Throughout scripture, we are encouraged to give the first part of our resources to God as an expression of honor and gratitude. “Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase; so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine. (Proverbs 3: 9-10) One way to give our first fruits is to provide a tithe or the first 10% of your i...

2 CHRON. 33: 10-16 If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 2 Chron. 7:14 (NIV)Last month, news broke all over social media about a big-time megachurch pastor's decision to resign from his position and stop hosting his Sunday morning se...

 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” [Ephesians 6:1...

“Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.”—Habakkuk 3:17-18 (ESV) This week, we begin The Freedom School @ The Mark. Just like any new beginning, things can be chaoti...

"Your moral compass is the most important characteristic that will speak to who you really are." - Huffington PostThe worldwide United Methodist Church believes God's love for the world is active and engaged, a love seeking hope, justice, and liberty. The beliefs are outlined in the social principles that encourage us all to take an active stance in our local and global communities. We use the Bib...

Last week, we had the Haiti Hope House’s second quarter Board of Directors' meeting. At least it was scheduled. Unfortunately, the meeting had to be postponed because the Member who had the responsibility to set up the ZOOM link, and to be the host for the meeting failed to show up, despite my late afternoon email reminder of the 7.30 pm meeting. After many frustrating minutes trying to log in and...

At the beginning of the year, I started reading a series of books called “Extraordinary Women of the Bible.” So far, I have read the following books: Highly Favored (Mary, Mother of Jesus), A Harvest of Grace (Ruth and Naomi), and Sins as Scarlet (Rahab, the Harlot). I am currently reading “At His Feet (Mary Magdalene’s story). What is so amazing is how God took these ordinary women and used them ...

While they were eating, he took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it, he broke it, gave it to them, and said, ‘Take; this is my body.’ (Mark 14:26)A retired pastor once wrote: Sunday morning arrives, and a longing stirs my soul, an emptiness and desire to do the thing I miss most about being a pastor: the soul-satisfying sweetness of breaking a piece of bread from a loaf and placing it in the em...

A few weeks ago on the job, the Information and Technology (IT) Department ran a report and saw that my computer was using two different versions of the Microsoft Office Program, so they took it upon themselves to remove the older version of the software program without first investigating to find out the reason why. Within one hour, I was literally cut off from my work. Every research protocol, p...

In Haiti, where I grew up, one of the common local sayings was “with patience you can see the ant’s tripe (intestine).My family’s financial situation, while somewhat better than a large portion of the population, was not that great, and we often lacked many necessities. My poor mother, God bless her soul, was a woman of faith who always hoped for better days for her and her family. She will very o...