SOUL TIES

I’ve connected so many through the means of sex
That some times I cry in imagining who’s next
Don’t get me wrong @ first I couldn’t see
What her soul was doing to me
But the emotional trials I go through
Don’t seem like the time or person that are supposed to
Even when I try to deny anymore feelings
The temptation of you constantly through my veins
For the tie we’ve made was not God ordained, simple and plain
So forgiveness I seek yet struggle I gain
I pray and ask what’s its going to take to break loose
For the tie I’ve tied wasn’t suppose to be with you

Tavon aka Da Warrior

STANDIN' STRONG

I wake up every morning with new grace and mercy
I thank God for that cuz I know I'm not worthy
I pray for the sick, I pray for the hungry
For the struggle of the man who can't find no work
See, it's a blessing that I stand for this purpose
Cuz there's a child out there who feels that they're worthless
It's not by accident cuz we know where church is
But we'll stand much stronger if we provide more service
Try to uplift, get the ones off da block
Free the black man from the sight of C-block
Stop being depressed, stressed, and oppressed
We're stronger than what society tells us so don't let that digest.

Come forth 2 Come out KNOW that you're the best
Leave a legacy before you lay yo soul to rest
Look towards the future even tho it might not suit ya'
But think about the kids, don't hang yo suit up
Instead of dealing to yo people watching them get high
Kneel with yo people & pray to the MOST HIGH
You gotta believe that you can achieve
The struggle stops here so to the top we proceed
Educate, meditate, and appreciate
Know that good things come to those who wait
Don't depend on the gov't or even the next man
Trust in the LORD and give all that you can
Know that divided we fall, but together we stand
Separate we can't but together we can.

I'm like "Neo" I believe I am the 1
Standing up leading this Nation back to the chosen Son
I might take some cuts, a few knicks and bruises
But with the mission complete satan is the one who loses
I put rap on my back and the weight of the black
I'll lead all the true soldiers who are ready for combat
No more defense
With the authority, we'll set up for the Offense
To the enemy's camp lace ya boots and let's go!
To the darkest valley's, and the grimiest alley's
We are working on the "come up" that's why the mad "B"
Truth be told your soul not sold
Long as you walk by faith not the yellow brick road
We stand as a force they'll see they're wrong
Our past leaders did it through weak times so let's continue to Move on
There's strength through weakness dunny!!!
We're still STANDIN' STRONG!

Tavon aka Da Warrior

Let's Get 'Bout It

I still give Him praise and glory for the things He has done. During this season of elevation, know that God is manifesting what has already been determined from the beginning of time. You've stood the test and paid the price and now it's time to step up and step out! Come forth and do what God has placed in your heart. The things you went through that you thought would take you out were necessary because it tenderized you for the Master's use. There is no time for excuses you are stronger than ever! So let's get bout it!

Where Are They?

I can't help but raise a question that was apparent as I traveled out of town to minister this weekend. When it comes to most traditional churches, I can't help but ask the question, where are the young adults? The ages 18-30, if you were to be honest, there is somewhat of a black hole in that no one can tell me where they are! Can anybody answer the question or does anyone even care that when our kids reach 18 years of age that there is nothing offered?

It's an issue that no one seems to want to address or if they do, they do it HALF-AZZ to where it doesn't account for much. I have such a desire to see young adults grow in the fear and the knowledge of the Lord and it bothers me to tremendously when I see our churches ignore what I see is a dying generation! What do we do? It's important that we ask ourselves this question because if we don't, we run the risk of losing yet even more of our young people when they reach college and begin to learn about other religions and begin to question the foundation in which many were given.

I know from personal experience, the kinds of temptations that wait out there for them and I'm willing to do whatever is necessary to reach them. I struggled and wrestled with the same issues during my time at Morehouse and thank the Lord for a "New Birth" (the church that I attended while I was in the ATL). The church, which is pastored by Bishop Eddie L. Long, ministered directly to my needs as it pertains to where I was as a young adult. As a young adult, you feel like you are a square peg trying to fit into a round hole and Bishop, in his uncanny way of ministry, was able to speak directly to those issues. In addition, he was willing to go against the grain in a lot of issues in reaching the youth as well as young adults. It didn't come without criticism from the "church" because you know change dies hard but he stuck to his guns and decided that "come what may" he wasn't willing to risk the next generation to appease the "old" money in the church.

What are most pastors willing to do to make sure that their youth and young adults stay in the press? Are they willing to risk losing some of the older bunch to make sure they have a church standing in twenty or thirty years? Or do they just want to maintain the status quo? I've had these discussions with a few people over the past few days and it's a question that we must ask ourselves because it's not just for pastors. It's for the everyday people as well. We wonder why our young people look elsewhere for guidance. We wonder why Louis Farrakhan is so attractive to them, well, I'll tell you, he has a relevant message that meets them where they are!

