When God appears far away I questioned him

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?   Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish? Psalms 22:1

Not too long ago I questioned my faith at every crossroad. Was the Holy Spirit with me or was I home alone. Though I professed my faith in Christ my mind played tricks on me. I questioned God. Lord my life does not make sense. Doubt found a small breech in my foundation of faithfulness. I wanted to give up.

When God appears far away

David was hand picked by God. He slayed Goliath, and was chosen the next heir to Saul. David was a man after God’s own heart. Despite all God’s bestowed blessings David encountered emotional despair.  Why Lord do you stand far off?  Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?  Psalms 10:1

Did God forsake me? No. Though it appeared that God was far from David as heaven is to earth he confirmed that God was still in control. In you our ancestors put their trust they trusted and you delivered them Psalms 22:4.

As the ocean tides ebb and flow I learned to trust in God’s word no matter how unstable a situation may appear. Every day is confirmation God has blessed me. When bad days rise God expects me to rely on my faith in Him. To dig through tribulation, trust in his word. As with David my valley is only temporary.

The paradigm shift

I focused on these steps as I developed my Spiritual relationship with Christ.  

+ Never-ending prayer [conversation]

+ Seeking to improve self spiritually

+Trusting more in every word

+In return God made his presence known through the Holy Spirit

Spirit over Flesh

When operating in the flesh I was frustrated and unable to maintain a clear mindset. As I leaned more on His word it was evident He never left me nor forsaken me. God was always present.

Don’t give up no matter how hard the journey. Trust more in God and express it through prayer and praise. Lift your eyes unto the hills from whence cometh your help Psalms 121.  In exchange God will fulfill his word by making the expedition just a bit easier. Keep the faith and allow God to complete his masterpiece which is you!

Let us pray:
Lord, in the name of Jesus I doubt that you are with me. I am questioning your love, joy and peace. Help me trust in your word. Remove my disbelief. Make your word clear so it will lead me in to trusting you more. Give me the strength not to give up and continue to grow into the warrior you created me to be. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. No weapons can form against me if I trust and obey your word.  Lord Bless every reader of your word. This I pray in your son Jesus Christ name. - Amen

You Can’t Change History… with an * Asterisk

Reggie Bush gives back Heisman Trophy

Yet again college sports are tainted with misdoing, corruption and illegal dealings. Because of these ill will endeavors, The University of Southern California has decided to rub out the legacy of former running back Reggie Bush.
“The school will remove jerseys, photographs and all awards that Bush won during his career. They have also decided to remove Bush’s Heisman Trophy that sat next to other USC greats such as O.J. Simpson, Matt Leinart, Carson Palmer, Marcus Allen, and Charles White.”What ever the unethical circumstances, man cannot change history or put an asterisk in books to notate an amendment and think that is a fix all to a predicament. Is there a better way to deal with wronged occurrence? Could it be a form of pride, betrayal or an opportunity to let people know man can do as he pleases and everything will be alright? Regardless the fact, calculated steps are taken to change the past by notating and taking away metals and awards remember the event/task was done and no man can take that away.

Let me be the first to say the thought has crossed my mind if I could only recapture a moment in time and had resources to persuade times past to allow me to rewind life I would do it! There are a few stops I would have to make: my high school days (to right all the wrongs), Jim Crow, The Holocaust, premature death of love ones (I never knew), world wars, and Slavery. As far fetched as this ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty fantasy is why does man continuously try to change history with a swift action of a pen? My message today is for us to not to repeat history; not to debate how, why, or to whom these asterisk notations in sports history tend to lean toward but to take a look how God dealt with situations like this in the Bible.

The story of David and Bathsheba, 2Samuel 11 is a biblical depiction of David, who was a man after God’s own heart, tried to erase history (sin). As the story goes, David saw a beautiful woman bathing and later found out it was Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah. David sent messengers to get her. She came and he slept with her. (She purified herself from her uncleanness.) Then she went back home. The woman conceived got pregnant. In David’s attempt to put an asterisk in History he placed Uriah in the front line of the war where he would surely be struck down and die. As expected Uriah died and David moved Bathsheba into his house where she gave birth to a son. God was displeased with the actions David did. God made it clear that David’s measures to right a wrong would not go unpunished first by the death of child.
2Samuel 12:11-23 In spite of this God is a forgiving father! He later blessed David with a new son named Solomon.

