How To Serve a 7-Course Meal: Utilizing the Fruits of the Spirit

TODAY'S MENU

Appetizer: Meekness

Soup: Faithfulness
Salad: Goodness
Sorbet: Gentleness

Meat #1: Longsuffering & Self-Control

Meat #2: Love
Dessert: Joy & Peace

*Meekness is the feeling of patience and submissive humbleness

*Faithfulness is thought of as trust; belief; even hope in something

* Goodness is the best part of anything; essence; strength

*Gentleness refers to being soft and mild

*Longsuffering is long, patient endurance of insult, abuse, or mistreatment

*Self-Control is the ability to set up boundaries for one’s self; the ability of a person to exert their will over the inhibitions of their body or self

*Love is strong ineffable feelings to another person or thing

*Joy is the unconditional state of mind that accompanies fellowship with God

*Peace is a state of balance and understanding; where one is at their highest point of serenity

WELCOME TO "HIS" RESTAURANT

I Now Pronounce You Man & Christ: Helping Men Build an Intimate Relationship with God

Written By Eric C. Blanding/Edited By: Shonda Renee' Porter

When I was first asked to write a piece on intimacy between God and Man, my first thought was, why would a man be intimate with God? I most certainly love and care deeply for God, but for me, at the time, intimacy was something that I would save for my significant other. As I thought on the subject more, I began to realize that my most intimate times are with God. Let us first define intimacy. One meaning reads: a close, familiar, and usually affectionate or loving personal relationship with another person or group. Another definition reads: …the quality of being comfortable, warm, or familiar: the intimacy of the room. Yet another continues by stating that intimacy is privacy, especially as suitable to the telling of a secret. These are all very interesting meanings indeed. As a man, the word intimacy screams of femininity. Most men, me included, wouldn’t put themselves in that category when referring to God because of our masculinity. While examining the meaning of intimacy and my own relationship with God, I have come to a conclusion. I strive to be closer to God; He is as familiar to me as my mother who birthed me. I love Him dearly, pray to Him and thank Him whenever His goodness crosses my mind; I beg Him for forgiveness and long to live forever in His kingdom. There is no one in the world I feel more comfortable with sharing everything that goes on in my life, the good and the bad. Isn’t it ironic how God knows all of our secrets, but we share them with Him anyway? That is apart of relationship building and the intimacy between God and man.

Thinking more on my intimacy with God, I take into account the times where I have cried rivers of tears when I have talked with God. If I had never revealed it today, no one outside of me and Him would know this. I have no shame at all with falling to my knees and thanking God for everything He has done for me. I have no fear of Him seeing me cry like a baby and begging him to forgive me for my shortcomings. I gladly give money out of my pocket to support his places of worship. I sing songs of joy and praise when He fills my soul. As men, we sometimes worry about how other men will look at us if they see us cry or on our knees praying and saying how much we love God. There is something inside a man that deceives them on a daily basis, and that is called pride. The same pride that caused Lucifer (Satan) in Isaiah 14:12-15 to fall from Heaven and be damned to walk in the Earth with a sentence of 1000 years in hell upon the return of Jesus Christ. It is foolish that we don’t want other men to see us form a relationship with God intimately because we may be looked at as weak or feminine.

I remember when I worked at call center a few years back; a few of the women whom sat around me started a small prayer group and would have prayer before work or during breaks. There were a few men present, I included, and sometimes a group member would give a small testimony. There were times I wanted to testify so badly, but I feared how the men in the group would look at me. This is when God stepped in, one of the men from the group came forward and testified until he was in tears, and it felt so good that it brought me to tears as well. Because God knew my heart and caters to my every desire that is in His will, He allowed that move to take place in the spirit. No I was not dotting every “I” or even crossing every “T”. If you had asked me at the time, I would have told you that I definitely wasn’t where I needed to be in God, but He saw fit to bless me with that experience anyway. When I left that day I thought a lot about that experience. I thought about the fact that the guy that gave that testimony showed way more power than I could ever have shown. I admired his relationship with God and him as a man, to love God and not be ashamed to let anyone know. I longed to not be ashamed to cry, to not care what anyone thought, to focus on God and I only. As I sit here and write this piece, I can feel him working inside of me. Yes, I long for a closer relationship with God. Each day that I move forward is a day that I thank God for all he has done. Sometimes it seems so hard to be thankful for the small things; God spoils us a lot, and when we don’t get what we want we tend to sulk. We need to be consistent and committed in this relationship. We can’t thank Him for some and not the other. We must remember even to thank Him for the strength just to get up out of the bed every morning. These are the little things that go unnoticed. Being thankful is surely apart of the equation to intimacy. Let us not think of intimacy as only being sweet kisses from our spouse, but more of closeness, a relationship, that means more than anything else. As men, we need this strength and understanding from God just as He needs us to be his loyal servants. Remember that God would NEVER be ashamed of us, therefore we should never be ashamed to show our love for Him. We can still be the strong, proud men that we are, but without God, we are nothing.

