Party Dont Cry

The World Is A Ghetto/Amazing Grace How sweet the sound, AGAPE unconditional Love…

Amazing Grace How sweet the sound, AGAPE unconditional Love…
War The World Is A Ghetto Lyrics
Songwriters: Oskar, L; Scott, H; Miller, C; Dickerson, M; Allen, S; Brown, H; Jordan, L;

Walkin' down the street, smoggy-eyed
Looking at the sky, starry-eyed
Searchin' for the place, weary-eyed
Crying in the night, teary-eyed

Don't you know that it's true
That for me and for you
The world is a ghetto

Don't you know that it's true
That for me and for you
The world is a ghetto

Wonder when I'll find paradise
Somewhere there's a home sweet and nice
Wonder if I'll find happiness
Never give it up now I guess

Don't you know that it's true
That for me and for you
The world is a ghetto

Don't you know that it's true
That for me and for you
The world is a ghetto

------ long instrumental break ------

There's no need to search anywhere
Happiness is here, have your share
If you know you're loved, be secure
Paradise is love to be sure

Don't you know that it's true
That for me and for you
The world is a ghetto


(The world is a ghetto)
{21 times and fade}

Suffering for Doing Good - 1 Peter 3 8-17

3:8 Finally, all of you be harmonious,sympathetic, affectionate, compassionate, and humble. 3:9 Do not return evil for evil or insult for insult, but instead bless others because you were called to inherit a blessing. 3:10 For the one who wants to love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from uttering deceit.
3:11 And he must turn away from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it.

3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous and his ears are open to their prayer.

But the Lord’s face is against those who do evil.

3:13 For who is going to harm you if you are devoted to what is good? 3:14 But in fact, if you happen to suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. But do not be terrified of them or be shaken. 3:15 But set Christ apart as Lord in your hearts and always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope you possess. 3:16 Yet do it with courtesy and respect, keeping a good conscience, so that those who slander your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame when they accuse you. 3:17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if God wills it, than for doing evil.

3:18 Because Christ also suffered once for sins,

the just for the unjust,

to bring you to God,

by being put to death in the flesh

but by being made alive in the spirit.

I often pay attention and listen when I"m hearing a sermon or during my moment of meditation - prayer, and praise. It often happens around dawn or just before..

But moving forward I’m trying to get a clear word or sense of direction from the LORD so I’m cautious still when it pertains to whose feeding my soul. Discernment of the Spirit becomes more complex if you’re wounded. I find it hard to be vulnerable these days so prayer is important and listening to the Word of GOD becomes more prevalent to me no one else seems to be able to make sense of what has happened to me these past few months. While still seeking job opportunities and other major challenges unemployed more obstacles that would have devastated most who are accustomed to having some of the finer things.. Even if you stop and ponder about how I’ve been able to maintain communicate via Internet That’s simply GOD+AGAPE his Grace and Mercy. Nothing I’ve done haven’t gotten any help not soliciting either just sharing nobody is paying me to write. I’m not selling anything to anybody this is right where you can stop reading… The way GOD moves is a mystery just like soon as you think you know guess what time to go back to school again..

You have to be where I’m sitting to understand what I’m about to drop on you now. People can only do what they are able and have to accept when GOD’ places it on their heart to serve HIM to reach out to others that don't always make sense to those in your circle. But only to the Father, the Son, & the Holy Spirit…. Truth is hard to accept for many of us hard reality about ourselves but love is as Infinite as the Omnipotent it has dimensions like looking into a tri- mirrors seeing your reflection on all sides. Well, for you lay people think of it like good sex what’s next, like Joy and Pain, Agony & Ecstasy it parallels itself. Then to come through the storm and struggle with the same feelings you originally had for the person who might have hurt or harmed you with a good attitude, well not too many can claim that type of forgiveness, tolerance and love in this world.

