To the David Generation

I was reading my Bible late last night [early this morning] when a passage that I’m sure I’ve read many times before in my 26 years jumped out at me like never before.  It was I Samuel 13:19-22 which reads like this:

“Now there was a no blacksmith to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, ‘Lest the Hebrews make swords or spears.’  But all the Israelites would go down to the Philistines to sharpen each man’s plowshare, his mattock, his axe, and his sickle; and the charge for a sharpening was a pim for the plowshares, the mattocks, the forks, and the axes, and to set the points of the goads.  So it came about, on the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan.  But they were found with Saul and Jonathan his son” (emphasis mine).

This passage struck me because I never recalled the fact that the Israelite people were completely unarmed and the equipment they did have (ie. plowshares, axes, sickles, forks, etc.) were for farming and building.  This makes young David’s bravery that much more astounding to me because he literally had nothing but God.  Any farming/building equipment he would have had access to, his seven older brothers most likely already took to battle.

Imagine a vast army full of men armed with sickles, plowshares, and pitchforks! What a pathetic sight that would be and in the natural, it would make sense for them to quake before the Philistines and Giant Lords of Gath. There is no way that they could go up in battle against the Philistines in their own might.  And this is most likely also why Goliath took the stance he did saying,

“‘Why have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.’  And the Philistine said, ‘I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together’.” (I Samuel 17:8-10).  

Goliath—knowing the incomparable abilities of the Israelite army as it concerned weaponry—followed the pattern of the Ancient World

and as the Philistine champion, much like in Troy a.k.a. The Iliad  when Achilles fought Hector or in Prince Caspian where Miraz challenged High King Peter, when he called for a champion among the Israelites to face him in combat.

Saul, apparently too afraid to face Goliath himself, tried to give young David his armor and sword, full-knowing that he and his son, Jonathan, were the only ones to possess such treasures.  He knew that it was pure insanity, folly really, to meet a foe in war without the proper gear and weaponry.  And it would seem that even armor and a sword that were too big for David would be better than none at all.  But David had discernment.

David understood that he did not need to try and fill someone else’s position [represented by the armor/clothing from Saul].  David had a revelation which we see expressed in Psalm 28:7 that the Lord is his “strength and…shield”.   He knew God would provide him with a more effective, divine set of armor and weaponry.  He knew that although it appeared he had nothing, he, in fact, had something.  He chose five smooth stones (one for each of the five giant lords, the sons of Gath), placed them in his sling, and slew Goliath.  And it was this victory that propelled David into his destiny. 

So now, I speak to the David Generation; the generation full of purpose and possibilities, yet who might feel insignificant.  You might wonder what good is a gift of singing with no one to hear it, a writing gift with no writing utensil, or a fighting gift with no one to fight.  Well I have news for you: God has heard your prayers and knows your potential—He gave it to you!  He has anointed you for a specific purpose.  Furthermore, God is about to provide you with the opportunity to show your quality and worth to the world!

Forget about what’s been taken from you, how helpless you feel, how dire your situation seems, and how overlooked you’ve been.  God is about to bring you out of obscurity to accomplish His purpose in the earth!

David Generation, it’s time to rise up!

Disrespect

I just participated in a very interesting conversation on Facebook posed by a pastor inquiring as to why it is that a particular ethnicity of women tend to refer to him by his first name as opposed to his god-given title.  He was not offended.  He was not in attack-mode.  He was simply asking a question.

The response he got was overwhelming in number, but what shocked me the most was the disrespect he encountered.  Some of it even directed at people like me, who merely agreed with the man of God.  Now, I understand that many would argue most black ministers are stuck on their titles because that is the only place they feel they have or can achieve anything.  Many [men] of the cloth could also rely on their titles because they are arrogant.  However, you could tell that this was not the heart of this particular pastor.

Now my question to the “saints” is why do we not fear to disrespect the men and women of God?  I was personally happy not to be standing next to some of the commentators because I did not want to be struck by lightening, lol.  The Bible says, “Touch not mine anointed and do my prophets no harm,” (I Chronicles 16:22; Psalm 105:15).  This includes “touching” them with your mouth.  Travel back to the Old Testament and notice that everyone who spoke against Moses was severely punished. Korah and his followers were literally swallowed up by the earth (Numbers 16:1-35).  Miriam, Moses’ sister, spoke against his new, black [Ethiopian] wife and she was struck with Leprosy for 7 days (Numbers 12: 1-15).  Jezebel spoke against Elijah and the other prophets [among other things] and was thrown from a window by her own servants for the dogs to eat her flesh leaving only her skull, the palms of her hands, and her feet (II Kings 9:30-37).  Thank God we live under the grace of the New Testament instead of the law of the Old Testament!

