Calling All Children of God

Last night I was going out for my "last night out" in Philly. I was going to a club in Philly just to chill out and hear DJ Wallah spin for the last time. That didn't happen and we ended up riding around Philly looking for something to do. I honestly think that night was supposed to happen like that because I said and heard some things that really bothered me.

I hear older adults speak a lot about young people and self respect and I had the privelage to get in on some of the conversations and learn a lot. Here is what I learned:

Young Men:

You say you are looking for the "wifey type" yet you chase after the girls who think they have to bend over in the clubs and/or show off all of their flesh.

Young Ladies:

You want a man to treat you with respect, but you don't have enough respect for yourself for ANYONE to begin to respect you.

I don't understand what goes through the minds of these young people at all. I heard someone say "these girls are going to be mad when they have a guy that they are having sexual relations with and he leaves them for the young lady who refuses to give herself up. Men like that challenge and if you don't give yourself up, they will develop a respect for you."

I promise that is what I wanted to say for so long because I see it all the time. I'm just a young girl though, so I have no idea what I'm talking about. I'm only 22, I'm not experienced in life enough to come to that conclusion.

From a young woman to my peers and younger people:

It's time for us to stand out of the crowd and show these kids what is right. We need to stop trying to be like everyone else. We were made to be different, we were made in God's image (Genesis 1:26). We are in this world but we're not OF this world, meaning we live here yeah, but that doesn't mean we have to act like it. Like Tye Tribbett's last cd stated "It's time to STAND OUT!!!" He asked a question and I really sat there and thought, there should be no reason he should be asking "people of God where is the standard at?"

I was looking for a scripture and came across John 15:19 where Jesus was speaking and said "If ye were of the world, the world would love his own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." Now to me that's basically saying that If you were of this world, it would love you, but you were chosen by God, so the world hates you. So my question now is, why would you try to embrace the world if it hates you??? Idk maybe I'm alone on that one.

At any rate, we need to stand out, seriously. You don't know when the last person will get that chance to accept or reject Christ. My suggestion is to get right now and leave this world alone.

Love you much!!!

Sista T

Are You A Rebel?

I was listening to a song (I say that a lot), and I heard a guy say something along the lines of serving God is like being a rebel because no one does it anymore. I don't know about anyone else, but that really bothered me.

The song I was listening to was Rebel Intro from Lecrae's Album, Rebel. The guy in the background said "I know in our day, rebel means sinner. But everyone is sinning, so it's no longer rebellious to sin." Then toward the end he said "If you really want to be a rebel, read your Bible because no one's doing that. That's rebellion, that's the only rebellion left."

I just love how listening to music leads me to think about certain things that really need to be addressed. This issue is HUGE!!! Sinning has become a normal thing in this world. Just look around, there are girls in MIDDLE SCHOOL pregnant. Girls in high school pregnant with A SECOND CHILD!!! KIDS smoking weed, and more, this is just sad.

I never thought sinning would get this bad. But I'm seeing this world get worse and worse right before my eyes.

So my question to you is...Are you a rebel???

Love you much!!!

Sista T

He Wants It All

I was listening to a song that really caught my attention because it's very short, sweet, and to the point. The song is "He Wants It All" by Forever Jones. If you never heard it before, listen now:

This song says so much and brings back so many memories of things I said and things I heard dealing with commitment. I always hear people ask the question: Jesus died for us why not live for Him?

Well...............Why not???

Is it because we're selfish??? I think so, but that's my personal opinion.

A lot of people out there will yell, " I love Jesus" or "I love God" but when it comes to giving up worldly things and dying to their flesh, they suddenly become quiet.

Hmm.............

Here is my challenge:

Fast for a week, from something that you THINK you can't live without, something that will distract you from speaking to God or reading the Bible. Give your ALL to Christ for a week.

Now if you already do that then of course I'm not talking to you, but let's be honest with ourselves, most of us can't go a day without our cell phones, or laptops, or some form of technology and that draws us away from God and we stop giving Him our ALL. *raises hand in guilt*

Yeah, I said it, I'm taking this challenge also. I'm hiding my laptop for a whole week. I wake up on it, fall asleep on it, and as a result, I "forget" to read my Bible and "forget" to pray.

He wants it ALL...

So let's give it to Him...

Love you much!!!

