Stripper Pole to the Gates of Heaven

My husband brought this to my attention
and I was speechless!!!

It is rare when Radical RevLa is left speechless! I mean in my 61 years of life I've always seemed to have something to say. So when my husband showed me this video on You Tube about this female preacher I was at a lost for words. First of all it was difficult for me to pay attention to what she was saying because she had her nipples showing. You can't see it in this picture (thank you Lord!) but as she was giving the word about the wickedness of the tongue all I could think about is why is she showing her breast. It was not the cleavage that bothered me but the fact that each nipple was showing.

In this picture her hands are hiding the nipples but when you see it without her hands covering then all you see is both nipples looking at you from both sides. The real catcher is that her word was good. When you didn't look at her and listened to what she was saying you learned a real word of God. This shocked me because she didn't have to show her nipples for attention. God's word is enough by itself.

As a female preacher and a black lady of God its bad enough that the clergy does not want to give us respect. As a black woman so many people are putting us down. Its up to us to maintain the image of the great queens that our ancestors came from. The black woman has it bad enough then to have this woman who states she came from the stripper pole and now has her ministry to sit and give an entire sermon with her breast showing.

This type of action soils the Word of God. What she was saying was what was needed to be said but her presentation took away from anything that was good. I'm not one who gets on a person for dressing the way that they choose to. I have a unique sense of style and have had different female preachers voice their opinion on it. Those ladies felt that I should be preaching in a robe or white stiff collar and black funeral suit. I chose to wear my vintage style dress and hat and look like the lady that I am. However no matter what I wore the outfit was decent and in order.

Nothing was hanging out. I could represent Christ as one called to do the work of Kingdom building without feeling ashamed. What I see from this lady is that she has a real word that can help people. She has a platform that will show other ladies that God can still use them even if they were once in the sex trade. This is a good word but when she sat there taping with her nipples showing it made her word a joke. What really gets to me is the fact that whoever the camera person was could they have told her that her nipples were exposed?

I don't get it. People are talking and gossiping about her in a negative way. The story that my husband was watching was a man who has nothing nice to say about the black woman. He used this story as an example to further his cause of making the black woman feel less than a human in the eyes of the black man. I had to write this because these are some sensitive times and we don't need our own sisters making it worse with tomfoolery.

To end this I just have to say dear sister of the stripper pole church. Stop the foolishness and preach the word. You do have a calling on your head do what the Lord wants you to do in a way that will honor him and yourself. I don't want to see your breast. You left that life where you showed them to everyone. Now show us something else. I did love the sermon once I could stop seeing the image of you and just listened to your voice. Remember you are the daughter of a king and the child of the King of Glory carry yourself in that manner.

As a black woman I like who I am. As a child of God I love who I am. Rise up to the level that you were meant to be and leave the foolishness to the fools. And one more thing dear preacher with the nipples: You won the shut the mouth of Radical RevLa award for a life time! And as always you gotta love me...no really you do!!! 

Radical RevLa: The Year of the Black Woman

God give me the strength to do the things that I must and to ignore those
who are trying to knock me down

You would think with this month being black history month that I wouldn't get flack when I announced on our Christian Social Network  "Feeling God" (ok we pause for a commercial break...visit http://www.feelinggod.ning.com/) that this year I had decided to honor the black woman. I heard all kinds of compliants. From "its ok to do it for a month but really a whole year" to "does the black woman really deserve to be honored in that way? What about all women? Let's not make this a racial thing!".

I was shocked to get this reaction and somewhat hurt. In all of my 59 years on this earth I really don't remember black women being honored in this way ever. Not to say it has not been done I'm just unaware. Not only that anyone that knows me both physically or virtually knows that I never look at race. Why is it when a black person expresses anything positive about their race or culture its considered a race issue. This does not happen with any other race but the black race. Then to top it off to place focus on the black woman. This is just wrong.

I was even told that the black woman is too mean to be honored. Reallyyyyyyyyyyy!!! Did the person speaking forget that they were addressing a black lady? I almost fit the sterotype when my first thought was to just slap him upside his head, but thought better of it. So what I decided to do was to honor her anyway and ....nanie...nanie...boo...boo(oh so childish RevLa).
My thinking is this: if no one else will honor me as the black woman that I am then I will and all of my sisters. As for the other races of females I honor you for being a woman as I am and sure that you as a whole have been honored more than we have so be supportive of us this year and go along. Maybe next year we will do you.

