Black History Month - Tamela Mann

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Lord's day and happy Superbowl. I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. To continue on honoring "Black History Month" of a wonderful black man named Paul Robeson. He was born in Princeton, New Jersey to William and his wife Maria. Paul Robeson was a pastor's kid and often sang in church. Despite his upbringing it was plagued with hardship resulting in Paul's mother dying of a house fire when he was just six years old! It also put Paul's father William on an even difficult spot to provide financially for Paul and his three brothers. But Paul continued to thrive as a teenager and performed in theatre such as "Julius Caesar" and "Otrello" and also was a great athlete and excelled in football, basketball, and track! Whew! I believe a proper nickname for him is called "A Jack Of All Trades!" That's rare for a musician to also be good as an athlete. Most people black or white or another culture, are good at one or the other, not both! Paul proved to be the exception to the rule and when he graduated from high school he got a scholarship to Rudgers! That was a big deal especially back then when he became the first black to have ever done so. That would be while he was still in college before graduating he met the woman who became his wife whose name was Eslande Goodie and they married the following year in 1921 until her death in 1965. (They met when he was attending ''Columbia University'' where he was studying law She worked at the hospital to make ends meet until Paul's career took off in the mid to late 1920s. He also played on the "Akron Pros" and later the "Milwaukee Badgers!" Can y'all believe that? It would also be during that time that he took some time off school to sarr in a musical play called ''Taboo''. Others believe that when he did this would open doors for him to become an actor! Wow! A man of many gifts! After quitting football in 1922, he focused on his acting and music career. He was in a stage play called ''The Emperor Jones'' as Brutus which caused his acting career to go to another level. In 1927, Paul and his wife gave birth to their only child whose name was Paul Robeson Jr who later followed in his father's footsteps. As the years continued to go by he continued acting in many stage plays and starred in many movies. He also became known as a great singer with his rich baritone voice and 66 albums and had a total of 195 singles making him a well known singer. He also has been known to have traveled all over the world doing concerts and acting causing him to gain fans not just in America but all over Europe. Wow! That was a big deal for a black especially back then to have had fans ''beyond his culture'' and have fans all over the world. That just lets us know how truly famous he was both in America and around the world! Despite his success Paul had his fair share of hardships. He endured many marital challenges due to some extramarital affairs causing him and his wife to have been close to getting divorced. But by the grace of God they remained together until her death. Paul also spoke up against racism and injustice which made many people uncomfortable and tried to silence him. Paul also got involved with political had Pro Soviet views, activation and challenged the government Because of that the Supreme court took awais passport in 1950 and didn't restore it until 1958 so he couldn't travel all over the world! Whew! But after his passport got restored in 1958 he spent a good amount of time touring and living in Europe for a good amount of time until he returned back in 1963. As he got older he had some health issues but did what he could to help with the ''Civil Rights Movement'' as best as he could. Another constant in his life was his faith in God that helped him overcome the odds. It was also his faith in God that kept him from being bitter at racial injustice that was so prevalent during his lifetime. The other beautiful thing about Paul RObeson was that he loved his family dearly and his son Paul Robeson Jr (born 1927 died in 2014) married his wife Marilyn and had two kids David (died in 1998) and Susan who was born in 1953 making Paul Robeson Sr and his wife Eslande proud grandparents. His son Paul Robeson Jr honored his father's legacy while he was alive and after he died in 1976 in his late seventies. Throughout life's ups and downs, Paul Robeson Sr stayed true to God, helped his fellowman especially against racism, excelled in arts as well as in education, being an athlete in many areas that blacks at that time could have never imagined doing. That's what I wanted to share with you ladies. Blessings, I hope y'all enjoyed the blog, and I can't wait to share more blogs with y'all as we continue on honoring ''Black History Month''. Blessings to each of you ladies, happy Lord's day, and have a blessed week everyone.

