The Bible Series Review: The Beginning #1

I just watched my first episode of The Bible Series, “The Beginning” which covers the three “beginnings” of the Bible:

• The Beginning in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve (brief)
• The Beginning in the new world with Noah and his family (brief)
• The Beginning in the Promise Land for Abraham and the Jewish People (main focus)

I thought that Roma Downey and her husband Mark Burnett did a great job of classifying these commencements together for the sake of time—one hour. I was hoping for more illustration in the Garden, but I see why they skipped ahead to the story of Abram/Abraham.

It’s a Colour Thing

The first issue that struck me was that, as far as the main characters were concerned there was not much colour. Most, if not all of the lead actors, were Caucasian. This is noticeable to me since I myself am a woman of colour and hope to see ethnicities represented as accurately and frequently as possible in roles that denote them.

This colour issue was most noticeable to me when Sarah held the infant Isaac in her arms. He was the sweetest Middle-Eastern-looking child, yet his newborn and older child actor counterparts reverted back to the typical Caucasian actors.

That said, I was thrilled to see the angels accompanying Jesus to Abraham’s encampment to be one Black and one Asian. Which leads me to my next topic.

Angelic Representation

As aforementioned, I was happy to see two actors of drastically different ethnicities portray the angels. I believe when we go to heaven and even those of us on earth who are privileged to interact with angels on assignment will see a vast colour spectrum of angelic representatives as well.

Now when the angels visited Sodom, I was surprised by how the angels were depicted to have found Lot, or should I say, how Lot found them. I do not think it what truly happened in the story, yet I believe it does fit this Biblical passage:

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels. (Hebrews 13:2)

Another angelic depiction that does not fit the specific story of Sodom and Gomorrah’s destruction yet, fits perfectly into the overall angelic depictions of the Old Testament was the warlike persona.

The Bible tells us that the angels struck the people of Sodom with blindness—which was portrayed in The Bible Series—yet greatly elaborated upon. However, I will again stress that it is not in and of itself unbiblical.

Here are some examples of warrior angels on the loose:

He cast on them the fierceness of His anger, wrath, indignation, and trouble, by sending angels of destruction among them. (Psalm 78:49 emphasis mine)

Therefore David inquired of the Lord, and He said, “You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees. And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the Lord will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.” (II Samuel 5:23-24 emphasis mine)

And it came to pass on a certain night that the angel of the Lord went out, and killed in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and when people arose early in the morning, there were the corpses—all dead. (II Kings 19:35 emphasis mine)

If the angels who rescued Lot and his family from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah did more than strike the people with blindness, it was not mentioned in the Scripture because God did not think it pertinent to what we needed to know.

The State of Sodom

Another big issue that stood out to me was the actual behaviour of the people of Sodom. Not one homosexual was depicted. The Biblical lines depicting the townsmen banging down Lot’s door in order to take the angels and know them sexually was completely omitted. It just made them all look like they were wild. And although this was true, the main depiction the Bible provides us with is very different.

I admit, I have no clue why this was left out of the story since it has such massive implications, especially in a day and age where we are literally fighting the wave of homosexuality and sexual perversion in all of its forms, and fighting tooth and nail for the preservation of marriage as the Scripture defines it.

Maybe this was specifically why they left it out. I really have no idea, yet I don’t want to jump to false accusations and harm the good name of Roma Downey and Mark Burnett so I’ll move on.

Lot’s Family

Lot and his family seem to drop off the face of the planet after the destruction of Sodom, although we know Scripture tells us that a longer, ridiculous (on Lot’s part), incestuous story followed that gave birth—literally—to the Moabite and Ammonite peoples who became enemies of Israel once they left Egypt and returned to the Promise Land.

For the full Biblical account of Lot as well as Sodom and Gomorrah, you may see here.

Back to Abraham’s Family Troubles

I would have loved to see more hateful behaviour from Hagar in the story. We know that she ill-treated Sarah after she conceived Ishmael, yet I do not think we see this to the fullness that it truly was. I make this point because I feel that this tension was a great part of the reason (literally, not so much spiritually) for the forced separation of Hagar and Ishmael from Abraham and all that were his.

