Wednesday, December 31, 2014


Habari gani? KUUMBA (CREATIVITY)! 

“It's impossible to explain creativity. It's like asking a bird, 'How do you fly?' You just do.” - Eric Jerome Dickey (QUOTE OF THE DAY courtesy of ilovebeingblack.com
)

George Washington Carver teaches us all that “No one has a right to come in to the world without leaving behind a distinct and legitimate reason for having passed though it”.

Making a determination to follow my heart more in the coming year.  This is the heart where my creativity blooms and soars.  This is place where I feel whole and smart and a beautifully bold woman of God. My creativity is the source of my strength.

I am determined to witness the truth of the gospel in bold and creative ways this year. It is my call to action. Somebody needs to know what we know.


Painting by Mohamed Fadul of the Sudan
blackartinamerica.com
#soulwriter  #whatithoughtwassojustaint   #gracefulaging

Twitter: @DebiOak
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/debimason.writer
Email: debimason1950@gmail.com
Blog: debimason@blogspot.com

What I thought Was So Just Ain’t: Aging through God’s grace
Amazon.com (paperback)
Amazon.com (Kindle edition)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (NOOK edition)
ISBN-13: 978-0692236475
Release: June, 2014

Arizona Clay: A journey of self-discovery
Amazon.com (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
ISBN-13: 9781606964880
Release: June, 2009

Sunday, December 28, 2014

UJIMA: Collective Work and Responsibility



UJIMA (OO-GEE-MAH) Collective Work and Responsibility reminds us of our obligation to the past, present and future, and that we have a role to play in the community, society, and world.

UJIMA defines the word community.  This means you are always prepared to help build, strengthen and maintain community together. 


#soulwriter  #whatithoughtwassojustaint   #gracefulaging

Twitter: @DebiOak
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/debimason.writer
Email: debimason1950@gmail.com
Blog: debimason@blogspot.com


What I thought Was So Just Ain’t: Aging through God’s grace
Amazon.com (paperback)
Amazon.com (Kindle edition)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (NOOK edition)
ISBN-13: 978-0692236475
Release: June, 2014

Arizona Clay: A journey of self-discovery
Amazon.com (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
ISBN-13: 9781606964880
Release: June, 2009 

Saturday, December 27, 2014

Kujichagulia: Self-determination!



Habari gani?  Kujichagulia (Self-Determination)!


Heri za Kwanzaa! Living the Nguzo Saba: The Seven Principals - Kujichagulia (KOO-GEE-CHA-GOO-LEE-YAH) (Self-Determination) requires that we define our common interests and make decisions that are in the best interest of our family and community.

As I live my life out in this, the third chapter, I recognize that I have the ability to make the choices that are right for me. No longer subject to the opinions and ideas of others, the decisions I make are based upon my own preferences, my own interests. 

These preferences and interests include a determination to be all that I can be through the grace of God and live as an example to those in need of the message of the gospel.  I am determined to forge my own path, to define, name and speak for myself through my creativity and I pledge to encourage others to do the same.
   
In these troubled times, it is necessary that we, as the darker hue, define ourselves and tell our stories as only we can tell them. With determination, I march forward to support the writers, playwrights, directors, producers, actors, technicians, musicians, dancers and visual artists that open the windows upon the black experience in this day and age.  With love I will do what I can to encourage them and I will celebrate their endeavors.

It is time for us to stop being victims of our circumstances but to take charge economically, politically, educationally and spiritually. As we look at ourselves collectively, some have reached this pinnacle of achievement.  However, there are others that have not. If some are lacking than we all are lacking. I will encourage myself to vote when I can, speak openly of our struggles and our positive accomplishments when I can.  I will lead by example as often as possible and use the platform that I have been graced with – I will write and, yes, encourage others to do the same.

Self-Determination does indeed begin with me.  My sense of identity was birthed from my triumph over social obstacles,  'can’t do' spirits, those that love me and others that just don’t get me.  At the end of the day I have given myself permission to be a bold woman of God. I am authentic and, thank God, I have learned the power of self-acceptance.

“Our liberation begins when the truth of our own experiences is admitted to ourselves.” 
Alice Walker, writer
#soulwriter #whatithoughtwassojustaint  #gracefulaging


Books by Debi Mason:

What I Thought Was So Just Ain't - Aging through God's Grace
Amazon.com (paperback)
Amazon.com (Kindle edition)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (NOOK edition)
ISBN-13: 978-0692236475
Release: June, 2014

Arizona Clay: A journey of self-discovery
Amazon.com (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
ISBN-13: 9781606964880
Release: June, 2009

Follow me on Twitter:  @DebiOak

Friday, December 26, 2014

Heri za Kwanzaa!



