A Lady In The Making

Happy 2nd Birthday Jesalin

2012-02-06T00:17:00.003-05:00

My niece has turned two today. For those that remember my post on her know that she was born 1 pound and 5 ounces. She is a big girl and I am so thankful that she is alive and well. I am so proud to be her auntie. I pray that she will continue to grow into a beautiful lady that will love the Lord. I love this little girl so much, she is my love. Below are some pictures:

WOW! It's Been So Long....

2012-02-03T13:35:00.001-05:00

I can't believe I have taken this long to write a new blog post. So much has happen since I written my last post. To catch you all up to whats new in my life, I will write a list of things below:

1) I was inducted into the National Honor Society
2) I graduated and received a Bachelors in Social Work
3) I applied to University of Maryland, Temple University and Morgan State University. I am now waiting to see what school I will be accepted into.

I am happy to be a graduate and I am excited to what is next in my life. Though I hate waiting at times, I will trust God as He leads and direct my steps. I hope that my readers will keep me in prayer about school and possible moving to a new State. I am too exited and I will let you all now what schools I got accepted into. Also, will try my best to update my blog with new post.

Hope everyone has a great weekend and will use this week to check out blogs and leave comments.

P4CM Presents Ready or Not by Featured RHETORIC Poets Ezekiel & Janette....

2011-11-13T22:02:00.000-05:00

Can sin be managed?

2011-10-04T13:27:00.001-04:00

Maybe your power to defeat sin looks like this:

"Sin...confess..do better for a while, then sin again.Embarrassment, confess again, ask God to take away the desire, then sin again, confess again, sin again, confess again, shock, more determination to stop sinning, think about it a lot, examine it. Make promises, create some boundaries, sin again, now even worse than before. Despair, anger, shame, distance from God, guilt. self-condemnation, Self-loathing....sin again. Disillusionment, doubt, self-pity, resentment at God: Why doesn't he hear my prayers? Why doesn't he do something? More anger. The fear that we allow ourselves to get angry with God. Then real confession, heartfelt one, and a sense of cleansing. Ah, a new start. Things seem better. Yeah, I've finally got this sin under control. Oops, sin again..." -TrueFaced by Thrall, McNicol, Lynch

Question to you all:

Is it by your own power to defeat sin daily?

"180" Movie

2011-09-28T07:26:00.005-04:00

Worth a watch. Amazing video

What did you think?

Deeper Life Series

2011-09-27T19:39:00.001-04:00

Taken by me. Fall 2010

Every Fall semester, my college has what they call "Deeper Life Series." A speaker comes in and preach on a particular topic.Charles O. Galbreath is from a Brooklyn, NY church and he talk about fear. I feel like "fear" and "anxiety" were my best friends or should I say my worst enemies? I would let worries and thoughts fill my head of "what ifs" or "this will never work out". At time I could feel my heart pounding as I thought on "things" like not being good enough for a job, getting through another semester, an exam, or my grades, sickness in my family. I could go on forever, I had a lot on my mind that could go wrong or has gone wrong in my life. Every time and I mean every time, I worry I had an headache that I could not get rid of.

I do feel as Christians or people in general, when we continue through life, we start to change if allow "transformation" to take place. I have notice in my life that a lot has change within myself. I don't allow fear to control me. I honesty think, I fear and worry because I wanted to badly to know the future and because I did not know the "ending" of how I would get out of a situation, I over exaggerate. When I let control take over, I quickly forget the God I serve, the God that saved me. My God is able, powerful and there is none life Him. I don't have to worry or fear the future or the situation I am in.

Bible Verse:

fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

(Isaiah 41:10 ESV)

Question

2011-09-23T08:23:00.000-04:00

“Are we in love with God or just His stuff?” Francis Chan

Violence In My Hood...

2011-09-22T19:30:00.000-04:00

Over the summer, during my internship I learned a lot about violence and the injustice of the "system."

I am thinking of a statement I heard in Boyz in the Hood , "I saw on TV about violence overseas but in my hood there is violence. My brother got shot yesterday and it will never make the news" Either they don't know, don't show, or don't care about what's going on in the hood. They had all this foreign sh*t. They didn't have sh*t on my brother, man. (sorry for the curse words, for those that are offended).

I was also thinking of when Christians decide to go oversea to tell of the Good News of our Savior Jesus Christ. I see nothing wrong with that, I just pray and hope we don't neglect the poor and violent neighborhoods that are in America.