Sista T

I Trust You

This post was started in late march and I finally got a chance to finish it. It's two blogs combined. I hope it will bless someone in some way. Here it is:

I know I have been ghost for a while, I'm sorry guys. God was working on me in some major parts of my life, and He still is, so please bear with me on these posts. I'll post as often as I can.

I started 2 different posts earlier this month, one in the beginning and one in the middle. I JUST realized how I titled both of them "I Trust You" and I'm also starting to see a pattern this year.

The first one was talking about the song I Trust You by James Fortune & FIYA but it wasn't the actual song. That blog was going to be focused on the testimony that James had given on their new cd Encore. That testimony was SO powerful and touched my heart in so many ways. I was able to relate to majority of the things he said in that testimony and I promise you that testimony was on repeat for a while.

In the testimony he began to talk about it doesn't matter how much you go to church, how many scriptures you know, etc. but there is a time where everyone finds it difficult to trust God. He began to share how his family was homeless and sleeping in a motel, and how his wife would fill the tub with pillows and blankets just so their son would have a place to sleep because the room was so small. Then he went on to say how he went and ministered to many people and so many people would ask him to pray for them not knowing that he needed prayer himself. One day he began to question and ask God "are you still with me?" He said that God shared with him that he had to be able to trust Him even when he didn't know why he was going through what he was going through, even when it seemed that God had forgotten about him, and it seems that God isn't with him, he has to be able to trust Him. He said that God told him he needed to be able to trust Him at THAT time, when he was going through because God was about to do something in his life that even if He TOLD him, he wouldn't believe it. It was then that James said "Lord I will trust you" and he began to get the words to this song "I Trust You" and it ministered to billions of people and God knew that someone was going to go through the same thing and He would need a song to encourage people. It was at that moment that he knew why God had allowed him to go through what he went through, He needed to get that song out of James.

That testimony blessed me even more than the song did and I pray that you all would go out and find a way to hear that.

That's not all to this blog though, for the past few months, God has been placing me in certain places to hear the same message over and over. I find that a lot of people are talking about praising God while at your lowest point.

Side Note:

I was struggling for a long time, and I'm still struggling with being single. I desired companionship so much and the fact that I'm not ready bothered me a lot. I honestly broke down a lot because I felt so lonely and I felt like there was no one I could talk to about anything. I felt like James for a moment, I love my close friends and family and when they need me, I'f I'm awake, I'm there. I don't care how late it is, I'm there. I was getting a lot of prayer requests and the whole time I was pushing my problems to the back burner as though they never existed. I had this one point where I was bored and I had done everything I needed to do, so I put on some music and let my mind run free. At that point, all of my problems came rushing back all at once and I needed someone to pray for me but I didn't want to tell anyone that because I wanted to be strong for them. Then that lonely feeling came back and I broke down again, while listening to that music, I heard a song in the background. It was Complete by Lashun Pace and I posted the song on facebook with the caption "Complete by Lashun Pace on repeat...enough said" and I felt that was all I needed to say because she said it all in the song. There was nothing left for me to say at all.

She took a pause in the song and said this: "I remember there was a time in my life, when I though I needed somebody to make me complete. I though I needed that special somebody to make me feel good. But I forgot about the scripture that said I am jealous God and beside me there is no other. So all you have to do is give your life to Jesus and let Him make you complete."

That song had me a little mad because I was talking about being so lonely and not having that companionship and that person I could talk to without worrying about showing weakness and all I had to do was hear that song to realize, that companion was ALWAYS there. I just had to go to Him. Just some encouragement.

Back to the blog:

These past weeks have been interesting because after hearing the testimony from James Fortune, I began to notice a common theme, well a few. Patience, Beauty, and Trust are the 3 themes I keep hearing about. Well beauty keeps coming in mind when dealing with young females, but patience and trust have been coming up a lot lately and it's a good thing because I have been "preaching" patience and trust since January. Not literal preaching but when talking to people I find myself using the words trust and patience a lot.

I'm not going to ramble on about the latest updates on patience and trust so I'll stop here. I hope you all are blessed by what is laid on my heart. Love you all!!!

God Bless

Sista T

Inspired by Temptation by GI

It took me a while to write this. I didn't know exactly where to start, where to end, what to cover, or anything because temptation is such a big issue. Whether you know it or not, EVERYONE goes through some type of temptation. Jesus was even tempted by satan himself (Matthew 4).