I also wish that a more physically beautiful actress had been chosen to play Sarah since the Scripture speaks of her beauty to the extent of causing Abraham to lie to, first, Pharaoh, then Abimelech, to prevent their killing him to take her as their respective wife.

We also know that their unfruitful, yet necessary sojourn through Egypt was where they acquired Hagar and as we can see in modern times, plays a huge role in the relationship between the nations in the Middle-East.

All in all, I believe that in The Bible Series: The Beginning, Roma and Mark accomplished what they set out to do—remained true to the spirit of the Bible, even if some details were changed.

As someone who sits under extremely revelatory ministries, it’s sometimes hard to watch an adaption of a Bible story or passage because I find that many directors cut out seemingly insignificant bits and pieces that, spiritually, have a great impact on the overall setting and story of the Bible. Yet as a writer and, one day, movie maker, I also understand the artistic liberties these visionaries must take and do take to accomplish the vision that God has given them for a project as best they can based on the level of their own present relationship with God and level of prophetic revelation and illumination.

Again, I want to emphasis the Roma Downey and her husband Mark Burnett did a lovely job and I encourage you all to purchase The Bible Series at your earliest convenience! 

Any Other Gospel Than This

Last night I was watching my service online like I typically do in this season of my life and they were sharing awesome testimonies from a retreat they’d had over the week-end.  The one that stood out to me was a young man who was bound by witchcraft and homosexuality.  When he was an extremely young child his family introduced him to voo doo by taking him to a ceremony.  At this ceremony or another like it, a man molested him which introduced him to homosexuality.  I shared the picture and Facebook version of the testimony so the world would be encouraged by the young man’s awesome testimony.

However, this testimony elicited an unexpected response from a former ORU [Oral Roberts University] peer (wing sister) of mine.  She called it “rubbish” and completely disregarded the young man’s struggle and deliverance.  It was late so I deleted her response because I do not allow any form of blasphemy or grieving the Holy Spirit and His evident work in someone’s life nor do I allow anyone to speak ill of my spiritual father or his church.  I don’t play that!  But not wanting to be rude and feeling maybe the testimony was unclear to her, I inboxed her a message to clarify the testimony of the young man and also my comment that Jesus can and does deliver from witchcraft and homosexuality.  I thought that maybe she misinterpreted it to mean that witchcraft causes homosexuality, which was not at all what I mean to convey.  I quickly discovered that her issue was not confusion with the testimony, but in believing that the Bible is true. 

The young lady has several loved ones that are active participants of the homosexual lifestyle and because they are wonderful people—which I cannot argue either way since I do not know any of them—has somehow led her to believe that it is alright for them to be homosexual because “God created them that way” and He loves them.  She also went on to add that I am judgmental, insinuated that I do not truly know the Bible (or at least how to interpret it), and that I will have to answer to God for my sins of judgment against His [homosexual] people.

This to me was absolutely laughable and also extremely sad because some people really think that their feelings about God and or His word determine how they are allowed to interpret the Bible.  They are sadly mistaken.  I write this blog not to gather personal supporters, but rather to use my literary platform to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom.

The Apostle Paul provides an excellent passage that will direct the heart of this post.  It reads as follows:

“But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.  As we have said and said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.  For do I persuade men, or God?  Or do I seek to please men?  For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ,” (Galatians 1:8-10).

Dear ORU grad, FB friend, Twitterbug, or other acquaintance: whether I know you or not, like you or not, I am not here to impress you.  I am here to lift up the name of Jesus and to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God—not of man—to you.  If anyone has an issue with what I say, then you don’t have an issue with me—you have an issue with God, with Jesus, and with the Bible.   

The Two-Edged Sword & Rock of Offense

Let us first clarify that the Word of God is a two-edged sword, sharper than any known to man (Hebrews 4:12).  So guess what? That means the Word cuts.  Or as Pastor Tamara Bennett would say, “it’s cutting me while it’s cutting you”.  We may not always like what the word of God says and we as human beings with free will are absolutely entitled to that preference.  However, when we stand before God on Judgment Day, He is not going to forgive us and let us in His Heaven to spend eternity with Him if we chose to disregard or twist His word to fit our preferences without repentance.  That’s not how it works.  When we truly know God, when we truly make Him our Lord and Saviour of every part of our lives, then we want to please Him; we want to abide by and preach His word because it’s our passion.  It doesn’t matter how we feel about it because what God says goes.    

