Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Ephesians 6: 10-11

Ok so I’m not having a bad day, just one of those days where things are not working out like I would like them to. The stars are not aligned so to speak. I felt myself becoming overwhelmed in the nonsense and I decided to be late to my next meeting and write this message. It’s not a real meeting more like us going over stuff we already know, so they can miss me for 10 minutes so I can get my head right. Put on the full armor of God, I dig it, because the Lord will protect us. Right now as I type these words and today’s dramas are stressing me two things come to mind. 1. It could be way worst, trust me I know. 2. I think about the experience i had last night with my students and I am excited about what I will be able to teach them.

Stress is the devil’s best friend. It makes your blood pressure rise, you become irritated. You start worrying. While in church the Pastor said if you’re going to pray, don’t worry. If you’re going to worry, don’t pray. Great words on Sunday morning but everyday it is a struggle to remember the good that you have been taught to make it practical. So today even though I would like to blow my lid a little bit and I might just end up doing that. I am thankful that I can take a few seconds out of my day and remember that I have been taught a better way. That I do have options and that if I allow the Lord to strengthen me , then there’s no fuzzy wuzzy obstacle that I can’t overcome. FUZZY WUZZY, you liked that didn’t you, well it made me smile. Peace and Grace be unto you!

No matter how the long the winter, the spring is sure to follow.

Discerning False Prophets

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood. 1 John 4: 1-4

RASTA SKANK SLUT BITCH AND HER SLUTTY MINIONS PT.1 That was original title of the two youtube videos I have provided below. Ironically this morning I was on the train heading to work and I stumbled upon the above scripture. I did not know that the Lord was preparing me for the nonsense I would later see on the internet.

The internet is filled with disrespectful nonsense towards women but here these brothers are in the middle of New York City publicly embarrassing and disrespecting a woman. Calling her all types of bitches and hoes, skanks and sluts and then attempting to validate these disgusting actions with words from the Bible. I am not God, I am not the Judge but the Lord warned us that false prophets would come and attempt to pollute our minds with such foolery. I sit here and watch these men lie with their words, speaking of the mark of the beast, preaching God’s words but acting like little Satan’s filled with venom. Mobbing and disrespecting the very being that is able to reproduce man and mothers our understanding.

Jesus spoke of love, the Bible speaks of love. It says that he who does not love does not know God so how can you attempt to lead a flock. To bring God’s people out of the damnation that they are in while utilizing the devil’s tactics against one of God’s children. I am by no means free of sin however I am baffled how these men who I watched gang up on these women in a cult like fashion have the nerve to preach God’s words yet not adhere to his principles of love and peace. The Bible asks that we learn the words of God and then continue to spread that to other people.

These false Prophets take scriptures out of context, twist the words and meanings of the Bible and then we wonder why this world is so spiritually confused. We wonder why people sit in their homes and say religion is a sham, spirituality is for the psychologically weak and dependent man rather than the wise, God fearing, loving person. It is because people like this, groups like this who use the word to spread fear mongering, to disrespect and divide people. Beware of these false prophets, I challenge these brothers if you truly love God to allow your actions, your words and your teachings to be more in tune with God’s message of love and respect. Do not sit in the street disrespecting women, manipulating Bible verses to further mis-educate the people of the world. Earlier I said I am not God, so I can not judge nor condemn you but I pray for you my brothers because this blasphemy is looked upon harshly. Peace and Grace be unto you!

So the lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand sheassess. Job 42:12

I use today’s verse to illustrate the blessings that the bible teaches us our Creator will bestow upon you if you are faithful to his word. The scripture comes from the story of Job; where Job’s life had been turned upside down while the devil continuously meddled in his life. Despite all of the negativity, hardship, pain and suffering Job endured, he remained faithful to God. For that, he was blessed more in the latter part of his life than he was in the first part of his life. Might I add that the first part of his life was not too shabby either; so he was ballin in the end!

I use this story because today I was given some sad news. A fraternity brother of mine emailed me and asked me to pray for his family, his church family and his pastor for this morning their church had burned down. A year ago, I would have been like “man that’s messed up” and then continued on in my day probably never giving it much thought again. However today I was upset to hear such information. People have lost their spiritual place of worship, and everything that church was doing for the community around it is put on hold for just a second during these trials and tribulations. That’s upsetting when you understand the type of impact a church can have on a community. So I got down to pray and while praying I realized it was just a test. This church and congregation will be even more blessed in the second part of their existence than they were in the first, if they remain faithful to the Lord and his ways. I see a new and improved building in their future, more ministries that reach out to the community around them, and an undeniable faith placed in the people of the congregation when they get through this together. So I pray for this church and congregation but I know that they know they will be blessed ten fold just because of their faith. Might be some hell in the hallway but they will find that other door of opportunity that the Lord has blessed them with and they will overcome these obstacles. Peace and Grace be unto you.