I think of communities that are look down upon because of the way they look from the outside. They are run down, poor people, drunk people, people that do drugs etc. I heard from a staff member over the summer about a town we stayed in that someone said that a bulldozer should come through the community. Sad thing to say when there are people living there. Also said that someone thought that was a solution for the community.

It is true, that there are some communities that wear their brokenness, on the outside while other communities keep their brokenness on the inside. Because a community is rich and upscale does not mean that there is no drug dealing, spouses cheating and abuse toward family members, people that get drunk. It is sad to me that we are so quick to judge a town and because of the violence that occurs daily, we choose to not enter a relationship with the the people that live there. We are so quick to start the conversation with "repent or go to hell." I do believe there is a better way to show the love of God. Relationship is important and when those that are not "saved" see a difference based on our actions they might begin to want to know who God is.

My prayer for Christians is that we not neglect poor communities in America. Just like the people overseas, there are people in America that need to know about Christ and His love for all people no matter what they done or how they live. In the poor communities people are trying to live. For them there community might be a "war zone" as they deal with hearing gun shots, children getting killed, women rape and so much more. Pray that as Christians we don't neglect communties that are poor.

Beautifully Made - Leah Smith

2011-09-13T20:43:00.001-04:00

Hope this song encourage you.

Keep It Short: Six Word Memiors

2011-09-10T11:02:00.001-04:00

Live for something, don't waste life.

Taken by me in Fall 09

Quote

2011-09-10T01:17:00.000-04:00

"The only things we can keep are the things we freely give to God." C.S. Lewis

End of the Week Thoughts!

2011-09-09T11:35:00.000-04:00

The first week of college is over. I have many thoughts running through my mind about this semester.

I think during this semester, I will have less stress then my previous years in college. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays are my free days. Most of my classes are either on Monday and Wednesday. I don't work weekends, which gives me even more time to do homework. But I am excited about finishing the last of my social work classes. I am taking Policy, Statics II, Social Work in Christian and Leadership and Development class.

I have to say, I LOVE my room. It is big and I have a ceiling fan. Only thing that is different from my previous dorm, is I don't have the view of the river. Which can look like this in the morning:

I am excited because soon I will be applying to grad school. I have chosen University of Maryland, in Baltimore, Temple University, Morgan State, and Clark Atlanta. I do know I want to move to Maryland, so I am hoping to get into a school in MD. Only time will tell. I am not worry to much because I have a very good GPA, especially good in-house GPA.

Since I was a Freshmen, I have always had a TV show I would watch on my computer. I watch the seasons of Monk, Lost, My Wife and Kids, Family Matters, The Office, and A Different World. I need to find a show that I can watch for the rest of this semester. I have been using Hulu.com to find shows to watch.

Can anyone suggest a TV show I can watch online?

Random Picture

2011-09-08T09:00:00.000-04:00

My Lovely Niece. She is now 1 years old. She is such a sweetie pie.

Back At College

2011-09-06T10:34:00.000-04:00

Yay I am happy to be back at college. I moved in yesterday and I am excited because this will be the last semester. Classes start on Wednesday and I can't wait to see how the classes will be. I am praying that I will do well in all my studies. I have A LOT of free time and I need to make sure I am on top of everything and not be lazy. I think I will spend most of my time in the library doing homework to make sure I am not distracted and fall asleep on my bed. Three of my classes are social work subjects and one is a leadership and development class. Sometimes social work classes can be intense but I hope I will still have fun learning. Another thing I will be starting, is my Grad School applications to receive my Masters. I know I will not be entering Grad School until the Summer of 2012 but I am already excited about a new direction in my life. I also started work in the cafe and it was great. My colleagues were awesome and very helpful. I think this job will be great and help me save money for a car.

Check Out My Room:

Update: After Hurricane Irene

2011-08-30T13:30:00.000-04:00

Hurricane Irene has long pass New York. There were flooding and rescuing in our town. Our power was off for two days and I am happy the power is back on. Thanks for your prayers.

I will be back to write once I move on campus next Monday. I am excited that I will entering my last semester. I hope this semester will be a great one. I also thank God that I got a campus job and I don't have to travel far to work.

Random Picture

2011-08-28T00:00:00.006-04:00

I took this picture in San Francisco, California in the Summer of 2010. I decided to edit first in black and white and next with the color on the children faces.

