THERE IS A PLACE

As I watched this morning's Sermon on TV Ministry delivered, the word was a most inspired spiritual that hit home. I'm going through a medical situation concerning my health.

I keep it to myself, the rest awaits me. It will not disturb my sleep any longer.

"The Lord is taking me to a place where everybody can't go. A place where there is pain and sacrifice. There will be suffering on the way and a sacrifice will be made to get there."

I felt the spirit move in a way I never felt before. It is for me this I know for the Lord loves me, he will not see me go through the pain anymore. The sacrifice will let others know who is in control and all the prayers in the world can't change what is about to take place for the suffering will come to an end, it won't last forever. I do not need to go Looking for the Lord for the Lord comes to me.

Again, the Minister spoke these words;

"The Lord is taking me to a place where everybody can't go. A place where there is pain and sacrifice. There will be suffering on the way and a sacrifice will be made to get there."

He went on to say;

"Listen! Sometimes you need to shut up and just listen!"

And I'm not talking about it because it will never happen.

Across the Waters by Valerie Alston

ACROSS THE WATERS

The beauty within-- gave her a sense of value as she attracted all eyes of a nation so rare and bountiful as ours. She spoke elegantly to others as they embraced her smile that extended an invitation to all who glanced her way. Her colors of red so brilliant of fire that glow over the sea shore, stood for a woman who let everybody know she was in charge. The blue that represented how cool the waters can be, and she too could be calm and collected under the pressure of waters brought on by the rush of the sea. As peaceful as she so desired, she knew exactly how to put out the fire. The white that shined perfectly was pure awareness of her clean heart. And she was always ready to share her kindness to those who were willing to receive. It was and still is an outstanding event, a celebration for all to share. The blessing of a nation when the sparks that flare so true, hold evident that this a nation for all to enjoy when freedom rings. And who so ever discovered this land of ours, whom ever it may be, left us with a land of prosperity. For the red, white and blue represented a greatness to behold, and there is food for all to eat. And let the light shine upon us, let us not live with selfishness and greed. This land is plentiful with enough for all to feast, give thanks across the waters and far from the seas that we in this land of opportunity, as it may be, to this day forward, we call it Independence Day and the Lady Of Honor is America indeed.~  

Innocent Until Proven Guilty or Guilty By Association by Valerie Alston

Innocence was displayed by the beauty she portrayed. She was star-studded and fabulously frilly. Sometimes she would act a little silly. Her smile brought joy to many lonely people, and those seeking attention of a gorgeous and alluring woman. The experience she had in her line of work was of pure perfection which gave her a better sense of direction on her journey to solve the unsolved mysteries of today.

She was working as an "undercover" for the crime of a brother and played the role so well. She took him in as a very close friend. They wined and dined and she showed him love. He was unsuspecting of her motive behind this sudden love affair, which wasn't as real as he thought it to be. The clues weren't obvious at first, but as time went on it became crystal clear what she was searching for to prove the brother was being accused of a crime he didn't commit. The young brother had no idea of what to do as he fell in love with love itself, for he was not aware that this was all just a game, and she left him holding a bag full of shame. He was hurt and wanted her more but she became distant as he became demanding of her time. Yet she said "Go on fool, get on with your life, go out and find yourself a wife."

The physical attraction he had for her was strong but it began to fade as time went on until he felt the cold chill of the chemistry between the two of them. His thoughts of her were deep and sincere, he looked in the mirror and it was clear. He wasn't so dumb after all, it was just a game they played. She was looking for clues to a crime by him, one he'd proved he was innocent of. The fact that he wasn't actually falling in love that he was simply under her evil spell. The woman was only a fantasy of the influence of-- whatever made him feel like he did, or some kind of love potion enhanced by the mystical effects of something else. The love he felt was the love of self. He loved himself so much he desired to share his love with someone else and be loved in return. But as fate would have it-- it never happened that way.

Since the "undercover" woman found what she wanted to find about the young brother, the mystery was solved and she disappeared for awhile. It is believed she will return to the scene again.

