L.I.S.T.E.N.

Poetic Academy presents… Where were you Saturday April 15, 2017? I mean, really? See, if you did not see what I had seen, I find it hard to believe you’re part of the scene. You may not quite be in place to impart, in whole or in part, your affinity for the arts, because while professionals presented prose, and crowds arose to standing ovations, where and what were you creating? Read on, as I digress from these lyrical Olympic games, and present a picture for your frame, of reference.   Frame of mind. A mathematician of kinds. Of sorts, or of course. We have mastered the addition of wordplay to multiply the impact of the words said, dividing audiences between who was best, who’s up next, who just went. If you’re studious, you can join the likes of us, more than liking us, write like us – matter of fact, write like you. But as a student, you need a teacher. Then, pick up your pen and let’s start the course. Now you’re on course, to succeed. Your first session is my cours...

I originally wanted to title this post "PRElationship" but then immediately realized the futility of doing so. The premise of course being, every successful relationship comes with preparation. But... the reality is we can prepare for relationships, but we can't prepare for who we're relating with/to.  Abiding by the "textbook definition" of relationships anyone may count themselves a success. Why? Because it misses the central point. It reads like so: The way in which two or more people or things are connected, or the state of being connected (by blood or marriage) The way in which two or more people or groups regard and behave towards each other An emotional or sexual association between two people  These definitions do not provide any clarity as to how to relate. That, and we're not offered a distinction between those that are healthy/unhealthy or successful/unsuccessful. However, these answers exist within the very composition of the ...

"When" is that distant friend of ours we can't seem to easily get a hold of. Once dependable, "When" rarely seems present and is always promising you of their later availability.  Here's what I'm alluding to: for a lot of us, our goal setting, vision casting, and dream chasing is defined by “when.” When I get this job  When I get this car When I have this conversation When I develop this idea  When , out of context, is illusive. Getting away from the word play for a moment, I realize that this play on words in its usual form, "when will you be here?" communicates the same point. In all your wishful thinking of the future, when will you be  HERE  in the moment? Creating a new reality for yourself requires you to remain in your current one to see the revision process through. View it this way. It's not just about getting there! With any destination (there) you have a starting point (here). So you can't get where you ...

It's that time of the year! "New year, new me" - as cliché and dated as that statement is I'm sure we'll see it posted about and hear it in passing. New Years is a time people use to reflect and create goals for improvement. Alternatively, without reflection, people simply vow that the year to come will be better and express eagerness to see the end of the current year. But why do we wait until years end? Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 & Numbers 30:2   instruct us not to delay fulfilling vows and oaths, and to hold to our word and do everything we said we would. So what holds us back? I believe what holds us back is the comparison trap. Luke 18:18-27  introduces us to the rich young ruler. He's resolved to inherit eternal life so he rightfully inquires with Jesus as to the means of doing so. The responses are encouraging as he realizes he's doing many things correctly. So at what point is he disheartened? Jesus challenges him then to do more - go and...

I had the good fortune of catching up with a friend on some spiritual matters, and despite my low I was empowered to uplift him. Here's some encouragement to those of you holding steadfast to purity. I wish you could take my word for it as I'm trying to impart it to the children and youth–what you're holding onto is truly a treasure. Sex in marriage (something I hope I could still fully enjoy as God intended) will be extraordinary!  We're such an impatient kind. Giving it up now is to experience it only in part. It's a total experience – spiritual, physical, social, emotional, psychological. Heck, just look at the slew of articles encouraging you to f* freely. Problem is they're dismissing so much, tending only to focus on one aspect the act. To have sex before marriage is like collecting a miniscule monetary amount in the moment, rather than accepting God's magnificent fortune in the future. Soul ties are very real too. If you give it up, y...

The Lost Sheep [Luke 15:1-7] While God has a multitude to serve His purpose, he has only one who can serve yours.  The Lost Coin [Luke 15:8-10] God will shift the world to win us back. The Lost Son [ Luke 15:11-32] We're rehearsing while God's rejoicing. (Romans 5)

Wait! It can't be both!? My professional and volunteer work history mostly included children's programming. It saw me in frequent, direct interaction with kids with myself in a facilitatory role. Never before had I felt the weight of competing priorities until my current term as an AmeriCorps VISTA. I honestly believe nonprofits were the ones to coin the term "and all other duties" that exist on most job descriptions.   My current supervisor, extraordinary as she is, struck my attention when she encouraged me in my project management to be able to "differentiate what's urgent from what's important." This made little sense to me as I regularly thought of these words as synonyms. That, and I had yet to be introduced to the Eisenhower decision matrix. (it's worth a Google search) Nonetheless, I nodded reassuringly, I don't know how reassuring it was really, and moved along in a state of "huh?" level confusion. But in all my EST...