Hurricane Irene

2011-08-27T00:00:00.004-04:00

As I write this, Hurricane Irene is heading up the coast. Soon it will be in NY and I really don't know what will be the end result of this storm but I am praying for everyone. Praying for my town and family. Weeks ago a tornado hit my town, it knock down many trees and there was damage but no one was hurt. I am sure we will have flooding but, how much? I am not sure. I am asking that we keep everyone in prayer.

Keep It Short: Six Word Memoirs

2011-08-26T00:00:00.001-04:00

God is my peace and joy.

Bible Verse

2011-08-25T00:00:00.001-04:00

There are two Bible verses that have encourage me this Summer. I decided to edit my own pictures and put the verses on them. I hope these verses encourage you just like they encourage me.

(Still learning how to use picnik, with practice I will get better_

Facebook? The New Find my Lost Loved One Search Engine.

2011-08-24T00:24:00.000-04:00

Facebook has more than 750 million active members and average person has 130 friends. With all those people I am sure that someone could find a lost loved one. Well, I am one of those people that have seen the benefits of Facebook. I am very thankful to I have reconnected with my younger sister and older brother. It is amazing, they found me on Facebook. It was after my father passed away when I was eight that I lost contact with my brother and sister. They are well and doing great things in their life. In total I have two sisters and three brothers. It feels great to know where all my brothers and sisters live. I can't wait for the moment in which I get to see them in person. I am very thankful that I can start to build a relationship with my siblings. I know my father would want that.

Grad School is what is on my MIND

2011-08-23T00:05:00.000-04:00

Less then two weeks I will be entering my last semester in college. How I feel? I am excited, nervous, and again EXCITED! I can't believe how fast school went and I mean it went fast. There were good and bad days. Times I did not know if I would be able to come by but the God provided. I am happy about the finish line of being a social work grad. I will be the first in my family to graduate and get a bachelors. Soon I will be applying to grad school, like next month since some of the applications are due in the Fall and early Spring. I am super excited and nervous. I know that I should not be nervous because my GPA is great! Grad school is for one year and I am going for it. I am not going to wait. I have chosen four schools that have really interest me. I know that I want to be a clinical social worker, working with children and families.

Keep in your prayers as I will have to make many decisions on what to do next.

Piece from my Journal

2011-08-22T15:07:00.002-04:00

From time to time, I post my journal prayers to God on my blog. I would love to share what I was experiencing during my internship from the Summer. It was a challenging and great learning experience that I will never forget.

Dated, 6-25-2011

Abba, this week has been so great. Challenging but great. Being here in Aliquippa, has changed my thoughts about life. Change my worldview of life...I absolutely love it here, love what your doing here. It amazes me and I want to be apart of it. Apart of Your story. A story that uplifts, redeems, convicts and brings joy all at the same time. I know that I am a person who is not worthy but I want to be used by You. I want to follow you and forsake myself. I learned about prayer. Prayer should be a apart of every Christians life. I pray that my life would encompass prayer. That it would be a place, I confess, bring praises and thanks to Your Name....Forever to seek Your Name and peace. Amen"

Random Picture

2011-08-21T00:02:00.004-04:00

This is Me! I was at my grandmother's house in NY. When I was younger I lived in Kansas City Missouri but I love NY and visiting my grandmother.

"I will wait for you" by Official P4CM Poet JANETTE...IKZ

2011-08-20T00:00:00.001-04:00

Your Too Small for That!

2011-08-19T13:31:00.000-04:00

At first sight, many would say I am too small for that. In referencing to "that," I mean to be a future social worker, working with children in a urban community, children that some might say are too aggressive for me, or working in dangerous side of town.Yes, I am very small, can fit in a size 0 and yes my voice is soft and I don't look 23 but younger. I have been told my whole life that I would never make it in college as a social work major, and even by some family members who think urban children are too hard for me to work with them. Truth is, there might be "hard people" I will have to work with as a social worker. Being a social work in my undergrad years, I have work in a Spanish urban community and this summer work in a Black urban community. I have worked with parents who I never thought would listen to me because of the way I looked but has shown me respect and listen to my advice that could help them.

I think of David when his family thought he was too small to kill Goliath. But when he step up in front of Goliath, He said:

“You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 1 Samuel 17:45.

That day there was a victory and young David defeated the giant.

I know that I am small and look too young but I know that I am able to do all things. I know if God called me to work with a community that people would call dangerous, He will be with me. I have nothing to fear for my God is near and has prepare me to work with people in a urban community. If I let fear take over me then I will not be able to help people that can be over look because they are too "dangerous." I pray that you would not let what others say you can't do, control who you are. I know that I serve a mighty God and in Him all things are possible.