Baby Spritual Food Vs. Mature Spiritual Food Pt 1: It's Time for You & I to Spiritually Man Up!

  “We have more millionaires, and a few billionaires and more members of the Black middle class, yet the masses of our people are slipping further and further behind and are deeper and deeper in the valley of poverty and want,” -Min. Farrakhan

The Great One's

There have been many "Great One's" whom have come among us and we as a whole do not reflect the lessons they have tried to teach us.  We have dropped the ball of our collective growth and development economically, socially, spiritually, and morally as a people.  For every step of progress we have made over the past fifty years or more, it seems as if we have taken ten steps back, sort a like a free fall.  Today we are being forced to take a razor sharp focus and laser sharp approach at looking at our collective selves.  For one to stop and say that the African American community is in peril today would not be an understatement.  It is quite obvious and there is no doubt and one does not have to go into grave detail or provide significant statistical evidence.  Because all you have to do is look around you and see "What's Going On," as the late great singer Marvin Gaye suggested.

Our level of of cultural, moral, and spiritual discernment as a people has suffered significantly over the past thirty years or so.  We have allowed the ills and vices of this world to literally destroy our advancement(s) as a people.  In every area of human life we are currently at the bottom or very near the bottom.  The current context of our existence cannot continue down this path.  It is time we put an end to the madness that is plaguing our communities.  We have had several opportunities to make things right over these years but we continue to drop the ball.  As noted earlier we have made some progress.  We have more African Americans in positions of power and influence than at any other time in our history, here in America.  But as a whole we do not reflect that progress that the few have had.

When one enters the Black community today a number of factors are very noticeable as to why we are in the peril we are in.  The one that has been most devastating is that we control and own very little in our own community.  Every other ethnic group is presently doing business, commerce, and earning a profit in our community besides us.  We have become the minority in our own neighborhoods when it comes to business, commerce and earning a profit today.  And it is nobody's fault but our own!  Our dollars do not even reciprocate among us--not even once!  The Harvest Institute (www.harvestinstitue.org), a Washington, D.C. Black think tank that addresses how money circulates in various communities noted:

•Money circulates in the White Community unlimited times

•Money circulates in Jewish Communities over 12 times

•Money circulates in Asian Communities over 9 times

•Money circulates in Latino Communities over 6 times

•Money circulates in the African-American Community 0-1 time

Sure forms of discrimination and disenfranchisement still rear their ugly heads but we have always faced obstacles in our path towards progress.  So there is no excuse especially in today's context where we have some of the brightest and smartest people, that our race has ever produced.  Problem is we have been hit in our "Umoja" and "Ujima" heads resulting in us forgetting our collective obligations as a people.   

When will the sleeping giant awaken to claim what is ours?  As suggested earlier we are being forced to rise now and do for our selves.  Things are are not getting any better under this current system of things as a whole but in particularly for Blacks and Latinos.  A paradigm shift is urgently needed.  We have to get up off of our collective bottoms and go for self.or else we will slip deeper into the abyss.  We have to awaken from the amnesia of our moral, cultural, and spiritual discernment in order to save ourselves and our community.  In this war, we have to be ready to accept that everyone will not want to come along or, further more can be saved.  There will be casualties and collateral damage--this is just a fact we will have to endure.  But the good news is that we can achieve our collective goals as people if we are untied for the common good. 

We have to get off of the baby milk of our individual and basic progress as a people and set our systems up to accept the whole nourishment of our collective advancement.  We can do this by supporting initiatives like Empowerment Experiment, Less Talk and More Action Empowerment Tour, and Three Year Economic Savings Program.  All of these can be achieved but the question remains are we going to continue to take forever in do so.  We are indeed in perilous times and we must put our best foot forward to make a change.  We must rely on our God first then ourselves to help us to "See It Through."  

Study Torah, Injeel, and Quran: Three Course Meal

On a spiritual note, we must honestly question ourselves and not be afraid to go into much deeper spiritual discourse and discernment when looking at our plight as a people.  We have to put down the basic notions of our collective needs like continuing to advocate for "jobs and justice," or looking for reparations.  It is apparent that we need jobs and reparations but we must begin to create the jobs we need for ourselves versus expecting and putting the sole onus on the federal government, to do so   The onus is on us now for the economic repair, growth, and development, that we seek.

