Musings and Nuggets

  “They Came!  They Didn’t  Ask Us NOTHING!!” I received a call one evening in February 1999 asking if I would write something pertaining to  the observance of Black History Month. I  was recovering from bronchitis, so I sat in bed and began to write.  At the end of 2 hours, what you are about to read is what flowed from me.    They came.  They didn’t ask us NOTHING!      We were going about doing the things we normally do on any given day.  Because we lived on the coast, the intruders saw us as “easy pickin’s”.  When we saw their hostile faces with their guns, knives, sticks, ropes, whips, and chains, we knew they had an evil agenda.  Although we fought, we were outnumbered and out armed. They came.  They didn’t ask us NOTHING!      We could not understand their language nor could they understand ours, but it did not matter to them.  Pain is a universal language understood by all.  Pain and the threat of pain are both effective persuaders.  It also did not matter that some of us were

                                                                          PRAYER Matthew 6:5-13                             Line Drawing of Praying Hands by Dawn Hudson Prayer is an important tool for anyone who is a follower of Christ.  If you do a little research, you will find that there are different prayers according to purpose, focus, or need.  For example, there are prayers of Supplication, Praise, Confession, Healing, Salvation, etc.  The most well known or recognized prayer is called the Lord’s Prayer found in Matthew 6 where He says, “...In this manner, therefore, pray:...”  Verse 9a  (NKJV) The prayer that I  am sharing this week is one that I read a long time ago that made me smile and check myself. Some of you may be familiar with it.  I ran across it recently, and decided to share. Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess:  “Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old.   Keep me from becoming too talkative, and especially from the unfortunate

  The POWER OF “AS” Matthew 6:12  (NKJV)  And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors” “As” is a small little 2 letter word, but it carries quite a powerful revelation in our key scripture.   Perhaps you have heard or may have even said one of the following:   “I may forgive you, but I will never forget”! “They didn’t apologize or ask for forgiveness, so I don’t have to forgive them!”   “Bump my head once, shame on you; Bump my head twice, shame on me”!  “Jesus may forgive you, but I’m not Jesus”!  “I don’t believe that their apology is sincere, so I don’t have to accept it”!  You may know of others. Now, why is that little word “AS” so powerful?  Well, it lets us know that forgiveness is “fluid”, meaning that we are forgiven AS we forgive others.  Let’s see what the Bible actually says.  Let’s go to the book of Matthew, Chapter 6 where we find the Lord’s Prayer.  Verses 12, 14, 15 (NLT) “ and forgive us our sins, AS we have forgiven those who sin against us . 13 And

     “What Is Happening To My Life” One of the goals of this blog is to share what I call “nuggets” or “pearls of wisdom”.  I even have an area in the memo section of my phone where I  record them because I have found wisdom in unexpected places like billboards,  commercials,  someone’s testimony,  nature, etc.  The one that I am sharing this week is one that I either read or heard someone say years ago, that was so profound to me that I have shared it many times since. It goes like this.  “What sometimes seems (and feels like) REJECTION ,  is really God’s PROTECTION , and His REDIRECTION .  Now, ponder that for a moment, let that sink in while I break this down into bite sized pieces.   This REJECTION could be based on one’s religion, skin color, culture, or for no apparent reason.  Rejection happens when an individual (or group of people) exclude another individual (or group of people)  by refusing to acknowledge or accept them. . Sometimes we do not understand some of the things