Son-shine on Your Shoulders

Good Son-Day!!!  Rockin' Robins are Singing Outside Our Bedroom Window! A Spring Burst of Color  Love for the Least Last week, the topic covered giving and volunteering.  They are attributes cherished by God.  Before I move forward, I just want to mention as men of God we sometimes miss the mark.  What has gone viral on the Net in recent days is Marvin Sapp's directive to church ushers to close sanctuary exits to parishioners during the offering to collect $40K.  The optics of this entire video of the event were not good. He has rightfully received plenty of backlash.  Actions like this reflect terribly on pastors who are doing right by God.  More importantly, it can cause a person to fall.  Something no pastor in their right faith would want to see happen.  Last week, I referenced the scripture.   Matthew 10:8:  "Freely you have received;  freely give ." The passage fully speaks for itself.  "Nuff said!" Now, th...

Good Son-day Morning!!! enjoying 70's Nothing But Good News here. Hanging with My Axe'd Freely You Have Received, Freely Give Many economists are predicting a recession is in the making.  Quick lesson, a recession is defined as two straight quarters of negative value of goods and services produced in the USA (GDP, Gross Domestic Product). Other indicators like employment rates, business investment, and consumer spending also are considered.  A recession causes hardships for almost everyone, especially those whose income is below the Federal Poverty Level (for an individual, $967/month, and a couple, $1,450/month). During the holidays, the public has a more heightened sense towards the needs of impoverished people.  For the other 10 months of the year, less so.  There is a serious struggle for food shelves, clothing resources, and shelters to meet the demands of impoverished people.  I have seen this in my visits to the many community resources in the metro...

Good Son-day Morning!!!  Spring Ahead Nothing But Good News here. Dating Jo In The Spring Pescatarian Paradise Wednesday was the start of Lent.  The word is Latin for "Spring Season".  It runs from Ash Wednesday (March 5) to Holy Saturday (April 19), which is the day before Easter.  For Catholics and Lutherans, Lent is a period meant for fasting and penance (actions done to show repentance for wrongdoings . . . apologizing, healing transgressions, and fasting).   What you're doing during Lent is emulating Christ's obedience and sacrifice. It serves as a time for Christians to prepare for Easter, focusing on prayer, reflection, and spiritual growth. A penance tradition during Lent is to limit meat-eating to six days per week. On Fridays, no meat is eaten. Why? Christ sacrificed His life on a Friday. Thus, we should sacrifice meat on a Friday. This includes animals with hooves, aka ungulates (e.g., pigs and cows), and our friends with feathers....

Happy Son-Day!!!    We are closer to the official first day of Spring  and it's Banana Cream Pie Day There is always good news here Parker's Pikes What Stokes Your Divine Passion? Following the theme from last week about refreshment, invigoration, and new life, I want to remind everyone that the most favorite time of the year starts on  March 5, 2025. The Roman Catholic day of repentance, marked by receiving ashes on one's forehead aka Ash Wednesday. This day also is the first day of the Lent season, a 40-day period of fasting and prayer leading up to Easter Sunday (Sunday, April 20). The ash signifies our humble origin . . .  Genesis 2:7, God formed man from the dust of the ground.   The ash is substitute for dust.  The ashes represent mortality, penance, and repentance for sins.  The sign of the cross with ashes on the forehead is supposed to remind believers of their humble creation from dust and their need for God's forgiveness. Lastly, i...