Where there’s a will there’s a way

When men tell you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? Isaiah 8:19

Don’t Stop Believing!!!!!! Just wanted to share with you my concert in the shower this morning; American Idol ain’t got nothin on C. Shine. Don’t stop believing in the power of the Lord, that is the real message that needs to be conveyed. We are living in a time when faith is needed more than ever. The staircase has has less light and some steps are missing along the way. This causes us to be even more frightened of the world and times we are living in. We may turn to other mediums to find salvation, to seek out our own happiness. The word specifically asks us ; “should not a people inquire of their God”? Of course we should but in times of weakness the devil tempts us, tempts us to hold true to anything that looks like an answer.

Well don’t stop believing! Believe that you are on the right path by following God and his wisdom. “Should not a people inquire of their God”? Well who else are we to consult. It takes a deep inner faith to believe and understand that God has something great prepared for us. Some of us will miss the boat and lose out on the wonderful blessings that were rightfully ours because we stopped believing, we were caught up in the ways of the world and only the tangible things we could see. I’m in major figurative mode today because I am seeing the stairwell and the missing steps and I know that if I let God guide me I will skip over those downfalls. This does not mean that I will not stumble but I will have missed the bigger fall, the uglier stumble which could leave me in a much worst state. So stumble, fall down and get back up again because in order to achieve we must inquire of our God and not the worldly nonsense that may possibly cause us to fall down into something we may not get up from. Peace and Grace be unto you!

Unless you call out, who will open the door?

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Ephesians 6: 10-12

A close friend of mine hit me up yesterday and said “can the next pardon me be about how much the devil is a hater”? To which my response was “well you know he’s a hater, he hates on me all the time; you just gotta ignore that dude”! But we can’t just ignore the devil; we cant feed his power either because he is a powerful being. Just look at all the evil and hurt in the world! What we must do is what the word above says; be strong in the Lord and his mighty power. While attending a church in Carol City, Florida; a section of Miami, the pastor gave three consecutive sermons about the full armor of God. The way he broke it down was so artful, essentially he spoke of our faith being the strongest part of this armor. We need this armor of God to protect us from the many ills of the world.

Look around at all the senseless killings, the molestation of our children, raping of our women; these are all acts of the devil, inspired by his evil schemes to corrupt us. The political climate; people rioting in Haiti, all across America people are losing their homes; the state of people’s lives is becoming chaotic. How many times have you heard; if your God is so good than why would he let you live like this. The movie “The Devil’s Advocate” displayed this lovely, they questioned our minds about the ills of this world and then threw it back on God as to say he was not protecting us, so he must not exist. That faith and the true armor of the Lord tells us this is not so. Don’t be fooled though, it should tell you something else. Its a war going on outside; the devil’s troops are strong in their conviction to collapse our faith, our good spirit and energy. Look at the spread of disease, drug epidemics, families turning on families. The media turning on the church; the church turning on the church and being more involved with numbers than wisdom and the word. You see it in your daily life, you find yourself struggling despite the fact that you believe you are doing right and being faithful to the Lord. These are all acts of the devil that we can not ignore. We have to suit up; get together and fight for our happiness, for the betterment of our families. We serve a higher power, we are playing for the right team so let’s acknowledge that we have some haters but be wise enough to know that we are blessed with the best protection and knowledge to defeat such clowns. Peace and Grace be unto you!

Snake at your feet a stick at your hand.

Hmmm, have you ever been in a situation and you are unsure of which way to turn? We all have, but it is during this time that we must seek help. Help from our Lord and Savior, help from our family and friends, just help in any form that help can come in. Well if we need help, why is it that we reject it? Many of us close up when times get hard and attempt to hold everything together on our own. While watching The Passion the other night there was a scene where the devil says no man can hold this burden alone. Never thought I would be quoting the devil but he was wrong because Jesus did hold that burden, in fact he carried the burden of all our sins so that we would not have to carry such a heavy load. How noble of a man to do such a thing, its like saying “here fam, give me all your bricks and I will carry them for you, all I ask is that now that you have a lighter load you act in a more noble way towards other people and you respect our Creator”.