My point in writing this is not to scare anyone; only to cause them to ponder the error of their ways.  Some ministers are not ordained by God, true.  But I would dare to say that the vast majority of the ones who have fruit to show for their god-given call are authentic.  Therefore, I encourage you to honour these men and women of God.  Give them gifts, pray for them, assist them in anyway you can.  And yes, we should even address them by their titles out of pure respect—if not for them, then for the God who called them into ministry. 

Again, I do not promote the self-righteous, egotistical [men] of the cloth who are stuck on their titles, but I do support ministries backed by fruit.  Furthermore, the Bible admonishes us, “Render therefore to all their due...honor to whom honor," (Romans 13:7).  Therefore we are to honour our men and women of God.  Not speak against them, lash out at them, correct them, and certainly not blast them even if they are wrong about a particular thing.  That is for God and those they are accountable to discuss and deal with.  Not us.

I realise that there has been a serious lack of spiritual fathers and mothers in the Church, but now we’ve recognized that and many are trying to rectify that and re-implement sound teaching to the saints in all matters, including the matter of respect and honour.  Is it so hard to honour the men and women God bless to be our pastors and overseers?  I think not. 

Destroying the Family: It Starts with the Children

When I logged into my Yahoo homepage today I was outraged to find a certain article.  Maybe some of you have read it: No ‘Him’ or ‘Her’; Preschool Fights Gender Bias.  The article features a particular preschool in Stockholm, Sweden—Egalia—which is seeking to breakdown gender roles in order to allow the children to be whoever they decide to be.  It also seeks to foster tolerance of the LGBT society. 

Some of you might have also read the article on an American baby named “Stormie” where the parents refuse to tell the gender of the child in order to remove societal pressure for it to be one thing or another.  Only the nuclear family members know what gender the child is.

It is so amazing to me that the LGBT society, Feminists, as well as its supporters, seem to think that removing the traditional, biblical identification of a thing that it frees the said thing to be what it will when, in fact, it simply confuses the thing in question as well as society about what it actually is.  I use the word “it” because I speak of more than children.  When certain societal minorities and crooked lawyers and legislators wanted to remove the idea of human life at conception, they argued that it was a fetus, a thing, an object, not a human being.  Thus, legalizing murder and giving careless, godless women throughout the nation the ability to legally murder their children at will.

When homosexual men and women wanted to openly defy God and legally live an alternative lifestyle, they attacked the institution of marriage stating that marriage was not a holy union between one man and one woman as the Bible describes it, but it was simply a commitment between two people—regardless of gender—who love each other.  Now, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, Washington D.C., and New York have all legalized same-sex marriage. 

Now they are starting much younger with the children.  Storybooks that once held godly morals, healthy aspirations, and no confusion of family, gender, or the like are now relegated in many places to Heather has Two Mommies as well as the book mentioned in the article on Egalia Preschool which highlights “two male giraffes who are sad to be childless — until they come across an abandoned crocodile egg”.  And these are just 2 of the many stories written and produced for the advancement of the LGBT society. 

The school also eliminates the use of pronouns like “him” or “her” [“han” and “hon”] and instead uses words like “hen”, a non-existent word used loosely by some feminist and gay circles.  They inspire confusion in child play such as allowing multiple mommies when playing house.  The mere fact that the children understand that one mommy is normal justifies the fact that schools like Egalia are busy reprogramming, better yet brainwashing, the children to go against their innate bend towards a godly, traditional lifestyle and force them to accept and embrace a homosexual lifestyle. 

All of these situations mentioned, ability to abort human life before birth, ability for men to marry men and women to marry women, ability to shake gender identification and be what one has not been created to be are all paraded falsely under the freedom of choice.  And to that I will say this: God did, in fact create us with a free will.  However, this free will was not given us so that we might spit in the face of the One who created us to serve Him and bring Him glory.  It was given us so that we might choose freely to serve Him and to be what He has called us to be.  Moses, the Law-giver, served as the mouthpiece of God when He said “I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19).  Yes, we are given the freedom of choice, but God gives us the answer to the test: choose life! 

Homosexuality, bisexuality, confused sexuality, and feminism [rebellious, discontented women] all are a choice to us in the same way that we may choose to drive off of a cliff, or drink a bottle of poison, or shoot ourselves in the head.  Yes, we have the choice, but it is the difference between living a fulfilling life and living an eternity with God or death—an eternal separation from God filled with the worst imaginable torment.  Who in their right mind would choose the latter? 