We have to study the history of the Scriptures in both the historical and contemporary context.  Especially the story of the "Children of Israel."  We cannot simply be satisfied with basic scriptural truths and then run from or dodge the more deeper and difficult scriptural truths.   We show a lack of spiritual maturity and discernment when we do this--which are offensive and disrespectful to God.  Furthermore our lack of spiritual maturity and discernment under-develops our faith and convictions in God and His Christ, and our ability to make proper choices and decisions.  Hence, which is why we have been asleep and not been awake on our post of active and consistent advancement as a people.  As noted above one can tell our spiritual condition and age upon entering our community.  We have been wondering in the contemporary proverbial desert trying to find our way into the "Promised Land."  The responsibility of feeding ourselves proper spiritual food and doing for self cannot continue to allude us.  To continue down this path will keep us in the abyss of spiritual weakness and inability.  Resulting in us continuing to look towards someone else to provide for us the things we should be providing for our selves.  As the great Hon. Marcus M. Garvey declared "Up you mighty people! You can accomplish What you will!"

More Web Sites of Interests upon the Subject Matter:

PowerNomics

FraserNet-Urban Professional Empowerment 

The eSecret 

Business Challenge For:2010 

'Wake Up or Die in Your Sleep'

UjamaaDeals.Com

Scriptural & Literary Support:

You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people!” -Deuteronomy 4:6 NRSV

They are a nation void of sense; there is no understanding in them. If they were wise, they would understand this; they would discern what the end would be. -Deuteronomy 32:28-29

Yet among the mature we do speak wisdom, though it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to perish. But we speak God’s wisdom, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.  None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. -1 Corinthians 2:6 NRSV

until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.  We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming.  But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love. -Ephesians 4:13-16 NSRV

About thisb we have much to say that is hard to explain, since you have become dull in understanding.  For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic elements of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food; for everyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is unskilled in the word of righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, for those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.  -Heb 5:11-14 NRSV

Therefore let us go on toward perfection, leaving behind the basic teaching about Christ, and not laying again the foundation: repentance from dead works and faith toward God, instruction about baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.  -Heb 6:1-2 NRSV

and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing.  -James 1:4 NRSV

And He will teach him the Book and the wisdom and the Tavrat(Torah) and the Injeel(Gospel). -Surah 3:48

And when he had attained his maturity, We gave him wisdom and knowledge: and thus do We reward those who do good. -Surah 12:22

This is of what your Lord has revealed to you of wisdom, and do not associate any other god with Allah lest you should be thrown into hell, blamed, cast away. -Surah 17:39

And (as for) Lut(Lot), We gave him wisdom and knowledge, and We delivered him from the town which wrought abominations; surely they were an evil people, transgressors; -Surah 21:74

And when he attained his maturity and became full grown, We granted him wisdom and knowledge; and thus do We reward those who do good (to others). -Surah 28:14

He it is Who created you from dust, then from a small lifegerm, then from a clot, then He brings you forth as a child, then that you may attain your maturity, then that you may be old -- and of you there are some who are caused to die before -- and that you may reach an appointed term, and that you may understand. -Surah 40:67

“What is the purpose of education? Are we just in school to get an education so that we can go out and get a job and make some money, ride in a car, live in a nice home, abandon the ghetto and leave your brothers and sisters behind and think that we’ve made progress in the world? Is this what God intended when he asked us to go after knowledge from the cradle to the grave?” -Farrakhan

Ode To Marcus Garvey

What Are You Afraid Of?

"All of our fears are sinful and cowardly, and we create our own fears by refusing to nourish ourselves in our faith. How can anyone who is identified with God and His Christ suffer from doubt, fear, or recreancy! Our lives should be an absolute hymn of praise resulting from perfect, irrepressible, triumphant belief.". -Oswald Chambers & The Brotha

Yeshua

Who are we fooling we when we say that we believe but then turn around and become afraid, fearful, or ashamed of who and who's we are.  We turn our backs on The Creator when we do not allow him to totally dwell in us in every aspect of our lives.  If shirk in the face of the powers and pressures of man; Are we truly being the witnesses that God has commissioned us to be?  Are we truly reflecting and relying on the Spirit of God and the example of the Son of God to be our salvation, protection, and guide?  The answer is an emphatic no!   When we allow fears to creep in, we become weak and afraid to say, Thus says the Lord because we do not want offend anybody--we rather play it safe.  

