Category Archives: Celebrities

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Gabby Loves God and so do I!!! (VIDEO)

Hello World,

Unless you have taken a vacation from the planet the last week or so, at some point, you have watched the Summer Olympics in London! And if you have watched even a few minutes of the games, you have either heard about or seen the wonder that is 16-year-old Gabby Douglas! Her name will forever be a part of history as she won the women’s all-around gold medal in gymnastics, becoming the fourth American to do so and the first African American to achieve this feat! In addition, Gabby is the first American to win both of the individual and team events at the same Olympics! And even more importantly, she is an unabashed Christian who incorporates her faith in God in all of her astounding achievements…

Here is one of her Facebook status updates after she won her gold medals…

“Wow!!! I am still trying to grasp that I am the All-Around Olympic Gymnastic Champion and that my teammates and I won the Team Gold Medal. You all have been so great to me! I am sooooo thankful for all of your support and love! We have event finals coming up this week – starting tomorrow with Vault Finals. I would love it if you would keep my teammate MaKayla Maroney in prayer & cheer as she competes for a medal 🙂 #TeamUSA.”

Also, just after she made the Olympic team, she was interviewed at Valley Church in West Des Moines, Iowa where she has attended over a year while she trained for the Olympics. Below is a video in which she asked the church to pray for her and her teammates as they headed to London, and she shared how her faith in God helps her to excel in gymnastics. Also, Gabby revealed how her mother e-mailed Bible scriptures to her every morning that she used to inspire her, and she also e-mailed Bible scriptures to her at night that helped her fall asleep! Here are a few inspiring quotes from her interview…

“I love reading about the Word. It really helps me during gymnastics. I mean it’s very important. Whether you are really like scared of a skill, like you just have to just rely on God. He’s not given us the spirit of fear but a spirit of of peace, love and a sound mind…”

“…If we’re having problems with a skill, like I keep falling on my two and half which is like I can do this, all things are possible to Him who believes, so I just meditate and meditate, and it just builds my faith and my confidence on the floor so you have to put on the full armor of God when Satan tries to come against us we already are prepared…”

I will always have a soft spot in my heart for the Summer Olympics and Christian Olympians after my experience at the 1996 Summer Olympics which were held in the A! In fact, I wrote about my experience covering the Summer Olympics from a Christian point of view in my book “After the Altar Call: The Sisters’ Guide to Developing a Personal Relationship With God.” In my story, I shared how although I was sent by “The Christian Index” newspaper to cover a rally for Christian Olympians at Greenforest Community Baptist Church in Decatur, I ended up rededicating my life to God that evening. Here is an excerpt from my story below…

As various athletes shared their stories, I was impressed with how muscular and lithe they looked even though they had on jogging suits. What impressed me more was the earnestness in their voices as they spoke of having a personal relationship with Jesus
Christ and how this relationship pointed them to their purpose in their lives.They spoke as if God was with them when they trained and even as they completed their events in the Olympics and other competitions. Some of them talked about how God was even with them in their losses. I was attracted to two things: the way that Jesus Christ seemed like a person they actually knew, and that God was fulfilling a purpose in each of their lives, and they knew it.

In fact, it was their stories that inspired me to develop my own personal relationship with God…I just pray that Gabby will not only inspire people through her athletic prowess but also through her personal relationship with God…And if you would like to read more about Gabby story’s before and after the Olympics, check out this article  “America’s Megawatt Sweetheart” from “The New York Times.”

Any thoughts?

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A Father’s Day Testimony…

Hello World,

A one-year-old DeVon Franklin celebrating his birthday with his father...

Happy Father’s Day to all of the wonderful fathers in the world especially my dear ole Daddy 🙂 And here is my testimony about my father “Color Him Father, Color Him Love.” Unfortunately, not everyone has a father to which they can wish Happy Father’s Day, but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t live on in their hearts or influence their actions although they are gone…

The father of DeVon Franklin, vice president of production for Columbia Pictures, died when Franklin was a child after having a heart attack. In his book/testimony “Produced By Faith: Enjoy Real Success Without Losing Your True Self,” Franklin shares memories about his father who also suffered from alcoholism and how his father’s life and death influence him even now…Franklin, who will be featured on Oprah’s “Super Soul Sunday” today at 11 a.m./1o a.m. C.S.T., candidly admitted on his Facebook page how being on this show on Father’s Day (also his father’s birthday) has affected him…