For to see how GOD gives us plenty to meet our daily needs in spite of what we give back to HIM and each other. When we limit our ability to give either through guilt or complaining it becomes a wasted effort because it’s conditional – if it makes me feel good then I’ll reflect a giving spirit. If I give you this then you must repay me double! Some of us even say to GOD give me double for my trouble...Your expectations are of human instinct that we can’t overcome unless we actually enter into a relationship to commune with GOD, (notice I said WE as me too and I refer to GOD as but one person, one place, one thing), to rely on for counsel. Fellowship is mandatory to survive in a community helping each other achieve mutual goals, lending a helping hand up instead of a handout. Taking it to the LORD in prayer is one thing but allowing Him to teach us, guide, and direct us learning to Sacrifice something in order to really grow. Because no one can mess with what GOD has blessed even you - then HE'll convict your conscious (soul) to let go release - give up the things that would jeopardize you often times to stifle our growth but instant gratification in any form makes us feel good…but the effects can cause pain or discomfort. You know what I’m saying those things or person(s) that hurt you sometimes maybe all the time! Just start right there ask youself honestly. He will not do this until We become willing but GOD loves us so unconditionally the WORD spoke that He will never foresake or leave His sheep and it is impossible for GOD to lie!

Have you loved anything or anyone enough to let them go for a greater good that has nothing to do with how it left you feeling? Have you tried trusting GOD do you believe that He does love you in all ways exactly for who you are, and thus far has guided you into the place where you are in life right now?

What have I sacrificed lately, to experience true Joy because to let go of anything or someone we love causes much pain which often leaves us feeling vulnerable and therein is when Faith comes. Faith comes by hearing the word and believing in those things that are unseen (a plan, dream, vision), which will manifest (by doing the footwork), then it becomes reality.. speak Boldy! If you can conceive it believe it, then recieve this..........enjoy this one.

GOD gave us everyone of us FREE WILL and with that comes a responsibility that man has never fully been able to understand it’s powerful.
Free Will in itself allows you to speak into being what you call blessed or curse those that you call cursed the old saying is what comes around goes around simply put it's "KARMA";The tongue is the smallest member of the body but carries so much power and gives weight if you think I’m lying look at what just happened to America. Inspired by the words of one Man to do better become greater started a movement the result still has some people trying to figure out what just happened.

He was free to believe being President could happen, trusted GOD, and he walked humbly from the process into the promise.

GOD is living and believe what I’m saying this is getting edited for personal reasons what has been revealed in my life is due process. People make the mistake of putting GOD on their level and minimize his Omnipresence but HE is far greater than we all can imagine and nothing, no thing or no Man has ever really been able to understand or explain fully we believers just trust HIS WORD for me it's the Bible. Sometimes GOD does takes us into a strange place in order to elevate us even while we are bruised and hurting not just to get our attention but to move us out of the way to do something more significant to serve his purpose not our own foolish sense of want and needs. Then there are times family the closest loved ones not just your enemies enjoy observing while others are in pain, naked, and bleeding; but GOD knows no boundaries when it comes to divine healing. He'll use your situation to teach you and others HIS way is the only way! What HE has put in me is enough to survive anything even mankind and our limited ability to truly love on one another without conditions. Now, That's so priceless

HE is greater in me than he that is of this World....Then once you've walked through the fire as did Shad rock Me shac and Abendigo(sp) everybody wants some of that; what did you do; how did you do and blessings bestowed many upon you. For with that level of Ecstasy arrives Victory then comes the Agony of winning… Everybody wants some of you. So you see Love defined shows up in three dimensions. Human form, Soul’s realm, and Spirit realm. You need to be able to accept and embrace humbly all three. Study the Word; hear the word, and listen to the word of GOD no matter where you are in your walk in His Grace. He loves you exactly where you are at, and one last thing what GOD has called blessed in your life is meant for you so enjoy it;always give Him Glory because everything comes from El Elyon (the most high God); Adonai (our master). So when he moves you to give or serve your brother/sister remember how Cain messed up when he was faced with that question; his response “Am I my brothers keeper”…. my response to Cain woulda been, "Yes I AM." because He lives in ALL of us remember that GOD is always with you AGAPE.

Jesus said, "I am . .

the resurrection
the way
the truth
the life
the light of the world
the bread of life
the good shepherd
the door of the sheep
the true vine."
"Before Abraham was, I AM.

 Be Blessed!!! Repost

@Lovleeannwise 2010  all rights reserved

POWER = A VISION+COMPROMISE+TRUST*SACRIFICE*

"My power today lies in compromise. I am not alone. 

I offer and accept love, support, and happiness to connect with the pleasure and beauty of my hearts desire. There are two sides to everything and I don't always have to be right. I am empowered by expression and my gift is attraction."

Life offers us a freedom to choose, have our own opinions. Set up and achieve our own goals, but none of these would benefit the individual without a spirit of humility. Being able to walk in another one's shoes, even when you've never traveled along the same paths. 