Who's on Your Godpod?

Written By: Shonda-Renee' Porter

In 1 Timothy 6:10 the word of God states that the love of money is the root of all evil. My question to you is what about the love of music? I see so many people claiming to be believers that listen to everything imaginable. Honestly, tell me how is it that you can listen to praise and worship and experience a move of God in your car, and as soon as the next song comes on it’s “not your song”, and you then change it over to a secular station if there is no other inspirational station available? You find yourself flip-flopping with the stations and ultimately F’n and F’n ( flipping and flopping) with your spirit.

Moving on to our iPods, it’s the same scenario. We are given the ability to download anything that we want that we deem as our good music or simply a hit. After a while we have downloaded a little R&B, a little Gospel, a little Pop, a little Contemporary Worship, and a little bit of everything else. We feel that we have really created a noble collection full of great music. Then when questioned we say, ’hey I just love music. I know the difference. This has nothing to do with my salvation.’

Oh have you my friend been deceived. Deceived by the father of deception and iniquity itself. You don't have to be a theologian to understand that the ex-chief of music was Lucifer. Yes the same Lucifer whose name is now Satan, or maybe you know him as the devil. Ring a bell? Well clearly I referred to him as the “ex” chief musician. Satan was nothing short of a fool. He held the job of chief musician in Heaven and was even said to be one of God’s most handsome angels. God esteemed him in his own right, but none could be esteemed above God and this is where Lucifer messed up. He thought that he could exalt himself higher than God in the Heavens. His pride which is iniquity, which is also sin, got in the way. God had to shut him down and cast him and his “friends” (the other rebellious angels) out of Heaven. What I am getting at is that you must be careful. The devil is familiar with music and its power to create an atmosphere and change of emotions. Emotional and atmospheric changes both affect your spirit. The words and emotions of the songwriter and musicians are transferred to you when you listen. No matter what the type of music. What are you really downloading into God’s dwelling place?

As children of God we must be cautious as to what we willingly allow to take manifest in our spirit man. Our body is flesh indeed; nevertheless, it is still not our own. Your body is the dwelling place of your spirit in which God himself takes residence. The choices we make concerning our body physically and mentally all have an affect on our spirit. This is the same spirit which has a direct connection to God the Father.

Many times we make excuses for the things that we do, not just to our body, but in regards to life. Often we feel that just because God gave us the freedom to choose His will or our own, that it is okay to opt for our own. When will we allow our will to be lost in His? What gives us the audacity to choose such a fate when we know Him personally or at least acknowledge that fact that there really is a God. When will we as Christians get on one accord and stand for righteousness and nothing less? Stop making Satan’s work easy! Set yourselves apart and fiill your spirit with the things of God. What is on your Godpod? As I depart I leave this one decree, and that is that Grace and Peace be multiplied unto you.

Are You a Good Apple or a Bad Apple?

Written By: Shonda-Renee' Porter

In a recent interview with a radio station a guest gave their opinion on dating. She gave a wonderful analogy of how women are like apples on a tree. She expressed how the “good” women should not get discouraged, but encouraged.

So you’re a single female wondering why you are still single. All your friends around you are married, have boyfriends, or have kids. This has left you wondering, what about me? When will it be my turn? When will I really begin my life? Don’t jump to conclusions ladies, for you are like an apple on the top of a tree.

You’re doing all you can to better yourself. The more you accomplish, the higher you (the apple) go on the tree. It seems that you have everything going for you. Everything your mother and grandmother told you a man would want and need, you’ve become that. You may not have it all, but you have quite the package. However, you are still single.

But wait! Remember you are the apple. Where does the apple come from? It comes from the tree of course! It just so happens that one day a man comes walking around this tree and he notices this beautiful apple on the top of the tree. It shines in the sunlight and it appears to have no imperfections. Most would agree that THIS apple, it is a perfect apple. Now this man admires this apple, but he is immediately distracted. He looks down and he sees all of the apples that have fallen off this great tree. We all know that apples that fall to the ground are considered bad apples. He thinks to himself that it would be easier to take the apples on the ground. The apple on the top is going to take too long for him to get to. The apples on the ground might be dirty, but they are "EASIER" to get to!

Point being, don't give up hope ladies! One day a true man, also known as a real man, will take the journey and climb up to the top of the tree. He will pick you out from all of the other ones that have fallen to the ground. You will be his reward and he shall be your reward.

SIDEBAR~ Let’s face it, some of us are single by choice. A relationship isn’t all that it is cracked up to be. It requires much more than the materialistic things. It requires time, maturity, and even stable emotions just to name a few. So be sure that a relationship, marriage, or even the decision to have children is the right one for you and your mate. Remember that the relationship may be between you and your significant other, but those close to you both will be affected by each decision you make as well. Are you really ready to be plucked from that tree?