The Upgrade Experience

WHERE in the world has the last month gone????  I mean, honestly...  I have been SO far away from reality that I've lost concept of time...  Days have turns into weeks & weeks into a cool month... That is NOT what's hot... But guess what??? I'm gonna keep it 100 on ALL levels because at the end of the day, a saint is just a sinner who fell down... And BOY, did I fall... HARD... On December 18th of last year, I had a life-changing experince that prompted me to make some changes in my life.  When I made the decision to make these changes, I knew that I had to go all in... I mean, ALL OR NOTHING.  It's amazing how easy it was for me to give things up that I had indulged in for so long.  Kush didn't smell NEARLY as good as it used to... (I told ya'll - 100... No-judgement zone) The taste of Hennessey started 2 make my stomach turn... I'd rather listen to Hezekiah Walker over Lil Wayne in a heartbeat... My infamous "sailor-mouth" turned into a &qu

It's that time of year again, folks... Yep... St. Valentine's Day is in our face in FULL effect. All around the world, people are preparing to commemorate the celebration of love and affection between one another.  Every year, we find ourselves trying to do things a little bigger & better than the year before.... A few more flowers, shinier jewels, extravagant date nights & planned surprises... Awwwwwwww... How precious! You'd think so, huh??? The fact of the matter is that buy the end of the day, a million break-ups will have taken place, hundreds of husbands will have been cursed out, and a-whole-lota feelings are going to be hurt. Why?!?!?! GREAT EXPECTIONS... They'll do it to you EVERY TIME... Valentine's Day puts people in this "fantasy" world where anything is possible. We think to ourselves, "If my mate isn't all that romantic on a regular day, then SURELY they'll pull out all the stops for this special day." Ummph... S

"We fall down, but we get up...  We fall down, but we get up...  We fall down, but we get up...  For a saint is just a sinner who fell down & got up..." Most of you reading this are familiar with these lyrics from "We Fall Down" by Donnie McClurkin.  If you're not, I suggest that you become familiar with them, as well as with the TRUTH behind them.  Some of us are flat-foot sprawled out RIGHT now, but it's okay... You can get back up! Sin & temptation surround us everyday, at almost every moment.  Now there are some of us who are a little better at handling temptation than others.  I have my days when I'm on FIRE with urgency to walk in the Word, fueled by a desire to make every move one that's pleasing to God.  Then there are others days when my walk falters just a tad and before I know it, I've allowed myself to become susceptible to satan & his foolish minions. We have the power of free will, folks. I'm just sayin'

"Only God can judge me..."  FAMOUS words out of the mouth of 2Pac... And probably out of yours & mine a time or two.  But just as easily as we uttered those words, did we realize that the same principle applies to the next person??? I would not DARE type these words to you & FRONT as if I haven't passed my dishes of judgement over the years...  Oooooooh, LORD!!!!! When I just sit here & think of some of the conversations I've had over the years pertaining to other folks & THEIR business, served with a side-dish of BIASED OPINION, I just cringe.  Let's keep it all-tha-way 100, folks... I'm SURE you've browsed through a Facebook album, seen a picture of somebody in a mini-skirt leaned ALL over a table in Elevations or the likes & said, "Now, DATS a hoe..."  Maybe you've HEARD something through the grapevine about someone you BARELY know, but fixed your mouth to talk about what these folks have going on in their lives... Ha

Look here... If I see ONE more young lady  girl between the ages of 12 and 15 with a fresh LACEFRONT, I'm going to  lose it... I'm sure of it... Another 7 year-old with acrylics JUST might send me over the edge... Is this the generation that will be making decisions concerning my healthcare? Is the fate of my old-age going to rest in the hands of these "boppas"?!?!?! Now, I know that back in my Central High School days, I participated in QUITE a bit of ratchetivity. I won't even lie like I didn't do my share of underage drinking or smoke a few blunts here & there... (I told ya'll, I have to keep it 100 during this experience... LOL) I can't even count the number of days that I skipped school and went to Denny's.  Football Friday nights were DESTINED to be filled with drunken slurs, minor fender benders, & cringe-worthy hook-ups... I was FAR from a saint.  The "New Breed", however, takes it to a-whole-nother level... Yowzers..

"Keepin' up with the Joneses"... How long has that expression been alive & kickin'??? It's about time to kill it and bury it because that VERY mentality is hindering a MANY folk from upgrading... Now, I may not have been trying to keep up with the Joneses, but you'd better believe that I've tried to keep up with SOMEBODY.  Let's be honest... We ALL have... LOL... It's alright, boo... This is a "judgement free" zone.  For many of us, trying to keep up with those folks has landed us in hot water with creditors, receiving over-draft notices in the mail, or pacing the floor wondering HOW we were gonna make that next payment. FOR WHAT?!?!?!?! All for the pursuit of the good life or for what we perceive to be the good life. I heard in church this morning that "we have the best life"...  How true, indeed!!! Take a moment RIGHT now and look around you.  Look... look... LOOK... Whether you're sitting in a 2 bedroom apartment

The fact that you are even reading this speaks VOLUMES to me...  See, I have alot to say... I always have, even when I didn't really know what I SHOULD be saying... Many times, we talk about STUFF, but that stuff has no substance...  I think that I just may have found some substance, ya'll... I am NOT perfect.  I've never thought that I was & I've come to accept that I never will be... I'm perfectly imperfect ... However, I have spent MANY years of my young adult life striving to present the image of perfection...  I mean, c'mon ya'll... It is just an image at the end of the day... This "quest" for perfection has taken me down some winding, sometimes drastically dark roads. But, without that quest I wouldn't have the testimony that I have today. My voice could very well be your voice... Maybe it's your sister's voice... A cousin... An old college roomate or the chick next door.  I've gone though so many monemts of my like