THE SPRINGS

Dark am I, yet lovely, daughters of Jerusalem, dark like the tents of Kedar, like the tent curtains of Solomon. Do not stare at me because I am dark, because I am darkened by the sun. My mother’s sons were angry with me and made me take care of the vineyards; my own vineyard I had to neglect. Tell me, you whom I love, where you graze your flock and where you rest your sheep at midday. Why should I be like a veiled woman beside the flocks of your friends? Song of Songs 1:5-7 (

And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of E

This is the story of how it all started, of Heaven and Earth when they were created. At the time God made Earth and Heaven, before any grasses or shrubs had sprouted from the ground—God hadn’t yet sent rain on Earth, nor was there anyone around to work the ground (the whole Earth was watered by underground springs)—God formed Man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive—a living soul! Then God planted a garden in Eden, in t

We love him, because he first loved us. If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also. I John 4:19-21 Accumulate more of God and in so doing there is the release of the floodgates of God’s love rushing in and overwhelming our lives. As we Accumulate; little by little the revelatio

Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: I Peter 1:22 When we Accumulate more of God and His revelation in our lives, the more we make His Word flesh through our lives. The revelation of God reveals His love for us, despite and in spite of all things that separate us from Him. God desires for us, out of His love for us, to be made clean, washed as w

And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. Ephesians 5:2 The challenge of our lives is to be who God has created us to be. It appears that everything about life seeks to challenge us to conform to the experiences of our lives as oppose to having dominion and authority over the experiences as God the Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer has ordained for our lives. Thus, we are created

Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD. Leviticus 19:18 The challenge to community is not always from without but often from within and we must be careful that we tend to our internal being and wholeness that we might love ourselves which is foundational to loving one another. The power of Jesus' ministry was that He was available for people to be made whole, complete in who th

Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. A

And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Acts 2:1-4 As we celebrate Pentecost Sunday today, we

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. John 13:34-35 Ubuntu, the African concept that I am you and you are me, undergirds what it means to be community in the African tradition and a critical component of who we are and our Blackness; the legacy of our historical, cultural, and social identity as the source of power for