only come from my connection to God.

It has not only been helpful in the extreme environment of social struggle but it can be helpful for all of us in our day to day lives. The same love that was required to turn the other cheek during the sit-ins is what powers our forgiveness of those who have wronged us. It is what allows us to take another chance on love when we have been hurt in the past. It is what allows us to reach out and help those in our lives who take more than they give.

The power of love cannot be defeated in and of itself. It only yields when we have lost our faith, when we have lost the courage to get up, carry on, and continue on love’s journey.

If we don’t give up then we will never lose. 

Get Down On It!

Let God arise,
         Let His enemies be scattered;
         Let those also who hate Him flee before Him.
 As smoke is driven away,
         So drive them away;
         As wax melts before the fire,
         So let the wicked perish at the presence of God. Psalm 68:1-2

Today’s Reading: Psalms 68-69; Romans 8:1-21

This reminds me of this praise song that I have on my ipod. It is called Psalm 68 (Let our God Arise).

It is a pretty powerful song.

But I didn’t always like gospel music. I actually didn’t really dig it at all. I remember being at church and seeing all of them folk hootin’ and hollerin’, dancing in the isles, slapping tambourines on their thighs and wondering… are these people crazy?

Can’t they just relax and clap along?

But as I got older I started to understand it more. I saw that they were freely expressing what they felt. During those moments of musical merriment they let themselves be free, and moved according to the beat of the music and their spirit.

I was never that dude. “It just wasn’t my style” is what I said to myself as I tapped my foot to the beat but refused to do anything more.

Do you remember going to your first junior high dance? I remember how it was for me. I was super shy. We all were. I remember being in the cafeteria turned discothèque like it was yesterday.

On one side of the room were the boys, and on the other side were the girls. The middle was wide open but no one was dancing all the while some of the best early nineties top forty blared from the speakers.

Where was I you might wonder? You know I was one of them wallflowers just like everyone else. I desperately wanted to be the guy who wasn’t afraid to walk across the dancefloor, grab the hand of the baddest girl and start cutting a rug. But nope, I, like the rest of the fellas, was too shy for all of that. So I waited sheepishly for someone else to make the bold move.

Finally it happened. One brave fellow walked over and then another and another. Finally I was starting to muster up the courage to go over there and low and behold all of the girls that I liked were already taken!

Drats.

That was one of the many times that I learned an important lesson. Sometimes we gotta get out of our own heads and live in the present.

 Nowadays things are different for me. I’m starting to learn the value of being free in the present. It is such a wonderful way to live life. And living it is exactly what is happening. When we stand on the sidelines of life, wondering what people will think of us, those same people are in the game having a great time living it up to the fullest.

And just when we get the courage to get in the game time is up, the game is over; the opportunity has passed you by.

Now when I experience something that inspires me, like the praise song above, I do my best to allow myself to be free in the moment. I’ve found that my greatest flashes of inspiration have come from these moments where I have overcome fear and chosen to be 100% me.

So next time you are presented with a wallflower moment try to muster up the courage to get your back up off the wall.

You never know, your life might totally change if you take the chance. 

The Power of Kanye West

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. – Romans 7:14-15

Today’s Reading: Psalms 66-67; Romans 7

I recently had lunch with two inspiring fellows, Jim and Joe. We were talking about all kinds of things related to our spirituality but there were two things from our time together that jumped out at me when I read the words above.

The first was a conversation that centered on hypocrites. They asked me how I came to where I am spiritually. I explained how some people who claim to be “Christian” are the same folks who seemed to be doing so much ill in this world. I had to understand how these people could claim faith in the same God that I believe in but act so contrary to what I believe. So, I dove back into the Bible for answers.

As we discussed this idea further Jim said something like this:

It is the hypocrites that are the courageous ones.

Wow.

Shortly after the meal was over we walked back toward my car. Jim bid Joe and I farewell and we were left to our own one on one conversation. We started talking about Hip-Hop and artists that we like and Joe brought up Kanye West. He said that one of the things he likes about Kanye is his honesty. Kanye discusses some Christian values in his songs but in a way that shows his struggle with them. And he does it for the whole world to see.

Kanye is one of my favorite artists today and someone that I actually look up to. These two exchanges are the reason why.

It takes courage to stand up and speak out for what you believe in.

