Category Archives: Church

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How We Got Over…(The Funeral of Troy Davis)

Hello World,

Troy Davis was funeralized yesterday in Jonesville Baptist Church in Savannah, Ga. According to MSNBC, more than a 1,000 people showed up to honor the life of a man who was executed although there was considerable reasonable doubt that he committed the crime that he was accused of… 

I watched a video of a portion of the funeral in which Dick Gregory, a civil rights activist and comedian, paid his respects to the family while giving a wise and wickedly funny social commentary of the state of black affairs today. As I watched him, I was reminded of the rich religious heritage black people have in this country. We have only gotten over and are getting over because of the Lord! Black people have suffered grave injustices, and we still do. But none can deny that we have made great progress in spite of all that has been done to hold us back! Take a look at this video and tell me what you think.

 

 

And if you really want to feel the move of the Spirit, watch Mahalia Jackson sing “How I Got Over.” This video is an absolute treasure and gives us a glimpse of black life in that time period.

This month is evangelism month at my church Central Christian Church so I will be intentional about sharing my faith although I can be a scaredy cat about it sometimes…If you are looking for joy and peace that is not dependent on your circumstances, a purpose for living that goes beyond you and yours and the ability to see miracles taking place all round you, you’ve got to try Jesus!

And finally, in honor of Troy Davis and those who have been affected by his story, I leave this verse…

“Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”  Matthew 10:28

Any thoughts? 

 

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Jesus…

Hello World,

Today, I just want to focus on Jesus…I love Him….He’s my Savior….He’s My Healer…He’s My Friend…

One of my favorite ways to bask in His Presence is to listen to songs that simply lift His name up…

If you’re looking for the ultimate lover of your soul, try Jesus….If you need to be saved from the cruelty of this world, try Jesus…If you need a healing, there is no other but Jesus…If you need someone who will always be a friend, it’s still Jesus…

“That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Philippians 2: 10-11

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The Vision I Had in My Head aka Debuting My New Book Cover Woo Hoo!!!

Hello World!

It’s official. I have gingerly stepped my big toe in the rapids that are the marketing and promotion of a book, and I’m hoping that I have enough stamina and skill to swim to the other side. There are so many ways that you can market and promote a book it’s easy to get overwhelmed with it all. But I believe I’m off to a very good start!  I have an awesome book cover that totally captures what I had in my head…

This is what I had in my head….This photo was taken circa 2000 on a trip with friends to the Bahamas. When I encountered this lovely one-room stone church, I knew I had to take a picture in front of it….I never knew that years later this would be the image that conveys why I wrote After the Altar Call: The Sisters’ Guide to Developing a Personal Relationship With God. It’s amazing how God works because He is truly working all things together for our good —  even before we know it! When you become a Christian, it seems that the scariest part of the task is walking down that long, sometimes lonely aisle to the front of the church to meet the pastor at the altar (where you publicly confess your faith in Jesus Christ.) But once you’ve done that, you realize that it’s much more scary to try to live as a Christian in a world that is hell-bent on squelching all faith in our Creator…That’s why I love that I’m sitting at the doorway of the church, away from the altar although it is still in sight…

I submitted this photo to my publishing company, Nevaeh Publishing, when I was asked for cover art ideas, and I hoped that this image could translate into an appropriate book cover…Months later, I am elated at the result! Kudos to the graphic artist 🙂

What do you think? And if this is your first time encountering my blog, let me tell you about my book in case you want to buy it when it becomes available in February 2012!!! (I have my marketing and promotion hat on now…)

After the Altar Call: The Sisters’ Guide to Developing a Personal Relationship With God is a fresh, real and relevant how-to manual for black women who desire to move past the “church speak” and into an intimate relationship with their Creator. What makes this book unique from other “relationship with God” books is that this book is written from a black perspective and spans a variety of issues typically not included in one book – from being thrice-married to leaving the Jehovah’s Witnesses.

 As a seasoned journalist, I have interviewed black women from diverse backgrounds to discover what having a personal relationship with God is truly about – beyond the initial “come to Jesus” moment typically associated with the altar call experience. I give readers a rare, personal look into the lives of these women, identify the precepts these women used to develop a personal relationship with God given their life experiences, and create a plan for readers to craft their own relationship with the Father.

 The book includes interviews with 24 remarkable women with compelling stories such the “The View” co-host Sherri Shepherd,  Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie, the 117th elected and consecrated bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and the first woman elected to Episcopal office in over 200 years of A.M.E. history; and Valorie Burton, life coach, author and co-host on the Emmy award- winning show “Aspiring Women” and the former co-host of the national daily television program “The Potter’s Touch” with Bishop T.D. Jakes.

Any thoughts?

P.S. Again, if you have any creative marketing and promotion ideas, let me know in your comments. I’m pretty much open to anything short of skywriting the name of my book on the actual release date…but then again…lol…

P.P.S. If you happen to know the name of this little church in the Bahamas, let me know. I would love to send a letter or something to the people of this church…