author

You Have Been Given The Opportunity

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

to make a moment.  How you decide to spend this moment in time, will determine how you remember it. For me, it is the most wonderful time of the year. Christmas reminds me that God thought I was so important He came to earth in the form of a baby.  The Creator came down to be with the created.  He loves an undeserving humanity.

Gingerbread

Holidays give us the opportunity to spend time with that humanity, which in most cases look like our family. I know for some this sounds hard, but it will be some of the best time you ever spend.  It will give you insight into yourself and your family.  In our immediate family, the littles are all teenagers now. Opening presents aren’t near as fun as when they were younger and more excited. We realize time is growing short with them as they start to leave for college and start their own lives.

My sister started playing games with them so that it would be a chance to connect with them. At first, it was a competition with prizes.  These kids are too competitive. We discovered after a rough game of musical chairs, physical contact needed to be limited.  This year there were no prizes, but the trash talk was still as powerful as an old school game of spades because the competition was part of their DNA.

We laughed and played for hours. (And of course, I videoed some of the best moments) Our kids will have memories of a time when we were all together focused on the same thing and remembering it brought joy and laughter.  They may not remember the presents or the food. They will remember the fun.

My crazy sister decided to try it with the extended family. (I thought she was nuts) I was thoroughly surprised when the older members of the family did it.  We taught the games, they, of course, changed them some to adapt to them. It was a blast. Again, the joy and the laughter is what we are going to remember. (And my favorite memory will be when my aunt excused herself for a moment, my sister traded her to the other team. But because she is OUR aunt, she played for whatever team felt like. Sometimes she played for my sister’s team. Sometimes she played for the other team. It was great.)

Here is where the opportunity comes in. You can do what you always do when you get together with family or you can break old habits and experience new things together.  Playing games with the young and the old was such a crazy experience. I would have never thought of it myself, but I was willing to listen to others.

Go into 2019 with great memories of your family and friends. Spend time with each other and enjoy the world around you.

 

 

 

 

 

Destiny’s Dilemma

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

Why did men always show up in twos? Why did she always have to pick?  She hated being home, but the male attention she was getting wasn’t too bad. There was a handsome white gentleman who chased her all over town. then there was a good looking Negro who made her smile every time he showed up. But right in the middle of it, life happened. Zo had to decide would she be a woman of principle or a woman who took what she wanted.  She would have to learn to make their racist intentions work for her.

Destiny’s Dilemma is the book of the month. It is available on Amazon and Books2Read.com

THUMBNAIL_IMAGE

 

 

Book of The Month: Destiny’s Dilemma

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

Print

An African American woman moved home to take care of her dying mother giving up the opportunity to experience a world beyond segregation. Zoraida Hughes Williams finds that some things have changed about her hometown of Fort Worth, Texas while some have stayed the same, like Hell’s Half Acre, an area where saloons, prostitution and gambling runs wild. Like most of the residents, she wants to keep her head down and stay away from trouble, but it comes in the unlikely form of an Anglo Baptist preacher. He messes up everything and almost gets them killed.

 

Destiny’s Dilemma is available on Amazon and Books to Read

 

https://www.books2read.com/b/3kZazW

THUMBNAIL_IMAGE

 

 

I Knew What I Wanted To Be When I Was 10

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

I knew what I wanted to be when I was 15. I knew what I wanted to be when I was 21. I knew what I wanted to be when I was 25.

None of those things were the same thing.  I ended up doing those things and many more.  Let me be honest. I have had a great deal of fun, but seldom have found satisfaction.  Many times we do things in hope that it will satisfy us, but usually end up void. After many years of struggling and finding new things to do, I found the remedy for it all.  One of the most powerful thing I learned is Psalms 32:8.

I often think about Abraham leaving his family and going with God. I am sure it was a frightening proposition to go face the unknown. Some of the places God has taken me have been cooler than anything I could imagine, and some of the places have been “What the heck?” One of the first things I learned about God was He is more interested in my character than my comfort. I mean I started to learn that if I was too comfortable,  what I was doing wasn’t from God.