Regardless of one’s particular faith, most of us have certain core concepts of decency that are shared across the board. We say that we believe in the golden rule: treat others the way we want to be treated. But even in this seemingly simple task all of us fail. We all have our moments where we fall short of this and the other standards we hold ourselves to.

This is why I am so impressed by those brave individuals who are outspoken about their beliefs. They speak candidly about the way they feel the world should be, knowing that they too cannot live up to their standard all of the time.

When they fall we trample upon them. We terrorize them with words of judgment and ridicule. We call them hypocrites for saying one thing and acting another way.

But aren’t we all hypocrites? Yes, we are.

It’s just that the majority of us don’t have the courage to step out in front of the world and loudly proclaim what we believe. And even fewer of us have the strength and courage to stand back up after we have fallen, after the world responds to our shortcomings and failures with slander and disdain.

Kanye is not perfect nor has he ever claimed to be. But the power of Kanye West is in his faithful courage. It is in his fearlessness to stand in front of all of us and speak his truth. It is in his audacity to stand back up again after he has fallen and proclaim his truth again and again.

Like many of his fans I am encouraged by his journey. I wish him the best and hope that he has the strength to maintain the courage he has shown us over the years.

I am rooting for him. I hope that you are too. 

The Miracle of the Morning

When I remember You on my bed,
         I meditate on You in the night watches.
Because You have been my help,
         Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.
My soul follows close behind You;
         Your right hand upholds me. 

Today’s Reading: Psalms 63-65; Romans 6

Recently I changed my sleep schedule so that I went to sleep earlier and wake up earlier. It was a challenge because historically I have always been a night owl. Even when I was a young child I would stay up entirely too late watching TV or just sitting in bed with my thoughts.

Looking back on those times and thinking about myself now, I realize that much of that time was spent meditating and I didn’t even know it. The solitude of the night allows for a certain level of intimate privacy that just cannot be found in the day. The day is filled with noise of chores and errands and the stresses of what needs to be done. Days are filled with work and time spent with loved ones. I’ve always relished the privacy of the night. I was free to spend uninterrupted hours letting my mind wander wherever it wanted to go. My soul was free to grow.

I don’t much like the idea of giving that up.

But I decided to change my schedule because it will help me be more effective with my time. You know how the old saying goes: “the early bird gets the worm”. Many of the most successful people are successful because they start their day before everyone else. I thought I’d give it a try.

So this week I have done just that. I’ve woken up before the sun for the past five days and something amazing happened. I found it even easier to meditate in the morning than I did at night. I still found myself in the still of darkness, but there was a key difference. Instead of my mind running a mile a minute with all of the stresses and worries of the day, it was refreshed and renewed from plenty of hours of sleep. Whatever running it needed to do was completed during the night. It was a new day with a cleaner slate.

I woke up already feeling connected to God.

If that wasn’t enough, I was able to witness a miracle every morning. I watched the sun rise. There is something very therapeutic about watching the sun rise. It is like watching God gently wake up the rest of the world. The sounds of crickets gradually change into the sounds of birds chirping. Soon afterwards the city rises. People begin their morning jogs, a few dogs bark their good mornings to their neighbors, and the rituals of the day start to stretch for their marathon runs throughout the day.

But before this begins, before the normal sets in with its dull drowning sound, I was able to see the miraculous hidden underneath it; and remember throughout the day that no matter what anyone says, miracles do happen every single day.

A Spiritual Gangsta

And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Today’s Reading: Psalms 60-62; Romans 5

I was at my Dad’s church recently and he was preaching on faith. Now I’ve heard him speak on faith countless times but he always finds a way of dropping a new nugget of knowledge in there that I hadn’t heard before.

This time he was talking about some examples from his life where his faith has grown. Oftentimes it is in the overcoming of trials and tribulations that our faith grows because these times are opportunities for us to see the miracles that God works in our lives. So as he finished up several stories he said something that slapped me in the face. It was something like this:

“So now when something bad happens or I experience a set back I laugh because I know that I will be blessed.”

Huh?

It was as if he almost looks forward to the trials in his life. I kinda understood what he was saying but I couldn’t identify with it AT ALL. It didn’t make an ounce of sense to me but somehow if felt right. When I observed the contrast of these two feelings (on the one hand thinking he was totally bonkers, and on the other thinking that he was right) I realized that he’s just at another level that I haven’t reached yet.

Then I read the passage above.

He was speaking from a place of faith that I aspire to, but is totally foreign to me. How much more miraculous is life when we can see through the trials and find the blessings within them?