Realizing that you' are on the same journey "Consolidating the Best Of" Brilliance, or the Pain of Suffering. The challenge is can you TRUST someone' elses vision? Is the ultimate sacrifice.

I have what it takes to achieve a successful journey Trusting GOD knows the way that I must take being able to rely on HIS Promises. I will only attract to myself those things akin to me, knowing who I am, trusting who I am, and humble enough to not have all the answers. Learning how to listen to others without envy, jealousy, or impatience. Finding common ground. Mutual Love
and Respect. We Balance Each Other Out....

No Weapons Formed Against Me Shall Prosper

@Lovleeannwise 2011 all rights reserved #SHOWSOMELOVE edited repost - 20191205 

Lady..... Stop Singing The Blues feat Diana Ross as Billie Holiday

"The Man I Love"

Lady Sings the Blues
lyrics by Ira Gershwin, performed by Diana Ross portraying  Billie Holiday

Someday he'll come along, The man I love

And he'll be big and strong, The man I love

And when he comes my way

...I'll do my best to make him stay

He'll look at me and smile, I'll understand

Then in a little while, He'll take my hand

And though it seems absurd

I know we both won't say a word

Maybe I shall meet him Sunday,

Maybe Monday, maybe not

Still I'm sure to meet him one day

Maybe Tuesday will be my good news day

He'll build a little home, That's meant for two

From which I'll never roam, Who would, would you

And so all else above

I'm dreaming of the man I love

fade out....

Guess what although I was in love at the end, all that was left with was the idea of it all.  A blurred image over time...

"No Fairy Tales"

 "What relationship can survive, thrive, and grow love without a limitless amount of respect, honor, & most of all trust?  The main ingredients."

  

This blog is dedicated to all the great romances you've ever experienced no matter how tragic it may have ended, you enjoyed the excitement of finding love; or if your still "a Lady in waiting," with just a fantasy seeking a special kind of "Man" well ladies... never give up hope!  

My turn to fade out....

Lovleeannwise 2010  all rights reserved

SURVIVE OR LIVE LIFE - CHOOSE ONE

As I sit gazing upon the path I've took the little girl all grown up. Struggling to raise the babies their grown; to have loved amazing men - gone astray; raised by the wisest sassiest - sistahs every produced on by this planet too many to name; Grandma still holds her claim to fame; It continues to be an amazing journey each day.

Today I can appreciate the good times; Respecting the bad. Made a vow never to repeat those things my mission is pressing on to evolve as a mature woman transforming change. Like a Butterfly free from her cocoon. Change my mind place my focus on productive things.

Life is a struggle day to day; but by measuring the accomplishments I celebrate even the small things.

Then when I pray Why God? He replies why not? Dusts me off stands me back up!

He heals me from within; wipes my tears reassures my doubts; uncovers real pain to prepare a way.

Wow, I don't believe he brought me this far! So to keep me inspired I ask GOD to reveal to me; asking myself this question when times get hard.

Are you a Survivor only or do you seek to live life?

He reveals to me a person who only lives to survive I will offer just enough to get by day to day. Based on such low expectations and unexcuted plans.. But, my love if you seek to live life and live it more abundantly, once again what are you waiting for take up your cross and follow me. Requires shedding all vanity!

I reply following you gets harder and harder by the day; my answer is to love life expecting to achieve more and more. Each day I live life I get more than what I bargained for, I meet new people; appreciate the priceless moments only a full life can bring. Survivor's may press on each day with hope but if I walk the walk as good as I talk the talk I will achieve more than just enough.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil for Tho art with me; Thy Rod and Thy staff comfort me...

I Live!

INDIAN SUMMER - Featuring the Sonnet "Desirada"

Desirada

Author unkown (slighty modified)

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly, and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant, they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are the vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter, for their will always be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is perennial as the grass. Take kindly in the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars. You are needed in this world. Do not concern yourself with other worlds, for they do not exist. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding in an ordered manner.


Therefore, be at peace with nature and the mysterious process of evolution, whatever you conceive it to be; and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, strive to maintian your own inner peace while you do those things bring you happiness and contribute to the survival of humanity.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

HALF PAST AUTUMN
Phil Ponce examines the life and art of Gordon Parks, Life photographer, film director, composer and digital art pioneer. Parks' work, on exhibit at the Corcoran Gallery in Washington D.C.