Another issue this whole gender confusion produces is the breakdown of the position of men in the family and, in turn, society.  The position of man is the head, the leader of the family.  Now by saying this, I am not saying that women cannot be CEOs, politicians, attorneys, or even pastors [if under the proper covering by a spiritual authority and in perfect submission to their husbands].  What I am saying though is that God has set an order for us to follow and it is this: Christ is the head of the Church as well as Man; Man/Husband is the head of the home; Woman/Wife is the head of the children.  Each is to respect the spiritual covering over them.  In the spirit there is no distinction, but thanks to The Fall, there is an order for us to follow while we are yet in these earth-suits.  And as part of the curse of The Fall, women’s desire is against man.  It is not easy for us to submit and especially so for Black American women and understandably so.  However, if the women choose their husband with much prayer, wisdom, and common sense, she will have nothing to fear in submitting to her husband since she trusts him and understands that he trusts and listens to God who serves as his head.  Its really a quite simple concept.

However, society has twisted this order into an undesirable situation.  Ages of domineering men, emotionally and physically abusive men, absentee men [for whatever reason be it slavery, the gang lifestyle, or the workaholic], and more have given women a distaste for male leadership, in and out of the home.  Then you have your Jezebels who seek to rule over their husbands and manipulate their environments to their liking, the feminists who cry falsely that they do not need men or that they are equal in ability and make-up to men, and the lesbians who have completely spit upon the idea of husbands and fathers, eradicating them from their environment unless, of course to adopt them or give birth to them and completely emasculate them. 

Child psychologist at University of California, Davis, Jay Belsky, states "The kind of things that boys like to do — run around and turn sticks into swords — will soon be disapproved of….So gender neutrality at its worst is emasculating maleness."  The identity of children, the leadership of the home, and more is locked up in man.  A woman cannot raise a man to be a man, try though she might.  Just as men are the gender which provides the embryo with the “x” or “y” gene which produces either a boy or a girl, the man names the child after its born.  It has been widely proven that boys who grow up without a father are prone to find themselves in trouble with the law or at the least be extremely troubled while we can all spot the girls who have “Daddy issues” either because he wasn’t there or because he abused her in some way or fashion.  As physically strong as a woman may be, she cannot protect herself or her family like a man would, try though she might.  Societies without men in leadership produce women who hate men and or try to replace men while they boys in their care grow up completely devoid of understanding what it is that makes them a man.  The society as a whole is ruined. 

The only thing I could possibly praise Egalia Preschool for is their use of dolls from different cultures and I am sorry for the threats they’ve received from ignorant bigots and racists.  But black dolls in a predominantly white school does not a good education make.  That may have worked 50 years ago in the racist South of America where all other values [save praying in school] seemed to be intact.  However, nowadays, it is simply not enough.  Children need clear boundaries as to what is right and what is wrong.  As aforementioned, they are born with an innate sense of fundamental understanding, but it is up to the parents and educators to teach our children right from wrong.  We must teach children, not what society thinks, but what God says.  We must give them the best advantages on the road to a long, happy, successful life in which God will be praised and pleased.  We must teach our children to choose life because after all, they are our future.  

Stewardship

A.W. Tozer said “Everything is safe which we commit to [God], and nothing is really safe which is not so committed”.  I whole-heartedly agree with Tozer save one point—everything already belongs to God.  The universe, the lights of the heavens, the earth and the fullness thereof are all His.  When God created Adam [and Eve] He gave us dominion over everything, but not ownership.  God made created us to be stewards.

Let me first begin by defining stewardship.  It is “the conducting, supervising, or managing of something; especially: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care” (Merriam-Webster).  It is what a governor does for a colony; what a nanny does for her employers’ child; what a limo driver does for the limo.  They are given something, but they do not own it.  And should the said professionals presume to own the thing they are hired to care for, they will be promptly removed from their position because they will have proven themselves unworthy.    

The concept of stewardship is one that has been lost on a people and a generation that feels the need to own everything.  We have our families, our finances, our belongings, our land, etc.  In our finite minds we seem to think that because we purchased something, were given something, or gave birth to something that it is ours and this is simply not true. 

Everything, no matter the way it comes to us is given us by God.  He either created it or gave man the ability and means to create it.  He owns the patent on all.  The confusion between owning a thing and holding a thing is very evident in societies near and far, developed and undeveloped.  People are really all the same.  The two areas wherein the issue of stewardship seems to be the most evident are family situations and finances.

I’ll first tackle the issue of confusion as it pertains to families.  How many of you have seen or met the stage moms who drive their daughters to excel on the stage or silver screen?  Or what about the dad’s who push their sons to apply to their alma mater, play a certain sport, or study a certain program?  Slim are the chances that the children unfortunately placed in these situations grow up to be happy, well-adjusted adults.  And the aspirations need not be so glamourous, they could be more simple-the mother who wants her children to remain in the home or close by regardless of their age.  It could be any number of issues.  These people generally suffer major control issues and or self-esteem issues due to unfulfilled dreams and the misconceptions of parenthood.  The Bible refers to children as “a heritage from the Lord” and “a reward” (Psalm 127:3).  Not as a possession.  Parents and family members in general must understand that the people God places in our lives are a blessing to be enjoyed and cared for, not lorded over, controlled, or manipulated.  This is bound to tarnish and possibly even ruin the relationships that we hold so dear.  

