Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving Service

Wow... A capacity house filled the Mount Olivet Baptist Church today to offer praises to the Lord on this beautiful Rochester Thanksgiving Day. What a beautiful Thanksgiving Day this has been. My family and I woke up to a hot breakfast prepared by the most beautiful and loving wife, Lady Yvonne. Rickey Jr, Rishard, Yvonne and myself sat down and Thanks was lead by Rishard and Rickey Jr. I am truly greatful for my family! Ricketa is in Memphis at my mother's and Rico is in Atlanta with Danielle's family! Church today included Pastors James Cherry, Jr. and Antioch Baptist Church, Richard Douglass and Zion Hill Baptist Church, Frederick Johnson and First Genesis Baptist Church. Moderator Ruben Golf, Reverends Duhart, Kittleberger, and a host of local Pastors and ministers attended the service. People brought non-perishables, gave old fashioned testimonies, and the Combined Choir blessed us tremendously! I was honored to serve as speaker for this event! Well thank God.... My family is taking a "last call" in the kitchen before the food is put away for the night! This is my second "Thanksgiving" in Rochester! Everyday is Sweeter than the Day Before!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Happy Birthday Moma

Moma Mamie Harvey celebrated her big __th Birthday a couple of weeks ago. You talk about a woman whom the Lord has been good to... it's my Moma. She raised nine children and all of them (us) are God-fearing, none-smokers, drug free, Christians, Church members, Church workers, gainfully employed, family men and women. School Teachers, Administrators, Nurses, Politicians, Electricians, and of course her Best Child is a Preacher! :-) Now that's a direct of result of both Moma's prayers and whippings! Lawd she could out whip any man any day when it came to us! And she made us get our own switches... We had a "Switch Tree" and Moma didnt play! She only said go to bed one time, and when she thought it again, we had better already be sleep or in the bed with our eyes closed! We dared not ask for that expensive $25 tennis shoes in those days, because we knew Moma didnt have the money for that! While we didnt have all of the latest and trendiest fashions, we were clothed, fed, educated, taken to church, and more importantly loved. We were taught how to work because we saw Moma work. She would get up in the morning, cook a pancake, salmon croquettes, butter and syrup. While we were eating breakfast, she would be running a load of clothes, sweeping, making beds, doing house work so that home would be nice and clean when we returned. After breakfast, Moma would wash the dishes, get us out to school, then walk to the busline, catch the bus, work all day....but somehow, she managed to get home in time to have a hot dinner for us Everyday! Often it was pinto beans, with some type of meats, neckbones, fried chicken or something like that! Well, those days have changed! Moma's little children have grown up and are able to first thank God for a Mother who raised us in the Lord.... secondly, give back to Moma as she gave to us! Somebody wrote these words in a song: Give me my flowers while I yet live, so that I can see the beauty that they bring. Friends and loved ones may give me flowers when im sick or on my sickbed, But I'd rather have just one tulip right now, than a truckload of roses when I'm dead. Speak kind words to me while I can hear them, so that I can hear the beauty that they bring. This was our way of sharing with Moma flowers while she lived. Happy Birthday Moma!