Unfortunately, many of us are stuck at Calvary and never progress forward! Jesus isn't even there anymore so why do we continue to pitch our tents there and act like that's all there is. To be honest, and I may be asked to turn in my credentials in making this statement, even I wouldn't be interested in that type of god!

I want something more in my experience with the Lord as do most of the youth and young adults in the world. If the church refuses to address the real life issues that pertain to our youth and young adults, we'll continue to lose the hip hop generation to the world! Now, I've said what most of you have been thinking and I've put it in the atmosphere...DEAL WITH IT! Let's reach the next generation before they end up like the NOW generation...broke, busted, and disgusted.

Be Patient

If God said it! Believe It and know that it will come to pass! So many times we think because we don't see the manifestation right now, we want to throw in the towel. We want to lose heart! I want to encourage you today, don't give up! Be patient and know that God is faithful...even when you're not! Isn't that good to know? That even when you're trippin' and yes everybody trips every once in a while, but yet, regardless of our attitude and our meandering ways, the Lord still has not changed His mind regarding what He spoke over your life from before the foundation of the world was made. Rest in this today and know that your faith is being tried in the fire so that you can come forth as pure gold! I close by saying this short, sweet affirmation of faith...GOD SAID IT, I BELIEVE IT, AND THAT SETTLES IT FOR ME! (Go ahead and make that your affirmation of faith as well!)

A SINNER'S PRAYER

This is a sinner's prayer I hope You hear it,
Cover and protect me Lord from these evil spirits,
It's clear as day with my eyes glued into this mirror,
That I need to change my ways and to bring You nearer,
I understand I need You more than I ever have,
Because the ways of this world have turned from worse to bad,
It's sad to see we have no love for sister or for brother,
But yet we point the gun, turn and we kill each other,
See, we are smothered in a lake of our iniquity,
I know that this is not the way You planned for us to be,
And so it seems that we will reap if we sow the seed,
The seeds we sow grow jealousy, envy, hate, and greed,
Indeed, I know I will always have a friend in You God,
And You still love me when I turn my back and face the odds,
Just when I thought that I could stand alone and be a man,
I took a look at the footprints layin' in the sand,
A sinner's prayer is what I pray when I feel alone,
When aggravation makes me desperate for my eternal home,
Beside Your throne is the space I wanna' occupy,
I feel Your hand cover me with love every time I cry,
My faith alone is the reason I'm not afraid to die,
Cause when I die I wanna' meet Your spirit eye to eye,
They wonder why I believe in things I can't see,
My faith is blind and so is the love You have for me,
Forgive me Lord for my sins I know I don't deserve it,
Because there's only One that walked this earth and did it perfect,
I'll sacrifice Your friendship if You make me a servant,
Cause in the end Your will be done and yes, its well worth it.
Amen

by
YoungSlim21

THANX IN ADVANCE

As I ride toward home I think of what awaits me, a house, more cars, money in abundance, and my dog, but something is missing,
How could I forget the gift, the one thing I have searched far and long for,
The one thing that when I found it I almost didn't believe that I did,
She changed the bachelor into a husband, the ladies man into a one woman man, the playa' into a father,
God I just wanna say thanx for a few blessings that You have given me;
Thanx for giving me a new lease on a life that was almost certain to end in disaster,
Thanx for helping me believe in You again when my faith had wavered ever so slightly to the point that I felt like I was not deserving of your unconditional love, grace and mercy,
Thanx for the beautiful woman you have sent me to be my wife,
For her patience and vision to realize that I was a work in progress,
That I was still a man with a vision though I could not see my way for the doubt and darkness, Thanx for her reassurance in me and her undying love,
Thanx for my beautiful son and his life given to him,
Thanx for making me the perfect man to be his father,
For only You know the struggles that I went through as a kid not havin' a father,
Thanx for the person who died so that he may reach this world safely,
Thanx for the years that I will spend being a model black husband, father, and man,
Showing other males that its nothin wrong with bein a genuine man and not what society expects us to be,
Thanx for the years me and my wife will spend together in matrimony,
Be it happy days, sad days, arguments, and the things we will face together,
Thanx for the people whom will lie on me,
The people whom will make an attempt to put asunder what you have joined together before the foundations of the earth,
Lord, I thank you for each one of their lives for they will make me stronger and make our love for one another grow stronger,
Thanx for the house, job, cars, and my son's life that you have entrusted into my care while here on earth,
I'm humbled that you would pick someone like me to be guardian over these fragile items,
Thanx for my rugged past that prepared me for a tranquil future,
It's February 14, 2006 and these things have not taken place yet,
But thanx for your time and your perfect timing,
I just had to tell you thanx in advance
Amen

