When They Say How Bad, Ask for the Good

Every day, I'm pretty sure some of us run across people who seem to have nothing good to say.  They complain about everything and they never seem to find any optimism in all that they do.  My daughter's school gave them a verse to remember out of 2 Philippians 2:14 which says, "Do everything without complaining or arguing".  I think some of us adults should learn a little something from this verse as well. 

The next time someone complains to you about something (or if you find yourself complaining), ask them this question: "Now what positive can you learn from this situation?" You'll get one of two responses:  1) They will be wondering why you asked them something like that when they were laying all the bad complaints on you thick or 2) they will honestly think about the positive points of their situation. 

Either way, you have done your part and probably have avoided feeding into their downward spiral of negativity.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Be Like A Tree

The beginning of Autumn has to be one of the most awesome displays of God's beauty and creativity.  The leaves on the trees change to the colors of oranges, yellows, browns, etc. and the scenery is nothing short of a photographic moment!    As I walked along the sidewalk this morning, I looked up at a tree (who's leaves were orange) and a single leaf fell, floating to the ground.  All I could do was smile because in that moment I was reminded of the power and presence of God.

In the same moment, I had to look at the tree itself and this is what I saw.  A tree is the perfect symbol of our walk with Christ should be.  Now, I know you are thinking, "Antoine, how in the world did you come up with that idea?" Well, first off it definitely wasn't mines.  The Holy Spirit had some involvement, but I am going to tell you. First, let's go back to school where we first learned about plants and their life cycles. 

As we all know, a tree starts out as a seed.  That seed is planted into the ground and over time, with some nurturing, sunlight, and watering the tree will grow to be a larger and larger plant.  As the tree gets bigger over the years, its roots go deeper into the ground in order to support the tree's weight and most importantly to get nutrients from the ground.  Then the tree grows branches.  The branches grow and spread out far so that the leaves can soak up the most amount of sun as possible in order that photosynthesis can occur.  ("Photosynthesis is a process that converts carbon dioxide into organic compounds, especially sugars, using the energy from sunlight"1.  Without photosynthesis, the tree cannot live because this is how it creates its food.)   When the tree is able, it then creates it's own seeds which fall from the tree to ground to take root and start the process all over again for another seedling. Wash, Rinse, Repeat.


If we look and compare us to the description above you may see the similarities in our Spiritual Walk with Jesus.  When we first proclaim that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, we become babes in Christ.  This is because a 'seed' is planted within us.  As with any baby, you need nurturing and support so that you can continue to grow spiritually (see 1 Peter 2:2).  As long as you are in good ground, you will continue to grow until you can start to do things for yourself (ie, read & interpret the bible).  We continue to walk with Christ and our 'roots' go deeper into the ground to support out growth and to get more spiritual nutrients (remember, seeds have to be on good & fertile ground for them to grow - see Mark 4:1-8). As with the tree, if our roots are in loose & unstable soil, any light wind could come along and blow it over.  If our roots are not firmly rooted in Him who saves us, any hearsay or false teaching would make us stumble and fall (or blow us down).   We continue grow and stretch our arms, heart, and mind upward and open to receive more of the Son so that we may have more of Him.  At some point, we should reach a stage where we start to produce our own seeds so they can drop from us and be planted in someone else to start their spiritual lives as well (see Matthew 28:18-20).  Wash, Rinse, Repeat.

I thought this was pretty cool how it was revealed to me and I think it is how we should live our Christian Walk.  We should never remain babes in Christ.  We should be growing more every day with a continued desire for Christ.  While you may not be a Pastor or a Deacon, all of us are called be active participants in the building of the Kingdom of God (see Ephesians 4:11-13). Today, I want to encourage you to be like a tree.  Continue to grow your faith, with outstretched arms towards the Son, so that you too can leave seeds that will one day help spread the good news.

