Do you know why you are here for?

Lately, I have been thinking about the purpose of my life and what I was created to do. Instrinsically, I have a notion about purpose and thus far I believe I have been doing and working within the talents and abilities that I have been blessed with. I have also been able to put into practice my spiritual gifts. Nevertheless, there is still this nagging little voice that is telling me that that there is something missing, something more, something different. I am not entirely sure what that is.

If you are feeling the same way, or have ever felt the same way, here are some things I am doing to continue to explore my purpose in life and that you can also do.

3 Steps to explore your purpose in life

1. Take time to understand your strengths and weaknesses. Asssesing your strengths and weakness will give you a better insight in what you are good at doing and what things you struggle with. This is similar to the question asked when you are interviewing for a job. Loook at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself the same questions. What are your strengths and what are your weaknesses. Be honest with yoursefl. It can give you clarity on specific interest that you excel. I have taken the Stregnths Finders Test and it have confirm some of my strengths while helping me to pinpoint some of my weaknesses. If you have not taken this test/questionaire I suggest you do. You can buy the book on Amazon and you will get a code where you can take the test and get your results. For a quicker result, and not to mention free, you can take a similar test on 16personalities.com

2.  Study the bible to know all the gifts of the Holy Spirit (hint, there are 20 of them). Knowing the gifts which the spirit gives will help in bringing clarity between spiritual gifts and natural talents and abilities. These two are different. A spiritual gift if a gift that believers received from the Holy Spirit while everyone is born with a talent or ability and does not depend on a relationship with the Holy Spirit.

These gifts have three specific purposes: 

a. To edify and be a part of the growth of the church.

b. To develop an outreach perspective and live a evangelistical lifestyle. 

c. To perfect the saints as they excersice their gifts.

Knowing your spiritual gifts will help you find the right ministry for you to work in.

3. Sometimes we have an idea of what God is calling us to do but we are praying and looking for confirmation. Confirmation comes in different forms. One of the simplest ways to know what God might be calling you to do and where to work is through the words of others. Hearing others say that you might be a good fit in a particular ministry can be exciting and it can be taken as confirmation. Remember that there is nothing wrong with exploring different ministries, as long as you are commited to finding the one that’s right for you and contributing to it through your skills, abilities and spiritual gifts. 

324 year old words that can change your life

If our devotion is utterly directed to God, then our worship will follow suit. Romans 12 urges us to be a living sacrifice unto God. It is not about the amount of time we spend at church or doing that things that we think God wants us to do. A living sacrifice is worshipping God with our lives, motivations, thoughts, ideas, and words. Worship is not just on Sunday at 10:30am with hands lifted up and and mouth full of praise. It involves all of our lives.

“We ought to propose to ourselves is to become, in this life, the most perfect worshippers of God we can possibly be, as we hope to be through all eternity.”

How are you worshipping God? Is it just with your voice or is it with your entire life?

324 year old words that can change your life

“That there needed neither art nor science for going to GOD, but only a heart resolutely determined to apply itself to nothing but Him, or for His sake, and to love Him only.”

It is interesting that we don’t need an app, or a phone or a website or any type of technology to get up close to God. The only thing we need is a willing heart, an open heart… to Him.

Nostalgia to the fullest

If you grew up in the 90’s then you are well aware of The Fresh Prince, Will Smith’s sitcom that brought him into the homes of millions of viewers and made him a house hold name. Jimmy Fallon recently made a tribute to the show as The Tonight Show will be filmed in LA for a week.

Enjoy and sign along!

A New York Minute

It has been said that many things can happen in a New York minute, but what about in an internet minute?

Since the start of the internet up until now the volume and traffic has increased exponentially every year. There are more Facebook logins, more Instagram photos uploaded, more tweets sent, etc. I suspect that in years to come and as technology advances, these numbers will continue to grow.

Below is an infographic of just how much the internet has increase in the last year.

7 Resolutions You Might Consider for 2015

It is that time of the year where everyone is buying, wrapping and stressing over gifts. Soon all this will pass and the next order of business will be to make a list of next years resolutions. Yes, those things that we promise to do to better ourselves through out the year. Many of us have resolutions to eat better, exercise more, stick to a budget etc. Many of us, myself included, start with good intentions and great success but subsequently fail once or twice and we stop altogether.

Some of the resolutions below are not based on do’s or don’ts, rather they are things that we can do through out the year in increments that can be adjusted depending on your situation.

