Still I rise by Maya Angelou

Once in a while, a girl needs still I rise by Maya Angelou. When Haters hate, a girl needs to read this.

Still I Rise

  by Maya Angelou

You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.

Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells
Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I'll rise.

Did you want to see me broken?
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops,
Weakened by my soulful cries?

Does my haughtiness offend you?
Don't you take it awful hard
'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines
Diggin' in my own backyard.

You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.

Does my sexiness upset you?
Does it come as a surprise
That I dance like I've got diamonds
At the meeting of my thighs?

Out of the huts of history's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.

Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.

Embracing my own journey and choices

I've learnt that God is a creative God and that my season of singleness will not mirror someone else's. This is because I'm a different person and have a different personality, so even though our choices maybe rooted in our belief in God, we will not have similar results cause we're different. So instead of trying to relive someone else's season of singleness, let me live out mine in full, with my own decisions which are God led. lemme stop looking for answers from blogs but from God.

I'm happy that Jesus said no - with help from Sarah Jakes

I wanted it to happen, I prayed, I pushed I shoved but God said no... what my heart was telling me was right, it was actually a no from God. Sarah Jakes from her blog post: A letter to the lost me."Anything birthed prematurely risks complications" so basically what this means is, we know that blessings are fist like a seed in our womb. The seed is given to us by God, as a dream in our hearts. Then we plant it in prayer in our wombs and feed it to grow through faith. Then through time, they grow and we give birth to our dream, but then like a real life child, If it's birthed early it has complications. So rather wait on Gods seasoned timing rather than to give birth at your rushed timing and risk complications. God is never late.
Read Sarahs article further by clicking here

living by my mind and not heart

So Yesterday I wrote about what I learn't from Beyonces' documentary life is but a dream. Yes I found that she lives from the heart, but for me, to live for from the heart is a dangerous thing. I personally need to live from my mind, or the word of God. Emotions for me, well unbalanced emotions for me, can derail my whole life. God gave us our mind to read the word of God and apply it to our situation. I've been through that whole period of trying to figure life out through philosophy. I'd rather live through my mind from the scripture I remember. I nearly made a stupid mistake cos of listening to my heart. Through every situation, I gotta keep my emotions in check.
I think with us ladies, we become so confused by love, but like the saying says, if he loves you, you'll know, if he doesn't you'll be confused. When a man wants you, there's nothing you can do to stop him and when he wants to leave, there's nothing you can do to make him stay... A guy at work has been confusing, acting like he likes me, but never doing anything about it... then my friend told me, that her mom told her, that if a guy likes you, he'll flat out tell you. Then I looked at my situation then my friends situation. This guy is asking her out, he's a pastor, already talking about marriage, how much he loves her... so from this, whats evident, that he does love her.... my situation, he aint saying nothing... please just a side note, I have two other guys asking me out at this point in time and they're also always telling me how much they want me in their lives...so from this, is the silent guy inlove.... never that... it's so clear that the ones who risk humiliation, risk rejection, now those are the one's inlove... but sadly, when we like someone, we ignore all logic, we believe the heart and the bible clearly warns us to not follow our hearts(Jeremiah 17:9)... it's time for me to let it go now... I gotta move on, and keep my sanity.

Beyonce

I'm watching beyonces' documentary called life is but a dream and I've also watched her own interview with Oprah. What did I get from this, life is a progression of choices we've made that God has allowed cause he knew they'd be for our benefit. We have to make the choices and not wait on him to make the choices for us. That's how we experience the beauty of life, God wants us to be strong and trust ourselves. Obviously he knows whats best for us, that's how he says no or wait, but we have to make decisions. We'll sometimes run into collisions in life, but that doesn't mean that God has forgotten our dreams, we gotta keep pushing to get our dreams come true. Don't stop believing, no matter what happens, don't stop believing that your dreams will come true. No matter what what they say about men, there is a good man out there who will love you like ephesians 5 says, like how Jesus loves us, a godly love that is spiritual... the way she loves jay and how she talks about his love for her... its spiritual, it's beautiful, it's Godly, she says carrying his baby has made her love him more, love is not explainable, so many people try to explain love and write about it, but it's beyond our human thinking, no one has mastered it's meaning and how or why it comes about, isn't that the same with God (cause God is love)... I do believe that love is spiritual, cause sometimes you know what you want in a guy, but then you meet someone who's not that but you just love them still, you can't explain it. There's no recipe for it, it just happens through a spiritual connection... after all that I've been going through, I needed to watch that Beyonce docie, she's a beam of love, love from her dad, love for nephew julez, love to empower women.... learning to just live life from the heart and not from recipes or methods, doesn't it make it more exciting when it's from the heart cos that's where God lives, in our hearts.