Be blessed everyone.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall


"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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The Sky Is Still Blue

Updated: 03/18/2020

The most interesting things occur to me while walking my dog.  I have shared once before that when I am walking him alone, it is typically my quiet time to be with the Lord and this morning was no different.

This morning in Milwaukee, there was a heavy overcast and the wind was blowing pretty hard.  As I walked down the sidewalk, I happen to look into the gray ominous clouds and found a break in them.  It was just a small break, but what I saw was the beautiful blue sky and the bright white clouds high above the gray rain clouds.  Because the wind was blowing steadily, the break didn't last long.

It is something that happens all the time, but we typically do not recognize it.  When rain clouds move in your area, they are a different color and thick.  They blot out the blue sky and sometimes the sun as well.  Because the clouds are over our heads it is hard to think about what is behind them because we are caught up in the moment of preparing what could happen. What we fail to realize is that behind that storm cloud, the sky is still blue.  Behind that cloud of rain, the sky is still blue.  Behind that thunder and lightening cloud the sky is still blue!  It never changes (until dark of course).

This is how God is to us.  Even though we go through trials in life God never leaves us.  He has always been there with us.  Despite how cloudy it gets in life, God is still there.  No matter how trivial or violent the trial, God is still there.  He's there because He promised to never leave us out to dry.  In Deuteronomy 31:8 it says,

And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.

Whatever it is God has purposed for your life it will come to past.  No matter what your current situation may be, continue to hold on to His words.  If you want, remind Him of His promises!   Always know that just as the sky is blue behind the dark clouds, God is still with you through the days of your life. 

Be blessed folks and have a good one!

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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You Will Never Know It All (Replay)

-------------- snip ---------------
April 27, 2005

Good morning family.

The Word is here!!!!!!!!  You know, the Lord reveals a lot of things to us in the most unthinkable ways sometimes.  It can be one word spoken by another person or a simple rain drop on your window pane.  OK, sorry little poetic but you get my point.  Well, I wanted to share the idea about church folk "knowing it all" (or at least thinking they do).  Lets look at Proverbs 9:9-10.

"(9) Give instruction to a wise man , and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man , and he will increase in learning. (10) The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. "

The point that I want to really drive home is that as Church Folk we are never Holier than thou;  meaning, you do not have the right to frown upon anyone or newcomer who arrives in your church.  Whether they come in ranges or in riches, you are not perfect yourself.  From the scripture it tells me that as long as you give instruction a man (or woman ;-) ) will be wiser.  As long as you are living we are always learning in life.  As long as we are living in the word we are always learning the word.  You could read the same scripture 10 times and 5 of those times could reveal to you totally different understandings.

Not even the PASTOR knows everything.  Not to belittle the Pastor's role, but each time  he/she go to bring the word, the Lord has revealed something new to them.  So, no body is perfect and all knowing.  I think this is good news to share with people new to the church and Christ.  This maybe even good news for you!  I can surely say that before I was saved, I thought everyone in the church was suppose to be perfect.  You couldn't make mistakes and heaven forbid a "church administrator" better not get caught doing something ungodly!

In this case, I am happy to say that I was very very wrong.  You will never know it all and neither will the person with whom you share a pew.  What we can do is fear the Lord and continue to be vessels for new knowledge.  As long as we are followers of Christ, we will always be taught something new.

Be Bless Folks!
-------------- snip ---------------


Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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...But It's Not You!

Have you ever been driving in the car and you see someone dressed a certain way or looking a certain way?  You think to yourself, "Why would they come out here looking like that?"  Or maybe you know someone who is down on their luck and it seems all the good and kind encouraging words that you give never seem to help.  Then you wonder, to yourself, "If that were me, I'd.......".  Well you fill in the rest of sentence with whatever you like, but my point is that it is not you!

We all do many things differently and one of those things is experience life.  We all hit high points and low points at different times of our lives so we must not look on one another as if you could do it better.  Some times, you have no idea what a person might be experiencing and the way they are carrying themselves, despite any encouragement, may be the best way they can get through their storm.  It's their way of coping and dealing.

