YOU Podcast

Times may arise as parents, when we “make” our children apologize to each other for ill behavior. We might notice that in many cases; they do not mean it. I remember my husband telling me one day of a transformation in one of our children. My son had wronged a child on the playground. My husband witnessed our son (1) crying to God in prayer on the playground, asking God to forgive him and (2) apologizing to the other child and asking to be forgiven.

The actions of our son had been drilled in through Sunday school and through ourdiscipline as parents. He finally got it, and this was a blessing for him and for our family.

A primary way God speaks is by convicting us of our sin. He loves us too much to allow us to rush headlong into sin without calling us to repent and return to Him.”

A primary way God speaks is by convicting us of our sin. He loves us too much to allow us to rush headlong into sin without calling us to repent and return to Him. The Holy Spirit was obviously convicting my child, for he went to great lengths to apologize for his sinful behavior. What an amazing testimony of the power of the Holy Spirit? As Christians, we should never feel right doing the wrong thing.

If you have never received a spam call or a spam email, then you don’t have a phone or an email address. That’s how rampant these messages are. Common spam calls have alerted listeners to the need to renew a car warranty, a need to file for insurance, or one that I received recently was a need to pay taxes. The caller had me going at first. It was not until he asked me to pay my taxes by getting into my car, driving to a drug store, and purchasing gift cards to send to him that recognized I was being scammed.

The world is filled with false and deceptive voices, some of them are about religion and many of them even claim to speak for God. As believers we know God is sovereign and reigns supreme. We also know He is omniscient and knows all.

The world is filled with false and deceptive voices, some of them are about religion and many of them even claim to speak for God.”

Therefore, when we hear these messages, in many cases, we absolutely must ask: “What does the Book say?” The Bible shows us how we can distinguish between what’s valid and what’s not.

In 2012, Trayvon Martin, an unarmed 17-year-old, was shot dead in Sanford, Florida, by neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman. Trayvon, who was Black, was walking home from a store when Zimmerman, thinking Trayvon was suspicious, tackled him. When it appeared that Trayvon was gaining the edge in the fight, Zimmerman, who is not Black, shot and killed the teen, claiming self-defense.

Two years later, he was acquitted of all charges in Trayvon’s death. Outrage in the Black community inspired the birth of BlackLivesMatter, an organization and a movement further fueled by the 2013 fatal shooting of Michael Brown. These two murders and others, including the callous 2020 murder of George Floyd have made #BlackLivesMatter a rallying cry and plea to the world to recognize that Black people do matter.

God values all He has created.

Black lives are valuable because God says so. Black people may be devalued in far too many circles, but God values all He has created. He always has and always will.

Nelson Mandela’s release after 27 years of imprisonment in South Africa for fighting against apartheid, was perhaps the most memorable image of the end of apartheid. Apartheid, much like Jim Crow in the United States, enforced “separate but equal” laws. Apartheid deprived Blacks of citizenship and forced Blacks to live in impoverished neighborhoods, despite the fact that South African wealth depended on Black labor. While imprisoned Mandela’s working conditions damaged his eyesight and possibly contributed to his tuberculosis.

Nelson Mandela’s release after 27 years of imprisonment in South Africa for fighting against apartheid, was perhaps the most memorable image of the end of apartheid.“

Upon his release, Mandela was taken to Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s home for a short period of rest, as the work for ending the effects of apartheid was just beginning.

Many have not endured what Mandela endured. But we’ve had to endure hardship, where times of rest have been brief, because the work most go on. But there is an end, because one day we will find rest. The prophet Zephaniah reminds us that not only will fear be a thing of the past, but we’ll find rest in the eternal kingdom of God.

Some years ago, I chaperoned some students on a team-building excursion. One exercise involved standing on top of a thirty-foot pole and jumping to catch a trapeze bar. Of course, we would be harnessed in, but a lot of fear can run through your mind when you’re standing thirty feet in the air. I know. I was “volunteered” to be the first one to make the climb and jump.

Climbing the small pegs to the top of the pole was daunting; standing on the small platform was worse. But the worst was yet to come. Even though I was wearing a harness, fear gripped me as I looked at the trapeze bar six feet away. With a crowd of teenagers eyeing me, I counted to three and leaped. I grabbed the bar!

Courage: Leaping in the face of fear!“

What was interesting is that fear didn’t leave me. I leaped despite it. That’s courage: leaping in the face of fear. Jesus’s disciples in Matthew 14 had an opportunity to exhibit such courage— and we do too. The key is following God’s instructions, fixing our eyes on Jesus, and trusting that He will keep you.