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Tuesday! I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. I'm happy to present another blog for "Black History Month" and it's about "Honoring Mandisa's Life". For those of you who may or may not know the precious, anointed, and vocally talented Mandisa went home to heaven two years ago which greatly impacted the Contemporary Christian music world. I was in such shock when it happened and didn't hardly say anything about it but now that two years have passed the Lord had released me to write a blog about it. What was her background life like? Mandisa was born Mandisa Lynne Hundley in 1976 in Citrus Hills, California to John D and his former wife Ruby. Mandisa was the youngest of four children having two older brothers and one older sister. Mandisa's parents later divorced while her father remarried and it was rough on Mandisa and her siblings for awhile. Mandisa got saved when she was sixteen years old and has walked with the Lord from that moment on until the day she died in 2024 and went to heaven. She graduated from "El Camino Fundamental High school" in 1994 and for a season attended "American River College" in Sacramento, California where she studied vocal Jazz. She later transferred to studied at a black college called "Fisk University" located in Nashville, Tennessee prior to her graduating from there in 2000. Prior to her becoming a solo artist, she was a member of the "Jubilee Singers" and sang back up vocals for Contemporary Christian artist Sandi Patty, country singers Shania Twain and Trisha Yearwood and even sang at Christian speaker and author Beth Moore's worship team. Then in the summer of 2005 Mandisa auditioned for season 5 of "American Idol" in Chicago, Illinois! (Season 4 of "American Idol" had just concluded and auditions for season 4 took place in the summer of 2004.) She sang "Fallin" by R&B artist Alicia Keys and got a golden ticket to Hollywood but her time on "American Idol" wasn't without its challenges. One of the judges Simon Cowell made a comment asking. "Do we need a bigger stage this year?" (Side note, Mandisa is also known for her powerful dynamic voice too!) What meant was he made was a snarky comment about her weight if y'all can believe that! I know right? But prior to Mandisa making it to the top 24 in the year 2006, she told Simon she forgave him for what he did and surprisingly he apologized to her after that! Whew! God works in mysterious ways! Mandisa progressed from the top 24 unto the top 12! How far did she go in the competition? Well she made it as far as to the top 9 contestants! Who else was on that season and who was the winner and runner up? Some of the other contestants on season 5 of "American Idol" were Paris Bennett (her mom Jemecia and Grandma Ann Nesby were part of gospel ensemble "Sounds Of Blackness") and country artist Kellie Pickler! Kellie Pickler came in sixth place while Paris came in fifth place! The winner was Taylor Hicks the second guy to have won the competition (Reuben Studdard won season 2 of "American Idol" in 2003.) while Katharine Mcphee was the runner up! (Side note all those contestants, winner, and runner up have gone on to be wonderful recording artists from that time on.) Though Mandisa got eliminated, she sang on "The Tonight Show" and did the "American Idol" summer tour with Taylor Hicks, Katharine Mcphee, and the rest of the top 12 contestants! It would be after the "American Idol" summer tour, she was discovered by major Christian record label Sparrow records and released several albums after that. Mandisa was featured on Contemporary Christian artist Toby Mac's "Lose My Soul" song from his 2007 album "Portable Sounds" along with gospel artist Kirk Franklin. In 2007, Mandisa released her debut album called "True Beauty" that featured eleven songs on there with singles from the album called "Only The World", "God Speaking", and "Voice Of A Savior". She also was featured on the Christmas song "Christmas Day" by Contemporary Christian artist Michael W Smith from his 2007 Christmas album "It's A Wonderful Christmas "! Also in the year 2007, she released her first book called "Idol Eyes:My New Perceptive On Faith, Fat, & Fame". Mandisa released several more albums such as "It's Christmas" her only Christmas album released in 2008, "Freedom" released in 2009, "What If We Were Real" released in 2011, "Overcomer" released in 2013, and her final album "Out Of The Dark". Some of her hit singles were "My Deliverer", "Good Morning ", "Stronger", and "Overcomer" just to name a few. She has toured and befriended a number of Contemporary Christian artists such as Toby Mac, Matthew West, the "Newsboys", and Danny Hokey just to name a few. She released her final book in 2022 called "Out Of The Dark:My Journey Through The Shadows To Find God's Joy" that addressed her struggled in a much deeper level. Mandisa had always been transparent about her depression, mental health, weight struggles, and even dealing with singleness. Because of that, it made her so relatable to her fans as well as outsiders as well too. Even though Mandisa never married nor had kids, she has made many friends over the years, had close connections with family members, as well as had many fans that were like family to her. I remember when I saw Mandisa in concert which took place in 2021 when she toured with the "Newsboys" and other Christian artists as well too. Mandisa had issues with her physical health mostly due to her weight which had been up and down over the years leading many to believe that possibly contributed to her death and arrival to heaven in 2024. Many Contemporary Christian artists as well as fans expressed their prayers and condolences to her family members and many paid tribute to her which was so precious. I hope and pray that this blog blessed you and it shows how God can use a vessel mightily for His kingdom and how talents used for Him can touch the lives of many people whether they know Him personally or not! That's what I wanted to share with you ladies today. Blessings to each of you ladies, have a blessed week, and happy "Black History Month!"