Power

"We should battle through our moods, feelings, and emotions into absolute devotion to The Most High and His Reminder.  We must break out of our own little world of experience into abandoned devotion to Him."  Yeshua (Jesus) was God Incarnate when he came on the scene 2000 years ago, he was able to be himself on the bases that he was sent from the Father.  Which is why he could pronounce "My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.  I and the Father are one" (John 10:30 ESV).  Which denotes that his power and authority are in unity with and come from The Father.  Furthermore whom in which The Father has given power and authority to shall never avoid or be afraid of the powers and forces of the world-- thus we cannot be afraid to suffer in God's name.  Therefore we must always consistently put our trust and faith in God and His Christ--not in some fictitious mysterious delusional god who never is tangible.  Even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will bless you for it.  So do not worry or be afraid of their power.  Instead, you must worship God as The Most High God of your life.  And if someone ask you about your faith in Him always be ready to bear witness--just as Jesus did.

We should never be afraid of our relationship with God and His Christ.  And if we are criticized, treated unfairly or even threatened because of our belief in God and His Christ, we should respond with deference and never become defensive.  You should never be afraid to represent Him and "Accept Your Own" and "Be Yourself!"  It is better to suffer for the cause of God than for the cause of God to suffer because you are too afraid and weak to stand up in His name!

Peace & Understanding, The Brotha

Also see *http://thebrotha1.blogspot.com/2010/08/why-suffer.html -Why Suffer


Scriptural & Literary Support

Later the LORD spoke to Abram in a vision, "Abram, don't be afraid! I will protect you and reward you greatly."  -Gen 15:1 CEV


Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. -Duet 6:4 NIV

He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him." -John 3:2 NIV

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. -John 14:12 NIV


"You heard me say, 'I am going away and I am coming back to you.' If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. -John 14:28 NIV

what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, 'I am God's Son'? -John 10:36 NIV

that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. -John 17:21 NIV

"Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. -Acts 2:22 NIV

But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. 1 Corinthians 11:3 ESV

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. -2 Corinthians 4:4 NIV

Say: O Allah (God), Master of the Kingdom! Thou givest the kingdom to whomsoever Thou pleasest and takest away the kingdom from whomsoever Thou pleasest, and Thou exaltest whom Thou pleasest and abasest whom Thou pleasest in Thine hand is the good; surety, Thou hast power over all things. -Surah 3:26

When Allah will say: O Isa (Jesus) son of Marium (Mary)! Remember My favor on you and on your mother, when I strengthened you I with the holy Spirit, you spoke to the people in the cradle and I when of old age, and when I taught you the Book and the wisdom and the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel); and when you determined out of clay a thing like the form of a bird by My permission, then you breathed into it and it became a bird by My permission, and you healed the blind and the leprous by My permission; and when you brought forth the dead by My permission; and when I withheld the children of Israel from you when you came to them with clear arguments, but those who disbelieved among them said: This is nothing but clear enchantment. -Surah 5:110

And when Allah will say: O Isa son of Marium! did you say to men, Take me and my mother for two gods besides Allah he will say: Glory be to Thee, it did not befit me that I should say what I had no right to (say); if I had said it, Thou wouldst indeed have known it; Thou knowest what is in my mind, and I do not know what is in Thy mind, surely Thou art the great Knower of the unseen things. -Surah 5:116

And among men is he who says: We believe in Allah (God); but when he is persecuted in (the way of) Allah (God) he thinks the persecution of men to be as the chastisement of Allah (God); and if there come assistance from your Lord, they would most certainly say: Surely we were with you. What! is not Allah (God) the best knower of what is in the breasts of mankind. -Surah 29:10

The great fearful event shall not grieve them, and the angels shall meet them: This is your day which you were promised. -Surah 21:103




"Your gonna die anyway, you might as well die standing up for the truth and liberation of your people." -Farrakhan


"If your afraid to stand up for truth and liberation, then get outta the damn way!" -Farrakhan

"Even when our situation looks difficult, we can trust that God is leading. He already knows what we’ll need when we get there." -Excerpt from Our Daily Bread 11/12/11

I know not by what methods rare
The Lord provides for me;
I only know that all my needs
He meets so graciously. —Adams

"Facing an impossibility gives us the opportunity to trust God." -Excerpt from Our Daily Bread 11/12/11

Do You Know What You Are Smoking, Man?