Family is more than blood. See, it's love. Because even your blood can make you bleed. Would you believe I'm relieved to be released? But now I'm a part of the system. A statistic. A number. My name is downplayed, prejudice generalizations in the forey. As my age increases, my appeal decreases. Evidence is my younger siblings are in a good home, I'm in a group home. I was happy to leave my 'rents, who couldn't even pay rent, so their minds dipped into ill-dissent and to make ends they gave their only daughter to strange men. What's stranger is I'm not maleficent, I'm magnificent. The situation did not mar me, it marked me. You are broken by choice - though heart wrenching - let your voice be your tool of choice. Rejoice! Re? Doesn't that mean again? Wouldn't I need joy to begin? Rest child. If joy is hard to find, keep in mind you are mine.  - Louis Cassamajor

A multitude of scripture speaks to the advantages of singularity, just as much as they do to the advantages of marriage. Perhaps the most encouraging, is this: "Let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" [James 1:4].   This is insight and encouragement to the weary heart that sees marriage, engagement, and serious relationships all around them and perceives imperfection and incompatibility within themselves.   I always spoke to singularity suggesting that it is not representative of your being undesirable/invisible, but instead about your being undone/incomplete. (Read On) God in this moment is forming you to your greatest version while simultaneously crafting your mate to exceed the expectations of what you want by providing you with exactly what He wills. Singularity shouldn't be perceived as your being idle, but rather, your being ideal. If we were to forgo patience (steadfastne...

I am one who enjoys an awareness as to the meanings of words. It would seem we acclimate ourselves to utilizing words in a single sense or altogether incorrectly. Words often times have 2 or more meanings, lending their use to a variety of contexts.  But here's the catch! It's not enough to go to the dictionary and define a word in its entirety - it's imperative we look at affixes, roots, and origins. Out of generosity, here's a freebie for example to make my point: Relat ∙ ion ∙ ship  → 'ship' denotes quality, condition, status, and tenure ; 'ion' denotes action ; 'relat' is self-explanatory. So, exploring beyond the immediate offerings of Merriam-Webster, Oxford, Cambridge, Collins and others we find the meaning defining the word in reverse. THE QUALITY , CONDITION , STATUS , AND TENURE OF YOUR RELATIONSHIP ARE DEPENDENT ON THE ACTIONS  YOU TAKE TO RELATE .  Still on the subject of relationships, stick with me. Thursday evening at ch...

If a relationship comes to an end, you should be "the one who got away," not the individual lamenting a loss. To help in understanding how to secure a relationship it's equally valuable to know how it is one can easily lose one. Galatians 5:19-21 is a continuation of Paul's encouragement to believers to walk in the Spirit so not to gratify the flesh. If your relationship has failed or "is on the rocks" have you considered the presence of any of these factors?: Galatians 5:19-21 (condensed) "The acts of the flesh are obvious: idolatry, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God" Galatians 5:19-21 identifies several unattractive qualities of acting in the flesh, and a major loss is doing so is our inheritance. Let's be honest! If these are disqualifiers for relationship with God, should they not be ...

Can we stop speaking how everyone else does!? We so comfortably follow the world's colloquialism that value becomes vanity, and vanity becomes value. Have you ever heard someone, or yourself, express a desire for true/unconditional love? You may have thought to yourself, "Aw, that'd be just chipper!" What is love if not true/unconditional!? To compartmentalize and specify a form of love is to suggest that love can exist any other way. The ignorance partly comes from analogizing dating to retail, "I'm back on the market." No wonder people enter relationships like they do a car dealership, attempting to configure options by adding and removing elements as they please.   Romans 5:8 - "God showed us his love in that  while we were  still yet sinners,  Christ died  for us. " I don't see Christ choosing which sins to die for. If salvation was contingent on our righteousness, there'd be none. So to if love were some conditiona...

Happy Thanksgiving! I am thankful for the gift of creativity. My colleagues will tell you, "everything's a story with him!" It's hard for me not to think expressively. I find myself challenging traditional adages and proposing perfectly poised prompts to shift minds away from normalized thinking. Care to join me in this!? L.I.S.T.E.N. is an acronym for Lessons in Scripture to Enact Now . I hope that by this blog the lessons that I have learned in Bible study around my Lord, my leadership, and my love (relationships) can benefit others. It's my intention with this prose to enable readers with actionable steps toward success in these three areas. I will not solely direct communications towards believers. I honestly believe, no pun intended, that there is a harvest of wisdom to reap here for anyone and everyone. Commit to approach this with an open mind and an open heart and realize that I am but one person speaking of personal experience. Your role as the reader...