I think that I am getting better with this. I’ve experienced some trials recently and illogically felt a sense of peace about them. Perhaps when I see how God gets me through them I will reach that higher level of spiritual gangsta.

Stay tuned… we shall see.

The MC of Antiquity

Break their teeth in their mouth, O God!
         Break out the fangs of the young lions, O LORD!
Let them flow away as waters which run continually;
         When he bends his bow,
         Let his arrows be as if cut in pieces.
Let them be like a snail which melts away as it goes,
         Like a stillborn child of a woman, that they may not see the sun. Psalm 58: 6-8

Today’s Reading: Psalms 57-59; Romans 4

Ohhh buddy! David sure is mad.

If you remember back to when we were reading Samuel you’ll remember that David had a whole lot to be mad about. The King STAYED trying to kill him. He pursued him to the point where David had to leave town, collect a militia from the unsavory elements of society, and live in caves till Saul died.

But good grief! Look at what he said up there. It’s beautifully written, but pretty dreadful. The best line is this:

Let them be like a snail which melts away as it goes,
Like a stillborn child of a woman, that they may not see the sun. Psalms 58:8

Ouch.

But you know what. This Psalm is actually very healthy.

Yes I know that probably sounds strange but hear me out. Remember during the story of David when he was dodging Saul’s attacks? He had several opportunities to kill him but he refused. Didn’t you wonder how he was able to refuse taking revenge? I know I did.

This is how. He put pen to paper. He was able to release the pain and anger in a constructive way. Instead of destroying his king by the sword, he released his anger through poetry and song.

I bet David would be a legendary rapper if he was alive today. Just as David spit his venom on page many of the MCs that I grew to love during my childhood did the same thing with their songs. They avoided the realities of their neighborhood by channeling them into art that would allow them to escape those realities. When I was a kid I used writing as my escape too. Poetry was my therapist and the pad and pen were the couch where I gave voice to my feelings.

Sometimes there are things about our reality that we cannot control and that can be infuriating. We can choose to deal with them in constructive or destructive ways. But before we seek revenge or act out on our feelings it is best to try to channel that negative energy into something positive. For people like me, rappers, and David it was writing. For others it has been therapy, creating art, cooking, talking to a loved, martial arts and other creative and social endeavors.

Find what allows your soul to sing and express yourself. If we can find that release then maybe we’ll be like David when the true test comes. Maybe we’ll have the strength to forgive when we have the power to exact revenge. 

Navigating Doubt

You number my wanderings;
         Put my tears into Your bottle; 
         Are they not in Your book?
When I cry out to You,
         Then my enemies will turn back; 
         This I know, because God is for me.
In God (I will praise His word),
         In the LORD (I will praise His word),
In God I have put my trust;
         I will not be afraid. 
         What can man do to me? -Psalm 56:8-11

Today’s Reading Psalms 54-56; Romans 3

It’s interesting to me to see the change that happens from the first verse to the last. He starts off by talking about his tears and wanderings. Then he quickly proclaims what he believes God will do for him.

Maybe I’m wrong here
, but I see doubt in all of these words. I see him in the last three verses trying to breathe life into his withered faith.

And on the real… I see nothing wrong with that.

Doubt is just another form of fear, and fear is a natural thing in our lives. There are many things to be afraid of. When we get up in the morning and go out into the world there is no guarantee that we will come back home again. There are very real things out there that are very dangerous. Often times
, the fear that we have is logical and smart. It keeps us out of danger.

Here’s the catch though… we cannot let our fears and doubts stop us from living.

That’s the big thing here. It is only when our fear paralyzes us into inactivity and confusion that we have really done something wrong. The paths of even the best laid plans are never without fear. We have to recognize those rocks and boulders in our way and either find ways around them or blast right through them.

Don’t beat yourself up if you become afraid or doubtful. Just make sure that they don’t stop you from moving forward. Never stop searching for a way through. Continue to seek out understanding.

Because when we do persevere and overcome those doubts and fears
, we will find that we have grown from them in ways that we never would have known.

We become brand new, and all the more capable of turning our dreams into reality.

It's The Heart That Counts

(for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) – Romans 2:13-15

Today’s Reading: Psalms 51-53; Romans 2

This is one of the more fascinating things in the Bible.

I had a conversation with some folks recently about the whole Christianity, Jesus, salvation thing. They asked me what the Bible says about someone has never heard of Jesus? What then? Do they go to hell? That doesn’t seem right.