With so many voices and opinions out there, sometimes all you need is the knowledge to make your own decisions. -Go to link: Above The Influence

Say No

I was never one to fully engage in smoking weed as a teen, I just got high of contact *(Smile :-)!  Seriously, the older dudes I hung out with in my hood made me put the joint down because they said it wasn't me--even though they were straight up "weed heads"!  They may not be aware of what they did for me, but I am deeply indebted to those brothers because since that day I have never picked up a joint again!

This is just an observation:

Today's youth are becoming more an more engaged and are not as lucky as I once was to have guys I looked up to guide me on the right path.  The marijuana the youth are smoking today is not like the ganja folk had access to back in the day.  It doesn't even smell the same.  Today, the marijuana they have is being spiked with a variety of chemicals or as the teens it is being "stepped on."  The chemicals they are putting on the weed is causing a type of "slow death" to sort of speak and they are getting addicted to it--something unheard of in my day.

Purple Kush

Young people today have become so addicted to marijuana and in order to just function on a daily bases they have to do what is called a "wake & bake."  They have come up with all type of interesting names for the marijuana according to the affect it has or high it makes them "Kush," "Reggie," "Loud," and "Purple" to name a few.  This trend will eventually lead them to much harder drugs causing an even deeper problem and epidemic.

The so called "War On Drugs," has decimated both Black and Brown communities through mass incarceration in particularly young males.  The "War On Drugs," was the pretext to take young Black and Brown men off the streets at an alarming rate.  Many of the arrests and jail time given have been unjust.  However so, we have been responsible for our own demise by continuing to engage in such behaviors that are adverse to our productivity.  We cannot continue to tread down this destructive path or else we will surely continue to pay a devastating price.

Tragedy at State College

'This is a tragedy,' Paterno says. 'It is one of the great sorrows of my life. With the benefit of hindsight, I wish I had done more.'  (Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2059268/Penn-State-scandal-Matt-Millen-breaks-air-number-victims-DOUBLES.html#ixzz1d4Gw7D)

As a former collegiate football player and currently a HS football coach, I have nothing but respect and admiration for Coach Joe Paterno affectionately known as "Joe Pa."  For his impeccable 46 year coaching career to come to an abrupt halt like this is totally unthinkable.  Joe Pa has been a model coach known as a father figure and philanthropist by many he often garnered due honor and respect.  Now the question is raised whether or not this inexcusably repulsive act allegedly committed by former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky will tarnish his legacy.  The question is raised rightful so amidst the current climate.  I believe to an extent it will publicly but on an individual bases I believe not.  I will still hold the same respect and admiration I had before for Coach Joe Pa  as a football coach even though from a moral stand point he should have done more.  Which is why ultimately the school board had to make the very tough decision to fire him.  Some critics like Stephen A. Smith suggest that he should have went months ago but it appears the powers that be conveniently waited until he passed Eddie Robinson's coaching record for most wins.

However so, the elephant in the room is the abomination allegedly committed on his watch, which raises public concern of could he have done more than just reporting it to school's AD at the time.  Because this alleged crime involves sodomizing young boys is the part that one cannot stomach.  Like former Penn State stand out and current ESPN analyst Matt Millen put it "'I get mad,' Millen said as he broke down in tears. 'It's pretty disturbing. It makes you sick to see that this could happen to this level.'" Sure coach could have taken it further but I'm sure he felt he did the right thing by going to his AD, as it was the AD's job to take it further.  In my humble opinion that is who dropped the ball here and he was rightfully let go, as well as the school's President.  The former grad assistant Mike McQueary who supposedly reported the infraction also thought he did the right thing by following the chain of command.  I respect chain of command no doubt but I as a full grown man witnessing an act of the sort would have done more than follow chain of command.  My moral obligation radar would have caused me to take action into my on hand.

The other elephant in the room, that plays a major role is the fact that most of the young boys allegedly assaulted were African American.  I do not want to play the race card here but one must pose the question is this why, this story was not broken much sooner.  I'm sure the chain of command knew that the majority of the boys were African American. This incident was swept under the rug initially an it implied that young African American males are not valued in this country.   At the end of the day as my mother would always say "what ever is in the dark will come to the light, you just watch, wait and see."  Her words are forever true and as time goes all the information about this case will come to the light.  

My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families because they are going through a very difficult time to say the lease.  I pray justice is served justly and that all parties involved are held accountable.  We just have to sit back and watch as this thing unfolds and not let emotions take over good common sense and decency.  As for Joe Pa, I know he will be able to move forth and find a way to be of service to all involved for the benefit of the common good--a trait that he has exemplified throughout his long coaching career.  It is indeed a tragedy but time heals all wounds.