Jeremiah 3:33-34

“I will put my law in their minds
    and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
    and they will be my people.
34 No longer will they teach their neighbor,
    or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know me,
    from the least of them to the greatest,”
declares the Lord.





1 John 4:12

No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

Discerning Idolatry in Desire

Here's an article I found on the Desring God website by Pastor John Piper.

Most of us realize that enjoying anything other than God, from the best gift to the basest pleasure, can become idolatry. Paul says in Colossians 3:5, “Covetousness is idolatry.”

“Covetousness” means desiring something other than God in the wrong way. But what does that mean—“in the wrong way”?

The reason this matters is both vertical and horizontal. Idolatry will destroy our relationship with God. And it will destroy our relationships with people.

All human relational problems—from marriage and family to friendship to neighbors to classmates to colleagues—all of them are rooted in various forms of idolatry, that is, wanting things other than God in wrong ways.

So here is my effort to think biblically about what those wrong ways are. What makes an enjoyment idolatrous? What turns a desire into covetousness, which is idolatry?

1. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it is forbidden by God. For example, adultery and fornication and stealing and lying are forbidden by God. Some people at some times feel that these are pleasurable, or else we would not do them. No one sins out of duty. But such pleasure is a sign of idolatry.
2. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it is disproportionate to the worth of what is desired. Great desire for non-great things is a sign that we are beginning to make those things idols.
3. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it is not permeated with gratitude. When our enjoyment of something tends to make us not think of God, it is moving toward idolatry. But if the enjoyment gives rise to the feeling of gratefulness to God, we are being protected from idolatry. The grateful feeling that we don’t deserve this gift or this enjoyment, but have it freely from God’s grace, is evidence that idolatry is being checked.
4. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it does not see in God’s gift that God himself is more to be desired than the gift. If the gift is not awakening a sense that God, the Giver, is better than the gift, it is becoming an idol.
5. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it is starting to feel like a right, and our delight is becoming a demand. It may be that the delight is right. It may be that another person ought to give you this delight. It may be right to tell them this. But when all this rises to the level of angry demands, idolatry is rising.
6. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it draws us away from our duties. When we find ourselves spending time pursuing an enjoyment, knowing that other things, or people, should be getting our attention, we are moving into idolatry.
7. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it awakens a sense of pride that we can experience this delight while others can’t. This is especially true of delights in religious things, like prayer and Bible reading and ministry. It is wonderful to enjoy holy things. It idolatrous to feel proud that we can.
8. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it is oblivious or callous to the needs and desires of others. Holy enjoyment is aware of others’ needs and may temporarily leave a good pleasure to help another person have it. One might leave private prayer to be the answer to someone else’s.
9. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it does not desire that Christ be magnified as supremely desirable through the enjoyment. Enjoying anything but Christ (like his good gifts) runs the inevitable risk of magnifying the gift over the Giver. One evidence that idolatry is not happening is the earnest desire that this not happen.
10. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when it is not working a deeper capacity for holy delight. We are sinners still. It is idolatrous to be content with sin. So we desire transformation. Some enjoyments shrink our capacities of holy joy. Others enlarge them. Some go either way, depending on how we think about them. When we don’t care if an enjoyment is making us more holy, we are moving into idolatry.
11. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when its loss ruins our trust in the goodness of God. There can be sorrow at loss without being idolatrous. But when the sorrow threatens our confidence in God, it signals that the thing lost was becoming an idol.
12. Enjoyment is becoming idolatrous when its loss paralyzes us emotionally so that we can’t relate lovingly to other people. This is the horizontal effect of losing confidence in God. Again: Great sorrow is no sure sign of idolatry. Jesus had great sorrow. But when desire is denied, and the effect is the emotional inability to do what God calls us to do, the warning signs of idolatry are flashing.

For myself and for you, I pray the admonition of 1 John 5:21, “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.”

Desiring God-my Journey

As of late, I've realised that when I don't spend my quite time with God, like as in a well planned quite time, where I woke up earlier than what is required of me, I become grumpy, unsatisfied, edgy and not happy. God put it into my heart that It was more of me and less of him when I don't start and end my day with him. Also I'm not as happy as I used to be, there was a point in my life when my satisfaction came only from God.  I began to desire and seek other things other than Gods, basically, I had Idols. Other things replaced my desire for God and so my joy was taken away. I'm on a journey top once more desire only God, to be satisfied in him above all else.... my journey has started, there are many things God is teaching me and I'm learning, can't wait to reach that place again where I don't car bout wanting any thing but God.