HUMBLE OLD MAN By Valerie Alston

There once was an old man who slept on a bench in the park after dark.
This old man was a kind hearted soul who loved to see the children play all day long.
But when it was time for them to go home, this old man would hum a sad song.
"Dum-diddle diddle how humble I be. There is not much joy in the world for me."

Day after day he watched the children come and go, to leave him alone in his own home.
The winter came and the air was chilled, but not a change in his cheery heart
For all he lived to see in his world was happy children playful in the park.
"Dum-diddle diddle how humble I be. There is not much joy in the world for me."

The sunshine warmed him while sleeping on a park bench
One day he woke up to find the children had gone for the day.
He sat up, folded his blanket placed it where he lay.
"Dum-diddle diddle how humble I be. There is not much joy in the world for me."

Soon there were no more children in the park.
All the children went away and they never came back again to play.
The old man stayed on his park bench where he lay
And closed his eyes for another day.
"Dum-diddle diddle how humble I be. There is not much joy in the world for me."

In the light of the shining moon
He decided only too soon
That he should move on to another place
That may be somewhere away from the park
Where he wouldn't have to sleep in the dark.
"Dum-diddle diddle how humble I be. There is not much joy in the world for me."

Loud noise of traffic and fumes from another part of town
The sounds around him made it hard for him to get used to.
He sat on the sidewalk in front of a strange big bus
Where people passed by and began to fuss.
They cursed as they threw coins his way
Only hoping to make his day.
"Dum-diddle diddle how humble I be. There is not much joy in the world for me."

The old man just sat and watched the people pass by
Wondering why they would drop money on his hurting head.
But not knowing what to do
He hid the money in his shoe.
And days gone by he found an old hat, put it on his lap, not his head
Where people dropped the money instead.
"Dum-diddle diddle how humble I be. There may not be joy, but there's money for me."

A happy man came out of the store with lots of money in his hand
He shouted how he had won the lottery.
So that is where the old man went to buy a ticket just to see
What was this thing they called the lottery.
Without a doubt and nothing to fear
When the old man won he bought a beer.
"Dum diddle diddle how good for me. There is a place in this world for me."

He won again and this time it was big.
The attention he got was not what he wanted
The media and the camera in his face.
Along with that came a family he never knew that took him home to another place.
This was all so sad. It was all so wrong
And the old man began to sing his song...
"Dum-diddle diddle how humble I be. This is not the place for me."

And he was put out on the street when the money was gone.
There he sat on the curb with a whiskey bottle in his back pocket, singing his favorite song.
"Dum-diddle diddle how thankful I be. There is a world full of wonders for me to see."

The old man continued to watch the people pass by on the street
It was all he ever wanted in life to see.
The people walked by with their happy feet.
"Dum-diddle diddle life is sweet."

Two Weeks Ago by Valerie Alston

The man next door used to rise early in the morning for his walk around the circle in our apartment complex everyday. He was a retired soldier from the Vietnam War and everybody in the community knew him. He always spoke to everyone, stopped to talk to the people who lived there. When the sunset in the evening, there was a very young girl who lived up the hill who used to stop by to see him sometimes. He would give her money and she handed him something back. Since I worked most of the time, I was always on the go and never got to know this man personally. But as I'd come in from work, I only had time to shower, eat and sleep before reporting for my job on the graveyard shift again.

One day when I came home from work, a strange odor was in my apartment. I paid little attention to it. A week later, the smell got stronger and I thought it was outside. Again, I kept on going, not taking it as being a problem, maybe it was the sewer outside my window or coming from the drain pipes in the bathroom or the garbage disposal in the kitchen.

Two weeks went by and the scent got outrageously strong. At that point, it was coming through the walls into my apartment. Something decayed and rotten was floating around and I called the office of the property management to report a dreadful fowl odor somewhere in my apartment. Maintenance came to look but found nothing. I insisted they find out where this terrible odor was coming from since it was beginning to give me headaches. 

