I Remember Cleveland Williams

It was during the month of November in the year 2001. I was in Houston, Texas, for a National Convention of the Apostolic Assembly. I am an ordained minister in that organization. I have also been a boxing fan for most of my life. I remember Cleveland Williams. Although he was never a champ, I consider him among the greats in the heavyweight division of professional boxing. He won 78 fights and lost 13. He was afraid of no boxer in the ring. He "mixed it up" with both muhammed Ali and Sonny Liston. Although he was defeated by both of them; he hurt both of them with his brutal punches. He was called "The Big Cat." I was with another minister in the mini mart of a gas station in Houston; and it was no coincidence that when I saw a tall African-American man in the store: I asked him: "Would you please tell me me where Cleveland Williams lives? I need to talk to him about Jesus." He answered me and said: "You mean the big cat?" I responded with a yes. He told me: "I knew him well, I was his sparring partner, he died two years ago." I started to think about the man who fought with 5 Houston Police officers who had such a hard time arresting him; they shot him at close range. I do not judge what those officers did. I was not there. But Williams recovered from the wounds sustained from a 57 Magnum and got into the ring and fought the man considered to be the greatest heavyweight ever. And he did it with courage. Yes, I remember Cleveland Williams.

If You Want To Have A Friend

Friendships do not just happen, they need to be cultivated. They need to be nurtured. It is true: some relationships are "low maintenance," yet they are considered friendships. Why? The key word is "maintenance." How are friendships maintained? How else unless it is through communication, correspondence, and socializing? Do not friends stay in touch? Do not friends have a willingness to listen to each other? Part of the problem with friendships is that sometimes people want the benefits of friendship, but they are unwilling to make the sacrifices and commitments that friendship demands and requires. The best way to have a friend is to be a friend. And to be a friend requires sacrifice. It is a natural law. It is also a spiritual law. Recently, someone told me about a person who requested a favor from an acquaintance. The acquaintance answered "no." The requestor asked why. The acquaintance then answered: "Because that type of favor is reserved only for my friends; and you are not my friend." Although the response sounded harsh; it was very honest and it ended an "imaginary" friendship. That particular way of dealing with people may not be something we want to do because most of us do not want to make enemies. Nevertheless, many of us have experienced or have seen people who want the benefits of friendship but they refuse to be a friend. Again:IF YOU WANT TO HAVE A FRIEND; YOU NEED TO BE A FRIEND. Friendships must be nurtured, there is no other way. What is the best vitamin for friendship? B1.

Little Gangster (Pt. 6)

This particular "gangster" was not really "little." And, he was not really a gangster per se; He just benefitted from some of the gang-related, illicit activity he was involved in. He was an ally and he played the part. But this particular young man should have known better. He was a married man with 3 children. He was 28 years of age. He was a cement finisher. He did a good job and work was steady. He was ambitious. That is not so bad. He was trustworthy. That is a good trait. He was muscular because he lifted weights in his garage. He had sizable biceps and forearms which accentuated his tattoos. His nickname was "Clover." We all have our weaknesses and shortcomings. Clover's weakness was that he had a great deal of pride. He was very concerned about his image. Because of the neighborhood where he grew up; he knew drug dealers. They trusted him. Every now and then he was asked to deliver drugs and collect money. He was offered reasonable portions of some of the drug money. He took it. He enjoyed having the extra cash, and it seemed so easy to get. He never got arrested. One time he was asked to make a delivery of heroin. He was to receive $10,000 in cash. He was told to keep $4,000 for himself and to deliver the remaining $6,ooo to a certain address. He went to deliver the cash, but nobody was there. He took all of the cash home. Weeks passed and he heard from nobody regarding the undelivered cash. One day he received a phone call from someone who wanted the $6,ooo. It was not the same person who was originally supposed to collect it. Clover told him he would not give it to him; and not stated in a courteous manner. Several weeks passed and one Saturday night, Clover took his family to an expensive Mexican resaurant in West Los Angeles. Two men approached him and his family and demanded the $6,000. Clover made a serious mistake. He cussed the men out. No humility. No discussion. No reasoning. No promise of a future payment. No. Just pride, image and a false belief that rude words would end the problem. One of the men pulled out a 38 Special revolver and shot 4 bullets into Clover's chest. Clover's wife and 3 sons (ages 9,7 and 5) screamed as they watched Clover bleed to death in the parking lot. It was a tragic scene. It was extremely sad. It did not have to happen.