ALCOHOL ABUSE + AMBITION proved to be a lethal combination. My dad died at the age of 36 when I was only 8 years old. This is a picture of me and my Dad, celebrating my first birthday. When I got word from Oprah’s network that my interview with Oprah would air on Sunday, June 17…it nearly brought me to tears. Why? Because June 17th is not only Father’s Day, but it is my Dad’s birthday too. He would have been 61 years old. So much of my life I have wanted to make him proud and fulfill the potential that was cut short in him. So I believe it is no accident that God would schedule one of the biggest opportunities of my life on this day to let me know that my Dad’s purpose wasn’t cut short…it is alive and well in me and my 2 brothers. It is deep confirmation to me that even with the most difficult tragedies…God’s grace, mercy and love still abound…

Franklin’s book is truly inspiring, and I was blessed to interview him about his book and his career for MOVIEGUIDE.  Check out my interview with him here! Below is a preview of his interview with Oprah.

Preview: DeVon Franklin on “Super Soul Sunday”

In an all-new “Super Soul Sunday,” DeVon Franklin—a Hollywood executive who does double duty as a preacher—shares his advice on achieving success without losing yourself. The author of “Produced By Faith” author talks with Oprah about how he balances his Hollywood life with his faith.

How does you father influence your life today?

Any thoughts?

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After the Altar Call on the Move…

Hello World,

The lone writer...(get it? LOVE.THIS.PHOTO)...A pic from my book release party...

If you have visited my humble blog before, you know that my book which has the same name was released in February of this year! And since then, I have been on the move around the A as I have attempted to spread the word about a book that I truly believe will help women to develop a personal relationship with God! And God has blessed my efforts!

As of this month, my book is now available via Black Expressions Book Club! From the web site…

Black Expressions is the book club when it comes to books for and by African Americans. We’ve got bestselling books from such African American authors as Zane, Brenda Jackson, Eric Jerome Dickey and E. Lynn Harris. From new urban fiction to black romance novels and African American Christian fiction, Black Expressions truly has something for everyone. Plus, our editors love reading as much as you do and they’ll constantly keep you updated on the most-talked-about African American books on the scene.

If you are a member of Black Expressions, you can order my book for a whopping 50 cents! Truly, you cannot beat that deal anywhere sooo order it here (click on the link.).

And now that the unofficial start of summer is this weekend (Memorial Day weekend), I plan to venture out of the A and hopefully spread the good news about After the Altar Call!

This weekend I will be at the 33rd Annual Christian Women’s Retreat in the Country Music Capital of the World! Yes, that’s right, I (along with my mother and other women from our church) will be traveling up the road a piece to Nashville to fellowship with Christian women from around the country. And if you’re read my book, one the original organizers of the retreat (which was created in 1980), Ms. Susie Doswell is featured in my book. Ms. Doswell has a tremendous testimony of thriving after after teenage pregnancy and abusive marriages. The convention will be held at the Sheraton Music City Hotel so if you’re in the area, stop by and see me.

The next weekend, on June 2, I will be speaking on “Developing a Personal Relationship With God” at Central Christian Church’s 11th Annual Women’s Prayer Breakfast. The prayer breakfast begins at 10 a.m. Central Christian Church is located at 1916 Dodson Drive, Atlanta 30311…That’s right in the heart of the SWAT!!!

And a few days after that, I will be signing my book on Tuesday, June 5 at 1 p.m. and Wednesday, June 6 at 2 p.m. at the Urban Ministries Inc. bookstore  at the Hampton University Ministers’ Conference in Hampton, Virginia! From the conference web site…

The Ministers’ Conference began in 1914 when the Negro Organizational Society, the Conference for Education in the South, the Southern Education Board, and the Cooperative Education Board sought to address the growing concerns of the African-American church and its relationship to the community. With Hampton Institute carrying strong influence with each of these community organizations, it became the birth-place of the original Ministers’ Conference, then known as The Conference of Negro Ministers of Tidewater, Va.

The HU Ministers’ Conference and Choir Directors’ and Organists’ Guild has also welcomed famous individuals to the campus of Hampton University. Past attendees have included the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1962; the Rev. Wyatt Tee Walker of Abyssinian Baptist Church in New York; the Rev. Jesse Jackson; the Rev. Al Sharpton; the Rev. T.D. Jakes; and in 2007, Barack Obama.

I pray this book will truly help women all around the world develop a personal relationship with God! And I’m thankful to God for enabling me to spread the word about this book, and I could use your help too…Let erebody know After the Altar Call is on the move…

Any thoughts?