To all of the negative people this is your time to just KEEP YOUR OPINIONS ABOUT WHO I DECIDE TO HONOR TO YOURSELF! You may talk to the hand or any other body part that will listen to you because my ears will not. I love who I am. I love being the strong black woman of God that I have been created to be and sorry its time for me to say it and encourage others that may look like me to do the same. "Well RevLa you don't have to brag!" And why not? Many other races, cultures, males do the samething why can I? And frankly I don't care if you think I'm bragging or not...that is an issue that I consider is your personal problem and you should deal with that. Don't bring it to me.

"See I told you the black woman is mean and angry" Wrong, wrong, and not fair!!! Let us have the same oportunities as our counterparts both male and female. Then we have our 15min. of fame and glory then we can be placed back in the lineup. So with all of this posting said I will be writing and blogging this entire year off and on about our wonderful soul sisters. I will feature them on our social network more but here I will be doing a sound blast about whomever I feel or to just vent. When I do don't take it in the negative. Allow us to love ourselves for once. Sisters of other races we are still sisters and you know the black woman always loves. So we will never slight you but this time show your support of us.

Men of all races and those of our own please give us a chance. We have earned it and are loyal and have your back even when you are wrong. We ask that for one year that you say nice things about us. Tell a black woman just how great she is. Remember all of the races came out of the black woman.....(its been proven..something to think about).

As always I leave you with a thought to get you to my next month's post....(after this one you may not want to come back...ha,ha,ha)
If I was to make a statement that would say who the black woman was in just one sentence I would have to say the following:
She is the mother of all of mankind, she loves hard and long, she carries her heavy load with her head held high, she has a deep spirituality and believes the Word of God as law, she takes care of her man, children, grandchildren, parents, grandparents, siblings, church members, co-workers, and the needy, she quietly absorbs insults to her appearance, character, intellect, ablilites, and anything that other woman are praised for, she is made fun of, called out of her name and laughed at yet you never see her sweat, she prays hard and long for everyone, and many times she does not take the time to love or take care of herself, she crys long and hard alone out of sight so no one will call her weak, she is a loyal friend and strong adversary, and for the most part she is a true child of God.
This is my opinion in one sentence as to whom the black woman is.

Really it is one sentence....I didn't say it was not going to be a run-on sentence...ha,ha,ha
Gotta love me...I am the typical Afro-American Black Christian Preacher Woman
(I know bad RevLa...bad...bad...bad)
Until next time kiss the next black woman you see and tell her she is loved.

Radical Love: Who is Jesus God or Man?

So that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught

Luke 1:4

This is the last post in our Radical Love series. As before we ask that you go back and read them all so you can have a full understanding.

Our last trouble word and the most controversial one of all is

JESUS

Over 2000 years has passed and that name is still one of the biggest trouble words ever.

Saying His name, writing His name, and believing in His name still causes some to go to the deep end. They feel its perfectly alright to worship any and everything right down to the sacred pig

but let a true CHRISTian speak of Him and suddenly its

I DECLARE WAR TIME!

I for one know that it takes faith in Him to understand who He really is.

I can tell you all day who He is but if you don't believe as I do then I'm wasting my time.

If you think that the bible is just a book of fantasy and not inspired by God

then I can quote every scripture in it and still you would not believe.

However just humor me. For the sake of this post let's just say that you do believe.
That you do have faith!!!
You believe that God our Father loved us enough to save us.
You believe that after man betrayed Him in the garden and sinned that He developed something
that would save us as well.
You believe that God the Son by choice came down from heaven and was born as both Man and
God via a virgin's birth.
You believe that this said God/Man was and is Jesus The Christ
And you must believe that Jesus Lived and Died to save us from our sins and
reunite us with God the Father for eternity!!!
That He died on a Friday and was resurrected on a Sunday

Then if you believe all of this than you will listen to no one who states otherwise.
If you believe this then you know that your real home is in heaven and that right now you have a job to do that no one else can do while on earth.
You know that The Holy Spirit is in you to guide you into all truth and that you live for Christ Jesus as you go about doing your part in Kingdom Building.
I will say this I KNOW THAT JESUS IS LORD AND I LIVE TO SERVE HIS KINGDOM!!!
I will not debate or attempt to convince anyone about who He is. I will just walk the walk that I've been given to walk.
I will talk the talk that I've been given to speak.
I will Love CHRIST with my whole heart and serve Him until I leave this earth and go on to glory!!!