A RealAudio version of this segment is available.

NEWSHOUR LINKS:

January 1, 1998 The work of modern artist Joseph Cornell.
October 28, 1997 A look at modern China as seen in the works of some modern Chinese artists.
October 21, 1997The man who designed the new Guggenheim Museum, Frank Gehry.
June 17,1997 Robert Hughes' American Visions, explores the history of American art.
May 23, 1997:The Whitney Museum of American Art's Biennial Exhibit in New York City.
January 10, 1997 Ellsworth Kelly and Jasper Johns exhibits spark the question: What is Modern Art?
Browse the NewsHour's coverage of arts and entertainment.
PHIL PONCE: The people of Fort Scott, Kansas, their images have stayed with Gordon Parks all his life. It was among the people of this prairie town that Parks grew up as the youngest in a family of fifteen children, amid poverty and discrimination. Now, at age 85, Parks can see the full length of his journey from poverty to a life rich in experience and range: photographer, poet, author, film maker, and composer. In the first museum survey of Parks' multi-faceted career Washington's Corcoran Gallery of Art is showing more than 200 of his images, mainly from his work as one of America's leading photojournalists. The exhibition is called "Half Past Autumn: The Art of Gordon Parks." I talked to Parks at the Corcoran about his early influences.

Humble yet nurturing roots.

GORDON PARKS, Photographer: My mother died by the time I was 15, and already she'd imparted enough of herself to carry me for the rest of my life--when I needed it most after I hit the big world out there, you know, and my father was sort of a wonderful dirt farmer who farmed mostly dirt, had enough food for his children, to eat. So we had a rather meager existence.
PHIL PONCE: I've heard you say that your mother was the biggest influence in your life and in your work.
GORDON PARKS: She taught me what was right and what was wrong. She would not tolerate any sort of prejudice against another person because of their color. You know, I can feel her looking at me when I do something wrong--even today--even though she died when I was 15. I have a picture on my mantel in my home and my father's picture, next to each other. And I look at them before I make a decision.
Parks' "choice of weapons": the camera
PHIL PONCE: A key decision--to use a camera as what Parks called his choice of weapons. Beginning in 1942, he helped document the lives of America's poor--its workers--its urban and country dwellers--as a photographer for the Farm Security Administration, a Depression era government agency. That's when he took what would become perhaps his best-known picture. It was of a cleaning woman who worked in his office building. Her name was Ella Watson.
GORDON PARKS: That was my first day in Washington, D.C., in 1942. I had experienced a kind of bigotry and discrimination here that I never expected to experience. And I photographed her after everyone had left the building. At first, I asked her about her life, what it was like, and so disastrous that I felt that I must photograph this woman in a way that would make me feel or make the public feel about what Washington, D.C. was in 1942. So I put her before the American flag with a broom in one hand and a mop in another. And I said, "American Gothic"--that's how I felt at the moment. I didn't care about what anybody else felt. That's what I felt about America and Ella Watson's position inside America.
PHIL PONCE: You were once given the advice that a great photographer is often somebody who is a good person, who cares about other people. So you do wind up caring, or, in some cases, loving the people you photograph?
"The photographer begins to feel big and bloated and so big he can't walk through one of these doors because he gets a good byline; he gets notices all over the world and so forth; but they're really--the important people are the people he photographs. They are what make him."
GORDON PARKS: Yes. I usually wind up liking them or understanding them better, even though they may have an evil content. The subject matter is so much more important than the photographer. The photographer begins to feel big and bloated and so big he can't walk through one of these doors because he gets a good byline; he gets notices all over the world and so forth; but they're really--the important people are the people he photographs. They are what make him.

PHIL PONCE: It was at Life Magazine that Parks began to gain a national reputation. He was the magazine's first African-American photographer and used the technique in which he would focus a series on one person to tell a broader story about humanity, itself--like a 1948 life and death story on the violence of gang wars in Harlem through the eyes of Red Jackson, a 16-year-old gang leader. By gaining Jackson's trust and spending time with him, Parks was able to capture lives rarely portrayed in American media.
Or his 1961 series on the slums of Brazil from the vantage point of Flavio DaSilva, a 12-year-old boy in Rio who, though sick with tuberculosis, helped support his family--Parks, in effect, adopted Flavio, brought him to the United States to be cured, and still calls him in Brazil to this day. Parks personally helped many of his subjects long after he took their pictures.