Little Gangster (Pt. 5)

His name was Toro. He was 15 years old. He was big for his age. He was in a gang, but he was the type of gangster that had an uncommon trait. He looked for trouble while by himself. He was a bully. He really enjoyed picking on other students at school. Kids stayed away from him. They got out of his way. Toro liked to fight. Toro was driven by a need to prove himself strong and tough. He won all of his fights. Some were at school, some were off campus. But the law of averages was against him. By this I mean that he was not going to be able to continue to do what he was doing and continue to win. He humiliated others. He intimidated others. Toro was not much of an athlete. In a Boys' P.E. class the day finally came. Toro and his team were playing football against another team in a P.E. class. A big boy who was called "Flash" blocked Toro and knocked him down. Toro was embarrassed, so he stuck out his chest, closed his fists, cussed at, and challenged Flash. Flash was extremely fast. (thus the nickname) He hit Toro 7 times. With the eighth punch Toro landed on the ground. He did not hit Flash once. Flash stood over him and yelled: "Do you want some more?" Apparently none of the coaches saw what happened. Nobody got suspended from school. Nevertheless Toro took a few "days off" from school. Some time later, a teacher mentioned to Toro: "I heard you got into a fight, Toro." Toro responded by saying: "Fighting never accomplished anything."

George And Abraham

This is their month. I honor them this morning. The greatest American Presidents. I realize that in this short blog entry I am unable to fully explain their greatness. It will suffice to say that they were men of God who studied and believed in God's Word. This is why they were gifted. This is why they were men of courage. This is why they had motivation and wisdom. They were leaders of men. They were leaders during difficult times. They were men of prayer. They were men of faith. They realized that without God they could do nothing, so they trusted in Him. George Washington and Abraham lincoln. They are men of the ages. I will be writing more about them in the future. What a legacy they have left us!

12 Famous African-Americans

There are many more besides the ones I am going to mention. I will mention only 12. They are all famous African-Americans. I will state each name and then mention each field of endeavor. Duke Ellington (music). George Washington Carver (science) Thurgood Marshall (justice) Shirley Chisholm (congress) Harriet Tubman (freedom worker) Wilma Rudolph (athlete) Ralph Bunche (statesman) Martin Luther King (civil rights leader) Booker T. Washington (educator) Mary McLeod Bethune (educator) Jackie Robinson (athlete). As I said; there are many more. These 12 persons of renown all have something in common. They all had faith in the Word of God. They all had faith in Jesus Christ. They are with Him now. They do not have religion in common. They have Jesus in common. Jesus was the main thing in their lives. That is why they did great things. He blessed them.

Barack Obama: He Is Mr. President

All of the United Sates Presidents have had enemies. No exceptions. All have had faults. Barak Obama is no different. It may be too early to predict this, nevertheless, I will. He will be the greatest president this country has ever seen. There are several reasons for my saying this: He is young, confident and probably the most intelligent person to ever hold the office. He has a fresh, new attitude. He is unlike any previous president. He has picked a great team. I get the impression that he is on top of the situation. He shows courage. He is a "people person." He has a commanding, friendly presence. He has no problem touching people, kissing some, and hugging some. He is a great communicator. He is articulate when he speaks. He exudes success. He is a winner. He has a strut and a bounce when he walks, because he is "cool." He is the first "cool" President we have ever had. His smile is a victory smile because he has a victorious attitude. He cares about people. He makes sense. I realize some ultra conservatives (and others) may not like him. That is their right. I really believe that some are just sore losers and/or jealous people. Would they rather see him not succeed? If so, why? Let us all remember: He is President of this nation. Like it or not. He won. Therefore he is everyone's President, whether you voted for him or not. Back him up. He needs our support. Pray that he make wise decisions. He is the leader of the free world.