A few days passed. I was getting ready to leave for work, when I noticed the ambulance, two police cars and a grey hearst parked outside in front of the neighbor's door. After the ambulance left, the two police cars remained talking to some people, writing something down. The grey hearst was still there. Then I saw the Old man's body being brought out on a stretcher and placed inside the grey hearst. He  had died in his sleep and I believe his spirit was restlessly wandering around until I reported it. How could nobody know he was dead! Everybody in the community knew this man by name, except me, yet his spirit wandered over to my apartment to plead for help. I was so moved by the incident, I talked about it at work to a co-worker and she said, "I know his spirit must have been glad you helped and he probably thanked you for calling somebody, now he can go into the light and finally be able to rest in peace." 

A FAIRY TALE ROMANCE by Miss Mazique

Loved by every man who ever looked her way, the chemistry of her attraction  was so rare. They all felt she belonged to them in their midnight dreams. And to this, no other man shall ever really be with her to love for real.

Sweet Love touched her heart in the way she never felt love before. It was in the air that day when Prince Charming kissed her tender lips then held his hand out for her to step out of the carriage. She felt a heartbeat with the nearness of his broad chest, and it warmed her inside. She stepped so elegantly in her scrubby white tennis shoes and heather grey sweat pants while gazing into his deep set romantic eyes, he was the perfect gentleman.

The others watched with wide eyes, steam blowing out of their ears, the envy of her new romance sent flaming arrows into the air. Such intimacy had never been shared with any of them that way. Never, was she ever supposed to fall in love with a real man, only in her imagination, but this was really real, the way she began to feel, not just a walk on the clouds.

It would come to past that all the foggy grey dogs had left the bitterness of her lonely heart scorched and damaged, not loved at all. But her new love affair would fill in all the empty spaces, romance was there in all the hidden places.

Days gone by, turned to weeks while drifting sadly along, where was Prince Charming, where could he be, what had she done to make him not want to see her anymore. She gave her love where it didn't belong. She gave her heart to someone who couldn't love her back. Clinched hard to the hurt she began to feel, the pain was deep inside that brought her tears. Through darkness and despair she'd come to realize it was foolish to think he really cared.

So she decided to take the love back she gave to that charming actor who was by far the best gentleman she knew. It was just a fairy tale romance. The chance she'd taken to find true love, this was not meant to be for her. His Love was so sweet and gentle, he'd kissed her lips and the taste of sweetness remained long after. In the heat of his own passionate desires for her and all she let him receive sent her into ecstasy. But when she realized what is was and what it would be, made her feel it so deceiving of him to make her believe it was real. That's when she took control of her own heart, she took the love she gave to him, feeling it was all wrong, not all good.

He arrived on time that day, dressed in a very casual way. The charisma she felt coming from him as she took a seat inside his vehicle. The laughter was shared and it was all good.

She waited patiently for him to open her door where she stood strong forever more, and with a stern look in her eye, heart to heart she said good by. She walked away through the fog, the clouds full of rain poured down and washed away her pain. She walked through a sparkle of sunlight never even looking back. The chills had made her blood run cold, and numbed the pain forever more.
She decided it was best that way, for in her heart his love would stay.

SPIRITUAL POWER by Miss Mazique

The spirit moves in mysterious ways...
An evil spirit came to me the other night. It buzzed around my ear like a swarm of bees, a dark shadow drifted above my head, I called on Jesus to have mercy on me, for I rebuke the devil, I will not accept any bad omens that are sent my way, then the evil one moved swiftly out of the room, it vanished, and I felt safe. I am protected by the spirit of God which is good. I am blessed to have the powers of good in my favor, no evil shall overpower me, for the Angels always watch over me. I am aware that the evil spirit moves like a serpent. But I fear no evil for thou art with me. I may not have all the earthly possessions I so desire but I am blessed in other ways. Such strong will to hold deep seeded emotions of one's soul takes a toll of sacrifice in order to achieve that kind of security. Only one who had done all the Lord asked him to do would be graced by the almighty to receive his favor in all that is done. And one must do it willingly, without complaint, or resentment towards others for any short comings he feels he had to encounter. For all is fair in love not war, but only in the Kingdom of God ....  where all faith shall be put to the test, man is not to be judged by another man before he receives God's rewards, for there is no power greater than he who created everything on earth. ~