That’s an amazing gift, a gift that has been bestowed upon all of us. So I look to this scripture and it says that we should not look to our own interests, rather the interests of others. You know what it feels like when you are struggling with something, so when you see your fellow human struggling do them a favor and take a brick or two. Don’t do it hoping that you will gain something worldly from it, if anything do it because it has and will continue to be done for you. So do not only ask for help, give help, give help wherever you can. A friend of mine will read this and say, “well Cedric, you don’t ask for help”. My reply is, I know and I am trying, we are all trying to become more perfect beings in our imperfect state. We are a community of brothers and sisters, united under many different shades, let us continue to Help one another for it has already been done for us. Peace and Grace be unto you.

An idea that is developed and put into action is more important than an idea that exists only as an idea.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does. James 1: 22-25

When I woke up this morning the sun was busting through my blinds, shining down on me. I thought to myself  “we should not be afraid to let our sun shine”, in fact we must power up our sun to shine. There will always be obstacles that will attempt to stand in the way of our sun’s beauty but we must not allow these clouds to block our sunlight. Clouds such as loneliness, job related issues, a hard time at school, or any other matters that may affect your view of yourself and also how you allow that view to be promoted.

So the scripture goes hand in hand with the thoughts I had when I first woke up. Don’t just listen to the word, don’t just say you believe in God show the world you believe in God. We show the world this through our actions, by our smile, we show how we believe in God when we persevere through the toughest of times. Only a person of God can be so resilient. We can no longer look in the mirror and see our faults and not look to correct them. Those same flaws will eat us alive, those same flaws do not allow our sun to shine as bright as the Lord has given us the power to let it shine. The last line speaks to all of us, if we can look into Gods law and trust in his word which sets us free from these worldly pains we will be blessed because of our faithful duty to adhere to the Lord’s request. Real rap I don’t necessarily know how to let my sun shine, how to look into that mirror and keep trying to perfect an imperfect being. Yet I believe together we can, as a community loving one another the way the Lord asks us to do I can achieve through you and you can achieve through me because we all give the power to HE, OUR CREATOR. Peace and Grace be unto you!

Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all they ways ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3: 5 - 6

I woke up this morning feeling blessed and the word “strength” popped in my head. I immediately thought about looking to the scripture so that I could find some encouraging words about strength because we all need them. I found this verse which discusses how we must trust in the Lord. I knew immediately that this trust in the Lord and his abilities is how we find strength. The strength to do what we have to do in order to do what we want do. All of this can be found by surrendering our issues and trusting that no matter what the circumstance the Lord will pull us through.

As I sit and write this message I am interrupted by bad news but I find strength in the bad news. My mother always says that when you are about to be blessed the devil will find ways to attack you. He sees your strength, he understands the glory that the Lord wants to provide for you and he is dedicated to making sure that you don’t succeed. So if you are down and you feel like the kitchen sink is being thrown at you, it is only because you are strong. It is only because you are blessed and you are destined to do great things. So we must trust in the Lord, we CAN NOT let the devil succeed in his manipulative ways to bring us down. STILL WE RISE, STILL WE RISE! Peace and Grace be unto you.

There’s plenty of ways to die but you have to figure out a way to live; now that’s hard but you can do it!

March 7, 2008

For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10

Good morning, I am having an excellent morning, and I hope you are too. Yesterday I had what some would call a horrible day; I got stranded on the Pennsylvania Turnpike with a flat tire and a broke jack as all of those 18 wheeler trucks flew by. I ate some bad chinese that made me throw up for 15 minutes, also on the side of the Pennsylvania Turnpike and I got other extremely bad news. All in all bad stuff kept happening to me yesterday, but I had a great day, you see I had a great day because of this relationship I have been building with the Creator. I already knew that those bad moments yesterday were exactly that, moments. They couldn’t consume me because I knew they were temporary and I know that I am protected as the word spoke of yesterday. Today the word tells us that we are soldiers of the Lord, we are his workers. And as workers we have an arduous task (S.A.T. word), but we have an immeasurable amount of work ahead of us. But look at the bright side, good workers get REWARDED. Often times we feel unappreciated, but we will be rewarded for our good works because our employer is no tyrant, he is the maker of all things. And our reward is the most simplest thing that is so very hard to achieve; peace of the mind, body and soul. We should feel good when we do the work of the Lord, its actually quite simple work. We smile, we encourage others, we lift each other up as a family. We keep within us the principles that are laid before us. Don’t be fooled by rough times, it is then that we must work harder because one of our hating competitors also known as the devil, is trying to throw some salt in  our game so that we will not experience the true blessing of our work. We can not be bothered with such shenanigans, because we are a mighty people and we have a path. Our path has been paved before us by our Lord, we will work to maintain the road but he has already envisioned a life of everlasting love and happiness for us; Lets get to work. Peace and Grace be unto you!

The ruin of a nation begins in the homes of its people.