Heri  za Kwanzaa!
 
Kwanzaa is a time for spiritual reflection, a festive and joyous holiday...a cultural celebration. Kwanzaa has no ties to a particular religion. It is practiced by African people of all faiths, who come together based on their rich, ancient and varied common African heritage. Today, the seven-day observance of the Kwanzaa holiday is celebrated by millions of African-Americans and Africans around the world.




Habari gani?  UMOJA! (Unity)

At this time of racial turmoil, confusion, police brutality and the war on black males in this country it is important that any discussion of race begin with us.  Our young, gifted and black children need to know the truth of who they are more than ever.  They need to know their true history and share in the stories of our  black experience as told in a way that only we can tell it. Youth must be taught, and perhaps many of us need to relearn,  what it means to participate in the betterment of our communities.  The positive messages of today are taught through example in our homes, in our schools, in our places of worship and, importantly, in the media.  Foolishness begets foolishness.  Pride begets pride.

So I will continue to celebrate Kwanzaa in my home and in any public forum available to me. I will continue to seek and strive for unity within my family, in my community including my church, in the nation and in my race.
UMOJA!
“At its core, the principle unity is about attachment - attachment to each other and, most importantly, to the values which define us as family, as community and as a people.” – The   Kwanzaa Guide http://bit.ly/1CXpct3

#soulwriter #whatithoughtwassojustaint  #gracefulaging

Books by Debi Mason:

What I Thought Was So Just Ain't - Aging through God's Grace
Amazon.com (paperback)
Amazon.com (Kindle edition)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (NOOK edition)
ISBN-13: 978-0692236475
Release: June, 2014

Arizona Clay: A journey of self-discovery
Amazon.com (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
ISBN-13: 9781606964880
Release: June, 2009

Follow me on Twitter:  @DebiOak

Friday, December 19, 2014

First and Second Christmas Muse

Madonna & Child by Tim Ashkar
I have been reading lately that if one has set a goal then one needs to do something, one small something, each and every day to move closer to that goal. Lord, what can I do today?  I am cheerful. I am rested. I feel physically good. I am inspired and full of Christmas wonder at your birth into the world.

What can I do in celebration of my own life?  As I celebrate you, Lord, I am reminded that you have kept me all of this time because you love me and you have anointed me with purpose. Of these things I am grateful and find great cause for celebration.

I am so blessed by everything that I have been given.  This has been a phenomenal year.  The enemy of my soul would hav me believe that it wasn’t and that God has done nothing for me and has forgotten about me.  The devil is still a liar. I may have gone through 2 raggedy cars but I promise you there is something better and lasting and greater on the horizon.  Why? Because my daddy said so.  I still don’t know how He is going to do it but, Lord-a-mercy, I know that He is going to. Even if He doesn’t, I know that He is able! My God, has not left me in the dark.  He has indeed brought me into his marvelous light through a great love that He has for me. 

I must be something special. There must be a divine purpose still on my life because I am still here.  I can still get from point A to point B.  I still have courage and I still have the determination to do great things in the Kingdom. There are times lately that I have honestly felt that I am having some kind of writer’s block. That is a lie of the devil, too.  What the Lord wants me to write is right here at my fingertips. The words flow and somebody is listening to ‘thus sayeth the Lord’!  I am grateful that I am God’s instrument to bring something into the world, to contribute to the betterment of the world.  Somebody needs to know.

I used to wonder why it is that I never had children.  Well, at this late date of my life it is all making sense to me. With each thing that I write and everything I do in the Kingdom is indeed like giving birth to yet more life.  Yep, somebody, like I said many years ago, needs to know.  I have known for a long time that this is my purpose and I am glad about it.  I am reveling in it.  I honored that I am loved so greatly as to be given this assignment and I do not take any assignment lightly.

This is such a brilliant and brightly colored time of year….time of my life. I love Christmas and I love me.  For so long I have waited for somebody to give ‘it’ to me.  By ‘it’ I mean to give me permission to do this.  What are you waiting for, my friend?  The only permission you need is God’s permission.  Stop listening to the enemy.  He is whispering that you don’t have purpose, remember?  He is still a liar! Thank you, Lord. Every time I pray, Lord show me….yes, yes, He shows me.
 
I believe that we all battle with doubt at one time or another.  Sometimes that doubt can flood over us for only a few short days. At other times it can last for days, weeks or maybe years.  It is time to mature enough to look the devil in the eye and walk right past him proclaiming God as the author and finisher of your faith. Proclaim that our risen Savior got up out of the grave. He is the one that healed the sick including you, caused the blind to see, even you and raised the dead even your sin sick soul that was once dead to righteousness and is now dead to sin.  What would happen if you prayed to the God of our salvation and asked for new eyes to see his grace, new heart to feel his mercy and new hands to lift in total praise?  Need a refreshing?  Ask for it, for our heavenly Father withholds nothing from His children.