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Lord's day! I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. I'm happy to present another blog for "Black History Month" called "William J Seymour Azuza Street Revivalist". I'm sure some of y'all may know a thing or two about "Azusa Street Revival" and I'm gonna share in this blog about this precious revivalist. He was born in 1870 and died in 1922 when he was 52 years old. What was his life like? Well he was born in Centerville, Louisiana to former slaves who raised him in the Baptist denomination. (Side note many blacks Christians or not are usually raised in the Baptist denomination especially in the South. The crazy thing is as a black I was never raised in the Baptist denomination because I've been a non-denominational and Assemblies of God Christian since I was eleven years old!) Later he relocated to Cincinnati, Ohio where he heard teachings through Martin Well Knapps and Daniel S Warner where they taught about the baptism in the Holy Ghost, a teaching he never heard before. He later moved to Houston, Texas and attended a black holiness denomination led by Lucy F Farrow who arranged for Seymour to attend Parham's Bible School. Sadly Seymour couldn't sit in the classroom because he was black (Don't forget that racism existed back then even in Bible colleges and churches which is so sad) but he listened outside the classroom. He understood the importance of the baptism in the Holy Spirit and Neeley Terry heard Seymour preach in Houston and told him the church was seeking a pastor. That also was the time that he met his wife Jennie who fell in love and got married in 1906. They were married for sixteen years until the time of his death in 1922. Later they relocated to Los Angeles, California William preached about the Holy Spirit and had resistance! The following Sunday he returned with the doors locked but he and his wife Jennie stayed at the house of Edward S Lee and had held Bible studies and a prayer meeting there! After that word began to spread among black and white Christians in California and many received the baptism in the Holy Ghost. The meetings started off meeting at a house not a "traditional church building" but overtime the meetings grew as the Spirit moved. Revival often starts small but it's the Lord that enables growth! After spending time at the house Seymour and others met with encounters with the Holy Ghost, sadly the front porch collapsed and they rented out a former Steven African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church at 312 Azusa Street in early April. It would be in that rented church that the famous ''Azusa Street Revival'' took place where there were testimonies prayer for the sick, shouting praises to God, altar calls for those needing salvation, sanctification and Spirit baptism, singing in tongues, preaching, times of silence, and persons ''falling under the power''! (Falling under the power means getting ''slain in the Spirit''.) That revival started in 1906 and concluded in 1915 for almost ten years where blacks, hispanics, whites, and others prayed and sang together creating a dimension of equality that allowed men, men, and children to have fellowship collectively and participate in the worship as led by the Spirit. That was huge for back then especially remember in the Southern states there was segregation between whites and blacks (remember the Jim Crow laws?) and there would have been no way for blacks and whites to have met at the same place in the South due to the horrors of racism. The other thing is that God is a God of unity not disunity and God's Spirit breaks out when there's unity and California as well as the Northern states were the few states that allowed for blacks and whites to be together which is why I believe why the Spirit was able to break out easier. The other point I want to make is that Christians regardless of race were hungry for a deeper walk with the Lord and were earnestly seeking Him which is another reason why I believe that revival broke out in California. The ''Azusa Street'' revival began to attract countless other Christians even outside of California such as missionaries Bernt Bernsten, George and Mary Berg, AG and Lillian Garr, Lizzie Frazier and attracted everyday Christians such as Ivey Campell, and Elizabeth V Bakker just to name a few.A Christian white man Charles Parham (Seymour sat outside of his Bible college sometime earlier) heard about the move of the Spirit and moved to Los Angeles, California and met WIlliam Seymour. For a time, Seymour and Partham worked together for a time as the ''Azusa Street Revival'' continued to grow more and more soon attracting thousands of people. But as the revival continued going on would bring its own sets of challenges in various ways. One of the most unfortunate things that happened was there was division that took place during the revival which created a number of problems. One of the main sad things was that Charles Partham sadly put his ''own culture'' above trying to be united with blacks and believed in the racial and cultural superiority of his race! (Yes that's right racism sadly existed between Pentecostals and anytime there's racism that creates significant problems.) There were many sharp disagreements that got to a point that instead of seeking to understand Seymour he breached his connection with him due to racism and pride and questioned Seymour's view of speaking in tongues. Plus Partham was charged with domy and there were other negative presses against Partham destroying his reputation. But despite that, Seymour, his wife, kids, and few thousand loyal followers continued at the church he had been at with many lives being impacted for the gospel and Christians being baptized in the Holy Ghost. Seymour who became known as the ''Projector Of The Apostolic Movement'' remained the last decades of his life in obscurity being faithful to the Lord, his family, and church until the Lord called him home to heaven at 52 years old in 1922. It would be after the ''Azusa Street Revival'' that two Pentecostal denominations were formed such as the ''Assemblies of God'' (AG) and ''Church Of God In Christ'' (COGIC) with the AG taken over by white Christian Pentecostals and COGIC taken over by black Pentecostal Christians. Mr Seymour's love for God and legacy will never be forgotten and is still being remembered to this very day. That's what I wanted to share with you ladies. I felt it was good and wonderful to share the first blog for ''Black History Month'' honoring a black revivalist who propelled one of the great revivals in the early 1900s ''Azusa Street'' something to remember and cherish. I believe it's also important to know that God can use anyone no matter their age, race, or status and it's still God's will for revival to break out in our city, state of Wisconsin, and even nationwide. The question is are we hungry for it, willing to pray for it, prepare for it, and willing to harvest souls for the kingdom as well? I pray this blog encourages you ladies to believe with me for revival to break out in our city, state, and nation just as it did at ''Azusa Street'' if not on a greater level. That's what I wanted to share with you ladies, Blessings to each of you ladies, happy Lord's day, and happy Black History Month!''