Ten things singles should know before getting married,

The black ang married blog gives 10 things singles should know before getting married

click here

8 ways of being a better wife

To all the married  people out there, I really thought this was an amazing article from the black and married with kids blog, please enjoy

click here

Brandy - Say You Will + Lyrics

Brandy - Come A Little Closer + Lyrics

Just some Godly motivation

I was at home for the long heritage day weekend, So I was watching my pastor on t.v and I heard him say this.

During a bad economy, whenyou get a job, God gets all the glory, whereas in a good economy when you get a job, its the economy that gets a job.

Amazing, I needed to hear that, I'm sure youd did to.

love you all.

2 Corinthian 12:9

Each time he said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.

The grace revolution

I hear many grace centered preachers talking about " Jesus has done it all, stop trying to peform in trying to please God, Jesus has already done that, there's nothing left for you to do, Jesus has done it all"

Well I'm a bit of a peformer and wana please, so this got me thinking... must I stop cause Jesus has done it all.

Then I remembered that God is my father in heaven, now which child doesn't want to make their father happy through doing things. We wana get good marks so I parents can pat us on the back, from experience there's nothing more devastating to a child than when they try to please their parents and they don't recognise it.

I know that as christians we've gone through stages in life where we feel that God hasn't recognised our good efforts, but he does all things in his time, and we just have to respect his wisdom cause he's an all knowing God. He knows whats best for us, than we do, we just have to trust him.

Now back to that point of trying to please God, I'm reminded of James 2:17 which says: " So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead)."

See it's biblical even in the new testament to please God with works of obedience. James in the second verse talks about how even demons know God,but to just know God means nothing if we aren't doing good works of God.

So don't be shy or scared to please your father in heaven.

However what I've realised is that it's hard to please God, no matter how much we try we sometimes fail, but thanks to Jesus we have been given grace, it's through grace that we can overcome sin and do what God wants us to do.

2 Corinthians12:9

"Each time he said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me."

Now you know why they say grace is amazing, God has given us the power to make him happy.

Unbelief, it seems so small but it has hard consequences

http:www.worldchallenge.org/en/node/1158

Click the link above to read about unbelief.

Only one new commandement

So many things can hold us is bondage and steal our freedom in christ. Like the people whom Paul talked about in the new testament who were taking away the gentiles freedom in christ by requiring them to be circumsised,there are also freedom stealers today.

I know God will teach me more about this topic.

Right now all I can say is that the new commandement tht Jesus gave us was love.Thats the rule he wants us to follow, to love another.

Be blessed.

Don't base your life on other people's experiences

Before I moved to Johannesburg people would tell me not to move up here cause you're always stuck in traffic and that you can't survive in Johannesburg without a car.

Well guess what, I've been here for over a year and I've never experienced traffic and I survived here for for nine months without a car.

Don't get me wrong, there is traffic in Joburg and to some, living without a car is hard, but that was their experience not mine.

So don't allow people's experiences to stop you from living out your dreams. Do a little research as to how you can avoid their horrible situations.
Like in my case I stayed close to work so I could just walk there, therefore I didn't need a car cause the nearest mall was also very close by. I only bought a car when I was finacially capable of doing so.

Oh they'd go on about that it's faster than my hometown, people will influence you into doing bad... seriously the people I've met so far are the most down to earth and the nicest people in the world.

Yea that's just my lil lesson learn't :)

Loving someone who annoys you

Loving someone who annoys you or has habits which are irritating is not easy.
However by looking at Jesus it's evident that love isn't easy cause it requires sacrifice or giving up of yourself.

Jesus gave up his throne in heaven & lived here on earth, then he continued and gave up his life as a sacrifice for our sins. He gave up so much of himself, simply because he loved us.

In order to show our brothers and sisters love we might have to sacrifice certain shallow charactristics which we've allowed to take residence in our hearts, like anger & impatience. These maybe things we have to sacrifice so that we can love our brothers & sisters.

The only way in which a romatic relationship can survive is if selflessness drives the relationship. You have to give up your time for date nights, special messages to make not you happy but your partner happy. You always have to keep in mind what makes the other person happy so that they'll want to continue being with you. You then give of yourself to do what makes your partner happy.

