A Matter Of The Mind

Broken Promises

2009-02-23T17:17:00.007-06:00

Several years ago I met a fellow believer in the airport while returning from my daughter’s wedding in Florida. We engaged in great conversation, discovering many mutual interests. He was a decorated war veteran who'd worked in the Pentagon. As our conversation continued, he disclosed that he was in Florida on a business trip, and proceeded to pull out a book with pictures and descriptions of the properties his company owned, easily $5 - $10 million in real estate.

Cecil said he was looking for someone with my skills and background, that he would contact me upon returning home, and retain my services. After deplaning, his wife met Cozette, and we continued in great fellowship. We prayed and agreed as touching those things spoken. Then he said, "The Lord says for you to find a home for sale below market value, and my company will purchase it - for you." I did exactly as instructed - nothing happened. I contacted him regularly for months - no response. To this day he emails pithy anecdotes and inspirational stories, yet no mention of his promise. I wanted to ask him “Why?" Instead I took the matter to God, who gave me Philippians 4 peace surpassing my understanding, and I let it go.

What do you do when others fail to keep their word? Keep marching. I prayed the prayer of Stephen. "Lay not this sin to his (their) charge.” Though I don’t understand Cecil's behavior, I am only responsible for my actions and reactions to this and every situation which comes across my path. It no longer mattered what Cecil's motives were - it only mattered that my spirit remained pure and clear. I could not allow this to infect my heart and affect my future hope and faith in God.

I spoke with Robert the other day, a young man who tragically lost his mother at an early age. Hurt beyond description, he couldn’t understand why people said they would be there for him and haven’t. He was hurting deeply. I attempted to console him but don’t think I did a very good job. I asked forgiveness on behalf of everyone who made - and broke - promises to him, and encouraged him to let it go. He thanked me.

For every promise made and not kept, let's ask forgiveness. One positive that comes from these experiences is whenever asked to pray for someone, I don't promise to - I do it on the spot. Tomorrow's a mystery – life happens.

I don’t know that I’ll ever know why, but I do know that Cecil and Robert taught me the value of careful self-examination, scrutiny of and responsibility for my words, to under promise and over deliver, and to remember the old adage that if something sounds too good to be true, it more than likely is.

The ultimate act of self-mutilation is the violation of one's own word. © ® 2009 Promise Communications.

The Ministry Of Hearing

2009-02-13T06:38:00.004-06:00

Children are such marvelous gifts from God. When we look at and study them carefully, we can glean profound truths and insights about ourselves. One thing I’ve noticed about the three year old my wife cares for is the fact that each time she is asked a question, or given a direct instruction, her immediate reply is “huh?” This response requires Cozette to repeat herself. Well, after noticing the pattern, and the fact that compliance was contingent upon having to repeat herself, Cozette brought to the child’s attention the need to listen. Children are focused on getting their needs, desires, wants and issues tended to. If their focus is their agenda, they seldom hear anything else the first time. Also, the non-responsive “huh?” gives them a little more time to think, especially in areas where they’ve been caught with their hands in the cookie jar, so to speak.

Does the fact that I listen to God in one area mean that He has my complete attention in every area? No. Is my love for God measured by my receptivity and responsiveness to His Voice? Yes. Is my agenda screaming so loudly in my ears until I can’t hear God? Often. When He speaks, how many times have I said, “huh?” Many more than I count. And yet God, like a patient caregiver, does not count it against me – He just keeps on loving me. John the Disciple was so blown away by this love until he wrote, and I paraphrase, “What kind of love is this that God has poured upon us, that we should even be considered, much less called, the sons of God?"

My personal goal is to walk so close to Jesus Christ until I am attuned to His Voice. I call it The Ministry of Hearing. What keeps me from hearing Him is the roar of my personal agenda, life stuff that’s under His control anyway. When I get caught up in the entanglement of life stuff, I forget that I have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous. This is where the roar of my agenda drowns out the still, small voice of God’s Holy Spirit. I shudder to think of the number of times I have failed Him in this area - too many to count, but not enough to leave me helpless or hopeless. And so this becomes my goal, the mastery of the ministry of hearing God, in every trial, test, storm or tempest. The ability to know that He is there to calm the winds of my life with just one word, “Peace.” And as well, to know that He is there to still the crashing waves of the water of my dilemmas with two words, “Be still.”

Peace. Be Still. Know that I am God, whether you hear me or not. My consistency is not determined by your attention span. My love is not triggered by the fact that you heed my call. My Love is a choice that was made once, and is unchangeable forever.

The Place Of The Press

2009-02-09T16:24:00.002-06:00

In the bible, Gethsemane was called the place of the olive press. It was there that Jesus faced one of the greatest tests of His 33 and ½ years on earth. Here He was introduced to the place we all have experienced, or will experience – the breaking point. It was here that He felt the pressure of His impending sacrificial crucifixion, as the cross cast its shadow across His life. It was here the disciples, coming to accompany Jesus as He neared His final hours, failed Him. Having fallen asleep, even awake they could not ease the burden of His call or the weight of sin’s burden. It was here that His humanity cried out to God, saying “Father, if there is a way out, back-door, parachute, failsafe, ripcord, reset button, or cancellation clause, please let this cup pass from me.” It was in this moment that I believe Jesus got it all out. We don’t need to hold in our fears, worries, uncertainties, or negative anticipations – we need to get it all out. Release it. Find a way to let others know when they betray a trust, disappoint, take you for granted or abuse relationships. Don’t be religious and pious, believing that “God’s gonna work it out.” While I strongly advocate the biblical principle of long-suffering, we all must sense within our spirit when enough is enough – and afterward submit ourselves to the will of God concerning us.

Between these two phrases we see the stark contrast between Jesus’ humanity and divinity. Jesus was no different from you and I. He struggled with the flesh, and was only able to subdue it by the spirit. By the spirit He was able to transcend the present moment of agonizing in prayer to see that God had not changed His mind, and therefore neither would Jesus. Divinity spoke. “Nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done.” At the point this phrase was uttered, the struggle was over.

You can’t afford to quit now. This is the most important moment in your life. You are considering giving up when God is thinking nothing but great thoughts about you. If you knew that your breakthrough was just on the other side of faith combined with works, what great exploits would you be preparing to accomplish - right now?

God has placed a demand upon your life. Your destiny demands that you press through the discouragement, push past the pain, persevere beyond the circumstance, and stand in the face of the ridicule. You’ll never know how much strength, faith, hope, courage and discipline you have until you are tested to the full extent and measure of your spiritual character. This is your Gethsemane. Could it be that God knows the path that you’re on, where you should be on life’s path, and prepares to meet you based upon where you should be, not where you are, and is on a path of interception designed to cross your path at a designated point and place in time?

Do not allow yourself to be measured by the size of the test, but by your ability to conquer every fleshly challenge by the spiritual strength God has invested in you.

Who Are You?

2009-02-02T14:34:00.005-06:00

And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. Exodus 3:14

“Only as high as I reach can I grow, only as far as I seek can I go, only as deep as I look can I see, only as much as I dream can I be.” Karen Rayn

So who are you? Not your profession, others’ opinion of you, what you have accumulated or accomplished. Who are you? What are your top ten characteristics? Twenty? God was so fully invested in His own Person and Divinity until when Moses asked him who He was, God had no problem with self-identification – so why do we? We languish at the trough of false humility, serving only to dull the edge of our accumulated consciousness. We live off of past accomplishments far too long, sitting on our laurels while the engine of life races ahead of our tortoise-like pace. So as to clarify the discussion, we are not ignorant of self-indulgent selfishness promoting avarice, greed, usury and lust. Arrogance, self-possession and conceit are false positives. But we are talking about recognizing the best in us as just that.

I spent the first half of my life identifying myself by my accomplishments. I will spend the last half identifying myself by those characteristics making me the best human being I can possibly be.

There seems to be a coordinated conspiracy aimed at denying humanity of its self-awareness (not to be confused with selfishness), the conscious, purposeful investment in being the best person one can possibly be, not for monetary gain, but because in order to best utilize the circadian rhythm of life we must keep time with its beat. We all want it, but how often do we talk about it? Most often we do so in derivative and non-specific terms, such as professional aspirations. Why do you want to be a lawyer, accountant, physicist, laborer, technician, truck driver? How does that aspiration tie to who you are intrinsically? The pulse of life is driven by the heartbeat of our soul.

So what is your I am statement? Here’s mine:

I am born again. I am repentant. I am creative. I am intelligent. I am insightful. I am sensitive. I am loving. I am caring. I am compassionate. I am giving. I am empathetic. I am supportive. I am nurturing. I am loving. I am a friend. I am a confidant. I am truthful. I am transparent. I am self-aware. I am humble. I am grateful. I am appreciative. I am fully functional spirit, soul and body. I am made in the image of God.

It is highly likely my statement will evolve, as will yours, and as well they should. In order for my tomorrow to not be a repeat of my yesterday, I must do something meaningful today. My self-awareness then gives purpose to my days, meaning to my thoughts, direction to my choices and discipline to my actions. Here then is where I bring forth fruit which will remain. I then use whatever utilities are available to me - my career, profession, vocation, hobby, interest, calling or pursuit – as fuel to fulfill whatever needs present themselves, in myself and others.

The Cancer Of Fear

2009-01-30T08:16:00.001-06:00

In the 1970s, researchers Paul Ekman, Wallace Friesen and Carroll Izard became interested in whether emotions differ across cultures, so they showed photographs of emotional expressions to people around the world to determine if a smile means the same thing in San Francisco as it does in Samoa. They found that everyone recognized an upturned mouth as the universal sign of happiness, and there was similar agreement about expressions of surprise, anger, disgust, sadness and fear. These findings suggest that basic emotions are automatic and preprogrammed, but the task of determining the underlying neural circuitry of emotions has been difficult. Fear was studied because it is easily-measured; heart rate and release of stress hormones. From minor apprehension to stark terror, fear helps keep us from harm. Fear learning is quick, powerful and long lasting. If you think back to your childhood, chances are good that within your earliest memory is an event colored by fear. Of all the emotions, the brain devotes the most space and energy to fear.

When Adam let fear into the family in the garden of Eden on that fateful day, he unknowingly unleashed a cancer of fear upon the human family. In the old testament there are 24 different words for fear, I believe one for each hour of the day. In the new testament there are 8 words for fear, I believe one for each life cycle, i.e. 8 hours of work, rest, and leisure. In scripture there are 365 fear nots, I believe one for each day of the year. I believe that one fear not from God each day will nullify 24 hours of fears. One fear not from God will cover us through each life cycle, whether at work, rest or play.

We reset the dial of spiritual authority in our lives by applying the word of the Lord directly to our fears, where we can then enter into His rest.

Success - The Hunger That Must Be Fed

2009-01-29T11:50:00.006-06:00

Isaiah 55:10 (King James Version)

"For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater."

I apologize for my hiatus from the blogosphere. Forgive me. I've been on the grind writing my book, "Default Positions - A Matter Of The Mind," and am in one of the most productive seasons in my life, not only being purposeful in my daily pursuits for my own destiny, but contributing to the forward movement of others. I understand and realize that my success is directly connected to the success of others.

Success is a hunger that must be fed. People who fast from eating don't go shopping. The baby chick who chirps the loudest is the one who gets the worm. The above scripture says those with an appetite are the ones who will eat. How hungry are you for fulfillment of your dreams, goals, and objectives?

Most people will not come out of their comfort zones until their stomach growls. "Need more" drives purpose. What drove cave men to fire was a better way to live, eat, protect and stay warm. The wheel came as a means of easing the process of life. Basic everyday needs. What needs are not being met in your life? If you're waiting for God to do it, you'll be waiting. Get up. Today. Stop blaming others for where you are. Today. Take responsibility. Today. Do something every day. . Step out of your comfort zone. Today. Be willing to progress at the risk of setback and embarrassment - nothing ventured nothing gained.

What have you been doing? When you're doing what you're supposed to do, you move the ball down the field. Things will happen. Come on. We're waiting for what God has deposited in you for us. The world suffers because of a lack of you. Get busy. Stay busy. Let nothing stop you. Stay focused. Stay healthy, spiritually, emotionally and naturally. Exercise. Eat right. Pray. Worship. Read the word. Expect great things. Don't wait for a miracle - create your miracle.

I'm preaching to the choir - in this case myself. I'm getting back on the grind on this end. To whom much is given, much is required. You need this. I've got to give it, because I don't know which word, phrase, thought or idea will be the key unlocking you and unleashing you into your God-given destiny. I'll be faithful - promise.

25 Things You Might (or Might Not) Want To Know About Me

2009-01-29T11:47:00.000-06:00

1. At age 10 I won a call-in radio contest ($13) on WKNR Keener 13 Detroit.
2. We were dismissed from Library class and sent home early one Friday from Willard Elementary School in Highland Park Michigan because President John F. Kennedy had been assassinated. I didn't want to leave school. I liked Library.
2. At age 11 I played The Hungarian Rhapsody #3 in my first piano recital.
3. At age I2 I played in the largest piano recital at Detroit's Cobo Hall, 1500 students from across Michigan played on 750 pianos supplied by Grinnell's Pianos of Detroit. I recall being a speck of pepper in a sea of salt that day.
4. As a Motown boy I grew up loving The Beatles (Eleanor Rigby), Procol Harum (A Whiter Shade Of Pale), Jimi Hendrix (All Along The Watchtower), Janis Ian (Society's Child & Seventeen) Dusty Springfield (To Sir With Love) and too many other non-black faves to mention.
5. I hated Smokey Robinson & Diana Ross (winers), loved The Temps, Gladys, Stevie, Marvin and The Four Tops. I could go on but I won't.
6. At age 13 while standing on the steps of New Jerusalem COGIC 7361 Linwood Avenue, I looked a mile north as a massive cloud of smoke and humanity made its way toward us. We got out of church early that day for a change. It was the 1967 riot.
7. At age 14 while at choir rehearsal with my Mom, I ran to answer the pay phone in the basement - a great chance to get away for a minute (I'd burned my only bathroom break already). The voice told me to tell the choir that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had been assassinated. I walked slowly upstairs to tell a waiting choir. We got out of rehearsal early that night. I felt bad.
8. At age 15 I sat next to NBA great Spencer Haywood my first day of high school. I wondered what this full-grown man was doing sitting in a desk he could crush with one swipe of his gargantuan hand.
9. At age 16 I fell in love with Jacquelyn Yvonne Martin.
10. While standing on her front porch one sunny summer day I was shot at by a man who was angry at her brother Mel for raping his 16 year old sister. I felt granules of brick spray across my cheek as the ricocheting bullet hit the house not 6 inches from my head. Frozen in shock, Jackie saved my life by pulling me into the house.
11. Jackie and I were walking home from school, as a car full of drunken grown men drove by, saying what they'd like to do to her. We recognized one of the men - her father.
12. At 17 I was voted Mr. Entertainer by my high school graduating class. I played the lead in most of the Pershing High School plays: Dracula Baby, Cyrano De Bergerac, Li'l Abner, Dr. Faustus & Scrooge. As I sat in the empty auditorium days before graduation, I knew I'd never have that much fun again in my life. I was right.
13. At 18 Jackie ditched me for an older man.
14. At 19 I was living with my new girlfriend Airlene Fowler.
15. At 20 I hung out with one hit wonder Jimmy Ruffin's ex, Clara, a fun loving lady who sent limos to pick me up to party hard with the desperate wives of the Motown set. I was labeled her "security." She gave me a pearl-handled .38.
16. At 21 I sold and used weed and drugs to and with a choir I sang in.
17. At 22 I tripped out on mescaline at New Bethel Baptist church, Aretha's dad's church. A pastor named District Elder David L. Ellis sitting in the balcony whispered a silent prayer - I was saved one month later at his church.
18. At 24 I married Angela Denere Montgomery, and together we had four beautiful children; Darryl II (DJ), Brandon, Christopher and Brionne. We divorced after 12 years. I went to work for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan where i remained for nearly 20 years.
19. Ishan Danny Birchett and I founded a group whose members included Fred Hammond and Mitch Jones, among others. I helped mentor Byron Cage during his formative years. I hosted an Emmy award winning TV show for 10 years and wrote a Grammy nominated song.
20. I took a floundering radio show and turned it into the first 24 hour black gospel radio station in Detroit.
21. I married Lynn B. and divorced 18 months later.
22. I married Carolyn D. and divorced 90 days later.
23. I was fired from the radio station for announcing my call to pastoral ministry; it was viewed as a conflict of interest. I worked for another radio station and was fired as well.
24. My favorite snack food is Cheetos; cereal is Millville Red Berries (available at Aldi's), gum is Big Red, fast food is White Castle #3 with Coke (light ice), deli food is Bread Basket's United Meat and Lafayette Coney Island's Special two on one with everything.
25. I married Cozette, and we'll be celebrating 15 years in the Bahamas as we repeat our vows this December. Please join us.

So Close

2008-12-12T02:01:00.006-06:00

Spinning tunes spitting knowledge - I worked my dream like it was my college
Believing lives would change - not knowing it wasn’t always for the better
Thought it would last forever - turned on a dime like stormy weather
Winging by like a butterfly out of reach - no time to say goodbye to each
Unrequited dream, evaporating like steam, bursting through each seam

I came so close.

Believing the dream would never die - turn on the tube and I’d say hi
Suits and ties and teeth and flare - who would’ve thought baby boy was there
Soared so high - like that airplane toy in the sky only to find the landing
More demanding than the flight could ever be - how could I not see it coming
Day turned to night no light - not even dusk or a dawn

I came so close.

Hearing the strains of tunes unwritten - caught up bemused musically smitten
Eighty-eight keys at full attention– fingers and thumbs in melodic distention
Just a simple song was all I wrote - haunting lyric note for note
The symphony played at half past seven - strings lifting me to lyrical heaven
I missed my return flight - to find myself ascended after the song had ended

I came so close.

In love I fell though not the first - ill prepared my best was the worst
My progeny all waited to see - what would become of them and me?
When the storm insensible swirled within - churning, yearning, burning sin
Peace elusive, dysfunction the storm - sane was crazy and crazy the norm
Beyond the scope of paternity – I accept what won't change in eternity

I came so close.

No shedding of tears no weak regret – Love let love and let love let
And even though it whispers my fate - I hear but cannot reciprocate
Longing, knowing, living, hoping, wanting, needing

I came so close.

I thought I heard a distant call - to challenge hearts to rise not fall
And in the doing I missed it all – I prayed and asked and knocked and saught
I tried and planned and worked and fought – only to find it was all for naught

I came so close.

Ask me was it worth the ride - to have loved and lost and laughed and cried
I would have to answer in direct reply - without a doubt I’ve found supply
To be miscast and misunderstood – an acceptable price cause it’s all been good
Would I do it again, would I risk it all? - to chance to slip to trip or fall?

No sunshine without first the night - No victory without first the fight
No purchase without at the first a cost - no crown without at the last a cross.

I came so close

Can You See Through Me?

2008-12-10T13:06:00.004-06:00

“For God Who said, Let light shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts so as [to beam forth] the Light for the illumination of the knowledge of the majesty and glory of God [as it is manifest in the Person and is revealed] in the face of Jesus Christ (the Messiah). However, we possess this precious treasure [the divine Light of the Gospel] in [frail, human] vessels of earth, that the grandeur and exceeding greatness of the power may be shown to be from God and not from ourselves.”

2 Corinthians 4:6-7, The Amplified Bible

"The thing that you want to hide is the thing that He (God) wants to use. You gotta testify.”

Gospel singer John P. Kee

"He sang as if he knew me in all my dark despair - and then he looked right through me as if I wasn't there."

Killing Me Softly, Roberta Flack

My wife and I listened to a one and a half hour "sermon" yesterday on sexual immorality and promiscuity by a nationally prominent minister. After all the hyperbole, big words and flowery examples, the popular preacher never 1) called out the root of the problem, 2) gave his own testimony of how he (a divorcee for 10+ years) coped with struggles, challenges and failings, or 3) challenged people to change. He just preached a good sermon, using eloquence, homiletics, hermeneutics, apologetics and histrionics without hitting the bulls-eye - sin.

This morning, Cozette and I watched a ten-minute video clip sent to me by my son, Pastor Darryl Ford II, in which Nate Larkin transparently showed us his scars, failings and frailties. We saw and heard the voice of Jesus shine and beam out of his life like a lighthouse beacon. Isn’t that the point of ministry, after all?

This year there has been a rash of prominently known ministries experiencing divorce, primarily (but not exclusively) due to adultery and fornication. As a three-time divorcee, I’ve made horrible mistakes, decisions, and know enough to not throw stones or judge. Had I confronted my own issues as Nate did, I would have spared my family the pain of divorce. I’ve spent the last twenty or so years dealing with my moral failure, as have my children, who have been saddled with the fallout and baggage of my failings.

Why do we support and applaud ministries who have no accountability? When do we reject style and seek substantive ministry that pierces the heart and changes lives? When will we take personal accountability, casting off our costumes of religious personas and come as we are, presenting the broken fragments of our lives as receptacles of God’s grace and mercy?

~ matter of the mind challenge ~

1. View the video on this link: http://iamsecond.com/#/seconds/Nate_Larkin/
2. Pass the link on to everyone you know.
3. Challenge yourself to a new level of transparency/honesty/repentance.
4. Don't eat spiritual garbage; demand accountability of pastors and other ministry sources.
5. Leave a comment on my blog – I’d like to hear your opinions/reactions.

Unless and until each of us are transparent before God and with each other, the smudge of our lives will blur the perception of who Christ is to the world, which is all the Christ the world will ever see, hear and know.

Thank you Nate. Thank you DJ. Thank you Jesus.

A Guide For Global Leadership

2008-12-05T11:46:00.002-06:00

All I Really Need To Know

All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten is a book of short essays by Robert Fulghum, first published in 1986. I thought to re-publish an excerpt here for your reading pleasure. I added one. Can you guess which?

Share everything.
Play fair.
Don't hit people.
Put things back where you found them.
Clean up your own mess.
Don't take things that aren't yours.
Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody.
Wash your hands before you eat.
Flush.
Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
Live a balanced life - learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.
Take a nap every afternoon.
When you go out in the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands and stick together.
Pray.
Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we.
And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK.

Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation. Ecology and politics and equality and sane living.

Take any one of those items and extrapolate it into sophisticated adult terms and apply it to your family life or your work or government or your world and it holds true and clear and firm. Think what a better world it would be if we all - the whole world - had cookies and milk at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon and then lay down with our blankies for a nap. Or if all governments had as a basic policy to always put things back where they found them and to clean up their own mess.

And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out in the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.

The Brilliance Of A Gift

2008-12-04T16:35:00.007-06:00

While writing today I wanted to hear Stings’ “Fields Of Gold.” After his version was over, another version popped up. I clicked on it and discovered a gifted artist singing her version. Her voice touched my heart in a compartment long forgotten. As I worked on my project, I toggled back and forth to YouTube, where I listened to song after song from her, each seemingly more heartfelt than the one before. As I listened to her amazing voice, I was struck by how gifted she was, yet I’d never heard of her. There she was, her words and melodies chanting the hauntingly familiar refrain of a long lost friend.

Of her, ABC News said, “The world did not discover her talent, nor hear her voice. There was a quality in her voice that would make you cry.” She shunned the spotlight, was shy, and never sought fortune or fame. She just wanted to share her gift.

As I clicked the fourth or fifth YouTube clip of her, I saw a scroll of words, and I knew there was more to this story, and to the reason her voice drew me like a moth to a flame. The scroll told the story of her life and death. She succumbed to cancer in 1996 at the age of 33.

Gifts are amazing, because they verify their own authenticity without necessity of a second opinion. Hers is a gift I won’t soon forget. As I listened, I became challenged at the necessity to be a responsible steward over those gifts God has given me. I’ve often said to my wife “Honey, I don’t want to take my gift to the grave.”

Mama said, “Life at it’s longest is too short, Son.” Before you know it, minute’s hours and day’s months have become year’s decades. If we’re not careful, the dust of procrastination will cover the diamonds of our brilliant gifts, and before long, opportunity will have given way to inactivity and regret.

We all have at least one gift. Let's all blow the dust off and share them with the world.

And to you, Eva Cassidy, I say a posthumous thank you. Though I missed hearing you in person on earth, I hope you'll sing for us in Heaven.

I Always Been Glad

2008-12-03T16:56:00.005-06:00

A Tribute To Jean Etta Ford

My Mama sent me a birthday card some years ago, and for the first time I saw age beginning to creep into her razor sharp intellect. Her once flawless penmanship showed signs of a shaky hand, lines once symmetrically perfect now resembling limbs of an autumn tree. Words once precisely inserted as though typewritten now occasionally slid below the lines. In the birthday card she sang my praises, and there it was – the first grammatically incorrect sentence I had ever seen my mother write in over forty years. “I always been glad that you were my Son,” she wrote. I was struck by the error, because Mama had always been such a gifted and talented writer.

I never gave a thought to the illusion of perfection that Mama was to me. Precise in all her faculties, abilities, insights and functionalities, most loving kids don’t think of their parents as vulnerable. At the top of their game, parents know everything, solve every problem, provide every need, and protect from every harm. But there it was. She was still her sharp, keen-witted self, but that was no slip of the pen. It was God’s way of letting me know that however imperceptibly – Mama was getting older. Then came other signs, like driving as though the speed limit on the freeway had been reduced to 15 mph. Or repeating herself. Initially I rebuffed these occurrences as accidental, but then she slipped and fell, injuring her hip. Then came the stroke, which didn’t leave the normal paralytic signs, but affected that part of the brain which converts thoughts to words. Mama knows exactly what she wants to say, but cannot construct the words in her brain into intelligible sentences. A prisoner to her own neuropathology, words, thoughts, ideas, impressions and opinions trapped inside a vibrant, expressive, resourceful and insightful mind cannot be expressed. She writes incessantly, filling yellow pads with disjointed thoughts, some of which can be interpreted by my siblings. Yet she puts together thoughts and still tells me of her undying love for her children. She doesn’t always get our names right, the order of things or who did what, but that grammatically incorrect line in that card told me more than she has been unable to say these past five years. Grammar doesn’t matter. Love covers.

I recently wanted to share something with someone who would just listen to my ramblings. I couldn’t tell my wife because she would want to fix what didn’t need fixing. Nor siblings, who covet opportunities to instruct the “baby boy.” Then it dawned on me for the first time in five years… I thought I no longer had Mama to turn to. Listening was one of her best qualities, though her insights were timelessly on-point. But I can still talk to her – and she still listens with an ear that seldom if ever judges, a heart of limitless compassion, and a spirit with a special connection with God. I don’t need her to give answers anymore. She lived a life replete with answers to questions I didn’t even know. I’ve deprived her of the gift of listening. Sorry Mama – I’ll do better.

And so from Patsy, Butchy, Carol and Judy, Peter, Terry, Keith and Darryl:

I Always Been Glad That You Are Our Mom

Love Forever,

Darryl

Opportunity Is Often Hidden In Adversity

2008-12-03T12:58:00.004-06:00

Take A Chance

“I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all.” Ecclesiastes 9:11

Whether an athlete, soldier, wise, rich, brilliant, or educated, God appoints a time and opportunity for us to be successful. Without this opportunity our natural ability means nothing. Bishop T.D. Jakes speaks of such an appointed opportunity as the reason for his successful ministry, when a seven-minute excerpt of one of his sermons aired on TBN at the exact moment TBN’s President Paul Crouch was struggling writing his autobiography, “I Had No Father But God.” Crouch turned on the TV when Jakes was preaching. His message gave Crouch inspiration. Crouch then called for Jakes to preach on TBN, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Harland Sanders was a sixty-five year old retiree. When he received his first Social Security check in the amount of $105.00, he knew he had to get out of his rocking chair and do something to earn some real money. Harland’s mother taught him how to cook her incredibly delicious fried chicken when he was a child, so he opened up a restaurant and started frying chicken, and the rest, as they say, is history… ever heard of KFC?

One of Colonel Sanders’ employees was Dave Thomas. Dave was an adopted child. He began working when he was just twelve years old. The journey of life introduced him to various personalities and opportunities that helped him to build his own image in short span of life. When Dave Thomas was just thirty-five years old in 1968, he was already a millionaire. In 1969 he decided to open a fast food restaurant, and named it after his daughter, and the rest as they say is history… ever heard of Wendy’s?

~ matter of the mind challenge ~

1. Think about the way you think.
2. Move from unhealthy to healthy thinking.
3. Don’t stop dreaming – get started doing.
4. Let the sun of possibility burn out the clouds of negativity.
5. Ask God to tell you who He made you to be – then become that.
6. Stop trying to blend in – God made you to stand out.
7. Be comfortable in your own skin, warts, zits, scars and all.

I don't know how many appointed opportunities you've had, but I've made up my mind I'm not missing anymore - that's the reason I started this blog, the reason you're reading these words. God gifted me to write, so guess what - I'm writing, being faithful to my gift and trusting Him to be faithful to His word. So what's your gift(s)? Are you faithful? Are you working toward the fulfillment of your gift? Jakes preached to goats and rabbits when he couldn't preach in churches. Sanders turned adversity into opportunity. Thomas left the orphanage behind and built an empire on his daughter's name.

Lose Excuses - Find Purpose - Fuel Passion - Live Dreams

Are you up to the challenge?

The Prescription For Answers To Prayer

2008-12-02T14:37:00.004-06:00

Communication With God

2 Chronicles 7:14 is probably one of the best known and recited passages in all of the Bible, right up there with the 23rd Psalms and The Lord's Prayer. Most often it is recited or quoted as a prayer, but in fact it is an answer to prayer. 2 Chronicles 6 sets the scene, when while dedicating the temple, King Solomon prays a "cover all the bases" prayer. His prayer is very specific, so much so until God answers specifically in Chapter 7 according to what Solomon prayed in Chapter 6.

Prayer is simple, not complicated; an easy unrestricted way to talk to the Creator of the Universe, one-on-one intimacy with a loving, caring God who longs to be involved in all our matters. Talk to your best friend every day? Parents? Husband? Wife? Kids? Well, talk to the One who created the people you talk to - you'll be amazed at His responses.

We often confuse prayer with mental ascent, which is just thinking thoughts, musing and mulling over things that have happened or will happen, helplessly hoping for the desired outcomes or resolutions without applying any force for change behind them. That is not prayer - it's wasted energy.