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Tuesday! I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. I'm happy to present another blog called "Jacob Wrestles With God". This story in the Bible doesn't get talked about very much in the body of Christ but I believe it's a very important one. You can read this from the Bible mentioned in the book of Genesis 32:24-35 when Jacob was left alone and wrestled with the man from night until the crack of dawn! (Side note Jacob is the son Isaac and Rebekah, twin brother of Esau, husband of Rachel and Leah, and father of Joseph in the Old Testament, his eleven brothers, and of his daughter Dinah!) Here's another important point about Jacob. Jacob for those of you who may or may not remember was a "trickster". Jacob wanted the birthright of his twin brother Esau (Esau was the older twin and Jacob was the younger twin) so he along with his mom Rebekah tricked blind Isaac with hairy skins to get the blessing! Not only that Esau sold his birthright in order to gain a boll of soup from his twin brother Jacob! In other words Jacob manipulated and used deceit to get what he wanted! You ladies can read about that account in Genesis 25 and Genesis 27 that talk about those circumstances. When Esau found out about it he plotted to kill Jacob for robbing his blessing but Rebekah sent Jacob away to his Uncle Laban and lived with his for twenty years! As I mentioned Jacob married Rachel and Leah mentioned in Genesis 29 and y'all will learn there was severe tension in their relationship which is for another blog. Also Jacob had tins of kids with his wives and servants which I believe I'll share for another blog. Also Laban changed Jacob's wages a number of times while working for Uncle Laban proving that unfortunately Laban was a manipulator and trickster as well too. It's important to understand what Jacob's life was like before he wrestled with God and as y'all can see he didn't have much godly character. Even though Jacob had a dream mentioned in Genesis 28 about angels going up and down the ladder with God at the top, there were areas in his character that needed to change. So when Jacob was by himself he wrestled with an angel even though some theologians believe it was possibly with Jesus! Whew! The Bible says that Jacob's leg was hurt but he wouldn't stop wrestling! The man urged him to let him go but Jacob refused to stop until he got blessed! It was then that God asked him what his name was and it's Jacob but then his name got changed to Israel! Names in the Bible were important because names defined identity. For example the name Abraham means "Father of many nations". Sarah means "Princess of many nations". The name Emmanuel means "God is with us". The name Jesus means "Savior or salvation is of the Lord". Christ means "Messiah" and Messiah means "Anointed One". These are some examples of names being important in the Bible. Jacob's name means "Subplanter or deceivor" (Satan's name means deceivor too!) but the name Israel means "Prince". He fought with the Lord until his name was changed and his life was preserved! Why was the wrestle important and how does that apply to today? Well Jacobs wrestle had to do with dying to his flesh as well as him recognizing his need to change his identity. Isn't it important for us Christians with the help of the Holy Spirit to die to the flesh and let go of our old identity? Before we knew Christ as Lord and Savior and encountered the Holy Spirit evidence of speaking in tongues we were lost, hell bound, and lived life with no purpose. But because of Christ we have a new identity which is why we're called Christians. Jacob needed a new identity which is why he got the name Israel. Another point I want to make is what things are you ladies wrestling with? Is it your health, a wayward son or daughter, issues in your marriage, financial challenges, legal battles, trauma of your past, or singleness? What are prayers you poured out to God or what spiritual battles are you currently dealing with that are overwhelming? I pray that the story of Jacob is an encouragement to y'all to know that God sees your struggle and your wrestle. Have you wrestled to submit to the will of God above your flesh especially in challenging situations? I know I can relate to that and so can Jacob. Let the struggle and the wrestle make you stronger and know that you'll come out on the other side stronger in the Lord more. If you ladies you're going through spiritual battles and need a safe place to pour your heart out especially in prayer I'd encourage you ladies to join my virtual weekly prayer meetings and have a supportive community pray with you about your personal issues. Of course in the weekly prayer meeting we also will continue to pray for America to come back to God in addition to praying for your personal needs! That's what I wanted to share with you ladies. Blessings to each of you ladies and have a blessed week in the Lord!

