A dress code for Church?

The story of the Bible “speaks from first to last of a God who did not need to create, but who did so out of overflowing and generous love. It speaks of a God who did not need to redeem and recreate, but did so as the greatest possible act of self-giving love.”“Somehow if we are to address contemporary culture with the message of the Bible, we must get used to combining two things which are normally at opposite poles—humility and truth-telling.”“Somehow we have to tell the truth but to tell it as the liberating story, the healing story, the true story. And of course… the best way we can do this is by telling, again and again, in story and symbol and acted drama, the biblical story, focused on the story of Jesus himself, the true story of the Word made flesh. That is why the great symbol at the heart of Christianity is the symbol of the eucharist; it is the symbol of that story. But, it is our task not just to tell but to live out the story—the model of God’s self-giving love in Christ must be the basis for our self-understanding, our life, and our vocation.”“If the Biblical story is told truly, it will subvert the alternative stories. But to tell it truly, you have to be living it” (N. T. Wright).

via A dress code for Church?.

Untitled… I Really Couldn’t Think Of An Appropriate Title For This…

Ephesians 6:10-12

^“10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

¹¹ Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

¹² For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

         Lately, I have really been questioning a lot of the work I do, in church. Now, I love everything I do. I love the ministry, I love the work but I love myself and a stable mind even more. There’s no reason for me to hate going to church as much as I love going to that place. For some reason, something – even though lately it’s been people – always makes me want to give up. I am tired. Exhausted. I have nothing left to give. I am completely drained out.

          Take it back about two months ago; I participated in a bible study and the topic for the month was “Discover Your Purpose”. Of course, a lot of the things I discovered, I already knew. I guess it was just confirmation… Last month’s bible study was on “Freedom From Your Past” and I definitely had a few things I wanted to be free from. Praise Jehovah, I’m free! Throughout April and May, it just seemed like the ministry I’m really pushing for is just working against me. It’s always something going on. Never have I ever been so frustrated in my life.

          I just don’t understand what the problem is… and I don’t like confusion or chaos, but it seems like that’s all that’s happening. I guess my real problem is, I’m uncomfortable. A lot of the work I do in my church is pure voluntary, but the music department is not one of my decisions. I wouldn’t feel complete or satisfied if I didn’t participate in it. I think I’d be ok just singing in the background, but the “leaders” of the ministry see otherwise. I’m always pushed in the front as a leader. And I don’t mind because I love doing it. But it’s to a point where the people who I’m supposed to be leading don’t want me as the leader. And I don’t want to be in the way… I’d rather step down from everything and let them do what they want. You know?

         I’m just unhappy. And I never thought I would ever say that about church and working in the church. I mean, my intentions are good and my motives are pure… in my opinion. I honestly want the music department to grow and be the best I know it could be. However, if I’m in the way of its growth process, I will step aside. The problem is, the leaders won’t let me do it. And I feel stuck. Because I don’t know what to do. I do know that I hate leaving church and rehearsals upset, ALL the time. So maybe I will just step aside and not participate any more. I can always go sing somewhere with someone else…

         But I’m still pushing myself and “holding on” –  to what? I have no idea. I’m still committed to the ministry. I do everything I can for it. But it seems like my good ain’t good enough *Beyonce voice* (lol). And another thing, I’m really frustrated because I’ve been praying about this for quite some time now and I have nothing… I have a gray hair now!!! I just want a sign – no, I NEED a sign from The Lord saying something. Whether it be good or bad, I just need to know He hears me and is on His way to 1721 Sexton St.

Ehh, I don’t know… y’all pray for me, please & thanks!

A Love Letter From Cy

It’s a pretty interesting piece. A lot of truth to it… I love the church but we definitely have some growing up to do.

From One Flawed Perspective To Another

Let’s just get right to it. As much as the Gospel we preach, read and proclaim to live by serves as a mending tool, we as believers are divided. The church or should I say the black church as a whole often doesn’t represent the love and unity that we should be showing. The need to compete with one another is sitting in the driver’s seat in many of the lives of those who say they are Christians. Unfortunately, this attitude of competition isn’t anything new to the body of Christ when you consider why we have so many different denominations. The “we do it better over here” mentality has been present for decades and it doesn’t just stop with denominational differences. There’s competition between individual churches and within those individual assemblies as well.

One might ask why the idea of competing would even be a part of a Christian’s…

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My Mom Is Not – And Never Will Be A “Glam-Ma”…

“Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying, As is the mother, so is her daughter.” Ezekiel 16:44

This is such a sensitive topic – especially, given my background and my current environment. This little rant could stir up some controversy that I’ve somehow been able to avoid – don’t ask me how. However, this is my blog which only consist of my opinion so, here we go…

What has this world come to?