You see, when the house is on fire and someone else is trapped inside, you may be thinking to yourself, "I hope they come out...why aren't they coming out?!!"  You can say that because you can see the doors and the windows...from the outside......BUT, when you are the person trapped inside the inferno, the only thing that you can see is flames.  Yes you are trying to get out but you have to get through the fire.  Your heart may be racing and the adrenaline may be pumping but if you stay focused and calm long enough you can escape the fire.  This is exactly how life can be sometimes.  There is always some in the fire and there are others who are on the outside looking into the situation.  The perspective is always clear when it isn't skewed by being in the middle of a life crisis. 

Let us remember that we THINK we know what we might do, but since it's not us, let's not judge a person for what they do.  Until you walk a mile in their shoes....well, I think you know the rest.

"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. " - Luke 6:37

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Could You Handle Spit On Your Face?

Last week, I shared an article from CNN with my wife and it talked about a lady who had the tip of her pinky finger to regenerate after being cut off from a door accident.  We were talking about how cool that was because the lady had gone through new science and technology involving tissue regeneration.  Being the silly person that I am, I said ".....[now] they can dip yo stuff in some spit and it grows back...Jesus was on to something with that spit and mud stuff..".   We were cracking up talking but I started thinking a little more.  Just what in the world are you talking about Antoine?  Well, let's go to some Word!  John 9:1-11 says:

(1) As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. (2) His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" (3) "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. (4) As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. (5) While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  (6) Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes.  (7) "Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.  (8) His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" (9) Some claimed that he was. Others said, "No, he only looks like him."  But he himself insisted, "I am the man." (10) "How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded.  (11) He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see."

Now, you see what I am talking about? (Just a side bar, Jesus also used spit some other times to heal.  See Mark 8:22-25 and Mark 7:31-35).  Jesus spit into some mud, rubbed it together, and rubbed it onto a blind man's face then told him to wash his face.  After that, the blind man could see!  Wait a minute here.  WHAT??!!   OK, OK, let me entertain you for a little bit and I will imagine that I was a disciple with Jesus along with some of my friends (or you can imagine you were a discipline).  This is how I think the story would have went:

Jesus, here is a man who had been blind since birth.  Now who sinned?  Him or his Mom & Pops?  "Nobody sinned, but He is blind so that he can see the miracle of God at work in his life.  Look it's gonna be dark soon and I still have my Father's business to handle, so let's get to work before night fall.  While I am in the world, I am the light of the world".  After Jesus spoke he hocked a loogie (spit) on the ground and made mud.  The disciples face frowned all up like that was so nasty that Jesus was playing with spit.  Not only did Jesus play with mud, He then plastered it onto the blind man's eyes and told him to got wash his face....

Alright, I will stop right here.  I know I am using the imagination here, but can you imagine how contorted the disciple's faces were when He spit on the ground to make mud.  THEN, he put that nasty mess onto the blind man's eyes.  Oh my goodness.  That is nasty and not healthy hygiene at all!

I only imagined what the other people felt, but what about the poor blind guy?  He's the one that had mud made with spit rubbed onto his eyes.  It said the man was blind, but it did not say he was deaf.  This means the man probably heard Jesus making mud pies out of spit!  I do not know what was going through the blind man's mind, but whatever it was, showed a measure of the highest levels of faith!

See, that man saw past all the social norms of how "unhygienic" it was or how nasty that stuff would feel on his face.  What he showed was faith to believe in Jesus no matter what he was told to do.  The blind man did not say, "you want me to do what??!!".  It did not say that, even though most of us would probably say it even if Jesus (himself) asked us to follow the same steps.  I have a question for you though.   How much do you really believe in Jesus.  How far are you really willing to go in obeying Him who saved you?  Are you ready to follow His every commandment or are you happy with visiting church every Sunday just to feel good?