It's Not About You or Me...

If we want an increase of God & His Christ, there must be a decrease of self. -The Brotha & ODB (Our Daily Bread)

The duty of a true believer is to know the difference between God's interests and one's own personal (self) interests so that we do not confuse the task(s) that The Creator has charged us with.  Moreover so that we do not block or hinder our blessings and be of no use to God as witnesses of His love, glory, and omnipresence to mankind.  The believer has to get to a place along the journey where he/she becomes totally selfless.  As the great contemporary public intellectual Cornel West suggests "You cannot serve the people unless you love the people."  Thus denoting we must all become servant leaders.  God puts us in certain circumstances by His will and we must act accordingly.  Acting accordingly means that it is all about Him and not us, if we approach it in the opposite, we are hindering the Spirit of God from doing the work through us in the most effective and proper manner. 

"An attitude of humility should also characterize us.  Rather than desiring attention for ourselves, everything we do should bring glory to our God."  “He must increase, but I must decrease.”  It is all about God as suggested above when we realize that "He is using you now for His purposes throughout the world as He used His Son for the purpose of our salvation."  We have to be good stewards over our respective purpose(s) that The Creator has given us.  "If you seek great things for yourself, thinking, 'God has called me for this and for that, you barricade God from using you.'  As long as you maintain your own personal interests and ambitions, you cannot be completely aligned or identified with God’s interests..." -(Paraphrased from Our Daily Bread 11/10/11 & My Utmost for His Highest 11/10/11)

God uses us from His great personal perspective and we must be spiritually open and aware to willingly trust Him and Him alone.  Christ gave us a great example of this when he took to the desert for 40 days and 40 nights.  Jesus relied not on his own admission but on the omnipotent admission of The Father by totally trusting Him and by being in accord with Him as his guide and aide when devil tried to tempt him.  As Jesus so profoundly put it "One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God."  "The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve." (Duet 10:20)

Our duty is to follow and abide by the same source that Jesus so aptly did.  When we continuously allow God to do His work within us through His Holy Spirit then and only then are we truly being the dutiful servants that we should be.  We are then able to be the representatives on earth that are needed for the time.  We resist the various temptations and moral repugnance that permeate the current climate.  We thus put on the whole armor of God and stand against the wiles of Satan.   -Peace (Shalom or Salaam alaikum) Be with You, or Unto to You

Not I but The Creator (God) using us as His servants be honored, loved, exalted;
Not I but The Creator be seen, be known, be heard and be obeyed;
Not I but The Creator in every interaction or endeavor;
Not I but The Creator in every thought, word, and deed. —The Brotha

Do You Have Focused Eyes?

"When you keep your eyes on God and His Christ,

everything will come into focus." -The Brotha

Focused Eyes

 If we focus on God and His Christ, we will plow a straight path and accomplish God's purpose in our lives. When you keep your eyes on God and His Christ, everything will come into focus. In the life of the Believer, we focus on Christ because he was the best example and when we do so, it allows us to be true disciples (followers) of Jesus Christ.  When we do this we become more like the Master.  In fact Christ never taught us to worship him but he did teach us to follow him.  Of course he is worthy of praise and honor because of what he did for us while he was on the scene and when he left us to be with The Father.  However praise and honor does not denote worship, an act of error in which many of us fall into because we have not been properly taught.  We have been primarily taught to worship Jesus versus solely praise and honor him.  By worshiping him, it prevents us from completely focusing on God as the source and sort of down plays God's role in the entire process.   Furthermore it represses us to some degree from being able to completely witness to Jesus' ultimate power and purpose--which came by God's permission.  We focus and anguish over the circumstances he faced and experienced thus the reasons and lessons of those circumstances. 