Do you think I sound like an extreme preacher?
Do you think I don't know what I'm talking about?
Do you think that maybe Jesus is not who I say He is?
Maybe you are right. Maybe He is not the Christ. Maybe all of these over 2000 years of worship is wrong?
Then if it is true that what you say is right then really I loose nothing.
I just wasted my time attempting to do good and live a moral loving life and then I died and "The End".
BUT.......and as I always state this one too is a "VERY BIG BUT"
What if I'm Right??? What if He is the King of Glory???
What if You don't believe and can not live forever in heaven with the God Head?
What if you denied Him as you lived and rejected Him when you had the opportunity to Live forever in the presence of the Holy One?
What if you die and go to hell because you didn't stop and take the time to believe?
Or go to a place that was not created for you but for satan and his demons?

Now lets look at this if I am wrong you have absolutely nothing at all to loose!!!
But if I am right then you have only one thing to loose and one thing to gain....
You loose your place in heaven and separation from God who is Love for all of eternity
and you gain a place in "hell with satan and all of his demons for ever!!!
 If you look at my book (the bible) that place is eternity of burning fire and agony
it is said that you burn always!!! An eternity of burning and gnashing of teeth!!!
Ever seen anyone who hurts so bad that all they can do is gnash there teeth?
Pain beyond Pain!!!

So what do I have to say
JESUS IS LORD....THE END!!!
Now its your choice where you spend Eternity!!!

Thank You Jesus for "Sonday"

 

Radical Mary: I know not a man

I know not a man

Talk about being a radical woman who could top Mary?
She was the ultimate. This young girl was presented with a task that I know many of us could never handle. She was told that she was going to be the mother of the King of Heaven.
What an honor? What a job? What pressure?
As a black girl I would say that this girl had "Heart" but as the Jewish girl that lives inside of me I would say that this girl had "Chutzpah"!!!
She had to have this inner strength because the job she was saying yes to could cause her to loose everything including her life. She would be a disgrace, the joke of the town and cause her family tremendous shame.
Not only that her husband could have her stoned if he chose to.
Yet this radical woman simply said yes to her calling without hesitation.
OK Ladies I think we should just stop right here and give this lady a standing ovation because
lets get real personally I think I'm a strong woman you know radical and all that but
really ladies when faced with stones being throw at me all at once from the whole town and all I could do was stand and take it......well that's just not going to happen. I would have to decline and take my chicken self back to the coop. So with great respect I thank this Radical Woman of God.

You see according to the ancient Jewish wedding customs Mary was married legally.
According to the wedding customs during those times Mary's father chose her husband. She did have the right to say yes or no. Once she said yes then they entered into the first part of the marriage agreement. The couple drank a cup of wine signed a paper and they were considered married. However they would not live together as man and wife at this time. If we were to compare this part of the marriage to what we do now it would be as if they were engaged except they were legally considered married and would have to have a divorce to end the relationship.
Mary would be left at her parents home until her husband finished building the home and obtaining the provisions etc. She would be looked at as a married virgin.
Mary clearly understood her current situation but once God's angel announced what she was asked to do
Mary never hesitated. She humbly accepted her task and never once doubted God.
She was a quiet powerhouse....ready to handle whatever her husband or the town had to throw at her including rocks if need be.
 
You see Joseph had the right to have her stone because she would be perceived as committing adultery. She would be looked at as soiled and being that they were legally married for all intense purposes she had stepped out of the covenant and became with child. Still knowing all of this she did not hesitate and said so be it. Who other than she could have that type of courage. Knowing that none of this would make sense to anyone? She still stood strong and took the job. Think about this. She had to face her parents, her husband, her town and her rabbi. She would be the talk of the town if she didn't get stoned first and she still said yes.
Could I have done this? Even with all of my faith I'm not sure that I would be that brave.
OK sidebar: I was really trying to be good but lets face it....its just not in me..so I'm going to get real
with all of my faith and yours and your sister and brother's faith I couldn't have done this at all!!!
What can I say confession is good for the soul...alright back to the lesson!!

