Monday, October 7, 2013

The Importance of Having Patience



One of the hardest skills  to learn and master is patience. People have a tendency to want things when they want them, me included. I used to think that having patience meant just simply waiting. I've come to learn that having patience is just simply not waiting but how you act while waiting.  Which means our thoughts and actions have to be in alignment with each other.

 We can literally create from the inside out any type of experience we wish to choose. It is when our desires, our thoughts and our actions are in alignment that this kind of life begins to emerge.The seed of a desire for something greater lives within all of us, but our lack of action(PATIENCE) prevents that kind of life from unfolding.

Imagine if a farmer had seeds and land to plant his seeds, but doubted that the seeds would grow if he planted them. So if this doubt were strong enough, the seeds would never get planted. Or, they get planted, but then the farmer can be too impatient and dig up the seeds the next day or the next week because the crop hasn’t come yet.

The farmer still has no harvest. Then a second farmer comes by at harvest time with a full crop of harvest, and the first farmer gets jealous and angry at the second farmer for having abundance. The first farmer may blame The universe or say, “People like me aren’t supposed to have this harvest”, but in reality, it is the farmers own doubt and impatience that prevents him from reaping his harvest.

 In James 5:7 we read - "Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains." In Galatians 6:9 we read - "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

  In a world that offers quick solutions and instant results, the timeless virtue of patience is all but forgotten but, patience is truly a godly attribute. Margaret Thatcher once said, “I am extraordinarily patient provided I get my own way in the end.” When everything is going your way, patience is easy to demonstrate. The true test of patience comes when our rights are violated—when another car cuts us off in traffic; when we are treated unfairly; when our finds or family say something negatieve about us, when we can not have what we want right now!. Some people think they have a right to get upset in the face of these delays, irritations and trials. Impatience seems like "righteous" anger but it is from the devil himself. The Bible, praises patience as a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) which should be produced for all followers of Christ (1 Thessalonians 5:14). Patience reveals our faith in GODS timing, omnipotence, and love.

It’s about planting seed, after seed, after seed. Knowing that some will not make it and others will. And not giving up – but rather patiently allowing the seed to come to fruition.

If weeds of doubt creep in, we must clear them out. And in perfect time we will be able to harvest the fruit of our faith. Get your desires, thoughts and actions in alignment and then let your patience and faith shower down on the fertile soil of your actions.

#GetInspired

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Black Out Los Angeles Twitter Town Hall

A few a weeks a go I was invited to participate in a panel discussion to address the HIV epidemic among Black Gay & Bisexual, men in LA.  
 

  You can join the discussion on twitter #BlackOutLA


                        #GetInspired

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Choose FAITH!

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, Ephesians 2:8
 
 
I grew up in a household filled with faith. My grandfather is a Pastor and I many other relatives in the ministry. I heard words of faith from my grandfather, my mother, granny, always growing up. But you can't live on someones else faith. There are no spiritual grandchildren. Each person must make their own decision and act on it with integrity. At a early age I made my faith decision: "I WILL ACCEPT GOD'S GIFT OF HIS SON, JESUS CHRIST AS MY SAVIOR."
 
That decision, more than any other has shaped my life. It has forged my worldview. Recognition of God's love for everyone (Blacks, Whites, Gays, Liberals, Hippies,etc,) has influenced how I view others. The Golden Rule has taught me how to treat people. God's love for me has given me great self-worth.
 
WHAT IS FAITH?
 
Hebrews 11:1 states that Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11:6 states that But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. And Romans 10:17 states that Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Also James 2:14-26 States that Faith without works is DEAD! Faith is trust in GOD. Faith is the seed that leads to spiritual growth that enables you to actively seek and build a personal relationship with your higher power. 
 
Understand that faith is often birthed out difficulties and faith that hasn't been tested can't be trusted. I once heard a preacher say that you can not have a testimony without the TEST. If you are experiencing difficulties, allow yourself to explore faith in response to it. Faith not only can help you through a crisis, it can help you approach life after the hard time with a whole new perspective. Give you a new outlook of hope and courage through faith to face reality.
 
It's not enough to simply make a faith decision. If you want to live it out, you have to work at deepening it. Faith gives you peace and strength only if it's not superficial. The deeper the faith, the greater the potential to carry you through the difficult times. Developing your faith is very similar to developing yourself physically. If you want to get into good physical condition, you need to exercise your body regularly. If you don't, you not only don't gain strength and conditioning, you begin to lose what you once had. In the words of my grandfather you become spiritually malnourished. There is a spiritual aspect to human life that cannot be denied. Spiritual needs must be met spiritually. Nothing else will fill the void.
 