Same with loving our brothers and sisters, we have to be selfless, there's something we have to give up, and giving up something is never easy, that's why loving our brothers & sisters can seem hard at times.

More lessons for singles-hunters and visual creatures

Men are hunters and they are visual creatures.

For some1 to be attracted to you first, he would have noticed your looks or the way you conduct yourself, your walk, ladyness etc.

Then he'd hunt for you, after he's seen what he likes.

The hunting and visualness doesn't end when you're dating,he's still the same hunter and still visual.
In your relationship let him hunt for you, and stay beautiful so that he hunts for you. Don't be the one always making dates, always asking when y'all are gonna see each other. Let him hunt for dates around your busy schedule. He might complain that youre not always there but doing otherwise will cost you the relationship no matter how much he complains.

Singleness Quotes

I've taken the following quotes from Amanda Ferguson's facebook status. I really enjoy reading her tweets cause they're so encouraging, hope you like :) You can also follow her on twitter @Ferguson_Mrs

"Dear Sis, don't behave like his wife until you ARE his wife. Living together before marriage, running all his errands, getting a bank account with him......No. "Sampling" what marriage is like is never the route to go. After all, why should he marry you, if he's getting everything he wants for free? My heart especially goes out to women who are dating/courting men who have not given themselves to ...be in a committed relationship with them: DON'T go out of your way to spend all of your time with men who are obviously not ready for u. Chill. Relax. Men are hunters; let them hunt. And if that man wants you, he will take the necessary steps to wed u. Period. God will send you the right man for you IF YOU DO THINGS THE RIGHT WAY. If God did it for me, when He sent me Jonathan Ferguson, He can do it for u! He has only the BEST in store for u! Refuse to Settle for less than God's Best:)"

"I truly appreciate all of the feedback, everyone. My heart's desire is to see everyone live life abundantly. However, I have a special passion to empower women. Know this, ladies: You are a jewel. You are royalty. And the man that God has ordained for you will treat you as such #imawitness"

Living in Love, living in God.

As humans we are unable to perform miracles, but God is able to do all things. (Mark 10:27)

So when the spirit of God is in us,this being God, for God is spirit ( John 4:24) his spirit or God in us performs miracles in order to help people in distress.

This isn't limited to certain people. God wants to use us all to help the helpless, God has all the power to help people who are in trouble or pain and wants to use us to help them out of their distress.

So how do we allow God to use us to help others? God is able to use us to help others when he is living in us.How does God live in us? Well firstly when we accept Jesus as our savior Jesus comes and makes his home in our hearts.

1 John 4:15

"All who confess that Jesus is the son of God have God living in them, and they live in God"

The bible also says the following about God's spirit living in us.

1 John 4:12

New International Version (NIV)

"12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us."

When we Love another, we're actually living more and more in God,It becomes God's spirit in us living. why?

Cause:

1 John 4:8

New International Version (NIV)

8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

God is love, so when we live in love, we're living in God, and as we live in God, we can then be used by God to help others, just as Jesus helped people who were sick,poor etc.

When we live in love, it becomes God living and not our limited human nature.

Jesus asked, how would people know that we are Jesus's discples?

13:34-35New

International Version (NIV)

34 "A new command I give you: Love one another.

As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know

that you are my disciples, if you love one

another."

The above verse tells us that you know that someone is a follower of Jesus when they love other followers of christ.

Why is love such a good characteristic to discover if someone is a follower of Christ. Cause the devils children can also prophesy, than can heal, they can quote the bible, but one thing that they have no understanding of is love. Why? Cause love is Jesus.

Now what is love? How do we love each other? Love is not a feeling, its actions

In John 14, Jesus constantly talked about people would show that they loved him by obeying his commandments v21 & v 24. So love is not a feeling, it's doing something, actions show love.

Jesus said that we show that we love him by DOING what he says.

We show that we love him him when we obey him, and when we obey him he makes a home

in our hearts.

So love is doing and we show Jesus we love him by obeying him, so how do we show love to our fellow christian brothers and sisters?

1 Corinthians 13:4-13

New International Version (NIV)

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it k

eeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a r

eflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is loveSo let's go back to love, to Jesus and show who we belong to.

When we are patient, Kind, aren't jealous of another, we don't boast to others about our achievements, when we are honorable, selfless, not angered, forgiving, truthful to them, protect them, trust them, hope and persevere.

The bible says that's how we can show each other love and when we love, we are living in God, Then God Living in us is able to help those unable to help themselves.