1. Speak More

With the introduction of smart phones and tablets, we have neglected to have real conversations with those around us. It is easy to get immerse in technology, to be distracted and/or entertained through it. Nevertheless there is nothing like having actual conversation in which ideas, information and emotions can be express without the use of emoticons ; )

2. Complain Less

We are all guilty of this. We complain when we see something we don’t like, or disagree with things that are around us. The challenge, along with complaining less is, let’s be the solution rather than just pointing out the problem. The next time you think about complaining, think about those who are less fortunate and think about a solution.

3. Read the Bible More

Yes, this is one resolution that many of us have made and many of us have been guilty of not following through. The difference with this resolution is not to put restriction such as a chapter a day or 15 minutes at a time. Simply pick up the bible and read. Somedays you might read for 10 minutes, others for 30 minutes and yet others for 5 minutes. The key is to be consistent.

4. Read More Good Books

There is a wealth of information, knowledge and wisdom written on books. Additionally, there is a plethora of subjects to chose from. The point is to pick up a book and read. Once you are done with one book, chose another, and make sure that you share what you read with others (see 1)

5. Pray More

This is another one of those that many of us have been guilty of starting but fail to follow through with. Usually it is because we have set time limits to our prayers. In other words, I will pray for 20 minutes a day, or I will pray for 30 minutes a day. My suggestion is to just pray throughout the day. Whether it’s a short prayer or if you have time during the day to spend a significant amount of time at once, the objective is to pray. Prayer can be thanking God that you have breakfast, or a seat on the train. Maybe it’s praying at your desk for your coworkers and boss, or family and friends. There is no right way of praying, just pray.

6. Listen More and Hear Less

There is a difference between listening and hearing. We can hear music, loud noises and other people, but listening means that you are actively considering the words you are hearing and thinking through before you answer. Many times, especially if we want to get out point across, we formulate a response without listening to the other person. Or, we are so preoccupied with our own thoughts, or distracted by our phones or tablets that our active listening diminishes and our conversations have no depth.

7.  Question Your Preconceive Notions

We are shaped by our past experiences, up bringing, surroundings and cultural biases. These things shape who we are and how we see life. In other words our world view. I helps to remember that we don’t all think alike and have shared experiences therefore our notions and preconceived ideas will not always match with others. We will not always be right, and there are different ways to approach the same thing. Challenging our notions can help us grow and value other peoples perspectives.

Did You Know This About Coffee?

As an avid coffee drinker this came as a surprise to me. I suspect that this will surprise you. I am not sure if I would ever try this, especially since nowadays coffee comes in paper cups with plastic lids.

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3 Essential Gifts for Your Children this Christmas

The time is here! The bells are jingling, the  is Everyone is rushing to make sure they have bought every gift in their Christmas list. If you are like me, you are definitely rushing to get all your gifts. Nevertheless, there are some gifts that cannot be purchased, instead we teach these gifts. As a parent I would like to share with you 3 essential gifts for your children this Christmas.

1. The Gift of Giving

In this season of giving gifts many children (and adults) forget the giving spirit of the season and focus on the receiving part. The reason we celebrate Christmas is to recognized the birth of our savior who came to give his life for all of us. He is our model of what a giving spirit should be, – “…he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.”
Let’s remind our kids that we should emulate the very nature of Jesus in that he gave without any strings attached.

2. The Gift of Creativity

A couple of years ago we found ourselves going through the Christmas season with no money. As a family, we decided to make our gifts. We spent three weekends thinking, cutting, painting, drawing and making gifts. This experience helped us to be more mindful of the gifts we give. It also allowed us to spend quality time together as a family and, it helped us to tap into our creative side. This Christmas my daughter is excited to make gifts for the family.

3. The Gift of Love

Paul, in Corinthians 13 speaks of love and ends  with – “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” Love is what surpasses all things, is what Jesus embodied and is synonymous with God. If we could summarize the greatest commandment it would be love God and love others. This gift is precious and is one that is essential to our children. With this gift our children can navigate life through all its circumstances, pitfalls, ups and downs.

I pray that this Christmas, you and your family, will have a blessed time and that the Spirit of these holidays will be present throughout this time.

Apple’s Christmas Commercial tugs at the heart.

Apple’s commercial are creative, fun, energetic but seldom do they tug at the heart. Their latest commercial is an exception. This commercial plucks at the heart and creates an emotional song that all of us can relate to.