Follow The Leader

 Furthermore, as true followers of God and His Christ we understand that there is no such thing as chance or accidental circumstances whether challenging or positive.  "All your circumstances are in the hand of God, and therefore you don’t ever have to think they are unnatural or unique."   If God brings you to it, it is for a reason(s) and lesson(s).   Moreover it is our duty to be witnesses to what God is doing in our lives combined with learning to praise and give thanks to Him "In The Middle of It," and not agonize over what we are up against.  We must realize and understand that it is only a test or trail that we are facing and experiencing.   We must then keep our eyes focused on the source which is God.  By doing such, we recognize that the trial(s) and test(s) are necessary for our spiritual growth and development.  It develops our complete trust and frees us from stress and worry because we allow the Spirit of God to bear our burdens.  Through this process we develop a deeper spiritual discernment and we learn to get our of the way and let go and let God, do what he does.  I'm reminded of the old gospel tune "Jesus Can Work It Out," the reason Jesus can work it out is because he understood and practiced the art of focus within its proper context and purpose.  He focused on The Father like none other which allowed him to completely trust God and be free!  This is why he had and has a great effect on the world for over 2000 years.  Might I respectfully assert and suggest, If we understand The Christ in this light, we will began to erase the half trues we have been taught about him and his time among us over 2000 years ago.  We will become true and proper followers of The Christ, then and only then, will we become true fishermen of men, free the captives from oppression, care for the orphan, the widow, and the stranger, advocate for and feed the poor, heal the sick, speak truth to the powerful and change the world.  

Follow his Footsteps

May God continue to grow and develop us and give us deeper spiritual discernment and understanding.  Peace be unto you! Many Blessings! Thank God! Amen! -Selah 

-The Spiritual Institute of Divine Teachings

"I am His beloved child, comforted in sad times and wise and strong in times of change.  There is nothing to fear from the events of my life, no outer condition is forever." -Joel Hicks

Scriptural and Literary Support:

and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills... -Exodus 3:31

Submit to God and be at peace with him; in this way prosperity will come to you.  -Job 22:21

Teach me your way, LORD; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors.  -Psalm 27:11

  

As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he has mercy upon us.  -Psalm 123:2

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and He will make your paths straight. -Proverbs 3:5,6

Then I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding. -Jeremiah 3:15

Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. -Luke 2:47

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.  -Romans 8:26

We know that all things work together for good to those who love God . . . -Romans 8:28

And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. -Romans 13:11

So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding. -1 Corinthians 14:15 

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. -James 1:2-8

We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.  -1 John 5:20

Nay! were you witnesses when death visited Yaqoub (Jacob), when he said to his sons: What will you serve after me? They said: We will serve your God and the God of your fathers, Ibrahim (Abraham) and Ismail (Ishmael) and Ishaq (Isaac), one God only, and to Him do we submit.  -Surah 2:221

He it is Who has revealed the Book to you; some of its verses are decisive, they are the basis of the Book, and others are allegorical; then as for those in whose hearts there is perversity they follow the part of it which is allegorical, seeking to mislead and seeking to give it (their own) interpretation. but none knows its interpretation except Allah, and those who are firmly rooted in knowledge say: We believe in it, it is all from our Lord; and none do mind except those having understanding. -Surah 3:7

When Allah will say: O Isa (Jesus) son of Marium (Mary)! Remember My favor on you and on your mother, when I strengthened you I with the holy Spirit, you spoke to the people in the cradle and I when of old age, and when I taught you the Book and the wisdom and the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel); and when you determined out of clay a thing like the form of a bird by My permission, then you breathed into it and it became a bird by My permission, and you healed the blind and the leprous by My permission; and when you brought forth the dead by My permission; and when I withheld the children of Israel from you when you came to them with clear arguments, but those who disbelieved among them said: This is nothing but clear enchantment. -Surah 5:110

And when I revealed to the disciples, saying, Believe in Me and My apostle, they said: We believe and bear witness that we submit (ourselves). -Surah 5:111

When the disciples said: O Isa son of Marium! will your Lord consent to send down to us food from heaven? He said: Be careful of (your duty to) Allah if you are believers. -Surah 5:112

They said: We desire that we should eat of it and that our hearts should be at rest, and that we may know that you have indeed spoken the truth to us and that we may be of the witnesses to it. -Surah 5:113

O you who believe! do not take My enemy and your enemy for friends: would you offer them love while they deny what has come to you of the truth, driving out the Apostle and yourselves because you believe in Allah (God), your Lord? If you go forth struggling hard in My path and seeking My pleasure, would you manifest love to them? And I know what you conceal and what you manifest; and whoever of you does this, he indeed has gone astray from the straight path. -Surah 60:1

Notes from MLK Jr. "Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Dr. Charles Ess, Philosophy and Religion, Drury University