The Bible also refers to Jesus as the “rock of offense” and that is a most accurate statement (Isaiah 8:14, Romans 9:33, I Peter 2:8).  I Peter goes on to say:

“They stumble, being disobedient, to the word, to which they also were appointed,” (I Peter 2:8). 

This means that even the people who have been introduced to the Gospel, those who claim to know, serve, and love God, can be [consistently] disobedient to God’s word.  

The word disobedience as defined by Merriem-Webster is the refusal to neglect or obey.  This means that the disobedient person knows the truth, knows what they are supposed to say, do, or believe, and yet they willfully choose to do otherwise.  They choose rebellion.  And it is this disobedience that allows the person to choose to be and or remain offended.

The Curse of Teaching [Promoting] False Doctrine

The Word is very harsh on those who teach and or promote off doctrine of any sort whether it’s a Unitarian doctrine that states everyone is saved and going to Heaven, they just don’t know it or that lying is ok.  Sin is sin to God and to be a believer and especially a member of the Fivefold ministry (apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and or teacher) and promote it is a deadly mistake if it is not confessed and forgiven. 

The Apostle Paul writes to Timothy about false teachers saying:

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables,” (II Timothy 4:3-4).

Jesus tells us the punishment for leading God’s children astray in Matthew.

“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depths of the sea.  Woe to the world because of offenses!  For offenses must come, but woe to the man by whom the offense comes!” (Matthew 18:6-7).

Another passage that pronounce a judgment on promoting a false doctrine states:

“Whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven.  For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the Kingdom of Heaven,” (Matthew 5:19-20).

The Bible places very steep judgment on those who know the truth and choose to do, preach, or live otherwise.

Mistaking God’s Love for His Tolerance

Many people, especially as it concerns homosexuality, tell themselves that since God is a God of love, He would not really send unrepentant sinners to Hell for eternity.  These people are sorely mistaken.

God most certainly is love, but He is also holy and as such, demands us to be holy.  Sin cannot dwell in His presence which is why man was driven from Eden.  Their sin-sick state would have tainted the realm of glory that God created us to live in and it is as true today as it was then.  God loves us so unbelievably much whether we serve Him or not, whether we surrender our sexuality to Him or not.  Yet when we actively choose to disregard or disbelieve what His Word says about [homosexuality], when we choose to ignore the work of redemption and freedom that Jesus won for us through his horrible suffering, gruesome death on the cross, and powerful resurrection, we slap Him in the face and reject the gift and therefore willfully forfeit eternal life with Him. 

Illustration: If I give you a gift card to Nieman Marcus,  but you never redeem it, you will not be able to possess all of the wonderful gifts that are waiting for your there.  It’s like you never had it to begin with.

It is the same with salvation.  If we never accept it and walk in it, then we forfeit the abundant life that God longs to give us. 

Furthermore, when we say that God is love, it does not mean that He is tolerant of our sin and rebellion.  This is one of the biggest deceptions of our “advanced” society.  You become labeled as a bigot or hatemonger if you profess God’s stance on homosexuality because there is a widespread misconception of God and His word.

Illustration: An example I love to use is a parent and their child.  If you as a parent tell your child to clean their room and they don’t, they are being disobedient.  You hate that the child does not clean their room, but you do not hate the child them self.  Yet the child’s disobedience requires punishment. 

God is the same way.  He loves each and every one of us so very much!  The word tells us that “The Lord…is not willing that any of us should perish”! But I’m going finish the verse that so many would prefer I not see or read because it states “but that all should come to repentance” (II Peter 3:9). 

The Fragrance of Life or Death

I have been accused before of “cherry-picking” (preferential selection) Bible verses to suit a particular theology or philosophy.  Yet it is not cherry-picking to preach God’s word the way He intended to preach it.  I refuse to have blood on my hands for not preaching God’s word to the lost, or worse, for twisting and or selectively preaching His word to make it more appealing to a deceived generation.  I could boost my popularity with people and preach to their itching ears the things that comfort them in their mess, polish their chains of bondage, or pity their flesh, but God would be most grieved.  I would lose my place in Heaven and eternity because I was too busy trying to make myself a place among men. 

