It Only Takes One :: Where is your stand?

I was driving home from work yesterday doing the typical. I had the radio on, listening to my favorite talk radio show and I was reflecting on all the work left for me to do when I got home. I was thinking about classwork I had left and what I'd eat for dinner when I looked out of my passenger side window and noticed a man bleeding from his Right eye sitting on a corner. I watched as the man tried to stand but was obviously shaken after falling and hitting his head on the ground. When I looked more closely I could tell that the man was older and that he had the appearance that he was homeless. I looked around and I didn't see anyone else on the corner to help him. I decided to pull the car over and help. When I got out of the car I went over and told the man to sit down as I called police. I dialed 911 and told them there was a man visibly shaking and bleeding on the corner of 46th and Wabash and that he needed immediate assistance. When I asked the man what happened he couldn't remember but I could tell he had been drinking heavily. Something inside of me compelled me to tell him that his current situation doesn't have to be his future and that God loved him and that even at this stage of his life he still had a purpose. Before I knew it i looked behind me to see 4 other people. A man had come out of the church across the street and another woman had pulled over as well. She had her head down in prayer and the other man was on the phone with emergency services. The paramedics got there and took the man to the hospital.

I thought later about what would have happened to him if I hadn't stopped. I wonder would those people have helped him or let him bleed on the empty street corner. Sometimes it only takes one person to step up for others to help as well. I'm not writing this for accolades cause all I did was stop and make a phone call. I'm writing this to empower you. In our communities, churches, and jobs we have the power to change the situation individually first and communally second. Sometimes others are waiting for you to make a stand. Where is that stand in your life? Is it getting out and talking to the kids in your neighborhood? Is it getting actively involved in mentoring or working with the youth ministry at your church? Is it championing the cause of diversity at your workplace? Is it committing to praying over your family that no evil come against them. Wherever you choose to begin doesn't matter just be diligent and patient and God will provide all you need. You can make a significant difference.. trust me!

God Bless
The Enthusiastic Idealist
Jeff

1 Verse...

No one told me life'd be this complex
Thoughts that intercede
Seem to only conject
A string of other thoughts
That get more complex
And I'm back to the starting point
Did they really connect?
Some People say that I think way too much
but I've always been the smart kid
my mind races as such
Which leads to me thinking through everything
while other people simply live
My thoughts pave the way...
I've been criticized for making things hard
but I can't change how I'm built
SO I take with regard,
How what I do effects tomorrows outcomes
but I'll never stand idly by
So I work to get assigned things done.
Things composed of a god-sized mission
And it's scripted in his plans
He's put forth a new vision.
Replaced the mask with a face transparent
So my hurt and fears aren't hidden
God's asked me to wear them.
That way u see that my hearts sincere,
living outside of walls
exposed to the atmosphere...
It gets cold sometimes
I feel the heat too
compelled to live through it,
cause He told me too..

Chorus:
I got vision
I can see the way
but the roadblocks are stopping my way
I can reach
The other side
As long as I keep God as my guide

Your Vision.... Is Unique to YOU

You know I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Why do we continue to try to share the vision we have with others. I mean the vision you have for your life "should be" God given and, unless you are sharing that vision with your mate in which it greatly effects, most people will not be able to understand what you see. God shows something to you for you. Think of it like God as the architect who shows you the plans for a building (your life) it's very difficult for the brick layer, electrician, or landscaper to imagine the building that you were shown without the plans. They can still do their role in the project (your life) but the plans you received are for you and you alone. It doesn't stop them from laying brick or planting seeds to support that vision though.

You have to be careful what you share because when people don't understand something they may attack that very thing. It's very difficult for people to understand a visionary and even more so when those visions are God-sized. I share this to encourage you to protect your vision. Don't worry others will be able to witness what God has done once you accomplish that thing and again it won't prohibit anyone form performing thier role in helping you accomplish that thing. I'm not saying become isolationist I'm simply saying that when God gives you something pray over that thing and in time He will reveal when and where you are to move.

My Thought

Sometimes I feel confined to walk this place alone.
Confined to the walls of my ambition.
It seems that like a drug it's my addiction. Yet the sole cause of the impasse of my decisions.
A world changer, to make a difference is what I aspire to be,
But the method escapes me.
I'm good at so many things and pulled so many ways.. I think I've lost focus.
So many visions
So much to do..
Maybe I have lost sight of the things God wants me to do.