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Lord's day! I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. The title I have for this blog is called "My Birthday Week" blog. Well last week was my birthday week which was a bit of a rollercoaster week. It started with me getting a ride to church from a lovely deaçon and his wife to church while my mom picked me up from church. I recorded a music video on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Tiktok to a Christian song called "The Lion And The Lamb" by "Leeland" and "Big Daddy Weave" and hosted my regular virtual Bible study. On Dr. King Jr Day I posted on Facebook, watched part of the "King miniseries" on YouTube, and got to talk to my wonderful godfather on Zoom! That Tuesday and Thursday I taught my online class, and hosted my regular virtual prayer meeting. Now let's talk about the day of my birthday and my actual birthday dinner. My actual birthday was on a Wednesday and I received a ton of birthdays on Facebook and shared a music video cover song by gospel artist Kirk Franklin called "My Life My Love My All" from his 2002 album "The Rebirth Of Kirk Franklin''. I shared that on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Tiktok and Kirk Franklin is one of my favorite gospel artists of all time too. I also got to zoom call with a friend that's locked up and I got quite a few birthday phone call wishes. I also got to bring a cake to church to celebrate my birthday and got to celebrate with my teens and youth leaders. I also received a few birthday cards with money in them and my wonderful godfather and his colleagues wished me a happy birthday as well. (My godfather always has made me feel special and my birthday is no different. His care for me feels like nurture and like I'm the most important person in the room!) I also got some SNOW on my birthday lol! That Saturday on January 24th I shared another music video cover by a male gospel sextet band "Take 6" "If We Ever Needed The Lord" on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Tiktok before heading to "Red Robin" restaurant at 6 PM. I actually created that event on January 10th as a Facebook public event and invited various folks on Facebook to go as well as invited others through text. It was a very cold week but by the grace of God many family members, friends, and even Pastor Bowen showed up! I received lots of hugs, birthday cards with money, as well as lots of love. Some women from my online women's program showed up which was so precious as well. I appreciate all of them showing up despite it being brutally cold outside! It has also been a rough time over the past several months and it was so nice to have some time to have joy in my life after dealing with so much heaviness! (Side note some of the hard times consist of healing of trauma, dealing with a loved one with legal troubles, and incarceration, among dealing with the day to day challenges! I've also never sugarcoated in blog form, on Facebook, or at my virtual Bible studies how life can be extremely complex and challenging.) I'm thankful that the Lord has given me another year of life knowing that not everyone gets to have another birthday. I also remember hearing an old saying go. ''What a blessing it is to be among the land of the living.'' Psalm 90;12 says ''Teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts to wisdom'' James 4;14 says ''Life is but a vapor''. Because of those things being true that's why I value celebrating my birthday as well as other people's birthdays. I also know how important it is to thank God for one's many blessings and gaining another birthday much less another day is a blessing in disguise something that some of us sadly take for granted. Plus I like a celebration in the midst of the brutal cold weather that we in Wisconsin sometimes get! (Yes that's right I was born during one of the coldest days of the year! My mom often reminds me of that often lol.) For those that have been able to come to my birthday dinner thank you so much and those that wished me happy birthday thank you so much. It means so much to more than you know. For those of you ladies who have supported my online women's ministry for the past five years as well as purchased my books thank you as well. It means so much to me. That's what I wanted to share with you ladies. Blessings to each of you ladies, happy Lord's day, and have a blessed week everyone.

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Tuesday! I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. The title I have for this blog is a bit unusual and the title I have it is called "A Letter To Prisoners". Y'all might be thinking. "Why write a blog about it?" That's because I feel nine times out of ten prisoners often are ignored by society and I know that's for a number of reasons. Most of the time prisoners are usually people that commit crimes and often have to suffer the consequences of their actions as they rightfully should. That's especially true of the guy that shot the late Charlie Kirk who has to pay the consequences of what he had done. (Side note I pray that he truly repents and takes responsibility for his actions before God and man so he can be saved.) I also have had family members and a old friend who were in prison and I remember when I'd be at my grandma's house on Christmas Eve when my aunt (my dad's younger sister) would be on her cellphone talking to a prisoner! Who was that prisoner? One of my uncles! She'd be on her cellphone with him, he'd ask how is the family doing and ask if any of them wanted to talk to him! Want to guess who he wanted to talk to? Me!!!!!!! I would talk to him maybe five minutes and update him briefly about my life and relatives as well as wish him a Merry Christmas! This relative I think is out of prison now but I remember those Christmas Eve's at my grandma's house that I talked to him over my aunt's cellphone and how happy he was to hear from loved ones! The other point ladies I want to make is being a prisoner is considered being the "least of these" in society. But how many of y'all know that the gospel needs to get to them and God loves them though He hates what they have done! Remember the wise saying. "Christ hates the sin but loves the sinner" is true! Prisoners are no different. Let me also share this with you ladies that's hard to talk about. Many prisoners do get incarcerated for just reasons and there are others in prison for unjust reasons. I think about people in the Bible such as Joseph in the Old Testament lied on by Potiphar's wife, (Genesis 39) the Apostle Peter put in prison, (mentioned in Acts 12) and the Apostle Paul one of the greatest apostles and Christians of all time was in prison multiple times! Let's also not forget about the late Dr Martin Luther King Jr who got arrested a number of times and put in jail to the point his loved ones didn't know where he was! (Side note we just celebrated Dr Martin Luther King Day recently and wrote a blog in his honor!) I'm writing this right now because I have a very dear friend of mine a male (I won't disclose his name for various reasons) that's going through this right now and my heart has mixed emotions about that right now. I also am aware of some pastors (won't disclose names for various reasons) that went through legal troubles last year that could be facing jail time. Of course it could be for just or unjust reasons but regardless of that those guys and a dear friend of mine whom I love dearly are on my mind. I want to say to this dear friend of mine in prison that I love