Well… read the passage above…. There’s your answer.

But what is more interesting to me is this notion that we are judged by what is in our hearts. It is whether or not someone shows the work of the law in their hearts, not what they say or do.

And as we’ve discussed before the law is very simple: love God and love your neighbor as yourself.

It is vey disappointing when we have people in our lives that say one thing and consistently act totally differently. Sure they might get over on folks in the beginning but reputations are not built by words. They are built by deeds. And not just deeds, but the consistent patterns that lie in the foundation of our actions.

These actions are dictated by our hearts. An angry and bitter person will only act nice for so long before that bitterness seeps out of its hiding place.

So it seems to me that the key here is to work on our hearts. If we look within and endeavor to grow in love and forgiveness for all of those around us, something magnificent will happen. Each decision to let go of the pain that we feel inside will result in an outpouring of love that will be there for the world to see through our actions.

The less pain we hold on to, the more love we can share.

This is one of the greatest challenges of life; forgiving when folks don’t deserve it, letting go without apology, trusting that the more we give love to the world, the more will come back to us.

It just takes that leap of faith to take that first courageous step.

So next time that you are struggling to forgive someone that has hurt you remember this. The quicker we are to forgive others, the more we will be able to give love. And in the giving of that love we in turn will receive more than we can imagine.  

Legacy

Likewise the fool and the senseless person perish,
         And leave their wealth to others.
Their inner thought is that their houses will last forever,
         Their dwelling places to all generations;
         They call their lands after their own names.
Nevertheless man, though in honor, does not remain;
         He is like the beasts that perish. - Psalm 49:10-12

Do not be afraid when one becomes rich,
         When the glory of his house is increased;
For when he dies he shall carry nothing away;
         His glory shall not descend after him. – Psalm 49:16-17

Today’s Reading: Psalms 49-50; Romans 1

If you stroll around the campus of any major university and look at the buildings there is one thing that is consistent. Most of them are named after somebody.

Sometimes they are named after the person who wrote the check responsible for it being made. Other times they are named after important graduates or historical figures. The legacy of that individual lives on in the building, through the scholarship of the students who are educated within its walls.

Eh… not really.

Every one of the buildings at my college had names on them and I didn’t know who they were or why they were there. For all I know they were a bunch of dusty dead folks who were so narcissistically concerned with their legacy that they dished out copious amount of coin to make sure that their name is never forgotten.

Buildings may last longer than our bodies, but memories don’t endure all that long. People come and people go. Even those who are “remembered” are seldom remembered for who they actually were. They become historical figures, lost in the mythology of their towering triumphs and colossal defeats.

So this makes me wonder. What legacy do I want to leave?

The vain, egotistical side of me of course wants to leave a legacy. Remember me! I’ll take one order of that towering triumph mythology please. Thanks.

But on the real, I don’t care much about legacy anymore.

Let’s get one thing straight. I do care about making an impact on the world. I think it is important that as a citizen of humanity I do my part to make the world a better place.

But even more than that I hope that I can pass along the things I have learned to my future kids. Sure it would be nice if they inherited material security, but more than that, I want them to be the beneficiaries of a life lived with courage and faith. I want them to have an example of loving kindness and forgiveness. I want them to see the content of my character and strive to be better than me, and their kids to be better than them so that we can continue to spread love throughout the world.

I know that this is something that I can give to the world no matter how much money I make or how many buildings have my name on it.

And if my children and grandchildren inherit these things, they will be the best investment I will have made in my entire life.

What legacy do you want to leave? Chime in!

Remembering 9/11, Remember to Love

I read this fantastic article this morning about 9/11 and it made me think of where I was on that fateful day. My mind went back to another time and place far from here but close to my heart.

I was in Fortaleza Brazil.

My great friend Kieran and I left the US on September third 2001 to begin our study abroad semester in Brazil. I remember feeling a mixture of happiness, excitement and fear as I headed to a land where I didn’t speak the language or know the people.

I decided to go there because Brazil has the largest population of black folks outside of Africa and is second only to Nigeria in having the largest population of black folks in a single nation. I wanted to see if our common ancestry as people of African Descent would lead to a common bond.

I had no idea that my world and the world as we knew it would be turned upside down in eight days.