In life, we have all fallen short of the Glory of God through sin. Many don’t realize it but God’s desire for us all is healing and restoration. What ever your burdens are you have attempted to erase and place an asterisk by remember the way to receive restoration and remove the blemishes is through the Son of God the Prince of Peace, Jesus the Christ. Don’t allow pride, guilt, or the power of your mind keep you from being forgiven. Take time today and humble yourself, ask God to forgive you. If you don’t know what to say just repeat the Lord’s Prayer

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Tigner J.- The Thought Provoker

God got it under control

When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider:
God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future. Ecclesiastes 7:14

Photo: Tigner J.

“Where did all the blue skies go? Oil wasted on the ocean fish full of mercury, Ah things ain’t what they use to be. Over and over you can be sure there will be sorrow but you will endure. Where there's a flower there's the sun and the rain Oh and its wonderful there both one in the same.“


Throughout our existence we are confronted with good and bad situations. Marvin Gaye and Frankie Beverly both duly noted life’s balance through song which enlighten us; people can’t have good without bad or joy without pain. Marvin’s cry for Mercy along with Frankie’s acceptance of Joy & Pain they are both one in the same. God also made it clear through Solomon in this scripture no matter what come to pass in living be happy during the good as well as the bad. How we choose to deal with them is entirely up to us.


Consider Job, who God stated “No one in the world is like him! He is a man of integrity: He is decent, he fears God, and he stays away from evil. And he still holds on to his principles.” Job 2:3 Job was a wealthy man, in all aspects was very proud and happy man who in a blink of an eye lost everything; family, including seven sons and three daughters, money, livestock. Job was bankrupt in today’s equation of worth. Despite the fact he faced misfortune in such great magnitude Job did not sin or blame God for doing anything wrong, he tried to find the balance between good and bad but most importantly he could not determine his future. With an attempt to put this in prospective in our lives I don’t think the average man could have withstood any lost of this enormity and find himself standing, not complaining, questioning God, and most definitely not be happy.


Misfortune should teach us to consider the fact as we are paid a visit of various stages of “good and evil” events we need to be reminded that no matter what tomorrow my bring God got it under control. The pain and weeping may endure for night or season but joy will come in the morning.


Be encouraged don’t give up the good fight and remember to pray as well as pray for others.


Tigner J.

Deniece Williams- God Is Amazing

You are a Leader! (insert your name here)

If you don’t like my leading then you lead – Benjamin Hooks

If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully – Romans 12: 7-9

Team Leader

Yes you are a leader

Webster’s dictionary defines a Leader as a person who guides or directs over an army, or political group. Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart was quoted “Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it's amazing what they can accomplish.”

A large number of people (me included) have leadership traits but choose not to seize the opportunity. Despite the fact we enhance the self-esteem of others and direct them to do immeasurable tasks! This is an attribute of a leader.

Biblical leaders

The Bible depicts many great leaders – Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, and others. Take Apostle Paul who demonstrated a remarkable example of true leadership. In Acts Chapter 27, Paul was a prisoner on board a ship heading to face Caesar. Though he was a prisoner, he took charge and told the guards that their voyage was going to be disastrous. The Centurion guards did not take heed. They set sail directly into winter storms. Through out the tedious journey Paul, continuously empowered himself as a leader by the guidance of an angel of God.  Acts27:25-26 

 A true leader is close enough to a situation to relate and mentally ahead to motivate. That was Paul.  A great leader must have faith.  Without faith it is impossible to please God. Hebrews 11:6 

What sets great leaders apart?

To a certain extent, society perceives great leaders as powerful and influential. They have political prowess or CEOs of corporations. Just because a corporation is profitable does not mean they have a great leader at the helm.

Executives [people] get caught up in making money at any price opposed to how they can teach, instruct and lead others to reaching their highest potential. As the old proverb goes give a man a fish you feed him for a day; teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. “True leadership is about bettering the lives of the people around you. That is a simple idea, but far too few people don’t follow it,” stated journalist Shaun Rein.

Leadership opportunities

At many junctures in life we are close enough to a situation to relate but far enough ahead to motivate. This is that leadership opportunity.  However this is typically when we run. The mind conjures up a plethora of reasons why you should not lead – time, willingness to commit, fear, and doubt. What is your reason?

You may not be in charge of an organization, group or church committee however there are situations where you can step out, take the lead. “Great leaders are those who are willing to give up something to help the little person.” Fear, doubt, lacking faith are no options.

Stand up! Stand up today and be the leader that you were called to be! 

Tigner Rand