you so very very much and I miss you so much. There's not a day that goes by I don't think of you, pray for you on a regular basis or ask other Christians to pray for you too. For pastors who got arrested you know who you are and I want y'all to know I'm praying for y'all and your families. Jesus mentioned in Matthew 25:31-46 about the righteous going to eternal life how they fed the hungry, gave drinks to the thirsty, clothed the naked, invited strangers, visited the sick and in prison. Jesus said "Whatsoever you did for the least of these you did unto Me!" Isn't that powerful? Caring about prisoners is important to Jesus y'all! Whether they're there for the right or wrong reasons He still loves them and died on the cross for them. For those that are incarcerated for just reasons sometimes you have to pay the consequences for your actions but if you ask God to forgive you He'll forgive you! The Bible says in 1John 1;9 "If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness". Man may not forget what you have done but God can forgive y'all and make your lives new! Maybe He allowed you to be in prison to make you think about your actions and perhaps to give your life to Him! For those that are incarcerated for unjust reasons like a dear friend of mine I pray that God vindicates you and exposes the wicked court system. I pray that God will turn what the enemy meant for evil and God turn it around for your good. For pastors dealing with jail time you're in my prayers as well as your families whether it was for a just or unjust reasons. Now am I condoning prisoners lifestyle choices? No I'm not! But they need love, prayer, and care just like the rest of us do. I'm not able to send them a letter but I can write a blog about it though. Ladies I want to join me to pray for those in prison. Whether they're there for a just reason or unjust reason I plan to mention them on my prayer night meetings. Again to my dearest friend in prison I love you very much and most of all God loves you. I don't care what others think about you or think I shouldn't care about you but I still do. Where you are hasn't changed my concern for you, prayers for you, and my deepest care. I hope and pray to hear from you soon and I'm believing God to vindicate you, fight for you, and for your family too. My heart is for you each and everyday and I'm thankful the Lord has given me an outlet to let my deepest thoughts, my troubles, and prayers unto this blog. I don't know if you my friend will read this blog in the future but I express my deepest care, prayers, and thoughts towards you during this time and will ask other Christians to pray for you too especially for justice to prevail. I also pray that if those pastors who got in jail this past year sinned that God will forgive them and God will restore their ministries too. That's what I wanted to share with you ladies. Blessings to each of you ladies, have a blessed week, and join with me in prayer for these precious prisoners now and throughout the rest of the year. God bless!

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Lord's day! I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. I'm happy to present another blog called "Honoring Dr Martin Luther King Jr". Actually tomorrow is the day that we celebrate his birthday though technically his actual birthday is January 15th though this year we honor it on my cousin Jerry's birthday this year. What's to know and honor about Dr King Jr. First let's start at his humble beginnings. First of all he was born on January 15th as Michael King Jr to a Baptist pastor named Michael King Sr (born 1899 died 1984) and his wife Alberta King (born 1903 died 1974) a church organist. King Jr had two other siblings and older sister Christine King Farris (born 1927 died 2023) and AD (born 1930 died 1969.) and they were born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. King Jr came from a family lineage of pastors from his mom's side of the family and the church he grew up attending was "Ebenezer Baptist Church ". He grew up during the Great Depression yet the family prospered during that time. He grew up during the "Jim Crow years" especially in the South because way back then blacks and whites in the South were separated. That meant that blacks and whites in the South couldn't go to the same schools, couldn't work the same jobs, couldn't live in the same neighborhoods, couldn't use the same bathroom, couldn't drink from the same water fountain, couldn't eat the same restaurants, and couldn't even go to the same church if y'all could believe that! That sounds terrible now but that's how it was for many many years. It wouldn't be until 1934 while still during the "Great Depression" Reverend King Sr traveled overseas to Germany where he learned about Protestant Reformation leader, 95 thesis writer, and hymn writer to "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" Martin Luther how he changed the world left a lasting impression on him. When Reverend King Sr returned back to the United States, he changed his name from Michael King Sr to Martin Luther King Sr! He also changed his five year old son Michael King Jr to Martin Luther King Jr! Dr King Jr was a very sensitive child and sang at his church growing up and took violin and piano lessons. Dr King Jr was so smart that he skipped ninth grade and twelfth grade and graduated from high school when he was fifteen years old in 1944! That was unusual both then and now! King Jr decided to attend ''Morehouse College'' (a college that his dad attended years earlier) and graduated from there with his bachelor's in 1948 at the age of nineteen years old! He later attended ''Crozer Theological Seminary'' and graduated at 22 years old in 1951 and attended ''Boston University'' and graduated from there when he was 26 years old in 1955. It would be during his college years that he met a wonderful Christian man named Benjamin Mays who was a mentor to him, explained the gospel of Christ to him, and he got saved. It would be eventually Dr King Jr relocated to Boston, Massachusetts is where he met Coretta Scott through a mutual friend. Coretta was up there attending ''New England Conversatory Of Music'' and it would be on their first date, King Jr knew he would marry her. They got married in 1953 when King Jr was 24 years old while Coretta was 26 years old and remained married until his brutal death at 39 years old in 1968. While they were married they had four children. Their names were Yolanda ''Yokie'' Deniese King, (Born 1955 died 2007) Dr Martin Luther King 3, (born 1957) Dexter King, (born 1961 died 2024) and Berniece King (born 1963) whom many of them would follow their father's footsteps to becoming ministers. The bus boycott started in 1955 when the late Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat and got arrested. Dr King Jr had an idea for blacks to refuse to ride buses and walk to work until all buses could be racially integrated. It worked and that's how the Civil rights movement began. It wasn't easy though. When Dr King Jr was at a meeting, his wife, baby girl Yolanda, and a friend were at the house and someone shot a bomb in their living room. Someone had to help Dr King Jr get home to make sure his family was okay and to his relief knew his loved ones were okay. There would be many times that the FBI followed Dr King Jr around and he got unjustly arrested a number of times. Many times his family didn't know where he was until one day President John F Kennedy heard about the situation and demanded Dr King Jr get out of jail and give