So where am I at this Christmas?  What am I feeling?  This really isn’t much different than in time past.  I don’t have children to dote on me this holiday – to invite me over for Christmas supper and lay presents at my feet.  Never did.  But I do have the ability to make a Christmas for myself. I am ever mindful of who fills all spaces and that the holes that the enemy would have me believe cannot be filled are full of the Lord’s light and a love that is deeper and longer lasting than any family can give. I have choice.  I can choose to listen to those negative whispers or I can choose to rejoice at the birth of our new born King! My God, what I have is so much more fulfilling than anything that our world could ever fill me with.  I get it!

Because I know this, it does make me feel a little sad for the folks that do not have this revelation.  Question of the hour…how are people making it without knowledge of the Lord? The answer is they are not making it… they are faking it.  How many people do we know, of every background, culture and color that are buying all of the gifts and putting them under the tree, fixing more food that humanly possible to enjoy yet are sitting around with unresolved issues, secrets, mess, animosities under cover, darkness…. These are those that don’t get Christmas and its divine meaning.

Lord, I pray that you will open those doors for me to tell somebody about what I know.  I may not know all there is in the Word of God but I do know that I am loved and cared for by the Lamb of God. Everyday can bring unexpected surprises.  Some good and some not so good.  This is just the way of life.  How I react to this is what really makes me saved. Do I trust God? I mean do I really believe that He is in control? Do I really know what it means when the Word says that He is all powerful, all knowing, all caring?  He will supply all of my needs according to His riches in glory and according to the power that works in me.  

I have the power of the blood of Jesus coursing through my veins.  The blood that He bled upon Calvary and on the cross is in me and all over me. I walk in His grace and I have been washed clean by this very same blood. I too, have to ask whoever thought I could walk this walk?  Whoever thought I would be in love with the Lord the way that I am in love with the Lord and know without a doubt that I am loved in return?  I love this time of my life.  I give you praise Lord. I give you honor. I am still here celebrating yet another Christmas.

Earlier this morning I was reading something that said that this is a perfect opportunity to spend time in the presence of the Lord. This is time to ask the Lord to bring me closer to Him.  Yes, this is true.  I can feel His embrace right now as I write this.  I am so thrilled and blessed that what is said is so very true: He will never leave you or forsake you.  He is faithful even when I get wrapped up in my own stinking thinking.

Walk with me Lord. The Lord loves to walk and talk to His people.  Remember how it says that in the garden He walked with Adam in the cool of the day?  He walked with Enoch, Moses, Abraham, Jeremiah, Noah, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and all of His Apostles. God loves to walk and talk with His people.  Am I any different? He is there to give me guidance and comfort and all of the love that I will ever need.

Help me to spread good tidings and good cheer this holiday season. I am full this very morning.  I feel his mercy and his grace bubbling up in me, flowing from eyes, quickening my heart.  I really could shout right now.  The Lord is just that good to me.  Help me Lord. Open a door this very day. Perhaps let someone read this and be deeply touched because it comes from your grace that these words have made it to paper.  Somebody needs to know.

Christmas is indeed a special time of year.  It has always signaled a new beginning to me even before I was saved.  Yes, Christmas is a new start.  The bible says about the new birth – old things have passed away and we are new creatures.  Time to thank God for new mercies and second, third and umpteen hundreds of chances.  What a better time to do this than oat the celebration of His birth into humanity. The joy within us that we are feeling is only because of his love and his faithfulness. It starts at this time of the year. Christmas. The journey toward the cross begins this day. The bible says that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son so that we may have life and life more abundantly. If there was no birth there would be no crucifixion. There would be no blood to wash us white as snow. We would still be under the law and would still rely on a man to carry our sin beyond the veil in hopes that we would be forgiven.  But Jesus.  He is our High Priest.  He is our mediator.  We can come boldly to the throne of grace and lay our cares at the alter to be dealt with by the only living God….Jesus.  How can someone not find joy in this? 

Christ is the Lord and I will forever praise him. 
Amen.

#soulwriter  #aginggracefully #whatithoughtwassojustain't
Debi Mason, Author
Twitter: @DebiOak
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/debimason.writer
Email: debimason1950@gmail.com
Blog: debimason@blogspot.com


What I thought Was So Just Ain’t: Aging through God’s grace
Amazon.com (paperback)
Amazon.com (Kindle edition)
Barnes & Noble (paperback)
Barnes & Noble (NOOK edition)
ISBN-13: 978-0692236475
Release: June, 2014