Still Going

Phil. 1: 6 - being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;'

24 years ago, it was a Friday, in the Summer time...just like any other Summer day. I pretty much had my day planned - I was gonna get with my man Tyrone and we were gonna go hit up the mall,La smoke the half ounce from the night before, and then take it to the court. There were some brothers talking major trash the last weekend, and I was determined to dunk on one of them and shut them all up!!

For some reason, things just didn't go the way I thought they would...it was really wild...I mean, I hooked up with my boy Tyrone and what not, but for some reason, we never made it to the mall...man, we always went to the mall, money or no money na' mean?  Whatever, so we just chilled at his house watching television. I was cracking up so hard because he and his mom would go back and forth! She would yell at him to do something, and he would yell back, sometimes even cuss!!  That tripped me out, because if you ever cuss your mom out, (Especially a Black one), you are digging your own grave!!  Nothing would ever happen, so I would just laugh until my stomach hurts!

Later that afternoon, we walked over to my house to pick up the Basketball, and I had some fresh goggles my mom got for me to play basketball! I was so jacked for my Junior year to start at Killeen HS - I knew that I would make the Varsity Team and wreck!!  I wanted to try them out on the courts before school started, so we scooped em' up and headed over to these apartments behind the High School. This court had everything we needed...it had goals with chain nets...sweet!  It was a full court basketball court, but it wasn't really long; it was short enough to run full court games fast enough to keep games going at a quick rate.

We got there around 545, and yo, everybody and dey Mama was there!!  Me and Tyrone ran next, and didn't get off the court until almost 8 o'clock!  We owned them boys that day!!  My wrist hurt so much from rim - rocking!!  I was dunking on any and everyone who stood in my way - Tyrone set me up with oops and dimes all day!! Anyways, we left the courts and headed to Mickey's, (It was THE convenient store that everyone went to in Killeen); we both got Slur-pees and we headed to his house. I remember this fine girl I was trying to get with and Tyrone told me that not only was she down, but she smoked too...man, we was on a mission for real!

For some strange reason, something told me to cut through Long Branch Park...I don't know why? We always walked down Rancier and cut over by Westcliffe, but we went through the park anyway...why not right?  As we rolled up on the park, we were walking in the direction of the swimming pool, and we heard this music playing - we thought someone was bumping music from their car, but as we got closer, we noticed a small group of people playing live music! I was like what??!!  However, we noticed that no crowd was rocking with them, so me and Tyrone started cracking jokes, like, 'Man they must be terrible!' Where's the crowd!!??

We walked right up to the parking lot where they were and I recognized this guy from my school - I was like, 'O snap!' I've seen this dude before!  He substituted my Algebra class before, (James Dunham was his name), and before I knew it, he was headed straight for me...this white guy was with him, and they recognized Tyrone!  It's like they didn't even notice I was there and begin to talk with Ty...they asked him these weird questions like, 'Tyrone, where have you been man?' 'Have you thought anymore about what we told you about....JESUS?'

At that moment, I was like, 'Aw he-- naw!' This is a religious thing going on here, why didn't Ty tell me what this was all about? Man, I can't just burn off and leave him there...maybe if I stand here until they're done, we can roll...but the longer they spoke to him, I realized that God was speaking to me! Man, I began to remember all of the things that I've ever done to hurt Him...I felt like crap! I was convicted to the bone...

By the time they were finished, we were walking away when the guy I recognized asked me, 'Son, don't you know that if you were to die in your sins, that heaven would NOT be your home?' I thought to myself, 'Yeah, but what can I do about it?'  He pulled a little Gideon bible out of his back pocket and literally took me through the Roman Road!!  By this time, I was really feeling it...and he and the white guy (Wayne Nickerson), asked if they could pray for me and Tyrone...I said yeah...so they did.

Before we left, he asked me probably one of the greatest questions I ever had the privilege of answering, he said, 'Son, would you like to give your life to JESUS?' I said YES!!  We prayed right there in the parking lot:  "Lord Jesus, I come before you right now, Lord I know that I'm a sinner, but I believe You died on the cross for me; I am willing, to accept You inside my heart - Lord, 
forgive me of my sin, and be the Lord of my life, in Jesus' name, amen!"

I felt like a million bucks after that! It's like a huge weight was lifted from me! I begin to witness to Tyrone and I didn't even know it! I was like, 'Man, you should've prayed with me bro!' They were kind enough to give us a ride home, when I got home, I ran into the house, saw my moms in the kitchen and shouted, 'Ma, you won't believe it, but I just got saved! I gave my life to Jesus tonight!!  The rest....is History...

- July 27, 1990 to Present

Pool of Destiny

John 5: 1-4

After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda,[a] having five porches. 3 In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water. 4 For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had

Acts 6:1-3

6 Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. 2 Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. 3 Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business;

In Acts, the bible records the movement of the first church...we pick up here where the disciples were multiplying and going at such a fast rate, people began to be neglected...I thought about this. It's possible to be so caught up in spirituality, you have no time to meet ordinary needs for people.

Acts 10: 38 - '...how God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil...'

This text states that Jesus did good to people who were oppressed by the devil, not possessed, oppressed!  Listen, financial upheaval is oppressive. Marital conflict, mental illness, depression, and sickness can go in the category of Oppression...Jesus went about ministering small and menial acts of service.

The type of man God was looking for in Acts was one of good reputation (Testimony); Being filled with the Holy Ghost, and having wisdom...this speaks of having some business sense...there are qualities that must be found in the Man of God if he is to fulfill what God has for his life.

You can have desire, some small skills, ability, and even talent; but without these simple qualities at work in your life - you'll go NO FURTHER!

So why did I choose the text of John 5? What is that all about?  Well, look at the text...it says that there was a pool that contained a healing element by the stirring of the water from angels. The first person to step into the pool would be healed of whatever sickness they had.

Listen to me, YOU AND I ARE THAT POOL! We are the swirling disciples that are constantly contending for ministry! I should be able to walk into any church, and spot disciples right away! If that pool stops flowing, we're all dead.

The church of Sardis knew this the hard way; Jesus had to deal with. Jesus said in Revelation - 'I know your works, that you have a name; you're alive but you're DEAD. This is the direct result of not knowing who you're dealing with.

There must be a stirring in the midst of the local church where the sick (spiritually). I have a question: Are you one of those who are in the pool? Can you be stirred by the Holy Spirit.