In this song Temptation by GI (God's Image), you will see three different temptations that many people face on a daily basis. Although rappers talk about sex, drugs and alcohol all the time, GI talked about those same issues and turned it into a positive message. I know, I know, you're probably thinking...well how could you be positive about sex, drugs, and alcohol? Well just look at it yourself:

I'm pretty sure a number of people heard the first part of the first verse and automatically went into judge mode. You know what that is, when you start to criticize a song before you actually get to hear what the song is all about. Anyway, this song, as you heard, is about RESISTING temptation.

In this first verse, you can see that the first temptation was sex. I know many people are tempted with sex on a daily basis and it's sometimes hard to resist. But if you resist enough, it will be come second nature to resist that temptation. The Bible says "resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (James 4:7). Eventually satan will see that you're strong enough to resist and will stop. I'm not saying he will stop for good, he'll just find another way to try and trip you up.

This is why prayer is so important. If you don't stay prayed up, you will easily fall.

The second verse was about drug dealing. I know a lot of people do it to keep food on the table or pay the bills and with that situation I would say the motives are right but the actions aren't. There are many ways to make money but there are people out there who target young people and tell them that it's an easy way to make quick money. They know what to say and some young people get caught up and some are able to resist the temptation.

The third verse is more personal to me than any other verse because I have seen, first hand, people try to drink their problems away. I want to let everyone know that drinking will not solve anything, it can only make matters worse. If you lose someone, drinking won't bring them back. If you lose you job, drinking won't get it back.

I can't seem to stress enough how important prayer is in our lives. (I may do another blog just on prayer, it's THAT important)

I took me a whole 3 months and some change, but I found the missing link to this blog. I was lost and felt I was missing something here. I know what it is. There is a passage in the Bible about temptation. It's found in the book of James Chapter 1 Verses 2-6 and 12-15. This is what it says:

My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ya may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a sea driven with the wind and tossed.

Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man. But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. -KJV

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who live him. When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. -NIV

That scripture passage is so crucial right now. I hear a lot of new Christians asking God why is He tempting them, and questioning what is going on, why they are going through. There is your answer, a lot of it is a test of your faith. If God didn't allow you to be tempted by satan then you wouldn't grow to trust Him completely. I don't know if you caught it or not, but there is a reward for enduring through your temptations.

Last thing, I noticed that temptation has two sides to it, good and bad. It's good because it allows you to grow stronger in God, but it's bad because it can cause the eternal death of you. What do you choose??? To resist or to give in???

Love you all!!!

Sista T

Update

Hey Loves!!! I know it's been forever since I wrote one here. I apologize greatly for that. Here's an update on some things that's been going on in my life.

• I am still going strong in school (3 classes this summer and I'll have my AA in Sociology!!!)
• My leaders saw something in me and decided that I would be a great person to be a youth leader!!! Isn't God good??? (It's a lot more work than I thought)
• I have some great things going for my future that I really can't talk about too much. (Stay tuned for updates on that)
• I'm working on some big things for the youth in southern NJ hoping to expand to other places.

Those are just some updates on my life. I started about 4 different blogs but ended up getting distracted and didn't finish them. I'll continue to work on those and post them as I finish. That's all for my little update. Until next time...

GOD BLESS!!!

Sista T

Wonder Women: Rahab

Rahab is the first Wonder Woman mentioned in this book I'm reading that was previously mentioned in my blog Wonder Women In The Bible. The reading about her came from Joshua 2:1-21; 6:16-25; Hebrews 11:30-31; and James 2:25.

From what I read, I can see that Rahab wasn't the "holiest" person in the world. She was a harlot (or what we now call a prostitute), which tells me that God can use anyone for the glory of His name. Rahab was used to hide spies that Joshua sent into Jericho. In return for her courageous act of lying to the guards and hiding the spies, also for her act of faith, her as well as her family and all they had were spared.

So much was in jeopardy but Rahab acted on faith and now we are where we are today. For a very long time I thought God couldn't use me because I did so many things we consider to be "bad" in my life. But the story of Rahab proved to me that God can use anyone no matter how messed up they are.

I encourage you all to think about where you are now and where God brought you from. When you feel as though you aren't good enough for God, remember that he can use anyone and anything to do what He wants. Luke 19:37-40 talks about when the disciples were rejoicing and praising God with loud voices. Some of the Pharisees told Jesus to rebuke them and He responded "I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out."(KJV) That's just one example of God using objects to do what He wants. I don't know about you but, I would rather have Him use me than to use some rocks lol.

Be Blessed!!!

Love you all!!!

Sista T