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“Then you’re never leaving,” he said and kissed me.

Morris

“Daddy, can we sit next to our cousins?” Fee asked as soon as we walked into the church.

God Unchanged Churchwas my mother’s church. The church was honoring her for her birthday and she wanted all of her family in attendance. Despite the shenanigans of the day before, I decided to honor my word and still attend the church service.

“Can we, Daddy? They are right over there,” Skye pointed.

Cam had found Skye a purple floral dress that she matched with black patent leather shoes. Fee wore a blue floral dress that was similar to Skye’s. She wore white shoes with her dress. Cam adorned their hair with ribbons to match their dresses. They looked like two little angels.

I looked in the direction of her finger and saw my little nieces sitting next to their mother and father. The last thing I wanted to do was sit next to my brother, but I would do it for the girls.

I held on to Skye’s hand while Cam held on to Fee’s and navigated through the people to get to the row my brother and Karleen were sitting in.

“Good morning,” I said as I stepped to the side to let the girls enter then Cam.

Karlos nodded while Karleen stood to give me a hug. I made my way around speaking to all my siblings before the service began.

Karleen and Cam sat between Karlos and me, giving them the chance to continue to chat like old friends. My other siblings and family members filled the rows behind and in front of us. My mother sat on the front row with her husband Clarence, who was the head deacon of the church.

“You look beautiful,” I whispered in Cam’s ear.

She wore a royal blue dress that stopped mid-calf and a pair of red heels that caused her calves to flex when she walked.

“Thank you, handsome,” she replied with a wink.

Church started, and we stood, prayed, and sang when told to do so. After the offering was collected, Reverend Tillman stood to greet the church.

“We are so excited to have all of you here worshiping with us today. Both my wife and I pray that this experience will leave you full and ready to take on the week ahead. Most of you here know me, but for those of you who don’t, I was born and raised here in St. Louis by a single mother in thePruitt Igoehousing development. We now refer to them simply as the projects. There were a lot of projects here, butPruitt Igoewas the most infamous.

My father came and went in our lives. I probably saw him about four weeks out of the year, max. My mother worked hard cooking in the school cafeteria during the day and cleaning offices in the evening. I was diagnosed with a mild learning disability when I was in kindergarten and had a speech impediment, so I didn’t speak much. I stuttered to the point of making people around me uncomfortable. Have you ever been around someone who stutters? You’re constantly trying to jump in to help them out when they get stuck on a word.

Momma took me to church every Sunday. I would go to Sunday school and she would go to the adult bible class. One day, the Sunday school teacher went around the small classroom and asked us all what we wanted to be. He got the typical answers from the kids; some wanted to be doctors, teachers, and firefighters. It was my turn, so I stood from my seat so everyone could hear. See, I’d thought long and hard about what I wanted to be. I proudly said I want to be a puh…puh…puh… I got stuck like I usually did. After several starts and stops, I finally pushed out, pastor!”

The audience laughed.

“Right, it’s funny that this poor kid from the projects with a mother who never graduated from high school and a father who didn’t care, who was socially awkward and to top it all had a severe speech impediment wanted to be a pastor? Please!” he threw his hand into the air. “The Sunday school teacher said, well…okay… and moved to the next student. After Sunday school, that teacher pulled me to the side, and he said, if God had called you to preach, then it doesn’t matter where you come from or what people think of you, you pursue it. So, I did.

In St. John one, forty-five through forty-six, Jesus was appointing the disciples that would walk with him during his ministry on earth. Philip found Nathanael and said we have found the one Moses wrote about, his name is Jesus, and he’s from Nazareth. Nathanael responded, can anything from Nazareth be good? See Nazareth was a small, insignificant village.

Jesus’ town, profession, and even his appearance were all basic. He didn’t come from the wealthiest family, nor did he grow up as Jesus the Savior. He grew up, all the way into his thirties as just an insignificant man from an irrelevant place.

I grew up, an insignificant man from an irrelevant place, but God had something great for me to accomplish. I want to encourage you all to know that your beginnings, your impediments, and your shortcomings don’t dictate the greatness that is inside of you! The Bible is filled with stories of people with insignificant beginnings who made a significant impact on the world. That is you! Look at your Neighbor and say, Neighbor, that’s you.”

We repeated what he said.

“Jesus came from a lineage that consisted of a murderer, a thief, and a prostitute, to name a few. He still is Yeshua, the Almighty God, the one who died and rose again for the sins of man. So, rejoice in knowing that the past is the past. You have greatness in you, and it will manifest in due season!”

He continued with his message, finding other stories of people who had shortcomings but still made huge impacts. It was a great sermon. I listened to the rest of the message and even took notes on my phone. I enjoyed the way he used biblical principles to explain real-life situations. His sermon reminded me of some of the conversations I’d had with JD.

After he finished his sermon, he said, “Today, I want to recognize one of my wife’s and I dearest friends and one of the most faithful members of this church, Sister Pearline Winthrop. Sister Pearline has been with us for at least ten years and has made such a positive impact on this ministry. Today is her birthday and I want her to come up and have a few words.”

Mother looked regal in her champagne colored suit with a black lace overlay on the skirt. Her champagne and black hat and champagne heels finished the outfit. She stood behind the podium and smiled before she spoke.

“My birthday holds a triple meaning for me. I was born on this day, of course, but I was also born again on my birthday when I accepted Christ into my life. Also, on my birthday, I stopped abusing drugs and alcohol. My birthday is special to me and I am so glad that I can share it with all of you. This has been, hands down, one of my best birthdays. Today at church with me, I have all ten of my biological children, their significant others who are also my children. I also have all of my grandchildren. When I was in the streets, I never thought I would have a day like this. I anticipated death, but God had other plans for me. I am so grateful. To my children, my biological ten, and the ones I have gained or am gaining along the way, I love you. You make me proud every single day of my life. I hope that my life makes you proud as well. This entire weekend I’ve been humming that song by Todd Galberth,‘Lord You Are Good.’”

She started singing the song, and the congregation joined in with her. She cried and waved her hands as her tears soaked her face, and everyone sang along. The song ended, and everyone stood to clap for her.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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