Enjoy!

Open letter to the church.

In the midst of all the controversy concerning the death of several african american men at the hands of white Police Officers, I have kept silent. First, because I did not have all the facts and I like to talk about what I know rather than to speculate. Secondly, as the days have passed since the latest incident, the amount of voices that have been speaking on this have been overwhelming. Some are hurting, others are angry. Many feel distraught and sad while others are just fed up with the situation. People are feeling a gamut of emotions and rightly so. A life is valuable, precious, worthy of respect. Not to mention those who have lost their lives were fathers, brothers, sons, cousins, mothers, sisters, daughters and belong to a family who is hurting and in mourning. It is a travesty that needs to be confronted and corrected.

This post is not another post to highlight the injustice and oppression that minorities suffer. I believe that many posts have been written on this subject. This post is, however, is a plead to my brothers and sisters who are suffering, to think about their words and actions in the context of The Kingdom of God and it’s implication to us. To take a moment to truly understand their feelings, their anger and frustration and to channel that in the right way. Many, including Lebron James, have said that violence is not the solution. I agree. I will go further to say that the men and women who wear the blue uniform, Police Officers, are not the problem either. It goes deeper than that. This is a systemic problem that goes beyond a rookie cop being unprepared to deal with a situation. This is deeper than a crooked or dishonest official in the court system. Unfortunately, those who are at the front line of receiving our anger, criticism and hate are the same ones who are used by the system to enforce these injustices.

I do have to state that I believe that this systemic injustice is founded upon sin. Robert C. Linthicum in his book City of God City of Satan states that the ills of the city are not rooted in the city itself but “rather, such are manifestations of the underlying sin of the city’s people”. The question is then — Where is God in our lives? What role does He play in our lives? and Where is God in our cities?

As individuals, we need to take responsibility for what is happening. I have to take responsibility for what has happen and is happening in my city. God has called me to be the light and salt of the earth. Therefore if I am salt, I need to have qualities that preserve my faith despite the pulls of the world around me. I am also charge to bring a different flavor, different from the world. If I am light, I have to shine even brighter in this dark world. I do believe that the church is called to do this and it’s pivotal in becoming an agent of change. Linthicum writes “If the church does not deal with the systems and structures of evil in the city, then it will not effectively transform the lives of the city’s individuals”

What would Jesus do? Yes, I know that this might be cliche, but its something that we should ask ourselves. Would he be leading a march? Would he be disrupting traffic? Would he be in Facebook, Twitter or Instagram bashing police officers, officials and those who have taken the side of the cops? Would he see this a purely political struggle?

I don’t have all the answers. All I know is that Jesus, in Luke 19:41, wept over the city of Jerusalem because it chose to reject him. The city chose to reject his redemptive gift and this rejection is corporate. Does this not echo our city? Whether in New York, Ferguson or Detroit, our cities have for the most part refused to accept Jesus and have turn to other gods and thus cities are guilty of idolatry. Regardless, God’s love and patience for the city is boundless. He longs to see every city as a city that fulfills it’s purpose, to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.

As Christians, we should then filter our actions through the Bible. As Linthicum writes,“God’s people were called to be an intentionally godly presence in the city; they were to be a sanctifying force which would bless the city with their living personification of God.” I am not here to say whether going out to peacefully protest is right or not. I am here to plead with you on our responses to these situation. As believers we should not wish no one harm to make them understand that law enforcement is needed. As believers we should not slam someone else’s character because of a decision they made that cause someone’s life. I am not saying that we should ignore it, but we should not justify our words or hate based on how we feel. We should not be control by feelings since we know that feelings can and do deceive us. If we, as believers, cannot come to the table and speak without having our feelings get the best of us then I have to question our maturity in Christ.

These are the times in which the church, the body of Christ can raise up and pray, comfort, love and have compassion for ALL who are hurting. These includes the victims and their families as well as the accused and their families. If we want to see change let’s start with recommitting our lives to Christ, to lifting his name in our cities, to live out his redemptive power in our lives and to share it with those in our city. If we want to see change then we need to have a unify church, we need to work, pray, praise and love our city as one church. If we want to see change we need to leave our tendencies of idolatry and proclaim Jesus our our LORD and savior. It we want to see change it has to start with me, with you, as individuals and soon the system will change. If want to see change go out and vote, know the law and ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom. Lastly, if we want to see a change we need to live, speak and give love.

“If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, It is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. I always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”