I never truly understood the common expression “babies having babies…” until just a year or so ago. So many young people are having babies, as if it’s the newest fashion statement. Sad to say, that’s exactly what it has become. I’m not saying every situation is the same but most of the people I see all lack this one thing: a goal and/or purpose for their life. They’re not focused on the bigger picture.

So you ask, what’s the bigger picture?

Simply put, life. That’s it. But what is life? Everyone’s purpose is different but we all strive for the same thing: a bright and promising future. A house in the hills with a white picket fence: in a gated community – close enough that I can get to my mom in case of emergency but far enough so she’ll have to call before visiting – 6 bedrooms, 4 ½ baths, 4 car garage, a yard big enough for an in ground pool, trampoline, a pond surrounded by a garden and my three (3) children’s tree house. We seek stability. Financial, emotional, physical (I’m lacking in that department), mental and spiritual. We seek love. A husband who will not only be our best friend and lover, but a great provider and leader of the home, and above all, a wonderful father. A job, no a career, that not only pays Sallie Mae (and feeds my shoe addiction) but brings me joy and never makes me regret choosing the path I did. We seek consistent happiness. Being able to eat whatever I want and not worry about gaining a pound or whatever happiness may be for you. The point is, we should all be striving and working towards some goal.

And that, my friend, is where the problem lies. Many of my peers, who now have the awesome title of being called mom or dad, really didn’t have a goal in mind. So, they weren’t working towards anything. (Again, every situation isn’t the same and you could earnestly be working towards a goal but just so happen to get caught up – trust me, I know that’s a reality for some people.)

*SN: ladies, if you’re working towards a goal or that feeling of “ I’ve finally made it!”, date a guy who’s on the same page as you. He should be helping you reach the goal – not distracting you or telling you it’s unrealistic. I could really start a whole new entry on this alone, but back to the matter at hand…

As I sit back and look at my high school graduating class, it breaks my heart to see so many of them are now parents (truth be told, I could be a parent today). Some, went away to school and got turned out, came home after freshman year and currently are working to provide for their child. Some chose to work and “get their money up” so they could afford school later on in life, met someone who had nothing and wasn’t trying to become anything and well, you know… Some became parents before we even graduated. And then there are those who barely graduated and I somehow knew this is exactly where they would be. Whatever the reason may be, the fact still remains, they are now parents. They now have the responsibility of providing basic needs for another human being. They are a baby having a baby…

Now, there are quite a few things, or people, we could blame for this new culture trend (yes, this is now a sad reality of our culture): celebrities, different forms of social media, the parents are too busy trying to be their child’s friend and not their parent, the schools are encouraging sex by handing out condoms and telling them to practice safe sex (which btw, no sex is the safest sex), the church is too busy preaching about receive your new house and car rather than teach young ladies how to live right (boop! What about the young men who run through the entire purity class? – but that’s a topic for another day), the government will pay you for having three babies [tell you to put your baby daddy (hopefully, it’s just one) on child support and when he doesn’t pay, lock him up for three years (as if you’re going to get the money then); (this is my friend, is another way the government enables & maintains the poverty level – because chicken head #1 is too content with feeding off the government)] and a host of other reasons. But it all boils to this: what was their vision?

Even though most – more like ALL – of the reasons I mentioned are valid excuses for this behavior, in my opinion, I blame two parties – “Glam-Ma” and “Mom”. Sure, celebrities influence the decisions we make, be it good or bad, but it’s ultimately up to us what we “follow”. Sure, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, WorldStarHipHop and other social media forms make having a child seem glamorous- however, people upload stuff they know will get likes, good reviews and comments. Uploading a video stating the real struggle of being a young mom or dad would NOT get the attention they want (like, your life is now over. For the rest of your life, or at least the next 18 years, your sole purpose is to provide for someone else). Again, it’s ultimately up to us what we decide is a “glamorous life”. Sure, the school and church should actually TEACH us how to live in the real world, since that’s what we go there for but again, it’s ultimately up to us. I won’t even get started on the government… The only reason it’s up to us what we follow and consider a glamorous life is based on the teaching of our parents.