The Question... The Answer...

Every night I watch the news and it's with increasing frustration that I see our young people being killed at an alarming rate. Sometimes I can't believe the things I see. Young children and teenagers beating each other to death or shooting each other with reckless regard for life. I've attempted to do some examination and research to understand the problem but the sad fact is that there are so many things wrong with our communities that it seems almost too large to fix. I try and encourage myself daily to continue to be positive and live with the hope and optimism that's been viral to me since I was a child yet the problems seem so large sometimes that I question the impact I can have as one individual. Understand I've sacrificed a lot to be a change agent in my family, community, and people. I've been willing to give up personal gain to help someone else most of my life and at times I've questioned the value of altruism. How do you help someone who doesn't care enough to help his or herself?

I guess many of us who have a passion for service may go through this. Sometimes it's hard to be selfless when the rest of the world seems so selfish. I guess I must reside in the face that I help others not for accolades here but because God has called me to do it. I heard a minister say recently that you have to have the perpetual voice and word of God in you. That way, when you face those trying moments His residence in your life is evident and you can fall on Him. That's a skill I am going to learn and one I hope to stregthen. I want to be able to fall behind the shield of God more often.

The Relationship Forum :: Marriage - I want 50 years plus..

I've been to and in over 12 weddings in the last year and a half and I'm very happy for all my friends. I pray them great favor over their lives and marriages. First let me state that I think marriage is a wonderful thing. I have the rare privilege to state that I've had the best example of a successful marriage I could ever imagine, my parents. They've been married 30 years and although everything hasn't been perfect they have have been a perfect example of a God-centered relationship between a husband and wife.

I guess that's why I have taken my time and will continue to do so. I want God to lead and direct me in all my decisions including this one. I understand that a wife, for me, will be the key component in me achieving a large part of God's purpose over my life so I definitely don't want to rush it. i walk by faith God has always been very specific in the moves he's wanted me to make. So I'm certain that this too will happen in His time and at His discretion.

Most people have assumed that because of my past relationships I would have been married by now and when women meet me they usually wonder why I'm not already married (like 28 is old or something, lol) but I operate in faith and when you do that you truly try not to make any decision without God's guidance especially life altering ones. I think people have taken God out of this decision. Many have put temporal constraints on marriage like it's a rent-to-own lease. You know, "we've dated for 2 or 3 years so now it's time" but it doesn't work like that if you operate faithfully. I don't think it takes forever but there are outside circumstances that make the relationship development progression different from couple to couple. If you are in a relationship don't let any outside source convince you that you should progress to marriage without prayer and a Word from the Lord.

Obviously there is a component missing in marriage and that decision to get married. That's why so many end in divorce. I truly believe we allow the emotion of love and sometimes even infatuation interfere with the spiritual guidance of the holy spirit. That must change. We have to rely on God to move us in this important covenant with another person.

Personally, almost all of my close friends parents have been married for 30-45 years and they have been great examples of making it work through trials, triumph, and tribulation.. I want that.. and until God shows me I'm good where I am..

Examine The Popeyes News Story..

Is this newsworthy?
And I know there are people of other races who eat Popeyes chicken..Come on now..

Let Me Speak On It

I've taken steps
to be the best
at everything I've ever tried
But is it for God's glory
Or that twinkle in my eye.
That constant ambition,
Willingness to be the best
on that million dollar ride
but maybe God's request
for me
is an entirely different life.
One of service, humility,
to be the voice of those
with a soundless cry
who weep in the darkness
whose dreams are simply swept aside.
And I can't escape it
no matter how hard I try.
Cause it's something
God programed that's locked on the inside.
I pray it manifests cause as I sleep at night,
my dreams seem so real
that I can touch them like
Thomas touch Jesus' side...

God's Favor Is Real.. I Hope This Encourages You

Have you ever felt like you were in a holding pattern? You know that state where you aren't quite moving where you feel you're supposed to be moving or maybe not at the speed you should be progressing. Well trust me we all feel like that at times. Despite being grateful for the jobs we have we still just feel like there has to be more out there. The call on your life is certainly greater than what you're currently doing and it's hard to see God's purpose in your current position. Well let me tell you it's not for you to see. Hold on and be faithful because God will change your position, opposition, and outlook overnight.