The Gospel of the Kingdom of God is not popular, sugar-coated, or encouraging to our flesh.  In fact, it is foolishness (I Corinthians 1:18) and “the aroma of death leading to death” (II Corinthians 2:14-16) to those who do not believe.  But do not let it remain a deadly aroma in your nostrils.  If you repent and believe on Christ and His word, it will become the fragrance of life to you(II Corinthians 2:14-15)! 

Repeat this prayer with me:

            Father God,

I know that I am a sinner and my sin grieves You and separates me from you.  I want to put aside my emotions, preferences, and bondages to embrace You and Your word.  Come into my heart today.  I confess that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God who was born of a virgin, died on the cross, and rose from the grave on the third day to claim my freedom and healing. I make you the Saviour and Lord of my life.  Fill me with Your precious Holy Spirit who teaches and guides me into all truth!  I accept you now!  Thank God for saving and filling me!

In Jesus’ name,

Amen!

My prayer is that you repeated and believed that prayer with all your heart.  If you did, you are transformed and a bona fide son/daughter of the Most High God whose presence lives in and leads you.  If you make a mistake, it’s ok! Just ask God for His forgiveness, ignore condemnation from the devil, and continue to grow in the things of God.  Join a church near you that preaches the sound doctrine Jesus preached and can help you in your walk.   

I love you and most of all, God loves you! 

God Bless! xx

Whitney: Her Life, Her Death, and Her Homegoing

Whitney "Nippy" Elizabeth Houston

1963-2012

Today, along with millions of people around the world, I watched Whitney Houston’s funeral.  I did not know what to expect and I have had viewpoints and opinions on her life as well as her afterlife that many would disagree with or even find offensive.  Yet, I love Whitney.  I never met her, but when she died, it was like an aunt I’d always loved, but never got to the chance to know, had died.  In short I was devastated.  And with none of us truly knowing where Whitney would spend eternity, I did not have a particular expectation of the funeral besides these two things: 1) Pastor Marvin Winans must preach the eulogy and 2) CeCe Winans must sing “Don’t Cry for Me”.  My expectations were met and, by far, exceeded.

As soon as I tuned into Whitney’s funeral, or should I say, homegoing service, I was immediately struck by the presence of God in that place.  It flooded into my office and overwhelmed me. And once I gained an understanding of what would truly happen at her homegoing, this verse popped into my head:

“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain,” (John 12:24).

I realised that the impact of Whitney Houston’s life would greatly pale in comparison to the impact that her death would have.  Someone related it to Sampson who, in his death, killed more Philistines than he ever did in his life put together.  I concur.  Whitney had an undeniable, gift from God in her voice.  Yet it was her death that drew the world together and created a platform for God to be exalted. 

In case you missed it, Twitter [and Facebook] was on fire during the homegoing service.  Piers Morgan, Suze Orman, RHONJ’s Caroline Manzo, Amber Riley, my fellow wedding professionals, and saints everywhere had a four hour, international church service via internet and over the airwaves!  The saints praised and worshipped.  Secular artists who didn’t know Jesus had the anointing rest on them like in Old Testament times while they sang their tributes.  Pastors spoke in tongues.  And I know that I know that I know that lives were changed.  And all of this on the internet and international television!  Furthermore, if you would have checked the Twitter trends during the Homegoing, the vast majority of them had to do with God and Jesus.  I’ve NEVER seen ANYTHING like this in my entire life!

I spoke with my sister Jessica today to relay all the funeral details to hear and I told her I did not think it was any coincidence that just two nights ago, I watched a church service online wherein the speaker, Prophetess Cindy Jacobs, declared that the next great revival of America had begun.  What the devil meant for evil [by Whitney’s Death], God meant for good!  And just as Bishop Jakes said today at the service, “death has not won”.  And it indeed has not! 

On Anderson Cooper the other night, BeBe Winans, spoke about the song he wrote which his sister CeCe recorded and performed, “Don’t Cry forMe”.

