Inspirational Sunday

"I lift my eyes to you..."

Psalm 123:1

Rae's Thought: Have you ever been anxious or worried about something? A few weeks ago, I'd been anxious about a financial issue. I spent a week worried about where the money would come from. One whole week, gone and wasted because I was worried. I had a "to do" list that I didn't even complete because I couldn't focus on anything but my financial woes. Needless to say, I was extra hard on myself for wasting a week.

Then, I realized I was stuck....kinda like being stuck in quicksand - the more you struggle, the more you sink, right? Well, the more I thought about my finances and my wasted week, the more I sunk. When I came to that realization, I asked God for forgiveness (my focus was on the wrong thing) and vowed to move on. If God was gonna bless me with another week, I didn't want to start it off with negativity (beating myself up over past mistakes) and anxiety.

As a teacher/tutor, my heart smiles when a kid finally gets a concept I'd been trying to teach them. This is how I believe God felt after I'd finally gotten it and asked for forgiveness. You see, He doesn't want me to stay stuck on "coulda, shoulda, woulda." He wants me focused on Him and moving forward. If I lift my eyes to Him - and keep them there - everything else will be taken care of. asking for forgiveness, vowing not be anxious, and refocusing on God was the lifeline I needed to get outta that quicksand.

Thank God for being a God of forgiveness and second (and third, fourth, fifth, etc) chances! If your focus has been off because of struggles you're having, ask God to forgive you, and then refocus your attention on God. It's only when our eyes are lifted to God that we can move forward and live the abundant life He's called us to live!

Random Thoughts Thursday

Quran Burning. So, Pastor Terry Jones has decided not to burn the Quran, because the Ground Zero mosque will be moved (a fact that the group building the mosque denies). I'm wondering if he's reveling in the attention he's gotten from the media. Don't get me wrong, I have no doubt he would've burned the Quran. I just think the media attention didn't make things any better. Now that I think about it, does it (media attention) ever make things better when something negative is showcased? I really think part of this is for attention...and he got just what he wanted. I will be surprised if his church membership doesn't increase after this. smh

And what about him representing all of Christianity? Um....no! I'm a Christian (very faithful and active in my church; in love with God) and I do NOT agree with the burning of the Quran. Do I agree with the Muslim faith? No. But do I believe I have the right to judge Muslims and go about burning the Quran? No. As Christians, our job is to tell people about Jesus and let them make the choice. Whether they choose Jesus or not, we're supposed to love them anyway. How is burning the Quran spreading the love of God? Yes, people around the world probably burn Bibles everyday, but two wrongs don't make a right.

And blaming the whole entire Muslim faith cos of the 9/11 attacks is pure insanity. So, I guess that means African Americans can blame the whole entire white race cos of slavery and the injustice our ancestors suffered, right? Or Jews can blame everyone of German decent because of the Holocaust. Maybe everyone of Native American descent can blame anyone of European descent cos of Christopher Columbus and others following him took their land away. Am I the only one seeing the silliness of this?

Willow Smith. I have mixed feelings about Willow Smith signing on to Jay Z's label. I'm hoping and praying she doesn't grow up too fast. She's only 9. I'm a firm believer in letting kids be kids. On the other hand, I'm kinda feeling her song. I love the beat. It's a great dance song (and I love dancing). Plus, if this is really her singing, she has a nice voice...very Rihanna like. I'd have to hear her live to make sure auto tune didn't doctor her voice up. Judge for yourself.

Writing Wednesdays: Sharing the Spotlight

August 23

Niki: Gonna stick with the '140 characters or less' theme here:

• 1st day of skool-high on my "Best Day Ever" list. I have an awesome bff, gorgeous bf, e z classes, & did I mention I'm a SENIOR? Life is gd!

Ren: I figured today would be like all the other first days of school I've had. I mean, why break the cycle, right? I wish! For the last 2 years, my first days of school went a little like this: Meet up with Ari, find lockers (usually next to or near each other) and compare schedules (usually the same or close). The rest of the day felt like I was on a cloud. Today went like this: Meet up with Ari, find lockers (mine in the senior hall, hers on the other side of the building), and compare schedules (number of classes together...one). The rest of the day felt like I was on a roller coaster.