Are you spiritually disconnected?
 
How do you stay spiritually connected to your higher power? What are your spiritual practices that keep you plugged in?
 
In the end it your choice to step out on faith and to choose to walk by faith.
 



 
#GetInspired

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Express Gratitude Daily!

 
My favorite and most useful tool in my toolbox has to GRATITUDE! Of all the virtues, gratitude seems to be the least expressed. How often do people go out of their way to thank you? How often do you receive a thank you note when you give a gift? More important, how often do you extend your thanks to others? In our culture of plenty, where everyone feels entitled, we tend to take things for granted.
A year ago, I was watching Oprah;s LifeClass and Oprah encouraged the audience and viewers to keep a gratitude journal to help them appreciate life more by focusing on the good things in your life big or small. Also in that show I learned Fear is why we don't take action and anger is why we stop and Gratitude is the antidote. You can not be fearful or angry and grateful simultaneously.
 

 
 
When we learn to give thanks, we are learning to concentrate not on the bad things, but on the good things in our lives." Says Amy Vanderbilt. Thinking about the good things helps us to be grateful. Remaining grateful helps us to have a positive attitude prompts us to thank about the good rather than the bad. It's a positive cycle that helps fuel itself. If you operate out gratitude you will have no time to be angry. Gratitude is the cure.
 
List five things you are grateful for today.Show your gratitude. Who can you thank today, and how will you show your appreciation?When you feel least thankful, you are most in need of what gratitude can give you: perspective. If you're having a bad day, what is the smallest thing you can be grateful for? If you can think of nothing else, think of your breath.

#GetInspired #LifeClass
 

Friday, August 9, 2013

Trust!

Sometimes God will evict us from our circumstances because we will stay in the same place because we fear what He has in stored for us.
 
When the door of opportunity has been slammed shut in our face (or on your foot as you were trying to stick it through just in time), friends and loved ones are quick to remind us that “God will open a window.” And it sounds simple enough. When one opportunity doesn’t work out, something else will, right? But how do you know if a window is really open, or if it’s just so clean that it looks open, only to leave you with a smashed face and bruised ego.
 
I’ve found myself in this position lately, doors unopened, or closed at the last minute, and I’ve been left wondering where I should go next. Is this window cracked open only for fresh air, or am I to go through? Is it okay to go through a window that is unlocked and easily opened? How much effort are we to put in on our part? While I feel certain I need to move thats when doubts and fears creep in.
 
I often have to remind myself that if I follow my passions then my purpose will follow. To be pateitnt, and for me patience is just not waiting but how you act while waiting. while waiting I have to remember to have gratitiude. By having gratitude in your life this can prevent pain and depression.
 
I do know one thing for certain and I always hear my Granny say it "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not from your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths".
 
Trusting in the Lord with all of our hearts is easir said then done. We might say we trust in Him, and the second we're done saying the prayer, we pick ip our worries again. Which, of course, indicates that we really don't trust Him.
 
So how, exactly, do we do this? Letting go and letting God and trusting Him with all our heart requires a deep relationship with Him. We must enter into a childlike posture and believe that He has our best interests in mind, that He has every desire to work things out for good for us and that He will do it in His own way and His own time. And we must let go of any assumptions we have about what would be best, what we really need, what would make us happy and fulfilled and what would be the best and timetable for all of this to occur.
 
Whether we are concerned about career opportunities, concerned about a family problem or concerned about a health issue, the invitation sits before each one of us to enter into a trusting relationship with God today. Begin by looking deep into your own heart and ask what your deepest desire is. Then take this deep desire and offer it to God in prayer. Ask for what you need. He tells us to do that. Ask, seek, knock. Then tell Him thank you for hearing you and go back to whatever business was at hand and leave it in His hands.
 
And if you get scared and try to pick up the problem or issue by worrying about it again, offer Him your doubt, as well. He wants all of us, even the times we worry and doubt that what we asked for can be done.
 
#GetInspired

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Americans First?

If jobs are available in the United States, Americans should go to the front of the line to get them, ahead of illegal aliens. And as there are six Americans out of work for every job opening, it is time to call a moratorium on immigration. Why are we bringing into the United States over a million legal immigrants a year to compete for jobs against 15 million to 25 million Americans who can't find work or full-time jobs to take care of their families?

Who is America for ? if not for Americans first?


#GetInspired