Saturday, November 2, 2013

How We Christians Abuse Each Other

If you were to look at Christians today (to include those who say they are), we are losing all form of ethics and taking it to the point where we are abusing each other and adding Christian lingoes to abuse each other (really just leeching off each other for selfish purposes). It needs to stop and we need to grow up & mature.

So, how do we Christians abuse each other? Let me give you a great example.

Someone comes to me (and they say they are a man/woman of God) and say "can I borrow," or "can you do this for me cause I want to do something for someone." And they give you a 20 minute sermon before or after they ask if they can get some money from you.

Another area how we can abuse each other is taking advantage of a fellow brother's generosity or fellow sister's generosity (and again, adding Christian lingo such as "and may The Lord bless you."). 

When it's all said and done, they'll turn around, smile at you cause they know they just got over on you (even with the Christian colloquialisms). Yes, it can be frustrating, but know that The Lord will take care of you (so you can kind of dismiss when man says "may The Lord bless you."). Now it's not a problem to give out of your heart as He leads, but there should be a flag when people coerce you with the mindset of getting over on you (cutting corners).
We as the body of Christ need to stop abusing each other out of greed, cutting corners or just cause we don't to sit down & count the cost (and plan)!

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

This Word "Betrayal"

About 30 minutes ago, this word bothered me (though it shouldn't) to the point where I literally stopped what I was doing to type this. You see, betrayal is nothing new to God. In fact, many people know about Judas Iscariot betraying Jesus before Jesus was crucified. But I want to talk about the betrayals we face today (and I believe they will increase as the days progress).

We shouldn't be afraid of the word betrayal, but at the same time, we should not be alarmed when we are betrayed. Now we are not to live our lives in fear of being betrayed, but when we are betrayed, turn them over to God and forgive them.

I want to touch on some of the betrayals I see today (and again, I expect them to increase with greater intensity as we continue living day on this earth):

1. This first betrayal bothers my spirit to the core: parents are giving children (12 years and younger) to sexual predators to be molested, robbed of their virginity for money.
2. The second betrayal is the "what's in it for me" betrayal. I will be your friend, sup with you, join your cliques all for my benefit and then drop you when I got what I needed without even pouring into your life. Judas would fit this one with the exception that Jesus chose Judas and not the other way around.
3. The third betrayal is the "fair-weather friend" betrayal. This is where you want to be around people when they have good days and the moment they go through or offend you (whether major but more importantly minor), you turn your back on them, won't even help them at their point of need. This can also be an "I'm better than you" betrayal and this betrayal can actually lead to their spiritual death (and yes, you could have their blood on your hands).
4. The fourth betrayal involves trust. Example: I tell someone what I'm going through, they sit with me and listen; once I get it all out and they get all of my trust, they turn against me and speak ill of me because I'm not perfect like them. Some would get cocky with their attitude and say, "you need to get over it!" 

The last thing I want you to do is play naive in believing that you'll never be betrayed. Offenses come in different shapes & forms, and betrayal is no exception. Just because somebody is your friend doesn't mean they don't have the capability to betray you. Watch therefore, for wolves will perpetrate to be sheep. But sadly, many will pray and trust their flesh and not God thinking so & so won't betray them. But even if it does, God has you and them. Just be watchful is what I'm trying to say with that point. 

I need to say this too: just because someone attends your church or becomes a part of your elite clique due to church association, pastor association, etc. doesn't mean they still won't sell you out. I'll be honest, I'm expecting it to happen more in my life, people who say they believe will turn against me. Yes, it hurts and will hurt, but I will keep pressing on for His high calling. I don't expect everyone who says they are for me to really be for me. We're human, sinful, prideful, and always in need of being forgiven by God and forgiving others. 

This betrayal is getting so bad that if you don't agree with a political leader, a pastor, a music artist, people will betray you over that. If you have character flaws, they will betray you and flaunt their arrogance over you. Sadly, this betrayal is happening more in the spiritual world (in my opinion) than in the secular world and that shouldn't be. Part of the betrayal is due to our selfish agendas and still clinging on to the "what's in it for me" mentality. We have lost the one-sided love that Jesus had and we need to get our hearts back to this kind of love.

Blessings.

The Mayne Man

Monday, October 28, 2013

Author Spotlight (Christin Webb)

I met this author at the BWABC Literacy Festival (held in Memphis, TN) in September 2013. To me she is an angel. Anyway, this week's author spotlight is my sister and fellow author Christin Webb.

After years of earning degrees, building relationships, developing a career, and adjusting to single-motherhood, writer Christin Webb took a leap of faith to begin following her dreams to become Author Christin Webb.
"Outcomes are merely creations of our own decisions" is the motto that Christin lives by and uses as the basis for her first self-published novel, Enough Time and short fiction blog, 'Is It Real?'. It has been Christin's personal experiences and creative visions that bring her writing to life to ignite growth and inspiration in each story. In recent years, Christin has begun a campaign of encouraging people to intentionally follow their passions through her newest blog, Passion Living Out Loud'. Along with writing, Christin enjoys speaking to organizations on topics from self-growth, overcoming abuse and addictions, to becoming an author.
Christin's nonfiction work has been featured on websites such as 'Diva By Design' and 'For Harriet'. In 2010, Christin published the Memphis 2010 Historical Calendar, which featured 365 days of Memphis history. In 2012, Christin established the Webb Publishing Company that assist authors and small business owners with various publishing needs. More recently, Christin has begun screenwriting and producing short films.
Beyond making differences with words, Christin has always found community and leadership very important and finds giving back an easy task. She has acted in several volunteer capacities with organizations such as the National Civil Rights Museum and the United Way. Christin was formerly an Executive Board Member and Secretary of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc. ~ Memphis, TN. Chapter. 
Christin has a BA in Social Work from the University of Memphis and an MBA from Webster University. Christin works in the utility industry and currently lives in Memphis, TN with her daughter, Jasmine. Christin hopes to continue to use her leadership and creative spirit to make positive differences.