Tuesday, December 27, 2011

different worlds colliding.

last week in the new year, and im not quite ready. putting my 2012 plans on paper is kind of scary. to me, its like a binding contract between myself...and God. and i hate breaking promises. but its a progress and i at least have until Saturday midnight.

however i was motivated to write due to an evening encounter. getting in heavy work outs this week...i stopped by the bookstore on my way to the studio. scheming around this guy comes near and asks if thats actually something i read. it was the infamous Fredrick Douglass autobiography i hadnt finished weeks ago. i slightly believed that by buying it i would probably actually finish it this time. the last time i only borrowed it from the library, renewed it three times before the library said my love affair with the book was over. i think i only read half...if that...

i told him, "not really..." and just kind of explained the story i had with the book. we sort of just chatted and began to discover we had plenty in common. we had the same favorite museum, wanted to see the same exhibit, hes a poet, writer, tech student and taught classes on afro culture etc etc. like a breath of fresh air in a place id like to consider a haven of mines...this interesting and exciting man in my haven space?

all of a sudden, in the vibe, he asks me for my number. of course i said yes! we run into a faith talk where he shamelessly admits that Jesus is an "alternative" and not "the way". i simply replied, "interesting". looking at my watch, i wasnt interested in a debate and he seemed to be fishing for it...and i was silently breaking...he went from everything to WTH in a sentence...

felt like two of the same people who lived in different worlds colliding. and that fun laugh turned into a side eye, and i was sadden. yes, all this in the bookstore. but im still interested in this fellow. with my number already stored, i assume this wont be the last of him. im not sure if God's testing or encouraging me to crank in these new and preserved lessons...

we shall see...

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

woman with flower


as an antique flower enthusiast (i only own one) this poem seemed to speak far above the planting she seemed to be describing. i LOVE great imagery..and fabulously used metaphors. job well done poet. i hope to be this good with words someday.


Woman With Flower


By Naomi Long Madgett



I wouldn't coax the plant if I were you.

Such watchful nurturing may do it harm.

Let the soil rest from so much digging

And wait until it's dry before you water it.

The leaf's inclined to find its own direction;

Give it a chance to seek the sunlight for itself.

Much growth is stunted by too careful prodding,

Too eager tenderness.

The things we love we have to learn to leave alone.

Sunday, December 11, 2011

11 things to know by 25(ish)



YES this article makes a whole lot of sense! i think it's definitely share worthy and anyone at 25(ish) or younger could use it as a solid reference. READ IT HERE, and you'll find yourself self evaluating and challenging yourself even more than you probably already are!

God's Word says in Ecclesiastes 11:9 to "be happy while you are young and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever you see, but know that for all these things God will bring you judgment." It's basically backing up this very article. We have so much time as young people to do GREAT things and MIGHTY works. We must not be idle but persistent, and I HIGHLY encourage you to continue by reading Ecclesiastes 12.

Relevant Magazine is officially one of my new favorite online mags for reference! Browse around and check it out!

He is not idle...

the year is winding down...maybe everything on your year's "to do" list didn't get down but praise God that each day is actually a new day. we sow and we reap. we sow and we reap. and we live another day to do it again. be encouraged by this simple yet powerful verse. dream on dreamers.



Psalm 126:5 
"Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy"

Friday, December 9, 2011

dream on dreamer.



do you know joseph? you might see him in yourself. here's a little background. joseph was the 11th son of jacob and rachel. jacob favored joseph and eventually gave joesph a coat of many colors. this favoritism caused joseph's brothers to envy him greatly.

but the point of all this begins at Genesis 37:1-11 when joseph shares with his brothers two dreams that he had: (1) joseph and his brothers gathered bundles of grain. then, all the grain bundles that had been prepared by the brothers gathered around joseph's bundle and bowed down to it. (2) the sun (father), the the moon (mother) and eleven stars (brothers) bowed down to joseph himself.

these dreams really didn't sit well with the brothers considering the implication that the family would be bowing down to him. even more so, jacob took serious thought to what joseph was saying, and this mad the brothers even more upset!

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i think of joesph's story whenever the word VISION crosses my mind. i know im a big dreamer. i accomplish one goal and im already onto the next one that very moment, but as of recently, everything..including vision has seemed overwhelming. everything's moving much faster than i can keep up with.

and joesph's story (which you can read in its entirety from Genesis 37-50) is a constant reminder that dreaming that is ultimately vision will come with alot of combat. if you continue to read his story, he runs into plenty of obstacles. i once read that a dream is an empty vision and vision is a dream taking action. according to scripture, i cannot say that i now believe this to be true. i believe God sets us up for vision to just be revealed even without our help...the key to vision is not always about keeping it in front of you but persevering through the obstacles. i don't recall in his story where joesph spoke blatantly about the steps he was going to take to reach those dreams. he just KNEW what God put in him (another key is knowing God breathed it). he had no idea how they would become true, but he knew that it was God's vision.

take this from joesph...every obstacle is a step. when God puts it (whatever your it is) in you, he doesn't NEED help to make those visions real. all he needs is you to operate as a vessel and in order to do so, you must press through the struggles that make you want to step back and quit. with God, all things are possible. without Him, nothing is worth chasing. don't quit. He needs you to do what He's sent you to do.

dream on dreamers.