him his freedom. At times the late evangelist Dr Billy Graham sometimes gave bail money to help Dr King Jr out of jail too. Dr King Jr led many marches leading some of those who marched for freedom got arrested while the firefighters used water hoses to try to stop them. Dr King Jr believed in peaceful protests instead of violence because he believed ''Violence leads to more violence''. Dr King Jr met many Presidents and even befriended the late Dr Billy Graham and was asked to pray for one of his crusades in the North. Dr King Jr was also a minister and gave great speeches one of the most famous speeches was called ''I Have A Dream''. He shared in the speech that his dream was for blacks and whites to hold hands and for his children to be known for the content of their character versus the color of their skin. He gave that speech in 1963 when he was 34 years old at Washington DC that was viewed by millions all across television in America and all over the world. The following year in 1964 he won the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of 35 years old and politicians passed the ''Civil Rights Act'' outlawed discrimination on race, religion, sex, or national origin restaurants, theaters, hotels, education, or employment. Dr King Jr suffered blood, sweat, tears, and prayers doing all he can to bring whites and blacks together despite the many different challenges that occurred because of that. Also many famous people supported him such as the late gospel artist Mahalia Jackson and the late ''Queen Of Soul'' Aretha Franklin who often sang and supported his marches as well too. In Spring of 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee on top of the balcony ''Lorraine Motel'' and many mourned when he died but his legacy lives on. Not long after he died the ''King Museum'' was founded not long after that and Dr Martin Luther King Day became a national holiday in 1986 every third Monday in the month of January. His wife Coretta continued fighting for her late husband's cause until the day she died in her seventies in 2006. Ladies I know without a doubt that Dr King Jr had the heart of our Heavenly King King Jesus willing to do all he could to bring unity when there was division. There's still alot of division in our nation right now and I pray we in the body of Christ be people of peace. I believe in racial equality and believe that the gospel needs to get out to blacks and whites as well as all cultures. It's my prayer to keep Dr King's dream alive and to keep Christ's dream alive too. I absolutely hate racism to the core and from time to time tried to rear its ugly head but prayer can stop that as well standing up for justice and truth. That's what I wanted to share with you ladies. Let's honor Dr King Jr today and tomorrow (as well as February being ''Black History Month'') and do our best to carry on his legacy as well as the gospel out to all. Blessings to each of you ladies, happy Lord's day, happy Dr King Jr Day, and have a blessed week!

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Tuesday! I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. I'm happy but sad to present another blog called "Pray For Minnesota". It's another very sad thing that this has occurred of another death has occurred in Minnesota. There was a lady named Renee Nicole Good who was a wife, mom of three, poet, and writer who got killed. As Good was driving home on a Wednesday night she encountered a group of ICE agents on a snowy street. Then an officer was approaching her car demanding she open the door and grabbing the handle. As that was occurring a different ICE officer pulled out his weapon and fired two shots into the vehicle at close range. It's revealed she loved to sing, studied vocals in college, studied creative writing at "Old Dominion University".She was married twice and her two kids were from her first marriage while her youngest was from her second marriage. She also was a podcaster and won a prize in 2020 for one of her works as well too. It also was revealed that she was a devoted Christian who took part of the youth mission trip to Northern Ireland. I believe I can relate to this woman a bit because I believe in the Lord, love to sing, as well as to write too. This woman was a artsy woman while loving the Lord and her family. The sad thing is that the Trump administration paints her as a domestic terrorist while her loved ones don't even believe any of that to be true. Isn't it sad how reporters and the media can twist things around? This shows that this precious woman was a wife, mother, and a woman who was very gifted. Her mom even stated what a wonderful person she was who was compassionate, loving, forgiving, and affectionate. I can only imagine how her heart must have felt when she heard that her daughter got killed and I only can imagine what her kids must be thinking too. It was after her death that many protesters have taken the streets after this incident and sadly the FBI had to get involved with this situation. Ladies I don't know about y'all but this is absolutely heartbreaking. To think that a precious individual was minding their own business driving and suddenly to be stopped by the ICE who dared take a life and we're a week into the new year 2026! Also many people believe that it's either in abuse of power or self-defense. Either way is not a pretty situation is why we in the body of Christ need to be in the attitude of prayer. Number one pray for Goods family members who have to deal with the grief and loss, pray for the families salvation. It's important to pray if it was an abuse of power that people who did it would take responsibility for their actions, be dealt with justly, and repent to the Lord most of all. It's also important to pray that protestors stay faith and protest in a nonviolent way as the late Dr Martin Luther King Jr believed in. It's important to pray for the safety and protection over that whole area because this is the second shooting that occurred in Minnesota after the shooting at the Catholic school last year. We in the body of Christ need to pray against the murderous spirit that is so rampant in our nation because we have witnessed so many shootings! We need to clear the blood of Jesus and pray against shootings because I believe as the Bible says in John 10:10 "The enemy cometh not but to steal, kill, and to destroy". We must also pray that God takes what the enemy meant for evil and turn it around for good. Ladies I'm sure all of us have lost a loved one at some point and remember how it felt to have people love and pray for you during your time of need? I certainly remember that as did the Kirk family (the late Charlie Kirk's family members I'm referring to) this past year, and now this precious family is dealing with this. Please pray for Goods family, the community, and the law enforcement through all of this. In times like this this can make people turn to God or away from God. Let's pray that the victims turn to God verses away from God. Let's also not forget how valuable life is. Old timers used to say. "What a blessing it is to be in the land among the living. Psalm.90:12 says "Teach us to number our days to know how few they are. Help us to live them as we should ". None of us knows when our last day on earth will be is why it's so important to prepare for eternity and to.livr for God all our days as did she. That's what I wanted to share with you ladies. Blessings to each of you ladies, have a blessed week, pray for Minnesota, and let us watch and pray more this year 2026 than ever before!