The first week there was spent in orientation. The program focused on social justice so we spent that week reading about the different inequalities in the world. We read and discussed everything from inequalities of power, consumption of resources, poverty, and politics. On September 10^th we talked about what our role would be in helping to make the world a better place. It is our responsibility to help bring balance to the world. If we don’t do it, someone else will.

Then BOOM… the towers were hit.

As I sat there, watching the towers fall, live, on international news from thousands of miles away, I wondered what we as a country would do. Would we seek revenge and attack whoever we thought was responsible? Or, would we use this as an opportunity to seek understanding about why folks might sympathize with these attacks; regardless of how wrong they were.

Of course the rest is history.

Today, nine years later, a small church in Florida has decided to make an international statement by burning Qurans. There are many folks around the world who are infuriated by this. They not only blame this church but also our entire nation and my faith for this act of violent disrespect.

Of course as Americans we know that this is a very small group of people with very radical beliefs. We know that they do not represent the values of a majority of US citizens. Sadly, we cannot control how the acts of a few people are received by others. The US and Christianity have been smeared with the blame reserved for this small, socially irresponsible church.

But is this surprising? Didn’t many of us do the same thing? How many of us looked at Muslims differently based on the acts of the terrorists on 911? How many of us felt a twinge of fear when we were on a plane with folks that we thought were from the Middle East? How many of us treated Muslims as enemies when those particular people had done nothing to harm us?

We all must try hard to view the world and others through the loving lens of graceful forgiveness. We must try to remember that the acts of a few people, or even the acts of powerful organizations, do not represent the hearts and minds of everyone they claim to represent. We must try our best to give everyone a chance at love, a chance at peace, a chance at redemption.

After all… that is what we want right? We all want the chance to be viewed by the content of our character, not by the actions of another.

So on this important day let us remember to honor the sacrifices of all of those who have suffered as a result of the attacks and the wars that followed. But let us also remember to love.

Love is the answer. It is the only path toward peace. 

The Power of Meditation

Be still, and know that I am God. Psalms 46:10

Today’s Reading: Psalms 46-48; Acts 28

I had a conversation recently with a friend about meditation. We were talking about how powerful it is, how when we are able to reach that place where we can let go, we are connected to something that is wonderfully powerful, beyond measure.

This brought me back to the time where this blog was born; the ten day fast that I did in September of 2007.

Many years had passed since I had really spoken to God. Sure God was around and maybe I hollered at him every now and then when I thought I needed him, but I was in an utter state of confusion. I couldn’t see anything clearly.

Then I decided to do the master cleanse and unplug from the TV and Internet for 10 days.

The experienced changed my life.

When I look back on it I see that the power of that experience wasn’t in the lemon drink or the salt water flushes. The power was in the silence. When everything was shut off my spirit was able to shake off the burden of the noise in my mind and finally exercise its wings again. In the silence I was able to hear what God wanted me to hear. I was able to listen.

The times that I spent meditating and reconnecting with God were so powerful and so comforting. It was like going back home and realizing that I never left.

For several years prior to this I spent so much time trying to solve all of the spiritual problems of the universe that I had forgotten what my position was. In the attempt to understand God, I gradually started trying to do his work. I tried to answer the questions that only He can answer. I tried to solve the puzzles that only he can solve.

But when I became quiet I was able to see clearly and know without a doubt that He is God. Not me.

Often times we don’t know the next step we are supposed to take in life because we spend too much time talking and not enough time listening. Give listening a chance sometime. Find a quiet place where you will not be interrupted and just close your eyes and sit there. No music. No soothing meditation sounds. Just silence.  If your mind starts racing about random topics, let it race. Listen to what it is saying without trying to control or judge it. Let it talk freely and observe what it has to say. Eventually it will tire itself out and go silent.

This is when the miracle begins.

From this silence the spirit will burst forth. It will sing the songs that God wants to speak into your life. This is what inspiration is for me. It is when we are blessed with ideas and visions and dreams that are bigger than our small minds. They are so big and beautiful for our lives that it is clear that they are not ours.

Then when you open your eyes you will see what I saw and continue to see. What once was foggy is now clear. And in that clarity you will know the next steps to take to make your dreams come true.

The only question is… do you have the courage to take the first step?

If you don’t have some crazy, miraculous epiphany the first time, that’s cool. Keep trying. Having the patience to reach a state of quiet is very difficult. It takes work and patience.

But I promise that if you put in the work, you will reap the fruit one hundred fold.