Let’s get rid of one mistaken idea about older adults: They don’t like change. The rationale has been that they don’t like change because they’re older and, therefore, set in their ways. But the truth is: None of us like change—and we all get set in our ways! We get used to a routine or doing things a certain way, and we see no reason to change.

Of course, we willingly make some changes on our own: purchasing a different car, changing to a new job. We embrace the changes that come with becoming a parent [grandparent]. But when change is thrust upon us by others, we can resist. What if things aren’t better? What if this is harder? What if . . .? We can quickly raise a lot of concerns and potential fears.

Even when we know God is behind the change, fear can still be present.”

Even when we know God is behind the change, fear can still be present. In Luke 1, we see a young woman who was about to experience an incredible change in her life and circumstances. We can be encouraged by her example to trust God no matter what.

One of my favorite holidays is Thanksgiving. It is a time to reflect on all God’s blessings, especially His provisions. But I also enjoy Thanksgiving for football, and of course, good food! The average person consumes over three thousand calories on Thanksgiving.

We celebrate Thanksgiving at my mother-in-law’s house, and I look forward to the turkey, greens, hot buttered biscuits, sausage stuffing, barbecue ribs, etc., but I also look forward to topping it all off with my daughter’s sweet potato pie. At the end of the day, I’m as stuffed as a turkey, with no room for anything else.

The psalmist says that when we “taste and see that the Lord is good,” we’ll find out for ourselves that we’ll “not lack any good thing” (Ps. 34:8,10).”

The psalmist says that when we “taste and see that the Lord is good,” we’ll find out for ourselves that we’ll “not lack any good thing” (Ps. 34:8,10). When we are full on the truth of God’s Word, “Your words were found, and I ate them. Your words became a delight to me and the joy of my heart” (Jer. 15:16), and God’s love that has been poured out in our hearts (Rom. 5:5), there is no room for fear, because “perfect love drives out fear” (1 John 4:18).

When we were children, some of us can remember our mothers baking cakes from scratch. Many of us would eagerly wait for them to offer us the spoon so we could lick the batter.

But did you ever sneak a taste of some of the individual ingredients for making a cake—flour, eggs, butter, sugar, salt, milk, vanilla, or baking soda? If you ever did, some of those ingredients tasted horrible! But then Momma or Big Momma, would stir them all together in a bowl, pour the batter in a pan, put the pan in the oven, and no matter how bad some of the ingredients tasted, somehow the cake turned out good!

God takes all the ingredients of life (trials, triumphs, victories, and victimizations), stirs them all together, and somehow, they turn out good.

In a similar way, God takes all the ingredients of life (trials, triumphs, victories, and victimizations), stirs them all together, and somehow, they turn out good. No matter what we’re going through, we have nothing to fear. This session invites us to rest assured on the realization that we are in the secure hands of a God, who works all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

In 2002, Kirk Franklin released his chart-topping album, The Rebirth of Kirk Franklin. One song entitled, “He Reigns,” extols an awesome God, who reigns with wisdom, power, and love. His awesomeness takes away the fear in us, and we praise Him, because we know He can deliver us. The devil can’t block us, nothing can stop us because, “Our God is an awesome God!”

On the twentieth anniversary of the album, Franklin celebrated on Instagram, saying, “to the album that gave me new life, I was lost. I feared the best was in my rearview mirror. Then one morning I looked at my wife’s beautiful belly carrying our child . . . Thank you Jesus for my rebirth.” Focusing on God’s blessings and rejoicing in an awesome God, gives us the strength to overcome all of our fears.

Focusing on God’s blessings and rejoicing in an awesome God, gives us the strength to overcome all of our fears.”

The writer of Psalms helps us understand how we can maintain a healthy fear of God, during difficulties so that fear does not overwhelm us.

Growing up our family attended a small store-front Baptist church with a charismatic atmosphere. I had a love/hate relationship with the church. Hate because my sister and I were the only ones of our neighborhood friends attending Wednesday night Bible study. Hate because there wasn’t an organized youth program with age-appropriate study and worship. No. The building with its concrete floors, paneled walls, and makeshift pulpit only allowed enough chair space for a handful of adults and children.

I loved the testimony service though. Sister McRae led us in the songs of Zion, and Mother Ridgeway’s raspy voice testified of God’s redemptive power. The atmosphere lulled me to a place of peace, erasing discontentment and ushering in thanksgiving.

Growing up I loved the testimony service as Sister McRae led us in the songs of Zion, and Mother Ridgeway’s raspy voice testified of God’s redemptive power.”

The psalmist calls for that same kind of thankful worship of God. His cry for a collective praise is nothing but a good-ole fashioned testimonial service that gave reasons the Israelites should be thankful. That call extends to you and me.