Hi ladies it's me again and happy Lord's day! I hope and pray that each of you ladies and your families are doing well. I'm happy to present another blog called "Setting The New Year Right" and in this blog ill be sharing some ideas what we can start doing in the month of January. Number one start the year off with God. I know y'all might be thinking. "Dugh!" Yes I really mean that. Gospel artist and worship leader Israel Houghton back in 2012 released "Jesus Be The Center Of It All" and it's a song that's still sung in many churches today. I believe it's essential for a Christian to pray that Christ be the center of this year and of our lives. Plus Matthew 6:33 says "Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven and all it's righteousness and all.these other things shall be added unto ye as well." Start off in prayer and the Word and draw closer to Him this year more than last year. Number two gain clarity on your vision. Do you know why people don't keep New Year's resolutions? Lack of vision. The Bible says in Proverbs 29:18 "Without a vision the people perish" and Habbakuk 2:2 says "Write the vision and make it plain". Why is that important? Apart from starting the year with God you got to ask God to give you vision. Without a vision you'll wander aimlessly, do the same old same old. Someone has said. "If you've always did what you always done you'll get the same results ". It's important to come into 2026 with vision. Another important thing to do in 2026 is set realistic goals. I believe this trips alot of people up because many people go into the new year with crazy goals which is great but they don't break the goals up into small parts. For example if someone wants to lose weight lose small weight first then work your way up. If you want to travel more this year start small and work your way up. If you want to draw closer to the Lord how does that look like? If you want to connect with new start small and I believe that y'all are getting the point. Ask God what realistic goals to set is so essential to get better results. Another point to remember is to ask God to stay disciplined. Being disciplined is not always easy but necessary. We know that the Winter Olympics will take place in February 2026 a month from now and any athlete will tell you it takes discipline to make it to the Olympics whether Summer or Winter! Athletes have to eat healthy foods, train with coaches, workout alot, and be the best they can be in their sport to win Olympic gold, silver, or bronze. They have to do it day in and day out even if they don't feel like it! It's important for us God's people to be disciplined too. We need to be disciplined in our prayer life, time in the Word, in our character, and even in our goals. Here's another thing that's challenging for people to have the right discipline to making goals happen. Christian ask God for help for whatever areas you need discipline in and go from there. Another important thing to remember is to after doing all you can do yield the results to God. This for me is often very challenging for many reasons. I know the importance of starting the year with God, vision, realistic goals, and being disciplined but yielding to the Lord for the results is often difficult especially if it's not the way we want it. Yet I as well as you ladies need to remember the Scripture Psalm 37:4 says "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart". That's a Scripture I often have to keep before me and yield all that I have to God. Another important thing to do in 2026 is to evaluate what stays, what goes, and what needs to be rearranged. Think about what happened last year in 2025. What were lessons you learned both good and bad? Also what things do you want to bring with you in 2026? Obviously bring the Lord with you, new vision and new dreams. What are things to leave behind? Old regrets, bad relationships, past disappointments among other things. What things need to be rearranged? What needs to be a priority? Of course that's why it's important to seek the Lord on that and He knows what needs to stay, go, or be rearranged. Lastly surround yourself with the right people on your journey. The Bible says in Proverbs 27:17 "As iron sharpeneth iron so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend". The old saying goes. "Show me your friends and show me your future". It's critical to be aware who you surround yourself and myself with. Are they pulling me closer to the Lord or leading me away from the Lord? Are they pulling me closer to my goals or away from them. Only you can determine that answer. Ladies these are things that the Lord laid on my heart to share with y'all today principles I pray that y'all will apply to your life. These are important principles for me to apply as well too as I seek to make progress in my Christian walk among other things. Blessings to each of you ladies, happy Lord's day, and have a blessed week everyone.