Happy Birthday X-Daddy!

God has truly blessed me. You have been there for me in more ways than my real dad has. (Not trying to be mean, it is a fact here).  Thank you for always being there for me.  May this be the happiest and most blessed Birthday!

Love in Christ,
SP

In a few short days, a black man will move from his private residence into a much larger and more expensive one owned not by him but by the taxpayers. A vast lawn, perimeter fence and many well-trained security specialists will insulate him from the rest of us, but the mere fact that this man will live there should make us all stop and count our blessings — because it proves we live in a nation where anything is possible.

Many believed this day would never come. Most of us hoped and prayed that it would, but few of us actually believed we would live to see it. Racism is an ugly thing in all of its forms and there is little doubt that if this man had moved there 15 years ago, there would have been a great outcry — possibly even rioting in the streets. Today, we can all be both grateful and proud that no such mayhem will take place when this man takes up residency in this house.

This man, moving into this house at this time in our nation's history is much more than a simple change of addresses for him — it is proof of a change in our attitude as a nation. It is an amends of sorts — the righting of a great wrong. It is a symbol of our growth, and of our willingness to judge a man, not by the color of his skin but by the content of his character.

There can be little doubt now that the vast majority of us truly believe this man has earned both his place in history and his new address. His time in this house will not be easy — it will be fraught with danger and he will face many challenges. We're sure there will be many times when he asks himself how in the world he ended up here, and, like all who have gone before him, the experience will age him greatly. But in every way a man can, he asked for this. His whole life for the past fifteen years appears to have been inexorably leading this man toward this house. It is highly probable that in the past, despite all of his actions, racism would have kept this man out of this house. Today, we thank the Lord above that we are Americans and live in a nation where wrongs are righted, where justice matters and where truly anything is possible. A nation where O.J. Simpson is finally going to jail.

What, you thought this was about Obama???

Happy Anniversary X-Daddy and Beth!

I know I have not blogged lately. Just too much going on. I probably won't get back to blogging on a regular basis until next summer, now that I'll be back to attending on-campus classes in college starting Jan 12th (Hybrid classes, not internet classes only).  Who knows. We'll see how things work out.

 My dad is on the brink of death. His body is just rotting away literally, his leg looks like it has gangrene (all red and purple and swollen), his belly is just so swollen from his liver failure, brain tumors, etc blahblah (all the effects from AIDS). 

We also lost a longtime family friend of ours, JACK,  a couple days before Christmas, he is still in the morgue! He was a very much needed repair guy for my mom's company, so she not only lost a good friend but a very good dependable employee also.  So she's doing double with her work as well as David, (my brotha from anotha motha).

The holidays have kept us busy and no time to really think too much, praise God :) 

The kids did not get to see their dad for Christmas because he was in North Carolina with his wife's family, but he finally flew home last night in the World's Deadliest Conventional Weapon.... the AC-130 (and surprisingly, Fox News did a report about them today!)

(Yeah, he literally flew back to Dallas, Tx in one of those because he is a Marine and hey, whatever is free, he'll fly in it plus he works with that type of aircraft nowadays, no more Huey gunships or Cobra choppers). 

 

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,473985,00.html

So TOMORROW- he is supposed to pick up the kids and they'll celebrate New Year's together.  I was invited to four different NYE parties but I'll be going to the one nearest my house... I really don't want to share the road with drunk drivers! LOL plus some of my closest friends will be there, so.. :) See y'all soon!


Hope your Christmas was the happiest and most blessed ever!

Happy New Year!

I've posted this before, but we could all use a reminder from time to time...

The media has been deluged with stories of ministers who have been charged with molesting young children, church leaders who have embezzled funds from church accounts, and pastors caught in adulterous affairs. Scores of religious celebrities and leaders have been exposed in recent years for sexual or financial impropriety. But its not just Christians that disappoint, but their institutions. As a result, more and more seekers are saying, "Spirituality, yes... 'churchianity', no."

When those who claim to follow Christ are immoral, inflexible, strange, uptight, unloving, judgmental or hypocritical, it casts shadows on the faith itself. And when our experience with the Christian community involves being bored, or even worse, burned, it is tempting to walk away from Christianity altogether. Yet disappointed people who continue their exploration of the Christian faith have often done so by reminding themselves of the following spiritual truths...

First, while somewhat trite, the phrase, "Christians are not perfect, just forgiven", is important to remember.

What is behind many... not all, but many... charges and accusations against the character and integrity of Christians is the demand for perfection in the life of anyone who claims to be a Christian and urges others to consider Christianity as well. But an authentic Christian is not someone who is perfect, just someone who has come to God for forgiveness and a relationship. Despite their imperfections, Christians should not stand in the way of your relationship with Christ.

The real issue is Jesus, not the weaknesses and imperfections or behavior of those who try and follow Jesus.

Christians may disappoint you, but Christ won't.



P.S. Paul writes in Ephesians 2:8-9- "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast."