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Stop The Culture of Death
I sat down yesterday afternoon after a great day with my mother to watch television and think about what was I going to write about for today. While I was just browsing for ideas for my post, I decided to check out the news from this weekend. All the news stories were related to death and children.
- In New Orleans, during a Mother’s Day Parade 18 people were shot, 2 of them were children. It’s hard for me to understand what would make someone open fire in a Mother’s Day Parade.
- In Valley Springs, California a 12 year old was arrested for stabbing his 8 year old sister.
- In New Jersey, a man killed a woman and kept her three children hostage in the bedroom with their mother’s dead body until Sunday morning when they were finally released and the kidnapper was killed by the police.
- In Kansas, the body of an 18 month old, who was missing, was found. Earlier last week her mother and two other men were found dead in a farm where they lived, but the child had been missing until her body turned up over the weekend.
I think I can stop there before we all crawl inside our closets to cry. Having said that, I refuse to allow the world of terror to paralyze my purpose. I truly believe that beyond grieving, this is a blaring call to action.
Parents, be aware of the things that your children have access to. 
Violent games and movies may seem innocent,but even when you tell yourself that your child knows that this is fantasy, it also desensitizes them to violence.
The rest of us should stop patronizing any company that promotes violence in the media. If we don’t buy it, they will have to change their ways. There are millions of Christians. How serious are you about what will you do to defend your faith? Will you allow yourself to be lukewarm and blend in the culture of this world or will you take a stand for what you know to be righteous?
We can also take action to those around us that we notice are dealing with mental health issues. Early intervention can make a huge difference. Sadness goes away with a change of scenery. Real depression, anxiety, anger and addictions are just as real diseases as diabetes and cancer and need to be treated by professionals. Being in treatment does NOT negate your faith.
I invite you TODAY to take a step against the culture of violence. Don’t ever think that there nothing you can do. It takes each and everyone of us, as the body of Christ, to work together in this war.
Never forget what we read in Ephesians 6:12
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
Yes, we need to pray, but we also need to take action. As it says in James 2:26
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Until next time, be blessed
Remember today is the last day of my Mother’s Day Sale, get your copies now!
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A Mother’s Love
When I think about a mother, my frame of reference is obviously to think of my own mom. As many daughters, my relationship with my mother has had many stages. If there’s one thing I’m always sure is that no
matter what, my mother loves me and that I love her too. Some days she drives me absolutely crazy, but that is her job and she does it very well. Some days I catch myself behaving just like her, reasoning like her and saying the same things that she says.
Last year for her birthday my brother came to visit, I heard him say something that I could hear myself saying and I joked, “I think we are related”. He then replied, “Don’t forget we have the same mother” Which reminded me that our wit comes from that little 4’10 woman full of personality.
From her I’ve learned that a mother’s love is sacrificial, supportive, unconditional, protective and educational. A mother’s love is essentially the closest thing on earth to God’s love.
Now a mother is more than someone that has a biological connection with another human being. Being a mother is a more intimate connection than DNA. Therefore I know for a fact that there are more mother’s out there than those who have carried a child inside of them. So to every woman who has mothered someone from her heart. Happy Mother’s Day!
“Don’t you see that children are God’s best gift, the fruit of the womb his generous legacy? Like a warrior’s fistful of arrows are the children of a vigorous youth. Oh, how blessed are you parents, with your quivers full of children! Your enemies don’t stand a chance against you; you’ll sweep them right off your doorstep.” (Psalm 127:3-5, MSG)
As a gift to all the mother’s out there, I’m placing both of my fictional books on sale! They make a great gift for all the mother’s in your life. This sale is only through May 13th by clicking on the book covers below
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True Leadership
I was having a conversation with a friend regarding leadership. My friend’s point of view was that because he was in a particular position, he would consult those “under” him, but that the last word would always be his. After all, that’s what his position entitled him to do.
The conversation was funny to me because humbling yourself through leadership is more than taking others into consideration. It’s about service. Being a leader it is about asking those who you are responsible for, as much as you are willing to do.
Leadership is not a title, accolades or a position. The truth is that the higher the position, the higher the responsibility.
Actually the Word of God tells us in
Matthew 23:11 “The greatest among you must be a servant.”
Leadership is not about being served but about serving others. The truth is that we have all been called for leadership. I know that doesn’t sound true to everyone, but it is true. As a believer, wherever you go you are to be salt of the earth. If you are light and salt, it means that others are looking or asking what you do to guide themselves to Christ. So know that even if you do not hold a particular position at work, church or your community, you are still called to be a leader.
So how do you know how to be the right kind of leader? The bible gives us a simple guide:
“Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.” Philippians 2:5-8 MSG
A lot to think about. Until next time, be blessed
Tag for The Road Home
“This book certainly held my interest straight through to the very emotional ending. ”Mary Anne Benedetto
“With the ever-constant presence of her closest friend, Aimee, Desiree slowly makes her way to God and learns the greatness of His power and love. ”Cynthia
“A very engaging story about faith, love, and friendship, and the trials and tribulations that life can bring you. ”Jersey Gina
Can you handle it?
I’m sure at some point or another we’ve heard this scripture:
1 Corinthians 10:13 (MSG)
No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it.
The common saying for this scripture is that “God will never give us something we can’t handle.” I know that my friends and I joke around saying that God has quite an opinion of us, especially when we find ourselves in difficult moments.
That’s part of the issue when we go by popular word instead of the Word of God. It’s not that God’s expectation on us is quite high. Read that very last verse where it says “ he’ll always be there to help you come through it” That’s the key. God knows that we will be able to over come because he’s not trusting us to do it, he’s just wants us to have the faith and let HIM do it.
When we think God has called us to do it, (whatever it is) we get overwhelmed. We don’t know the answers to the questions. If we actually read what the scripture wanted us to do our lives would be much easier. He wants to do a work in us and through us. All we have to do is have the faith to allow him to do HIS job.
Until then, be blessed.
“This book certainly held my interest straight through to the very emotional ending. ”Mary Anne Benedetto
“With the ever-constant presence of her closest friend, Aimee, Desiree slowly makes her way to God and learns the greatness of His power and love. ”Cynthia
“A very engaging story about faith, love, and friendship, and the trials and tribulations that life can bring you. ”Jersey Gina
Competing Faith
Have you ever been in a competition where Christians discuss their denominational differences almost like football fans? I think what we miss as believers is that our differences are really as the many ways of making white rice. What do I mean?
Growing up I learned that to make white rice I had to place oil, water and salt, bring it to a boil then pour the rice. Some people use butter instead of oil, some add garlic powder. At the end of the day you get in your plate the same thing: white rice
The Word of God tells us in John 14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
I believe that our particular rituals work for us in our humanity. Just like music is a matter of taste, but at the end of the day is the message of the Word of God that we are called to live by. I also believe that our discrepancies are used by the enemy to distract us from our real purpose which is to spread the Good News to others. So when you find yourself and those around you that we are ALL here to do the work of the kingdom and not for our purposes. I also invite you to use that opportunity to come together and do something for the kingdom that all of those in the conversation can agree. You will see that you have way more in common than you imagine.
Until next time, be blessed!
“This book certainly held my interest straight through to the very emotional ending. ”Mary Anne Benedetto
“With the ever-constant presence of her closest friend, Aimee, Desiree slowly makes her way to God and learns the greatness of His power and love. ”Cynthia
“A very engaging story about faith, love, and friendship, and the trials and tribulations that life can bring you. ”Jersey Gina
Imperfect Justice: A Review
Imperfect Justice: Prosecuting Casey Anthony by Jeff Ashton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I know this is not a Christian or an Inspirational Book, but I wanted to read it. Probably just like the author I want to finally get my thoughts off my chest about this case so that I can finally close the door and move on.
I was very interested in this book because, like most of the nation, I was following the case. Yes, it’s true, the book doesn’t have any new bombshell information, but I understood the outcome a little bit better after reading it.
The same errors in the prosecution that Jeff Ashton noticed, I saw them during the trial. But just like him, I hoped that the jury could see beyond those and look at the big picture.
Although I had followed some of the case before the trial, on the actual day the trial began I gave myself an opportunity to be unbiased and listen to the evidence. I was dumbfounded by the results. I was also surprised about the fast turnaround that the jury took into making this decision. I remember thinking, I know there’s one of the jurors who is scheduled to go on a cruise in the next few days, which means they are not going to want to be there for a penalty phase. At the same time I hoped that things would work themselves out in a different manner.
team caylee (Photo credit: lil_toad)
When reading this book I once again put aside my feelings and gave myself the chance to read it. There’s so much unknown and that we will never know about this case, but this book gave me some sense of closure.
Coincidentally the movie based on this book aired on lifetime on the day I was reading the last chapter of this book. I didn’t like the movie at all. It doesn’t do any justice to the real events or even this book. I love watching movies about real life events and if I hadn’t had the background of the trial and the book I would have not understood the movie, which tells me that someone watching the movie 10 years from now it’s not going to understand the process. There was lack of passion in the acting and we saw a lot of passion in the real life. It was disappointing.
Back to the book, it is informative and it did fill some of the story’s gaps for me. Just like Jeff Ashton said at the end of this book, it’s time to move on. It’s time to use our energy for more positive things and to take care of those children who are still with us.
We all will have to answer to a higher power on our judgement day. Let’s make sure that resentment, hatred, and unforgiveness in our hearts are not part of those things we will have to answer for.
Until next time, be blessed.
“This book certainly held my interest straight through to the very emotional ending. ”Mary Anne Benedetto
“With the ever-constant presence of her closest friend, Aimee, Desiree slowly makes her way to God and learns the greatness of His power and love. ”Cynthia
“A very engaging story about faith, love, and friendship, and the trials and tribulations that life can bring you. ”Jersey Gina
Becoming the church
The beginning of a year is a good time for reflection and planning for the future. 2012 was a hard year and we saw in many ways how the church was either an important part or absent in those events that we experienced.
So in a society that is visibly degrading progressively, we as believers have to ask ourselves where is the church. On my last post I talked a little about who the church is and the importance that the church has for Jesus Christ. He is the one we say we follow and worship. But the bottom line is that WE are the church. The church is not a building or even an institution. Every time one of us makes the decision to follow Christ we become the church.
The word “church” as rendered in the New Testament comes from the Greek term ekklesia which is formed from two Greek words meaning “an assembly” and “to call out” or “called out ones.” In summary, the New Testament church is a body of believers who have been called out from the world by God to live as his people under the authority of Jesus Christ.
So when we ask where the church in the tragedies, the sadness and the scandals was the question really is, where was I? How did I contribute to this situation? Was I an element of healing or part of the problem?
You may wonder, what is it required from us. To love others as we love ourselves.
Don’t know where to start. I’ll give you a good starting point.
Follow Matthew 25:34-40
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Until then, be blessed
“This book certainly held my interest straight through to the very emotional ending. ”Mary Anne Benedetto
“With the ever-constant presence of her closest friend, Aimee, Desiree slowly makes her way to God and learns the greatness of His power and love. ”Cynthia
“A very engaging story about faith, love, and friendship, and the trials and tribulations that life can bring you. ”Jersey Gina
The Church and its Bride
No, I didn’t lose my GPS again. I’m not looking for directions to a particular building or talking about a particular denomination. The bible doesn’t talk about these particularly it just refers to the church as its bride.
I think of the woman who is in expectation of her groom. She runs around making preparations to spend the rest of her life with the love of her life. Her groom is the one that makes her feel butterflies in her stomach and sing love songs in the morning.