“No one is the blame, my death was meant to be.  Don’t carry guilt or shame. The reason why I came, soon you’ll see”.

Such poignant, powerful words!  “…the reason why I came, soon you’ll see…”. Whitney’s gift, Whitney’s life—as all of our lives are—was created to give God glory.  Despite whatever issues we have, whatever struggles we deal with, whatever heartaches break us, our lives were made to bring God glory!  And Whitney’s life as a whole, whether previously disputed or not, has now culminated to bring God greater glory than many of ours ever will.  Her death, timely and painful as it was, gathered us as a global family together and in the midst of our celebration, God was magnified above Whitney, above all of her triumphs, above all of her struggles, above all of her downfalls. And the Bibles says, “that if I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men unto me,” (John 12:32).  And today my friends, Christ was lifted up. 

So now, I will do what was not able to be done at the funeral.  I offer you the chance to accept Jesus Christ as your own Lord and Saviour.  It’s so simple!  You need only do these three things:

1. A—Accept Jesus Christ as your only Lord and Saviour: We must do this because the Bible says, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which men must be saved,” (Acts 4:12).

2. B—Believe that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God, born of the Virgin Mary, who lived a sinless life, and died for your sins: John 3:16 tells us that Jesus is the “only begotten Son” of God and that “whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life in Christ Jesus”.  Furthermore, if we do not believe that Christ led a sinless life, then His death would just be the death of any other religious martyr and give us no hope of eternal life or forgiveness for our sins. 

3. C—Confess that you are a sinner and you will be saved: The Bible says, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).  That means me, you, Whitney, the Pope, everyone accept Jesus is a sinner.  Therefore, we all are in need of God’s forgiving grace.  It also says that our righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).  We cannot do any thing, any work, that would erase our sins from our slate.  However, God’s grace is sufficient to forgive us all our sins and His blood strong enough to wash us white as snow.

Allow Whitney’s life and even more so, her death, to not be for naught.  Learn from Whitney’s mistakes and truly make Jesus your Lord and Saviour.  She would not want you to make the same mistakes she did.  She would not want you to wait as long as she did.  You can be free now, if you choose.  Pray this simple prayer aloud.

              Dear Lord,

Thank You for sending Your only Son to die for me.  I admit that I am a sinner and separated from you.  I do not want to live that way anymore.  Please come into my life and make me new.  I make You my Lord and Saviour this day and forevermore!

              In Jesus’ name, Amen!

YAY!!!  If you’ve prayed the prayer and truly believed it in your heart, then God now lives in you!  You have His precious Holy Spirit in you as well.  The Holy Spirit is one of the three persons of the Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit).  He is the One who teaches, guides, encourages, and empowers you to live the Godly life you desire to live.  With the Holy Ghost, you can shake every single addiction and every bad habit in your life.  It is His anointing that reaches you right where you are and literally destroys the yoke of bondage over your life.  And you will also have the evidence of His indwelling in you which is speaking in tongues or what Pastor Marvin Winans referred to as a “language you don’t understand”.  To receive this, pray aloud this prayer. 

Dear Lord,

I thank you for the gift of Your precious Holy Spirit.  I understand that He lives in me, yet I want to give Him the permission to lead, guide, teach, encourage, and empower me.  Holy Spirit, please come into my life and fill me so that I can live the life You created me to live and speak the words You would have me to speak.  Give me the evidence of speaking in tongues so that I know I have You for real.

Thank You Holy Spirit!

In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Open your mouth and begin to praise and thank God.  And when you start speaking in a language you don’t understand, you got it!  You are not only saved, but filled with the Power to live out your purpose-filled life! You are free!

(If you have ANY questions about these prayers, salvation, or the Holy Spirit, do not hesitate to comment or contact me at desireemondesir@yahoo.com.)

I praise God for Whitney “Nippy” Elizabeth Houston and for the impact of her death.  I pray that the people who heard the Word go forth would be drawn to Christ and that their lives will be forever changed. 

Whitney, today you were “the voice” that drew a nation and the world to Jesus.  We will ALWAYS love you. 

