Love is such a phenomenon and a mystery that it took the Greeks four words to describe it: agape, eros, philia, and storge. 1 John 4:7 tells us that God is love and 1 Corinthians 13 is often described as the "love" chapter when it declares that "love never fails." We all have probably had various experiences with love. Some good and some bad. But I am not really going to dive into that. What I want to talk about is the love I was able to experience and witness on daily basis. Today is my parent's wedding anniversary. They married each other on August 26, 1972 and that love has continued 37 years later to this day and I trust it will continue for more years to come. Yes my mom and dad experienced struggles and hardships in their marriage. There were times when they fussed and argued but there were more times when hugs and kisses and laughs and conversations were exchanged. I am blessed and fortunate to experience this first hand because what my parents have is something I wish to have. I want to share my life and world with that special woman that God has for me. My father told me that the reason that God is the author of their marriage and no matter how many times my mom screamed divorce out of anger he would respond by when you leaving because I am going with you. When God is at the center of your marriage and in the center of your life period you are able to overcome the struggles and adversities of life.
Thank God for providing me an example of a Godly marriage. Congratulations Walter and Clarice on 37 years of marriage and may God bless you with many more.
God Bless,
Rev
People expect a lot out of ministers. People expect a lot out of me.
Sometimes I wonder if people even respect our personal lives.
Sometimes I want to relax and have some me time. The role of being a
minister is so interesting because this thing is a 24/7 job. The phone
can ring anytime with someone looking for advice, or just wanting
someone to talk, or anything else. People will call u after business
hours and expect you to answer. And the funny part is that I feel
guilty when I don't answer because that may be the moment when someone
needs me the most. I know I am not Jesus. I know I have my
limitations. But everbody else doesn't seem to know. I don't have all
the answers but I just try to be there as best as I can. The stresses
of ministry is crazy. I don't do this for recognition. I don't do it
for the $. I do it because God told me to. But every now and then, I
would like a little me time. Time to recoup on energy so I can be a
better minister. I can't make every event. I can't be Superman. All I
can be is Michael.
God bless,
Rev
Good day my people,
I went to the movies for the first time in a while last night and I did not see GI Joe (which I need to see asap) but it was this movie called The Getaway. Its that movie about the couple who went on a honeymoon to Hawaii and people were getting murdered on the island. Well the movie definitely wasn't what I thought it was going to be but it wasn't that bad. There were some unexpected twists and the primary twist was the inspiration behind for today's blog.
I'm not going to get into the movie just in case you want to go see it but I just want to remind everyone: DON'T LET APPEARANCES FOOL YOU
We all have this habit of judging people. We say that first impressions are everything and true enough they do matter but we should not let our first impressions of others be our lasting opinion (I think I just said something right there lol) Our judgments may be based on appearance or word choice or race or sexual preference or whatever else you can think of. I am guilty of this as well so I am definitely not excusing myself. What I want to encourage us to do is to search for the heart of the person. Look beyond the exterior. Search for the God in people.
In I Samuel 16, God sent Samuel on a journey to anoint the person that would replace Saul as king. God told Samuel that the person he would anoint would be a son of Jesse. Jesse presented his sons before Samuel and Samuel looked at Jesse's son Eliab and was sure that he was the one God chose. But God responded to Samuel in 1 Sam. 16:7 saying "Don't judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn't see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart." Soon David would be anointed in front of his brothers. The youngest and the least expected.
We are charged to be Christ-like and imitators of God. Let us be like this in our relationships with other. Let us look beyond the outward appearance. Let us begin to look into the hearts of our brothers and sisters and appreciate and love them. Don't let appearances fool you, whether it is the homeless person on the corner or the CEO in the corner office. In our dealing with any person, move beyond the surface and search for their heart.
God Bless,
Rev
I feel like this word is so overused. I'm tired of people saying they are grinding but are not doing anything. How can you be grinding when you are sitting on the couch? There should be some type of progress in your life if you are so called grinding?
Those that are grinding rarely mention openly that they are grinding. Why? Because they are too busy working. They are always in the process of trying to make something happen. People let us stop talking and just make things happen.
And on another note. What happened to people wanting to work hard? I think there is an outbreak of people feeling like they are entitled to things. That is not the case. Don't hate on people that are working hard trying to make moves in life. Stop it. Hating gets you no where. What's the point? Get off your but and work. The Bible tells us that a lazy hands makes us poor (Proverbs 10:4). So while you are busy waiting on God to bless you, God looking at you asking why you are not working. I had a friend tell it to me like this, "If you do your best, God will do the rest." Your goals and aspirations are in the palm of your hands but will you put those hands to work.
My people, let's get on this grind and work hard.
God Bless,
Rev
Today I had to privilege to speak to the Business/Finance class at Avondale High School in Decatur, GA (suburb of ATL for those not familiar with ATL). I want to give a big thanks to Mr. Wallace who teaches this class for allowing me to speak with his classes and also to my fellow Hamptonian Marcie for referring me. Today's experience was so rewarding for me. It trips me out how anytime I go before people and teach/preach I end up encouraging myself.
I discussed with the students today about leadership, college, and career. I don't know if we realize how important it is to inspire and encourage our youth. For us that have finished college and have entered into grad school, doctoral studies, careers, etc. it is important for us to reach back and encourage our youth and make it a point to personally mentor at least one youth.
Many people talk about how jacked up society is and how crazy the kids today are. Even if that is the case, it is our responsibility to help guide them. Take the time to invest in them. Many of them act crazy because it seems as if no cares. I left Avondale High with two additional students I intend to mentor. Did I plan on doing that....no....but sometimes God places people along your path so you can help them along the way.
Let us begin to invest in our future...our youth.
God Bless,
Rev
I think few really understand the life, struggles, joys, pains, successes, and failures of ministers. Sometimes I feel people think we have the answer to all of life's problems. I'm not complaining or anything, that has just been my observation over time. I tell people that ministers and preachers are probably some of the most jacked up people. But God has a way of choosing jacked up people to deliver the Word and provide encouragement and reproof. So i decided to start this blog so you can get a real glimpse into the life of THIS minister. The ups and downs. The joy and pain. The successes and failures. The relief and the stress. You will get to see it all. Step into the life of Michael Stewart Wortham, a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