by
YoungSlim21

UNDERNEATH THE STARS

The sun sets and the moon rises to reveal a star lit sky,
Two lovers wrapped in each other's arms gaze above,
Their hearts beat simultaneously signifying their unity as husband and wife, Adam and Eve, Romeo and Juliet,
He whispers in her ear,
"I am now complete.
When Adam gave birth to the first woman by removal of his rib his glass was half full just as mine was,
But now I feel my other half taking its rightful place inside,
Before you all I had was a blank picture but you are my color,
The color that gives me vibrant life with each brush stroke,
The color that adds to my otherwise bland portrait,
The wind beneath my wings, the answer to my question, the pulse of my heart how I adore you, My own angel, wrap your wings around me for warmth and protection, security and assurance, The light unto my darkened path, you guide me and I you,
The stars are yet not bright enough for the radiance of your smile,
How I wish moments like this would last forever,
I will hold you, embrace you, love you, cherish you, until my body no longer has feeling,
When words can't be remembered, and ink fades away my love will stand through time,"
Books will be written, and tales told of the feelings a man had for one woman
While he whispered in her ear, "I love you"...underneath the stars

by
Young Slim 21

Let Go and Walk into Today

One thing that I know for sure and that is that God will wipe away all tears from our eyes! He said it, I believe it and that settles it! During this time where so much is taking place across this nation, throughout the world, and more personally, right in my own community, I am resting in God's promise that He'll do what He said He'll do! As a matter of fact, He's already done the work and the plight in life is to find out what He's already done. Along this journey nothing is a surprise to God because He's already determined the end. It's already a done deal and the occurrences that take place that throw us off course are for our making. How else will we ever know that God is a heart fixer if our heart is never "broken?" Think about it for a minute.

How else would you know that He's a healer if you never ever got sick? How would you know that He is a waymaker if you never ever needed a way made out of no way? Our life is full of circumstances that are deemed necessary for the ultimate purpose of discovering a greater aspect of who God is. How do you really know that He is the Lord of your life? I discovered that for myself when I went through my trials and tribulations! First hand, I was standing on my own accord without my dad or my mother, I had to stand by myself and declare that God was God over every situation, at the risk of death, I yet stood my ground.

When my father passed, again, there was another circumstance that caught me off guard, but yet, I remained steadfast and unmovable. I didn't like what I was going through, but I know the Lord today better than I knew Him back then! God has a plan for our lives and although His ways aren't our ways and His thoughts aren't our thoughts, we have to understand that He never ever makes a mistake. He promised in His word that He was going to bring us into a good land where we would not lack! He told us in the book of Jeremiah that He has thoughts to prosper us and not to harm us. The thing that catches us off guard is that we try to humanize this God and He can't be characterized according to the ways of the world. We get offended when someone is snatched out of our life, through sudden death or sickness and we want to blame Him. We have to understand that His thoughts are so far away from our humanistic mindset that we can't ever begin to even comprehend His mind or why things happen the way they happen.

For me, I stopped trying to figure Him out a long time ago. I could have remained angry and hostile over my father's death, but what was their to gain from all that? I had to let it go and many of you reading this have to let issues go from yesterday. Of course I could hold on to yesterday, but I figured that it wasn't worth my destiny! I realized that my future was too bright. I finally began to understand and see what God had created me to be and that didn't involve holding on to things and issues from the past. I've forgiven people and moved on so that I could walk into the things that the Lord had prepared for me before the foundations of the world was laid.

What about you? Are you going to hold on to yesterday or let go and walk into your today?

Coretta Scott King: A Drum Major for Justice

I remember her grace and humble spirit walking across Morehouse's campus as if she was in hot pursuit to do something. What, I couldn't say, but she looked like a woman on a mission. I couldn't help but ask around to see what was going on because I had her so much about this "icon" of a woman growing up that to see her for the first time was quite overwhelming. To some she was quite intimidating because in some regards you could say that she never asked for the fanfare, she just wanted to be a loving wife and mother, however, on April 4, 1968, her life took a turn that she could never go back to the way things were. Her husband was killed and she, all of a sudden, had been pushed to the forefront. The entire world had known her, but she never really had to say anything because her husband often spoke on their behalf, however, on this day a decision had to be made. What was to happen to all that her husband had worked so hard for? What would become of the movement that defined who the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King was? Would the work die in Memphis, Tennessee at the Lorraine Hotel? Or would it continue in the hands of the men who walked alongside the man with the mission.

The decision was made by Coretta and Coretta alone to continue the work that her husband had started. No, she didn't ask for it, but she knew that her life had meaning and had purpose and found it to be in the movement that she had married. Did you get that? She realized that she had married more than just a mere man. She had caught a glimpse of destiny and realized that the Lord had caused her to marry a "movement" and a movement doesn't die...It multiplies!