I'm sharing my story not to sound like a braggart but because I have to tell someone about the goodness of God. Before I begin I must say that I am extremely grateful to God for his blessing! I've know for quite some time that I wanted to go back to school. Despite doing pretty well in my sales career I've know that in order for me to get where I Gog wants me to be in business, politics, and life I need more education. The problem had been finding the time to take the necessary entrance exams (GMAT,LSAT) I decided that if I applied to graduate school it would force me to take the required exams. So I went ahead and applied to Depaul's MBA/MS in Business Information Technology Program. While doing this I'd face some challenges at work and personally that really challenged my faith and I honestly didn't think I'd get in (my undergrad grades kinda suck and Depaul is an excellent school in this field). However despite all of this I decided to believe on and rely on God even more. My church, as a body, embarked on a Daniel fast during this application period and I decided to ask God to direct me and guide me where he would have me to be. I got a strange email a couple of weeks ago saying that enrollment for the Spring semester had begun and that I needed to contact and advisor for more details. Now I though this must be some error because I hadn't submitted a GMAT score nor GRE score and there was no way I got in. By the grace of God I received a letter yesterday welcoming me to the school. I was admitted on the basis of my work experience and undergrad grades. GOD IS AWESOME!!! He will do what He said he would do if we allow HIM to guide and walk in his purpose. I want to share this with you because I hope it motivates you to rely on him more and self a lot less. I got into a great program with out the requirements man has for me but God said that I was more than qualified. YOU ARE TOO!

JB

It Must All Be A Big Joke

So we have an African American President!
We have an intelligent President!
We have a potentially game-changing President!

Personally I'm elated that our country made the right decision and voted in force, however I must say that this has either opened the flood gates of ignorance or there are a few people out there that think since our President is black that gives them the right to make any racially insensitive statement or public display they choose.

I mean you would have had to have know that a monkey being shot was not a good idea for a major publication and you would have had to have known that calling cookies "drunken negro faces" was not that bright either right. So I'm thinking these people just fee free. They see Barack's win as a emancipation of thoughts and ideas. They feel we are in the age of aquarius where new ideas require no filter and ignorance is truly bliss. The proprietors of these businesses must believe that the problem of racial inequality and civil rights is no longer a problem in our nation. Maybe they are just joking. Either way you slice it... THEY ARE WRONG!

Go into any school in the inner city and then walk into one just ten miles south or 10 miles north and see the enormous difference. Look at the fact that blacks make $0.69 to the $1.00 that white men make for comporabale positions with equal education and you will quickly see that he system still needs fixing. I don't care if they make a black man Grand Puba of the world it still doesn't equate to fixing the injusticies and racial divide that exist throughout this great country.

I don't know.. maybe I'm being to sensitive... then again... you never saw any animal being shot when Bush was president now did you..

Dealing With Loss

I was having this conversation with a good friend last night about how I learned to deal with grieving by watching my parents. I wonder what do you do to deal with the loss of a loved one?

It's Been A While..

Now I'm a firm believer in God.. His power, His favor, and His omnitrifecta (omnipotence,omnipresence, and omniscience) but lately even my faith, which I thought was super strong, has been tested. It's not that I don't believe in God it's just that I'm struggling to see what he wants me to do. I mean, those who know me know I have a problem sitting still. I do a lot because I've been blessed with many gifts that make me well equipped to use those gifts for good. With that being said this phase of being still and waiting on God is really tough for me. I know I'm not working where I will ultimately be in my career, I also know that I'm not using all the gifts he's given me either which leads to this exteremely frustrating position of feeling like your not doing anything at all. I don't know I mean maybe I shouldn't complain. I make good money and have a cool title (whatever Senior marketing executive means..lol) which most poeple would be happy with. I guess that's the problem.. I've never been most people. I can feel the call God has on my life and although I don't know exactly quite what that looks like yet, I know it's something. I guess I need to be patient. It's just hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel sometimes. Do you ever get like that?