How Godliness Exposes Insecurity

Every now and then I'm confronted with reminders of a past lifestyle.  None of it is flattering, none of it makes me reminisce about 'the good 'ol days', none of it is anything to brag or even talk about (which is why I won't here); all of it is pretty embarrassing, foolish, and sad.  I could go all cliche' and say it made me the man that I am today, but the truth is that it didn't...not in a positive way.  I actually could've been the positive man I am today much earlier by listening to the people...both positive and negative...I was surrounded by.  But like every adolescent and young adult...and these days not-so-young adult, I had to do me.  Doing me hurt people, though.  Doing me was dumb.  So when I see young men going about things the way I didn't; much better, much smarter, much more respectful....I feel wonderful.

Million Man Anniversary: When Blaming Media Coverage Goes Wrong

The demands laid out by Minister Louis Farrakhan and the #JusticOrElse team for the 20th Anniversary of the Million Man March I believe were well thought out, clear, and impactful...well at least to them...and maybe to some others.  We won't really know until the 30 year anniversary.  That would be the only fair mark to when their can be assessment.  And it's also the only time when it will be in my mind significant news.

Gun Control: The Latest American Issue That's Always Been an American Issue

Another high-profile [alleged] shooting...another bipartisan picket about gun control.  I think we're close to seeing around one shooting per quarter now; and if the consistent news coverage about violent crime isn't enough, hearing about lethal violence in public, or on the job, or in the classroom ensures a presence of fear.  And I'm not sure if there will ever be a numbness to these occurrences like there is to other crimes, because as long as people can buy guns the sensationalism of gun control will forever be thrust upon us.

Are Political and Religious Identities the Same?

There's noble, brave, unwavering, and solid.  And then there's dishonorable, unsteady, compromising, and flighty.  To many conservative Christians, county clerk Kim Davis would embody all of the former traits with her stance against issuing marriage licenses to same-sex partners. From this act she's apparently earned the reputation to have the real character of an American follower of Jesus.  She's got that grit and determination to not move an inch from her beliefs.  She's the image of standing on the Word of God.  It's political drama at it's most mediocre.

Feed the Fire

In an era where kids in the safest suburbs on the planet are determined to emulate the lives of small-time drug dealers and petty thieves, Tony Lewis, Jr. is shelving the kingpin nature he was born with in an effort to save a city.  His father, Tony, Sr., and Rayful Edmond III were the guys in Washington D.C. that by many accounts are responsible for funneling tons of cocaine into the District during the 1980s.  This brought Junior into the world in the lap of luxury, but it gave his hometown the murderous and cold reputation that has stuck with D.C. ever since then.  Tony, Jr. would soon come to discover the truth behind the perception; as immediately after his father received a life without parole sentence in 1989 he and his mother were thrust into poverty and prey.  However, unlike so many that have experienced this transition, he didn't simply assimilate into his environment.  With assistance and determination, Lewis walked the path of humility and service and now is deeply engaged in community activism.  That's pretty impressive for someone who was submerged into smugglers' culture at birth; and it's another example of a person's beginnings are only as important as that person makes them out to be.