When God is your guide, He often takes you along the scenic route.  I don’t ever remember getting anywhere quick or in my timing.  I mean somethings have taken decades to get to, but He is faithful.  There are also detours along the way.  If you do not stay connected to God these detours will slay you. You will think God has lost his mind or doesn’t plan to do good for you.  Sometimes we get in our own way, like Sarah giving her handmaid to her husband to make a child.  I got in my own way so many times, God stopped telling me what was going to happen. He just led me. I learned to shut up and follow.

You have to trust Him that the path He takes you on is the best path for you.  I admit there were times I would ask “What are you doing? This is crazy, God!” I have had some of the craziest jobs, but I can see how each experience has taught me more about the Creator of the Universe.  Sometimes people get stuck because they have not learned what God needs them to learn.   I am reminded that David spent 16 years learning how to shepherd all the crazy odd people before he became king over the entire nation. I have to remind myself that God created me and knows me well. This means He knows what I need and when I am able to learn it.

Another thing I learned about the Father is that He always puts me in a situation where I need Him. I can’t do it without Him. But the beautiful thing about this is that it will stretch you beyond your limits.  You will learn about yourself and the God who created you.  It will take you in new directions. He turned one of my deepest fears into something I love dearly.  Only a God who knows you well can do that.

I hope you will stop faking it and focus on what seed God has placed in your heart. Allow Him to take you on an adventure that will make your life satisfying.  As my sister says,  You only have a few moments left on earth, use them on your mission. Stop wasting time trying to buy a new home, car or vacation. Connect with your purpose for life and that will be more than you can even imagine.  Trust the Lord with all your heart and don’t lean on your own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5)

Books of the July: Privateers

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

So there is this young woman who hates herself and her life. She finds what she thinks is true love, only to realize she was being scammed. And to top it off, he tries to kill her.  Even though most of her wants to find a hole to hide in, a part of her wants to fight back. She just doesn’t know how.

In the first book, Privateers, Claire has her first encounter with these pirates who can move between space and time. More importantly, one of them wants her dead.  She has to figure out how to catch them and stay alive.

In ReCovery, book four, Claire is in the process of transitioning from the calm quiet life of an accountant to non stop empowering life of a private investigator.

Dancing During the Storm Vol 2 is June’s Featured Book

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

The best part of my life is that I get to tell stories that have been inspired by the Creator of the Universe. Whenever I feel as though I am done with this writing thing, He gives me a story I can’t keep to myself. And the funny thing about it is, many of the stories I tell seem to have to real connection. But I trust the Ultimate Storyteller. This month I am working on some new projects, but here is a done one that I just love. Dancing During the Storm Vol 2 is a collection of short stories that captures the imagination. His Favorite One is the story of a man given a great responsibility but has to deal with the consequences of not fulfilling them. Dancing Vol 2 is the featured book for the month of June. It is available on Amazon, Createspace and Books2Read.com

Dancing 2

The Route Might Be Clear

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

27973614_10160234383360093_5058786868764695509_n

I stood at this sign over a month ago. It was one of those fun photos you take when you are on a girl’s trip.  You are on Route 66, the historical highway and it seems like the possibilities are endless. It was fun.

27993003_10210973025030256_1688134918538649203_o

A month later I am standing on Michigan Ave and I see this sign. Wow.  It didn’t even hit me where I was or how crazy cool it was to there.  I had been invited to an on campus interview at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for a graduate program. It was an honor to be there and talk about the possibilities.

28167422_10160234383450093_6093488190665617251_n

Chicago has a different vibe from the city where I currently live.  There was a moment when it started snowing.  Instead of the panic that insues in my part of the country, folks walked around taking pictures. We walked around taking pictures.

27867007_10160607157720725_9014925479266199694_n

All of this to say, God has incredible things planned for your life, you just got to Trust Him.  It is God when it is something that you can’t do on your own or with the help of your people.  Where is He leading you in 2018? There is lots of work to do, lets get to it.