The Letter consciously appeals to both prophetic  religious impulses (that part of the Judeo-Christian tradition stressing liberation of the oppressed, as exemplified in the Exodus event and the subsequent ethos of care for "the widow, the orphan, and the stranger") and the rationalist/revolutionary  arguments for democratic rights and freedoms developed especially in the Enlightenment, and familiar to us from Locke and Jefferson. Dr. King makes this conjunction explicit towards the end of the Letter when he says

One day the South will know that when these disinherited children of God sat down at lunch counters, they were in reality standing up for what is best in the American dream and for the most sacred values in our Judaeo-Christian heritage, thereby bringing our nation back to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the founding fathers in their formulation of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

"Somebody has to follow the Messiah, it is not just talking about him, it's not just about praising him, it's about walking behind him as true disciple..."  -Excerpt from Bro. HMin. Farrakhan remarks at Congwm Juila Carson's funeral service

Hard trails are necessary to establish truth. -Farrakhan

Truth & Widsdom : The Shock of the Hour, Katrina & Rita

"I don't serve some milquetoast God... He is a God of ultimate power." -Farrakhan

Cogitate this... Peeps all over the country brace as we get ready for another hurricane to hit... This time it's Rita (another sista)!!! But seriously, peeps have different opinions about why this devastation is happening--some say it's to get rid of evil, some say God is not happy w/ America, Kayne says "Bush don't like Black people." There are a number of factors that play a role in the reasoning of why but we as people have to be wise and seek truth when in doubt. In order to do this, we must carefully examine from an unadulterated historical, factual, and spiritual perspective in order to get answers. This is just a thought... What do you feel???

-L aka The Brotha

Chew on this spiritual perspective... I thought this was interesting!!!

***The element of surprise comes upon us when we are not prepared to deal with truth! Truth is the foundation of life as discipline has been said to be the foundation of wisdom. When we seek The Creator as we should without hesitance we will receive all that he has for us!!! The Creator has many attributes and we as believers whether of traditional or non-traditional faiths tend to focus on The Creator's non-threatening attributes (in which we should rightfully so), i.e., mercy, grace, or love... And forget about his attributes of wrath, anger, & destruction. Let us be wise and ponder what has been shared w/ us through scripture...

Then the LORD said, "My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal; his days will be a hundred and twenty years."
Genesis 6:3 NIV

The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. Romans 1:18-20 NIV

Those who disbelieve -- it being alike to them whether thou warn them or warn them not -- they will not believe.
Surah (Chap) 2:6 Holy Quran

Comments on the blog:

T writes:

I've been tripping off all of the devastation that is going on in our own backyard for weeks now.. And the question does present itself- Why is this happening here??? On our soil?? The problem is we as Americans are so immune to things happening to us because we always see them when they occur halfway around the world.. I think that's why so many people felt either connected because they do have half a heart or they have people down there or they felt disconnected because they don't understand the magnitude of these occurrences and the effect they have on our country emotionally and fiscally for years to come..I think some people treated it like it was happening in another country. I had someone tell me "Why do you care about something that happened in some other state?" I had to brush it off because it was a young white male who obviously has no sense of the world around him and I can only blame his parents for his stupidity.

As I watched the situation unfold Down South, and I saw all of the things that occurred after the hurricane @ the Superdome and the Convention Center.. I was sick, frustrated, and down right pissed. I can't even tell you how many angry emails went out to these new stations for calling citizens "refugees" like they've never payed taxes in this country. But those responsible for things that could have been controlled will be dealt with in due time- on this planet or in the afterlife. And then you're left with the questions- many questions that we'll never know the true answer to because people are so clever and strategic at the blame game. At times like this, the only thing you can lean on is Faith.

As far as the spiritual aspect of the situation, I don't think that the "Powers that Be" would place anything on our doorsteps that we can't handle. I think every few years or decades, there has to be a spiritual shock-wave sent through our society so that people don't forget that no matter what your religious beliefs are, we do have a Creator and this time on earth will soon come to an end.. Be kind to your fellow man and take nothing for granted.


- Copyright Sept 2005 Spiritual Institute of Divine Teachings

The Spiritual Institute of Divine Teachings is an organization of Believers of the Universal Divine Creator/One God of the Universe who are students of Divine scriptural teachings who cross generational, religious, and cultural gaps to promote healing and to reveal the linkages between all Believers of the Universal Divine Creator/One God of the Universe... by whatever name you call Him, He is the same Universal Divine Creator/One God of the entire Universe.