The work of the 1950's and 60's was carried on by the widow and First lady of the Civil Rights movement because that's what she had to do. There comes a time in life when we realize that we have a mission, a destiny that is larger than our own life. It encompasses the very fabric of our society and it's given definition and meaning by the tenacity with which we reach. Had Coretta stayed in her seat what would have become of so much of the work that was continued? Had she shut her mouth and stayed in her bed of comfort just as the "widow" and "First lady" what would have happened to the generations coming behind? I'm thankful today because she was unselfish in that she shared her life with the world. She shared her memories and she shared her husband because, in actuality, he belonged to the world. His mission was to get something started and her plight was to continue the work. Now this dynamic couple belongs to the ages and the history books shall record a great combustion of energy that circumvented the times and walked the streets of the south in order to begin a revolution.

What is our role in this because whether you think you do or don't, you do have a part to play. You can either sit on the sidelines and benefit from the strides that have been made or you can stand up. Stand up or sit down, you've got one of two options because the work doesn't stop. That's what I saw in Coretta's eyes when I was a student at Morehouse College, I saw a determination a dedication and a dependability in her that said, "come hell or high water, I won't be stopped!" She wouldn't allow her situations to get her encumbered to where she would let people forget what happened and how far we've come as a people. She became a trailblazer in the same spirit of the movement that she had married not just for her or her children but she did so because of the generations that were yet to be born. She realized that there were others who would never know the struggle if she didn't remind them. There were those who would find it easy to sugar coat the 50's and 60's if she didn't say something so she made a decision, at the risk of being popular and at the risk of possibly losing her life, she stood up and became what the movement called for, A DRUM MAJOR FOR JUSTICE!

Sleep on First Lady, sleep on First Lady, your labor has not been in vain. The movement lives on...

In Spite Of...

In spite of...Push through the pain and anger and tell the Lord thank you for the trials and tribulations. I've come to find out that I wouldn't be where I am today had I not had some drama and hell to enter my life. Now, at the time, I didn't want it. At the time, it was VERY inconvenient to endure through, but on the other side of the pain I see that I'm stronger than ever. It's amazing, the thing that you thought you couldn't make it through is the very thing that serves as your plateau to "GREATNESS!" It's not customary to look towards tribulations with excitement, but that's what I've come to do in this stage of my journey. I remember how I used to be a few years back and to see me now, I'm more humble, I'm more prayerful, I see the good in people rather than seeing the shortcomings. I could go on and on but hopefully you get my point.
He's been so good and so kind to us, we owe it to the Lord to say, "thank you!" We could have been dead (as the saints would say) sleeping in our graves, but the Lord saw fit to call our names for yet another day! So, while we have the chance we can offer up a thank you! For many of us, we didn't need any assistance getting out of the bed! Some of us take the small things for granted, like for instance, brushing our teeth. So, today, just be thankful that the circumstances that you're facing aren't worse!
A close friend of my family lost his life this past week in an alleged robbery. I couldn't help but think at how senseless the entire situation was and how this has now affected the lives of everyone that loved my friend and the ones who even committed the crime (because their lives will never be the same either). We have to be careful because the things we do affect the lives of EVERYONE that we're connected to. Today, remember that the circumstances are not here to kill you but to make you stronger than ever! I know, you don't know all the answers to why things are going the way they are, but be confident in this one thing...HE that has begun a good work (and no matter what you think, IT was a good work) is faithful to complete what HE started!
So the bottomline is, in spite of...say thank you!

Don't Miss IT

During this season of transition it is vitally important that you are completely obedient to what you know God is saying to you. He isn't saying the same thing to everyone so don't judge yourself based on what you see someone else doing. Stay focused on your task because you are the only one who can do what God has ordained you to do. Don't allow others to jeopardize your destiny so stay in the grind and keep your eyes on the bigger picture. We are in a serious transition, not just in your personal life, but corporately on a global level. The death of Coretta Scott King is not to be taken lightly. Nothing just happens but everything works together to bring God's divine purpose into manifestation.

There is too much at stake in this season to be letting others manipulate you into believing that the grass is greener on the other side. You've got to keep in mind that everything that you've gone through in life was for a purpose and that purpose was to make you stronger than ever. Think of it this way, had you not gone through what you went through you would never be at the point in your life you're at right now. If you had it easy, you would never be able to appreciate how far you've come. So, in not missing IT, remember the IT stands for your purpose for existing. Many people have lived a full life without ever realizing that they were here for so much more. Many people have traveled the world over and over but never tapped into the ultimate plan for their life. Is that you? Hmmm

All I'm saying is that the trials and tribulations that you've been through were set up to squeeze the life out of you so that you could come to terms with your divine purpose and destiny. So, you tell me, are you going to watch others inherit their promise while you sit on the sidelines or are you going to claim your territory? The choice is yours, as for me, I'm not going to miss out on what God has planned for my life. The way I see it is, my bloodline is at stake...