SubscribeMarch 2010
Righteous Mind with Rev. Cynthia T. Turner (0)
3/06/10 •
This has been a season of things breaking, about to break, or crippled to the point of being broken. The gutters above my porch. The check engine light on the car again. The railing outside my mother’s door. And the Bruno Stair Chair Lift in my mother’s home. Perhaps that’s the one that hurts the most because it is designed to carry my mother.
It’s [...]
Weather’s got me wondering (0)
3/04/10 •
I don’t know the context for this quote, but I do find it apropos on this fine sunny winter day whose normalcy belies the crazy weather we’ve experienced so far this year. “If you want to see the sunshine, you have to weather the storm,” someone wisely remarked.
Since January, people in various corners of [...]
Is the black church dead? (0)
3/03/10 •
“The Black Church is Dead” declared an article that’s making its way around the internet and that has become a topic of discussion among clergy and laity alike. The article posits the esteemed black church that was once “central to black life and a repository for the social and moral conscience of the nation has [...]
Feasting on faith amid adversity (0)
3/02/10 •
Leah had been in the kitchen preparing a salad when my friend Lynne and I arrived at her home. She warmly greeted us at the front door and, returning to the kitchen, asked if we would like something to eat. When we both declined, she seemed a little at a loss for what to do next. She’s a daughter and niece [...]
February 2010
Righteous Mind with Rev. Cynthia T. Turner (0)
2/26/10 •
I shouldn’t have said it. As soon as I said it, I knew I shouldn’t have. But I blurted it with intentionality before the filters in my conscience took over. I was feeling good about myself for finishing my entire set of strengthening and cardio, and was walking out of the Silver Spring YMCA with [...]
Skating through grief (0)
2/25/10 •
Canadian figure skater Joannie Rochette will complete what she came to do tonight in the free skate competition at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. And she is expected to skate with the same grace and resolve that she did two days ago – skating despite overwhelming grief.
My heart rallied for Rochette as I watched the [...]
A book for self help (1)
2/23/10 •
Over the last month, I read, reread and meditated on Psalm 119. First I read the entire Psalm, which is the book’s longest psalm and the Bible’s longest chapter, and then each day I read one of the 22 sections. I finished the book this morning with a sense of satisfaction and gratitude.
This Psalm speaks [...]
Righteous Mind with Rev. Cynthia T. Turner (0)
2/19/10 •
One of the best lines in the movie The Great Debaters is when a Wiley College professor, played by actor Denzel Washington, introduces himself to three anxious and unsure debate students by telling them his role is to help them “to find, take back and keep their righteous mind.” He reminds the students that the [...]
Chicago’s planned gospel museum sparks memories (0)
2/19/10 •
Gospel music is in my DNA. I grew up hearing it in my childhood church in Savannah and even sang some of the songs of the day while in the junior choir. One of the songs that I took the lead on was “In Times Like These.” The lyrics of that song still live in [...]
Giving up to gain during Lent (0)
2/17/10 •
About six older black men stood near a neighborhood grocery store in the small shopping strip where I was picking up my dry cleaning. Their voices carried in the wintry wind. As I neared the door of the cleaners, I heard something I didn’t expect.
“My church is starting a 40 days fast,” one man said. [...]
Technology connects snow-bound churches (0)
2/16/10 •
For about three weeks, the inclement weather forced churches to cancel Bible studies, prayer meetings and Sunday services. By the time our pastor sent email, text and Facebook messages saying we would meet despite the weather, several of us were ready. Fortunately no one had to brave treacherous snow-covered streets. All we had to do [...]
Love is everything (0)
2/12/10 •
As Valentine Day approaches, here’s a little something to consider. One day does not define how much we are loved or not loved. I learned that lesson when I was single and without a significant other and the day passed without a single card, and it has been reinforced since I’ve been married and once was given [...]
Chasing lions on a snowy day (0)
2/10/10 •
The message came early this morning before I wanted to be fully awake, and like the blowing wind outside my bedroom window, it has been whipping up something inside of me ever since.
“God wants to get you where God wants you to go more than you want to get where God wants you to [...]
A perspective on snow (0)
2/09/10 •
The tiny flakes of snow fell with unrelenting patience. By mid-day Saturday, their persistent free fall coated everything in thick, sparkly mounds of white.
“It’s gorgeous,” gushed my sister who is visiting from Savannah. “I’ve never seen so much snow.”
“I’m sick of it,” groused my husband who grimaces at the sight of winter’s first snowflake and [...]
Appreciating a president who relies on faith, prayer (0)
2/04/10 •
I don’t know about you but I am glad to hear that I have a president who believes in faith and the power of prayer, even if he doesn’t wear it on his sleeves. Given all that he is faced with –wars, budget deficits, the economic crisis, high unemployment, you name it – President Obama is well served by being in [...]
Taking time to check my ‘real age’ (0)
2/03/10 •
On a whim a couple of days ago, I took the RealAge Test to find out if I am younger or older than my biological age. I had to answer a series to questions about my health, habits, relationships, diet and fitness. Some of the questions, such as what were my cholesterol level and blood [...]
Savoring a good cup of tea (0)
2/01/10 •
A cup of hot tea has taken on a whole new meaning for me after listening to my daughter talk enthusiastically yesterday about the sermon she heard. I didn’t make it out to church yesterday because of the snow that blanketed the Washington area over the weekend. So my daughter’s over the phone recitation of the sermon [...]
January 2010
Miracles and faith feeding Haiti’s spirit (0)
1/28/10 •
The most recent miracle from Haiti of a teenage girl surviving 15 days under a pile of rubble says something about the endurance of the human spirit and offers more than a glimmer of hope for Haiti. For me, Darlene Etienne’s rescue says to the disaster-fatigued nation: hang in there help will come, dig deep enough pass the debris [...]
Flat belly, firm faith revisited: Discipline helps (0)
1/26/10 •
One of the things that has become abundantly clear to me is that I am not going to meet my goal of melting my middle if I don’t stick with the plan I have outlined for myself. Juggling Act blogger Mae Israel and I have been pushing ourselves and encouraging each other since December to get rid of [...]
I will not live an unlived life (0)
1/22/10 •
My thoughts have been so focused lately on growing deeper in my faith that I know it was no coincidence that I happened upon Dawna Markova’s “I Will Not Die an Unlived Life: Reclaiming Purpose and Passion,” while searching in my study earlier this week for a book on Dr. King.
When I read this book a few years ago, I [...]