Whether you believe it/ agree with it or not, our parents are – or should be – our first encounter with a “teacher”. It’s our parents’ sole responsibility to teach and train us so when we grow up and move on/out, we are capable of making good sound adult decisions and living on our own. Looking at my peers now, I can definitely see who was teaching and who was not – yes, I’m judging. Btw, teaching not only comes in the form of telling you what to do but more so, SHOWING you what to do – actions speak louder than words. Anyways, without our parents, we would be a lost soul. Let’s blame the “Glam-Ma”…

On the other hand, whether our parents did a great job or a not so great job at raising us, we have all been around long enough and exposed to enough to know raising a child is hard work. Having a baby fresh out of high is never the plan, hopefully. We’re supposed to enjoy our youthfulness. Not be tied down – whether by a baby or a relationship. Babies come later on in life when we can afford and properly take care of one. Preferably, after we’ve proven to society, our parents and more so to ourselves that we’re more than capable to take care of ourselves and maintain a healthy relationship with the opposite sex that resulted in a marriage. Let’s blame the “Mom”…

At the end of the day, it’s ultimately up to the person. When you have unprotected sex, you run the risk of becoming a parent – and also contracting a plethora of diseases. With that being said, let us who are not parents, continue to not be parents – haha. Seriously, it’s hard. I know it is. I deal with temptation every day. But, am I ready to be a parent? No. Am I ready to be responsible for another human being who’s solely dependent upon me? No. I don’t even have a job. I still get allowances from my parents, honestly. I look forward to living my life to the fullest in my twenties. I look forward to staying out late and not having to rush home because “Glam-Ma”, who is also a built-in babysitter, has to go to work in the morning. I look forward to continuing to feed my shoe addiction, not buying pampers. I look forward to finding a man, or being found by one, and choosing to settle down with each other because we genuinely love each other and want to spend the rest of our lives together– not because we have a baby and “it’s the right thing to do”. I look forward to planning my wedding first then planning my baby shower, 2-3 years later.

And I thank my mom for that. My goals are clear. My eye is on my future. I know the vision and life I want so I’m preparing and working towards it right now. She’s always teaching me being a young mother is not the life I want for myself or my child. So I figured I’d do her, and myself, a favor and not make her a “Glam-Ma: because she’s too young to be a grandmother.” When she becomes a grandmother, she will be old as dirt and will be happy I finally gave in and had some babies. She & I both will be ready for that stage of life. Plus, I don’t even have a boyfriend, haha.

My Mom Is Not – And Never Will Be A “Glam-Ma”… She’ll be “Mi-Mi”

BeYOUtiful Makings… The Preface…

“Even every one that is called by my name; for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.” Isaiah 43:7

“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” Revelation 4: 11

Hello WordPress World. Welcome to the mind of me: Ebone.

Before I start, I’d like you to know, I’m not great at describing me… I have a VERY hard time talking about myself…

I’m fairly new to this form of communicating; however, I’m beyond interested in it: blogging that is. I have a whole lot to say about almost everything – and a lot of the comments I would love to say are sometimes… not politically correct or appropriate – but I’m a work in progress. We are all, right?

Now, I’m not rude – if you ask me – but I can be very blunt and straight to the point. I honestly don’t see the point in sugarcoating anything, especially important matters. Why beat around the bush when you can solve the issue at hand AND save time?

Exactly, no point.

Anyways, I love writing. I’m a very simple writer. I find writing in a conversational tone the best way to communicate… you know, so we’re both comfortable? Right? Eh… I like to think I’m relatable… that I’m not the only person in this world who’s complex simplicity… if that makes any sense, which it probably doesn’t, but moving on…

What does “beYOUtiful makings” mean?

What does it say? Be. You.

That’s all. No one else. I want to create my own identity. I want to be the director of this production called life. I want to make my mark in the world. I want to be ME. No one else can be me but me; so why not be beautiful?

Oh. Some basic information about me: I’m a female. Twenty (20). Full time college student. A Christian, term not used loosely. Virgo. Introvert. Favorite color is teal. Favorite number is three (3).

What’s this blog going to contain? A little bit of everything. Mainly, everything. *Chuckle* I hope you did…

In all honesty and seriousness, I’m trying something new: an outlet for all the craziness that takes place in my head. All the thoughts, ideas, comments, reviews, etc. that I can’t say to people, will be here. All the awkward and you-wouldn’t-believe-me-unless-you-were-there moments that happen to me daily, will be here.

From discussing world politics to the reason I won’t throw away my purple Converses that I’ve had since the 10^th grade. A blog about me. About the music I love, which could take all day because I love everything. About the different cultures I’m exposed to. About my family, to whom most of this blog will be about because they are downright hilarious. About my friends because they’re awesome, I mean, they’re MY friends…

And hopefully, along the road, something I say here will enlighten you. Encourage you. Make you smile, maybe even laugh. And in some weird way, I hope it does the same for me.

Well, that’s me, in a nutshell.

BeYOUtiful Makings… The Preface…