So who is this bride?
In Revelation 21:2 the bible tells us that the apostle John had a revelation, “And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” This scripture says that the New Jerusalem will be the prepared bride for her husband. Do we see the parallel of the believers in waiting for the return of our Lord?
We are the New Jerusalem beloved. But are we the eager bride preparing for the coming of the Lord, or are we like the parable of the virgins, who thought that his groom was never coming and ran out of oil.
We are living in crucial moments. God’s perfect plan has called us to be here for a time like this. Are we doing our part? Are we focused on the kingdom of God or are we focused on our own selfish needs? Do we trust God to provide ALL of our needs and like he says seek him first?
Come back on Wednesday as we discuss what the expectation is from us to be ready for the groom.
Until then
Be blessed
“This book certainly held my interest straight through to the very emotional ending. ”Mary Anne Benedetto
“With the ever-constant presence of her closest friend, Aimee, Desiree slowly makes her way to God and learns the greatness of His power and love. ”Cynthia
“A very engaging story about faith, love, and friendship, and the trials and tribulations that life can bring you. ”Jersey Gina
WF: All this time
Today I want you to take a moment to think every time the Lord has influenced your life. Think about every time when things seemed impossible and in the last minute it was solved. Every time he forgave you, every time he took you back.
When I think about my life I can pin point those moments where God was there making a way for me or holding me through my pain. I can remember all those times where I could almost hear God’s quiet voice telling me to turn away from something and I doubted what I was hearing. Of course, when I didn’t listen, things didn’t turn out right; but he still wiped my tears and cleaned my wounds and made it all for good again.
Let’s praise the Lord today for his eternal and undying love!
Blessings
“This book certainly held my interest straight through to the very emotional ending. ”Mary Anne Benedetto
“With the ever-constant presence of her closest friend, Aimee, Desiree slowly makes her way to God and learns the greatness of His power and love. ”Cynthia
“A very engaging story about faith, love, and friendship, and the trials and tribulations that life can bring you. ”Jersey Gina
Surviving 2012
I can’t believe we are at the doors of a new year. 2012 seemed to have lasted forever. This year has been one of a lot of growth for me, and of course with growth comes a lot of growing pains.
This past year brought me a new opportunity to start over again. I have taken my writing to a new level. Last year when I published Growth Lessons , in my head I knew that this was something that I wanted to do. 2012 taught me that this is what I was called to do and every day I’m more motivated to do even more.
I was given a new start in my health, when I went from being a pre-diabetic morbidly obese woman , to losing 40 pounds and gaining my health back. With my new body still in progress I’ve learned to eat differently, live differently, respect my temple in a 
total new way. (By the way it’s 60lbs, but the first 20 had been coming down here and there since the previous year until I got serious this past May)Went from a size 24 to a 14. So I have had to shop for clothes, what a drag, right? LOL!
On that note, I am finally using my gym membership. I’ve signed up for dozens of them, paid off the contracts and never went. This time I’m actually using it.
I have a new career path. God changed my 9-5 to remind me that my focus is in him and his purpose. In this new path, that is not so new because I’ve walked it before, I know he’s training me for the day when I’m able to fulfill my dream to be fully dedicated to my writing.
I published my first work of fiction, The Road Home (TRH) and my first novella, Season’s Greetings from Amelia (SGFA) in 2012. These two pieces have brought me many joys. I did 3 book signings for TRH and have received remarkable reviews. SGFA sold 5 copies within the first hour of publication.
I lost my favorite aunt, Juliana. I lost one of my best friends and one of my spiritual mothers moved over 600 miles away.
My 81 year old mother got an IPad for her birthday/Christmas present, got on Facebook and requested a Twitter account. Yes, I can’t get over that one yet, LOL!
As I posted the other day, I’m working hard on getting my next book out hopefully February or early March. I’m looking forward to the opportunity of a new year, a new beginning.
Happy and blessed 2013!!