The second and, I believe, more widespread issue is that of finances.  We work for “our money” and that makes us think we own it.  We couldn’t be more wrong.  Since it is God who created us, created the employers and companies we work for, gave us the ability to work the jobs, and the means to transport ourselves to the location(s) of our employment, it is God who provides the money; He is the Ultimate Source.  Everyone and everything else is just a resource.  Take a tree for example: it has branches that grow from its trunk which produce fruit, yet the branches do not claim the ability to produce or the possession of the fruit it yields.  It knows that there would be no fruit and no branches had there been no roots pulling the nutrients from the ground which produce the tree which in turn produce the fruit.  The credit is not its own and it is the same for us.  All the abilities we have to “get wealth”, however great or little, is due to God’s graciousness and allowance.  This is why we tithe.

And I know with uttering the “t-word” I’ve just turned half of my readers off with my “Old Testament” thinking.  But tithing is not an Old or New Testament concept, it’s a biblical concept; a godly concept.  It has no season, it has no time.  It has no context, distinction, or limitation.  It is for all.  And it is not a concept that stands by itself; it is paired with offering as well.  These two have been with us since the beginning of time.  Cain killed his brother Abel because he offered a more acceptable sacrifice than he himself had (Genesis 4:3-10).  Abraham is portrayed paying his tithe to Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18-20).  The Jews in the Old Testament temple and Believer in the New Testament were both commanded to pay tithes and give.  Malachi even declares the refusal of tithe-paying “robbing God” (Malachi 3:8-10). 

Just to be clear, a tithe is 10 percent of all your increase.  An offering is independent of the tithe and has no particular figure except that which God—not man—lays upon your heart to give.  God gives us the power to get wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18) and in return, only requires 10 percent of it consistently.  He could demand 30, 50, 75, or 90 percent, but instead, He chooses to let us deal with the 90 as we see fit.  And this is where the concept of stewardship comes in.  After giving God His due, we are now left with 90 percent to spend.  And how we spend it determines how we truly grasp the concept of stewardship. 

My boyfriend is an excellent private banker and frequently teaches on the handling of finances using simple, solid, biblical wisdom.  And as such, stewardship is the foundation of his teaching.  He believes that if people can truly understand and apply the concept of stewardship, then they can begin to correct and increase their financial situation.  Furthermore, once you have the concept of stewardship firmly in place as it concerns your finances, you’ll begin to notice the same concept showing up in other areas of your life (i.e. eating healthy, exercising, treatment of belongings and loved ones, etc.).  And what’s more is that as much as an adult can benefit from this type of teaching, imagine how much more a child would.  One could easily avoid a life plagued by bad credit, overdrawn accounts, and more if taught this concept.

The idea is that if you are given something to take care of that does not belong to you, you’ll most likely treat it better than if it was your own.  If my boyfriend went out of town and asked me to watch his home or keep his car, I would take excellent care to keep either of them clean, in good working condition, and whatever else might be necessary.  Why?  because they belong to him.  Because I wouldn’t want him to leave thinking his home or car was in good hands, and return finding them dirty, destroyed, improperly cared for and so on.  He entrusted them to me, so it is my obligation to return them to him as good as—and preferably better than—before.

Jesus was an avid preacher of stewardship; He used the concept in several of His parables.  Here are some listed below:

• The Parable of the Faithful and Evil Servants (Luke 12:35-48)
• The Parable of the Unjust Steward (Luke 16:1-13)

And not only did Jesus speak of stewardship, but Paul and Peter reference it as well. 

• The chapter entitled “Stewards of the Mysteries of God (I Corinthians 4)
• We are “good stewards of the manifold grace of God” (I Peter 4:10)

Stewardship is an important concept to be learned that every area of our lives can benefit from. 

If we acted as stewards, we would not live under a curse from lack of tithing.  If we acted as stewards, our finances would be blessed because of our godly benevolence.  If we acted as stewards, we would make wise financial decisions such as living within our means and making wise purchases.  If we acted as stewards, our children would be taught to be not what they want to be, or what we want them to be, but what God called them to be.  If we acted as stewards, our lives would be improved in so many ways only God could count them all.  We would avoid so much stress and drama that only wears at our strength and afflicts our mental and physical health.  We would be a wise, realistic people who God would be proud to call his own.  And when He returns, He would find our spiritual, emotional, mental, financial, and physical homes in order.  And as Tozer believed, we would find everything in our life that is attached to us safe, because we will have realized that it belongs to our great and capable God.

*Shameless plug: if you’d like my financially savvy boyfriend to speak at your business or ministerial gathering, please feel free to contact me! J