Let us look at what Mary was being asked to do.
According to Luke 1 God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth a town in Galilee to a virgin who had been pledged
to Joseph a descendant of David. That virgin's name was Mary.
The angel greeted her and said these words
"you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
The scripture goes on to say that Mary was troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting was that. Gabriel went on to assure her not to be afraid.
Stop: visual aid...it is stated that the smallest angel is approx. 10 feet tall. Now we are talking about Gabriel here who was one of God's archangels so I'm assuming that Gabriel was three times as big as the smallest angel
(again all of this is my own opinion)
so he was expecting her to be afraid of him and he said to her do not be afraid.
However the picture that I want you ladies to see is that it was never stated that Mary showed any fear. She just listened. It wasn't his size or enormous presence it was his words his greeting. She was such a strong lady.
 Gabriel would never had to say to me "do not be afraid" I would have taken one look at this 30 foot man/angel and ran as fast as lighting or just passed out cold.

He went on to say "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."
Radical Mary never missed a beat she just looked at the real picture and stated the obvious.
"How will this be, since I am a virgin?" This girl was looking at the real deal. She knew that she had never had sex and lets face it that's the only way that we know how to get pregnant.
Gabriel answered with an explaination. He said"The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God. For nothing is impossible with God". Mary's entire life as she knew it was about to change and who really would believe that one night she went to bed a virgin and woke up pregnant without having sexual intercourse?

Our girl didn't skip a beat she quietly said "I am the Lord's servant. May it be to me as you have said". Then at that point the angel left her.
Mary's radical decision saved our lives. Mary's pure honest nature found favor from God. Mary set the tone for women like myself to just follow God in faith and never worry about what people would say about you. Now that was Mary's beginning with her Heavenly King child, but its more to this woman then just her beginnings. It has been said that its not how you begin but how you end. Let's see this woman who found favor from God that He made her the mother of the Holy One. Mary was one of the ladies that was at the foot of the cross when her innocent first born child was cruicified for our sins.
Sidebar visual: I was really trying to be good...but by now you know me...this must be said "Where were all the mighty disciples during this time? We see four women standing at the foot of the cross. Only John was there...good for you John you didn't punk out but what about the rest of the Jesus posse? The so called strong men..the leaders where were they? Only the ladies had heart/chutzpah. I'm not against men but really they need to get their act together and leave us alone. When we take a deep look at things they are not looking too good...enough said...back to the point..

As a mother I can not imagine standing and watching my child being tortured and killed for no reason. Just writing this now and just thinking about it I feel the tears coming.

According to John 19 it reads:
Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, and Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene..... When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, "Dear woman, here is your son", and to the disciple, "Here is your mother".
Jesus looked down and saw the women at his side. He saw his precious mother leading the pack. She was not going to abandon Him. His last act of sonship to her was to make sure she was being taken care of. So He stated that John was now her son and she was now his mother. From that time to her death she stayed with John as his mother and he her son.
You also must remember that by then Mary had other children who were by her husband Joseph but she chose to live with this disciple whom Jesus picked for her.

Mary ended her days as she began them. Choosing righteousness over what the world would think or say. She was commited to her job and stood in faith to the end of her task.
She knew that many did not believe her or her Son. She knew the road would be hard and she would be ridiculed. She never once second guest God or what was told to her. Nor did she care that what she said or belive made her appear crazy. I can see why she found favor in God's heart. How many of us would have done the same thing in the same way?

I thank Radical Mary for being our example. Whenever things get tough for me as a woman in a man's religious world I think back to what she might have gone through and I give thanks to God that we had her. Without her there would be no salvation for us.
So in closing I must state this....when you look at it Mary's only job was to have a baby. That baby changed the world as we know it. Remember ladies if God calls you to do a job it matters not how big it is or how small it seems. You never know when a small task for God will impact the world forever.
If you are called and say "yes" then the only thing that matters is starting right and ending right.
  YOU BORE THE KING OF GLORY AND WE ARE SO GLAD YOU DID
WE THANK YOU
RADICAL MARY YOU WHO KNEW NO MAN BUT STILL SAID YES!!!