Obedience, despite the outlook is what gave this man sight.  He obeyed.....he believed....he received.  Could you do the same?

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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What If......

What if grass was blue?
What if the sky was green?
What if we drove cars backwards?
What if happy really meant being mean?

What if people could fly?
What if dogs could talk?
What if college was high school?
What if crippled people could walk?

What if I we lived on Mars?
What if I didn't get up today?
What if bubble gum tasted like chocolate?
What if you really couldn't hear a see and say?

What if I lost my job tomorrow?
What if the food ran out in the house?
What if I had no money to borrow?
What if you lost your spouse?

What If, What If, What If.  We are so bogged down by the "What If's" of life that we get stuck wondering what if this or that happened?  Nine times out of ten, the "what if" will never happen and life will go on as schedule.  Stop wondering about "what if" or you will never move out of your current situation.

What If I didn't write that poem.....?  Well, I did and you should stop worry about things that probably and most likely will never happen.  Be bold in all that you do and never fear what you conjure up could happen.

Be blessed folks!

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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It's Not For Now, It' Later

Hello Hello Family,

I hope that you all had a good holiday weekend.  Over this weekend (specifically) yesterday, I got into the most interesting discussion/debate with our 5 year old daughter, Zion.  I know, I know why am I in a debate with a 5 year?  Well you'd have to meet our daughter because she is really intellectual for her age.

She has just started Kindergarten (K5) and the school she is in has a rigorous curriculum.  It is a Christian Academy and it requires a lot of reading and whenever she reads a book, we mark it down what she read on a piece of paper.  Yesterday, she picked up a book and started reading it (to which it has words in it that I probably couldn't pronounce until I was in the 2nd or 3rd grade LOL), but she was getting frustrated.  She hit a word that she had trouble saying, then she closed the book and said (paraphrasing), "Daddy, see I can't do because it's too hard.  That's why I don't like school."

Me being the smart person that I am, I told her that it's alright that it is hard and that is how we learn.  If we do not do some things harder than what we've always done, we will not learn.  She said everything and debated me about how she didn't like school any more.  I used the tactic of explaining how I don't like going to work but I do because she has to eat, have cloths, have lights turned on to read, heat to stay warm, yada yada...I was pulling the "look what I do just so you can have but I don't always want to get up and go to work either" card.  The more we talked the more she stood her ground about not liking school and she wasn't going back.  Finally, I just told her, my job is to go to work and hers is to go to school.  She was going to school Tuesday morning whether she liked it or not! 

By this time, my wife Deidra walked into the room, seeing her with her face on her chin and her eyes welling, asked what was wrong.  Zion explained how she didn't like school because it was hard.  What I couldn't do in about 10-15 minutes, my wife completely reversed by pulling the "God Card" LOL.  See Zion is quite in tune with God and understands about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.  In about 5 minutes, my wife explained to her, that without a vision people will perish and that God made us to learn. I don't recall all the scriptures, but Deidra had the girl looking at the scriptures and the next thing I know she was reading the book!

Amazing isn't it?!  That's why I love that sticky tape of mines (that's my wife by the way). The one example that my wife gave in explaining the reason to learn was that say, she didn't know what 3+5 equaled and she saw a sign that had it on it.  In the example 3+5 on the sign could mean to stop crossing the street so she wouldn't get hit by a car.  If she didn't know the answer she could walk out in the street and get hit but if she did she could stop and the car could zoom by making her safe (Sorry hun if I don't have it all the way verbatim).

Now, let's think about our lives as adults for a moment. Right now, you may be working at a job where you find yourself doing some things that was not in the original job description.  We are quick to pull that card....."wait a minute, that is not in my job description!"  What we fail to realize is what we are forced to do or disliked doing may have future use in another part of our life.  It may be the very thing that makes you feel used and abused is the very thing you need to stretch you and "grow you up" in area of your life.