Love, Desiree

P.S.  My friend and client, Kathy R. Green also wrote a phenomenal blog about Whitney Houston.  You can read it here.  

P.P.S. Here are a plethora of clips from Whitney Houston’s Homegoing Service. 

Full Service Part I & Full Service Part II

BeBe Winans sings "I Miss You"

Pastor Donnie McClurkin sings "Stand"

Pastor Kim Burrell sings "Change is Gonna Come"

R. Kelly sings "I Look to You"

Stevie Wonder sings "Ribbon in the Sky"

The Winans Family sings "Tomorrow"

Bishop TD Jakes Has Words

Tyler Perry Has Words

I Will Always Love You

I was working earlier while listening to the late WhitneyHouston’s “I Will Always Love You” and it hit me—this is my personal theme song for all of those whom I’ve had to cut off in my life.  A few of them, I was thrilled to cut off; they had certainly shown their true colours to me.  Others, had to be cut from me, or torn, like alcohol has to be torn from the needy hands of an alcoholic.  But thankfully, I was strong enough to do the tearing myself.

Now I’ve never been physically abused or—to my knowledge—slandered by any of these people.  But they were toxic relationships nonetheless.  Praise God for true friends, and removal from certain situations which allowed me to see and understand the detrimental relationships in my life.  And these weren’t people whom I had love-hate relationships with.  No.  They were those I considered myself closest to.  But it was not healthy. 

These were people I confided my deepest secrets and most tender thoughts to.  These were people I fought for, people that I truly loved.  But alas, love is a two-way door.  And after a while, if that door isn’t swinging both ways, it’s time to move on. 

Sometimes, God places or allows people to be in our lives for a season and we must be aware of when that season ends.  I know that I’ve gained much in your company and I wouldn’t be the woman I am today without having you in my life.  Thank you.  And if God would bring you into my life again in the future, I welcome it.  

I wish you nothing but God’s absolute best.  I pray that God would allow you each to achieve your respective destinies and gain the freedom in so many areas of life that you desperately need.  I truly love you, truly.

It’s hard for me to say good-bye without knowing what words to use.  I admit, I was afraid and put it off too long to say something and instead chose silence.  I hope this message helps.  And I pray that one day we can sit down together, apologize, and speak openly and lovingly about this.  I know for some of you, I am frankly not ready for that and do not know when I will be.  For those of you who’ve hurt me intentionally or unintentionally, I forgive you; I release you. 

 I will always love you.

Please accept this song as one from my heart to yours.

Good-bye.

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

The Necessity of Sacrifice

When we hear the word “sacrifice” usually we think of the heathen pagans such as the Moabites that sacrificed their children to Molech, the barbarous Mayans who sacrificed their prisoners to the rain-god Chaac, or even Abraham readying himself to sacrifice his son Isaac to God on the altar on the Mount of Moriah.  It is a detestable, gruesome practice to most of us.  Yet if it is demanded of the gods, or I should say God, is it not then an honourable practice to be kept by all human beings?

Now, neither I, nor God approve of human sacrifice.  It is a horrible stench in the nostrils of God to kill something that He has created in His own image.  At one point, in the practice of Judaism, animal sacrifice—executed in a particular ceremonial fashion—was acceptable.  It is no longer necessary now since the true Messiah and Lamb of God has already come and sacrificed Himself for the world so that we might live eternally.  However, as most concepts translate from the Old Testament to New Testament living, the spirit behind the action of sacrifice is still required. 

Sacrifice is a single concept to be applied—like all the Word—in all aspects of our life.  And no matter what area of our life we choose to practice it in, it is never easy.  Merriam-Webster defines it as the “act of offering to a deity something precious; especially: the killing of a victim on an alter; destruction or surrender of something for the sake of something else”.  In short, we are giving up something dear to our hearts for the sake of the greater good.   But how should this be done?