~ matter of the mind challenge ~

Are you looking for:

Vague unfocused answers from God? Pray vague unfocused prayers.
Occasional results? Pray occasional prayers.
Answers? Pray specifically, focused, unceasing, faith-filled prayers.

Mother Teresa penned this prayer, which now lives on after her death:

The fruit of silence is prayer
the fruit of prayer is faith
the fruit of faith is love
the fruit of love is service
the fruit of service is peace.

I pray to rise from elementary personal needs and desires to impacting mankind with a:

God-centered life larger than any limitations
Spirit unfettered by chains of carnality
Hope higher than the tallest doubt
Soul whose focus is reclaiming lost and dying souls for the kingdom of God.

What's your prayer this day?

The Missing Ingredient

2008-12-02T07:55:00.012-06:00

What If You Expected The Best In Every Area Of Your Life?

I spoke with a friend today who's having the same types of family problems with two different daughters-in-law. I asked her to examine the situations and look for the common denominator. After painful self-examination she admitted that she had projected her belief system and manner of doing things upon them, and got the same results, namely rejection, conflict, verbal altercations and unhealthy relationships with her sons. She measured them by her own standard of excellence, which is faulty. I encouraged her to pray, meditate, seek out, speak and expect the best from each relationship, and repair the damage created by her illusion of perfection.

The Only Person You Can Fix Is You

When surprised or threatened, our fight or flight mechanism kicks in, preparing the body for perceived life-threatening situations, taking resources from such as the digestive and immune system and dumping cortizol into the bloodstream to fuel the immediate muscular and emotional needs in order to avert the perceived threat. This leads to the immune system being depressed, leaving us susceptible to disease.

You'll notice I stress the word perceived, because whether or not there is an actual threat, our physiological reaction is the same. One wise sage once said, "Some of the worst things I have ever feared in life have never happened." Since our brain produces defenses to ward off perceived danger (whether real or not), it can also unlock the limitless potential of faith in our lives through daily prayer. Unfortunately we spend more time investing our energies in unproductive pursuits incapable of impacting our most important issues, namely producing a healthy and productive spiritual future and destiny.

The missing ingredient? Intentionality. On-purpose praying designed to paint the picture of our future using the brushstrokes of the word of God spoken out of our mouths with the fuel of faith. In my earlier example, my friend must not critique failings and flaws, but pray for God to reveal His best in her for them, stepping back from the day-to-day conflicts they have with her sons, and minding her own business. She agrees. Want to break the cycle of faulty thinking and fractured living?

~ matter of the mind challenge ~

Pray constantly.
Expect the best in every situation and circumstance.
Get rid of every weight and sin that gets you off track.
Thank God for everything (food, clothes, work, issues, health).
Feelings and emotions have no place in developing spiritual agendas.
Don't allow circumstances to affect expectations.
Read & meditate over the word of God daily.
Speak God's word over your plans aspirations, and future.
Transform your thinking - Renew your mind - Conform to the Word.

Tomorrow's Matter Of The Mind: The Biblical Model For Answered Prayer.

2008-12-01T16:52:00.004-06:00

The Message Of Water

I ran across an article on the research of Dr. Masaru Emoto, and his book, "The Message from Water." Emoto presents factual evidence that human vibrational energy, thoughts, words, ideas and music, affect the molecular structure of water, the very same water that comprises over seventy percent of a mature human body and covers the same amount of our planet. As I read the article, I found some of his conclusions resonate with biblical teachings, though not apparently intentional. His evidence? Pictures taken of crystallized water before and after speaking or attaching words to the water. Please follow the link http://www.life-enthusiast.com/twilight/research_emoto.htm. The pictures are nothing short of fascinating.

How many times have we all forgotten to bless our food, or say thank you for a kindness shown? I can recall times when I felt a strong urge to say something to someone, but thoughts of propriety and not wanting to invade another person's space stopped me, thus missing an opportunity to impact that person's life positively.

Each word spoken, whether for good or evil, has a tangible, measurable, and observable impact upon our environment, circumstances, surroundings and interactions.

~ matter of the mind challenge ~

Bless your food/drink/shower/bath
Say thank you
Be nice to people

As for the spiritual significance of water? Not enough room here to discuss it, but trust, Emoto's tapped in to some eternal truths we can all benefit from.

On the next issue - What if you proactively expected the best of your self in every area of life?

Be sure to be true to yourself.
Those who matter won't mind.
Those who mind don't matter.