The thing that kids do not realize is that all the hard work and things they learn now, will be relevant in the future and necessary to carry on in life.  For that matter, a lot of us as adults have tasks, take classes, care for pets, etc. in a manner that makes no sense for us.  We complain just like Zion by asking "Why do we have to do this?"  We feel that we could be doing other things besides what we are doing now, but little do we know it is for a reason.  "There is a time for everything,and a season for every activity under heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3:1).  You may see the reason or make sense out of what you are doing (or where you may be in life) right now but know that it is for a reason. 

Also, it could be that you have received a vision or revelation, but right now it doesn't seem to come to pass. Maybe it is not for now, but God has just prepared your brain so that when it becomes the right season, you will know how to handle it (see Habakkuk 2:3).  Always know that God is in control and knows what He is doing.  It is our job to trust in Him that our "later" has already been taken care of "now". We just need to leave the now and walk in readiness for the later parts of our lives.

Be easy folks and have a good one.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Riding a Roller Coaster With Man

I read an article on CNN.com this morning that was entitled:  "Dems get more bad news in Gallup poll".  It goes on to talk about how the Democrats are trailing the Republicans in key areas of a recent poll.  Then it later says "...Americans think Republicans in Congress will do a better job than Democrats in handling seven out of nine key issues"¹.  Errrrrrrrrr!  Now wait a minute!  If I can recall back during the elections of 2009, Americans thought that Democrats were better suited in Congress to handle key issues.  After all that is the reason why the Democrats now control both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

What I have come to learn is that people can be fickle.  One minute they are with you and the next minute they are against you (depending on what day of the week it is). I understand that the economy has been going through a slump but guess what?  This is not the first time in American history, nor will it be the last.  Guess what again?  This is not the first time that the American public has thought one political party was better at doing things than the other.  What we get is this roller coaster ride of going up and down and back and forth with no real satisfaction for any one.  The moment we see someone not doing what we think they should be doing, we replace them with someone else who is just as incapable of making us happy.

The issue lies within us.  You "[d]o not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save" (Psalm 146:3).  No one man can really save you or fix your problems no matter how many promises they shell out.  After all, "[w]hen their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing" (Psalm 146:4).  At that point where do you turn?  Do you rely on yourself to fix it?  Well that goes back to my original point.  You are but a man, so you have your limitations.  Granted, the Lord can work through those individuals who allow Him, but in this day in time, where can you find a politician who is not out for political gain for himself rather than to see the goodness of God work through him or her?

So, when you have no where else to turn, guess who is looking you in the face waiting for you to reach out to Him?  Jesus Christ.  You might be saying "Yeah, yeah, yeah Antoine that sounds like a great story and I knew you'd pull the God card on me, but of course you'd say that because you believe in a God".  Yes, partially true.  I believe in THE one true God, not just A God.  I'll put it this way.  Until you try and/or taste the goodness of God for yourself, you can never refute my point with hard evidence (see Psalm 34:8). 

I was reading one user's comment on another article on CNN one day and by his message I got the impression that he did not believe in God.  What he said did made me laugh and at the same time it made me smile for another reason.  Basically, he said that with the decline of America's GDP (Gross Domestic Product) over the past years even with both parties controlling the Congress at some point in time, there seemed like no hope - giving God a chance might not be a bad idea because he couldn't do any worst.  I laughed at those comments and even had to share them with my wife because it was too funny.  At the same time I smiled with joy because I saw an opportunity.  I saw someone who seemed to have a willing heart to try the goodness of the Lord and that, my friends, is all He need - for you to give Him a chance.

In the end I would like to ask you, would you rather let your emotions volley back and forth with man or would you rather ride securely on a straight path with the one who can really save you?

1.  Mooney, Alexander & Steinhauser, Paul.  CNN.com. "Dems get more bad news in Gallup poll".   September 1, 2010.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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