A lasting love between Parks and his subjects.
GORDON PARKS: You have to stay with them; you have to be a part of them. In fact, in stories like that I have gone to live with a family for about a week or so without even taking my camera so that they begin to accept me as a person, as a big brother, or uncle, or, you know, something of that sort, so that they have confidence in me, and I have love for them. And it's a lasting love.

PHIL PONCE: But these images are also part of Parks' vision. The man who shot life's ugly side also captured the side that has to do with elegance, beauty, and glamour--as a leading fashion photographer in Paris.

GORDON PARKS: Well, there's nothing wrong with photographing a very beautiful woman, right, and clothes, beautiful clothes, and so forth and so on, and affording me trips to London and Paris and all over the globe, you know, photographing these gorgeous gowns and fabulous women. You get a certain kind of joy out of that.

PHIL PONCE: Returning from Paris in the 1960's, Parks again chronicled the pain and anger at this nation's poorest; the burgeoning civil rights movement; and the rise of the Black Muslim movement. In portraiture, Parks also captured some of the leading figures of the day: Writer Langston Hughes; jazz great Duke Ellington, actresses Ingrid Bergman and later Barbra Streisand; boxing champion Muhammad Ali. In his 50's Parks' artistic evolution took him in a new direction: films. He was a pioneer African American film director, beginning with "The Learning Tree," based on his autobiographical novel about growing up in Kansas.
ACTRESS: No matter if you go or stay think of Cherokee Flats like that till the day you die; that it be a learning tree.
From photography to film, music and digital art.

PHIL PONCE: He made 10 other films, including the popular 1971 film "Shaft," an attempt, he said, to give blacks a positive role model, in this case a charismatic detective. Parks, who learned piano from his mother, also went on to compose a symphony, sonatas, concertos, and a ballet on the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

GORDON PARKS: It all comes together now for me, strangely. I've never before the last five years, I've never tried to necessarily tie them together. It just happens that I suppose if I felt that one thing failed me, I'd have something else to go on.

PHIL PONCE: These are some of Parks' latest works. He makes them using computers, photographs, paintings, sculpture, and found objects.

GORDON PARKS: You know, the camera is not meant just to show misery. You can show beauty with it; you can do a lot of things. You can show--with a camera you can show things that you like about the universe, things that you hate about the universe. It's capable of doing both. And I think that after nearly 85 years upon this planet that I have a right after working so hard at showing the desolation and the poverty, to show something beautiful for somebody as well. It's all there, and you've only done half the job if you don't do that. You've not really completed a task.

PHIL PONCE: How do you explain the fact that you've had really such a remarkable life?
"I'm just about ready to start, and winter is entering. Half past autumn has arrived."

GORDON PARKS: My life to me is like sort of a disjointed dream. I can't explain it to you. Things have happened to me--incredible. It's so disjointed. But all I know, it was a constant effort, a constant feeling that I must not fail, and I still have that. And now, I feel at 85, I really feel that I'm just ready to start. There's another horizon out there, one more horizon that you have to make for yourself and let other people discover it, and someone else will take it further on, you know. You discover it. Somebody else takes it on. But I do feel a little teeny right now that I'm just about ready to start, and winter is entering.

Half past autumn has arrived.
visit: www.pbs.com
**************************************************
Phenomenal Woman
"Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size But when I start to tell them, They think I'm telling lies. I say, It's in the reach of my armsThe span of my hips, The stride of my step, The curl of my lips. I'm a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That's me. I walk into a roomJust as cool as you please,
And to a man, The fellows stand or Fall down on their knees. Then they swarm around me, A hive of honey bees. I say, It's the fire in my eyes, And the flash of my teeth, The swing in my waist, And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman, That's me.
Men themselves have wondered What they see in me. They try so muchBut they can't touch My inner mystery. When I try to show them They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,The sun of my smile, The ride of my breasts, The grace of my style. I'm a woman Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman, That's me.
Now you understand Just why my head's not bowed. I don't shout or jump about Or have to talk real loud. When you see me passing It ought to make you proud. I say, It's in the click of my heels, The bend of my hair, the palm of my hand, The need of my care, 'Cause I'm a woman Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman, That's me.
With much Love,

@lovleeannwise 2015  repost 7/25/06

I GOT FLOWERS TODAY

"YOU TAKE MY HAND AND I'LL TAKE YOUR HAND BABY, TOGETHER WE'LL GET AWAY... THIS MUCH SADNESS IS TO MUCH SORROW, IT'S IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO STAY. SHA LA LA THE WEATHER SHE COULD DRAG ME OVER THE RAINBOW AND SEND ME AWAY"

"DOWN BY THE RIVER I SHOT MY BABY.... SHOT HER AWAY DOWN BY THE RIVER....."