The most embarrassing part of the day was first period, which is Spanish 3. FIRST PERIOD! My brain has a hard time functioning in English that early, much less another language. I made it through almost the whole period thinking it wouldn't be so bad. Then I had to mess it up.

• Senora Lopez: Senorita Blake?


• Me: Si, Senora?


• Senora Lopez: Como se dice, 'I can't find my comb' in espanol?


• Me, laughing inside at how easy this is: No puedo encontrar mi pene.


• Senora Lopez (double blink): Perdon?


• Me, thinking maybe she has problems of the mental variety: No puedo encontrar mi pene.

I couldn't, for the life of me, figure out why Senora Lopez had turned red. Why was everyone laughing? Ari leaned over and whispered, "Um, I think you just said, 'I can't find my penis.'" So, apparently, in Spanish, comb is 'peine' and penis is 'pene'. How was I to know? They sound so much alike.

Unfortunately, my fellow classmates didn't forget about my little slip up like I'd hoped they would. Instead, they blabbed it to their friends, who blabbed it to their friends. Even Senora Lopez couldn't resist telling other teachers, which explains the little smirks I got when they called my name. Even Niki couldn't resist. I think I've heard enough penis jokes to last me a lifetime. The only highlight of the day was volleyball, which I have for last period. Did I mention that coach made me team captain? Woohoo!

My day may have began crappy, but it ended on a high note. Will the rest of the year be like this?

Tickle-Me Tuesday

Man-ificent Monday: Bow Wow

This week's cutie pie is 23 year old, Shad Moss aka Lil Bow Wow aka Bow Wow. I have to admit, when he first came out at the age of 13, I thought he was a precious little...girl. I know I know. It was the long hair that did it. Bow Wow has released 7 solo albums, and 1 collaborative album (Face Off with Omarion), as well as acted in several movies (Like Mike, Roll Bounce, and The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift to name a few). His recent movie, Lottery Ticket, was released last month. I'm not a cougar, by the way (he's 11 years younger than me), I just appreciate good looking men! What captures my attention? His smile and his eyes!

Word(s) to describe: Cute. Charming. All grown up!

Wannabe Writers #32

Wannabe Writers is a writing group for the un-published started by Sarah at Confessions of the Un-published. It's a place where future authors can ask questions, share stories, and get feedback. Interested in joining? Click here to find more about how it works.

Where Am I in the Writing Process: Unpublished. Writing novel #2, Who's Got Tha Moves.

My Current Problem(s): Shutting off my inner editor/critic. I hear writers say they just write and revise later...I have such a hard time doing that. You see, I'm a perfectionist, so I have to get things right the first time. I write something that my inner critic doesn't agree with, she lets me know. "Um, you're really gonna write that?" or "Yeah, that doesn't make sense." Perfectionism comes in handy at times, but it can also be SO annoying!

This week's question: How in the world do you shut your inner critic off?

Inspirational Sunday

"Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, 'Go south to the road - the desert road - that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.' So he started out..."

Acts 8:26-27

Rae's Thought: Can you imagine Philip's surprise when the angel told him to go to the desert? The verses before show Philip preaching in Samaria and, as a result, a spiritual awakening occurring. So now, God asks him to leave this place of great revival to go to the desert, for a reason unknown to him. Again I ask, can you imagine Philip's surprise? He may have wondered, "Why in the world is He sending me there" but he did something extraordinary: he went. Instead of complaining or begging God to allow him to stay and revel in the revival, Philip obeyed. Despite the weirdness of it, Philip "started out..."

What is God telling you to do that feels so off the wall? Maybe He's telling you to do something that seems so out of character for you. Maybe He's just telling you to do something that seems impossible. Whatever it is, do it. What happened with Philip? At the same exact time he reached his destination, a caravan passed by with an Ethiopian eunuch. This eunuch happened to be reading the book of Isaiah and stuck on a prophesy of Jesus. Philip witnessed to the eunuch and told him about Jesus, which caused him to become a believer and get baptized. This eunuch no doubt went back to Ethiopia and told others about Jesus. Awesome, isn't it?

"We must learn to obey whether or not it seems to make sense" (Avery Willis, MasterLife: The Disciple's Personality). Obviously God knows what's going to happen, even when you don't. He's confident that things will work out, even when you're not. Remember, His calling you isn't for you, but for the ones you'll touch and, ultimately, for His glory. When God leads you to do something, be obedient and watch God work!