Sacrifice should be done swiftly.  Otherwise, if an individual is left to ponder their decision and mull over it asking themselves if they are sacrificing the right thing or too much of a thing, they are likely to put it off inevitably and thus, miss out on the effect the sacrifice would have had in their lives.  In my experience, it is the same when God speaks to an individual.  The person should act immediately once the instructions are provided.  Had Abraham talked over God’s command to sacrifice his son to his wife, Sarah, or put it off, he never would have done it and would have missed out on the promise of fathering a multitude of people and, in fact, becoming the father of our faith had he not acted swiftly.  Had Jesus in His mortal state given sway to the voices and demons that spoke to him in the Garden of Gethsemane and put off His death, we might still be waiting on our redemption, missing Paradise and stuck in the Bosom of Abraham once we die.  Sacrifice is meant to be carried out immediately to prevent our paths and wills from swaying.

In The Pursuit of God, A.W. Tozer speaks of Abraham’s sacrifice and says this “God could have begun out on the margin of Abraham’s life and worked inward to the center; He chose rather to cut quickly to the heart and have it over in one sharp act of separation.  In dealing thus He practiced an economy of means and time.  It hurt cruelly, but it was effective.”  This brings another element of sacrifice into the picture: the swiftness of sacrifice prevents the waste of other things and resources in our lives.

An example of this in my own life was the wedding of my best friend and sister to my close friend and brother.  Resources what they were and are, wisdom kept me from attending since everything that I’ve spent my time working for would have been swept away in one 4-day celebration.  Wisdom said don’t, while my heart said go.  My foolish heart!  A year ago, no one could have paid me to believe that I would choose to miss this long-awaited wedding.  I cried when I came to the realization of it.  But the greater good was and is my transition back to not just a different physical location, but a different, more mature place in my life.  If I could just convince my heart of what my mind new was best, I knew I would reap the benefits thereof.  And I have.  Furthermore, having the beautiful friends that I have, they—although sad—understood my situations, forgave me my absence, and know that I’ll be there for them in the future.  Had I continued on in a way that is financially irresponsible, causing me to rely on and drain other people of their emotions toward me as well as their own financial resources, I would eventually risk damaging those precious relationships and everything I’ve been working for.  In fact, this entire season of my life has been one of sacrifice.  Would I happily choose to live in a place I despise and know no one accept my own father? Absolutely not.  But I have wisely chosen it.  And now, with the season here ending, I have the satisfaction of knowing that soon, I can reap the lovely benefits of the sacrifices I have made.

Another example that I—along with several other Americans—have experienced is the wondrous destruction of overspending.  Whether its spending all the money in your bank accounts or maxing out your credit cards to purchase items you think you need, overspending has become the bane of our American existence.  Just take a look at the national deficit.  Living with debt has become an accepted way of life for us, much to our demise.  Would it not be better to own the clothes in your closets, the cars in your garage, and live within your means in peace and serenity than to constantly spend until you’re in the red and sink even further once we start to charge every little thing to our Visa cards, Discovery Cards, and American Express cards?  This, as we well know, causes us to dodge the daily phone calls from creditors tormenting us until we can come up with the funds with which to pay.  Ordering us to borrow money from our aging parents, unresponsible significant others, and overly-kind friends.  The irony of volunteering ones self to go further into debt in order to pay off debt is almost laughable.  If you’d like a hilarious illustration of this, just watch or read The Confessions of a Shopaholic.  This is no way to live!  And what happens if an expensive emergency or bout of unemployment hits us?  We have nothing and soon, we will have even less.  We will have proven Solomon’s words “the borrower is slave to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7).

Sacrifice can take on many forms.  I’ve had to sacrifice relationships, living situations/preferences, shopping trips, theologies and mentalities and more.  Every single sacrifice has been painful, but worth it.  I like to say that it “hurts so good”.  The man that labours in the weight room, placing his body under subjection to reach his weight goal and desired muscle mass knows it.  The woman who gives up alcohol, coffee, a size 2, and comfort to bring life into the world knows it.  Like the minister who gives up the career and life they wanted, in order to pursue the higher calling of God full-time knows it.  They’re all forms of sacrifice.  And when the person who’s sacrificed reaches the end of their life, they’ll be able to look back with a clear conscious and see the fruits of their labours in life and it will all be worth it. 

Sacrifice is a thing demanded of us all.  Give in to it when it is necessary.  Kill the thing or desire swiftly in order to assure the completion of the order, thenn you too will enjoy the fruits of your sacrificial labour.