THE LATE DRUMMER BUDDY MILES - 1970 (Song - Down by the River FROM THE ALBUM BUDDY MILES CHANGES

We had our first argument last night, and he said a lot of cruel things that really hurt me. I know he is sorry and didn't mean the things he said, because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today. It wasn't our anniversary or any other special day. Last night he threw me into a wall and started to choke me. It seemed like a nightmare, I couldn't believe it was real. I woke up this morning sore and bruised all over. I know he must be sorry cause he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today, and it wasn't mother's day or any other special day. Last night, he beat me up again, it was much worse than all the other times. If I leave him, what will I do? How will I take care of my kids? What about money? I'm afraid of him and scared to leave. But I know he must be sorry because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today. Today was a very special day. It was the day of my funeral! Last night, he finally killed me. He beat me to death. If only I had gathered enough courage to leave him, I would not have gotten flowers today.......If you are against domestic abuse, please pass this along to everyone, NOT just women.

submitted by: Shelle via - Lannie Hardy 2005

Domestic Violence is ugly, and it in no way does it demonstrate love or a kind of morbid affection for it's victim(s). Most of us either know of or have been touched by this vicious cycle. Growing up in a home where I witnessed first hand how ugly it can get on all levels. Now to add to the agony we have brothers on the DL (down low). It's time to open up the lines of communication - Can you stand the pain? 

Your comments and contributions are welcome or send us email.

@Lovleeannwise all rights reserved 2005 

I'M BETTER THAN THIS

I'm Better Than This

Date: Monday, September 19, 2005
By: Bishop T. D. Jakes, Special to BlackAmericaWeb.com

There are some people who go through a complete metamorphosis in life. They change from the old sinful, nasty talking, whoremongering, pornography internet surfing, crack smoking, lying, thieving person they used to be into an entirely new person.
In fact some of the people you work with, go to church with or live in your neighborhood have come out of a past that you would not believe! Fortunately for us, there is nothing too extreme for God to erase from our past. He can take the gutter-most to the uttermost at anytime and anywhere.
The Apostle Paul came out of a troubled past. I mean he had major issues. He was a controversial misfit, a terrorist murderer and a God hater. Yet he is the most prolific writer of the New Testament. Without his input, we would not know how to truly relate to God and enjoy the benefits of having a relationship with Him.

After the Damascus Road experience, Paul turned his entire life over to Christ. God saved him, but no one wanted anything to do with him. Isn’t it amazing how you can make a complete turnaround in your life and people will still treat you like you’re nothing?

Some of the most inspiring messages you will ever hear from people who have been through anything, came as a result of their greatest messes. Paul was once the “chief” of sinners, but he excelled in ministry because he was confident in who he was in Christ.

Once you accept Jesus, your identification changes and so does your position in life. All the old stuff is erased through forgiveness and you become a new creature in Christ. He paid the price for every sin you will ever commit when He gave up His life on the cross. In other words, He’s already paid the debt you would otherwise owe.

Look at it this way, if I paid off your mortgage, the mortgage company would have no right to call you about a bill ever again. It’s paid for! That’s what the enemy tries to do when he uses other people to bring up your past. He tries to convince you that you’re the same person you used to be. However, once you realize who you are in Christ, you can look your accusers straight in the eye and tell them, “I’m better than this!”

You may be working through some things right now – we all are – but you can change your condition by aligning yourself with your position. As God’s child, you have a right to the best life has to offer.

It’s time to live. People may be used to seeing you live with a defeated mentality, fear or insecurity, but you’re better than that now. Start acting like it and begin pursuing the things God is showing you in your dreams. Believe me; the things you see in your dreams are more real than the things you see with your eyes. It’s time to step out into new territory and like Paul, forget those things that are behind and press toward the great things that lie ahead. Now pursue!

This excerpt was taken from the series entitled I’m Better Than This.
Author Bishop T.D. Jakes


@Lovleeannwise   all rights reserved 2014 original post 11/13/05, 2:09 PM

Eastern Standard Time