The Game’s Been Good To Me: Devin Rispress

This was too good NOT to post: This story is proof that God has another plan for our lives that’s different from our trajectory.

🚨 LONG SERIOUS POST🚨 

Title: The Game Been Good To Me 

Ford Arena in Beaumont Texas. A lot of people don’t know this story, This is the same place where I almost died and my life changed forever. Stemming from an off the field altercation I was stabbed my brain was bleeding and I fell out and had seizures from the injury. Minutes before that episode I was about to play in the game. I was unconscious for 3 days in the hospital. When I came through my mama was standing over me and I said. 

Me: What u doing here?

Mama: Nugga u almost died. 

I was changed, anybody that know me know I was fearless my whole life, after this ordeal I was different. I was afraid of my own shadow literally, I wasn’t the dog I was before. The doctors said that I shouldn’t play Arena Football anymore and and my mom and coaches felt the same. I took a year off and returned to football the following year. I was far from 100% with blurry vision and a tingling sensation down my spine and I was scared. God had a plan for me as I was traded to Sioux City Iowa and was brought in as the highest paid runningback in the league and to follow up Fred Jackson who was taken by the Buffalo Bills a year before. I thought was closer to the NFL after Jackson tore the league up and I was his replacement. I got there and played my first game and played the worst game of my life, two weeks later I was sent back to Texas to my old team. I was determined to prove that I still had it even at the expense of my life. That Saturday we played a team from Florida in the same Arena where I almost died and I scored 5 touchdowns in 1 half of football. 2 days later the team folded because of financial issues and that would be my last time playing football. God let me taste success in the game for 1 last time and I was satisfied, I returned home and the journey I’m on now began. I’m forever grateful for this journey God carried me on and I wouldn’t change anything. 

Women: Where The Real Men At?

 Some women can stop asking where the real men at because we all know some of them couldn't handle a real man. By real man, I mean one who's got his business together, focused on God, making a difference in his child(ren)'s lives, and staying out of the streets.

Friday Sermon

 You cannot call yourself real if you hang with fake people!

Planting Correct Seeds

Repost: Monica Regina Jones

Just a thought: We must be careful of the seeds we plant, because we're going to have to eat the fruit of that harvest when it springs forth. As long as the Earth remains, there shall be seedtime and harvest. 

If I’m In Leadership

If I’m ever promoted to leadership in my company, trust…I’m crushing everything in my path. What do I mean? My staff will have MY permission to call me out (respectfully) if I gave them wrong procedures in their job. I’m not holding my staff accountable for MY mistakes as a leader.

Employee Conflict: Work out issues with each other before getting me involved. Even if staff members agree to disagree, that’s fine. If adults, professionals…can’t solve conflict without management interference, something’s wrong. Companies are doing their employees a disservice by meddling in employee conflicts because they’re crippling their staff by making them dependent on leadership to fix their issue(s). Leaders spend too much time babysitting overgrown children who can’t solve conflicts without running to the supervisor/manager. If you bring me problems, you better have solutions.

Suggestions: Employees know their jobs better than management. How many managers could do their staff’s jobs daily?👀👀👀👀I’ll wait…🥱If employees know their jobs, that means they have a better idea of what’s not working & what could work better in their position. Any suggestions brought to me with a logical proposal will be escalated to executive leadership. I’ll go further and have the staff member present their idea to senior management.☺️Your idea, YOU get the credit, and present to executive management.🙂 

Throwback Message: I’m Sorry For Being Blessed

 One thing I won’t do is apologize for being blessed. I will remain humble through my blessings, but apologizing for them....negative.😎👊🏾 It’s crazy to me that some people dumb their blessings down not to offend others. If others are offended at you being blessed, they can take it up with God! I’m big on humility because everything I will accomplish in life is because of God. I can’t & won’t take credit for any success.

Reasons Why The Black Community Will NEVER Thrive

This message may be harsh, but it needs to be said:

Reasons Why the Black Community will NEVER prosper (Disclaimer: I don’t want to hear 💩 about “other races”)

1. Jealousy-Some of us don’t trust each other, let alone work together. Other races & ethnic groups have came over & surpassed blacks, and here we are…still fighting among each other. Honestly, I don’t go to any majority black events because 95% of them end in gunplay or fighting.

2. Infrastructure-How many black neighborhoods are drug & violence-free? I’ll wait…There’s a reason why gentrification hits black communities first.

The only way for the black community to survive is Divide & Thrive: The reprobate blacks have their own world to destroy themselves, and the blacks who want to build together have their own community.🤷🏾‍♂️ 

Sunday Message

 You can’t be everything to everyone & nothing to yourself!

A Story Of Karma

 Repost: John King Johnson

TLDR: you won't be young forever, and eventually time will make you pay for your mistreatment of people.

I got a call a little while ago from someone I used to be in a band with. We talked music for a little bit, and then they got right to the point and asked me to donate to a GoFundMe for their aunt.

The aunt in question is one of the meanest, vile, messy, human females I know. She delights in using her age as leverage to be insanely disrespectful. She's not dead she just had a stroke. Her family isn't taking her in... She'll be going to a state home.

I've had two distinct interactions with this woman myself, and both were so bad, that I often reference one of those situations as me ever experiencing the urge to violently beat on a woman which is rare for me. This woman has broken up so many marriages, and unlike a very sneaky antagonistic woman would be about that? She will openly tell you she did these things with Glee. 

She beats children, she targets men to disrespect especially. I would almost say her disrespect of men is like a fetish. It gets her smelly old dry wrinkled hairy monkey wet.

I chose to keep it respectful and just politely declined to donate to any funds that would benefit this woman. What my bandmate said to me is profound:

"John, I'm really not surprised that you refused. To be real, I just called you to ask because I was asked to and I didn't want to lie and say I did. I'm not donating either. We ain't gotta lie to each other, we both know that my auntie is a horrible person. And at the end of the month they're going to stick her in the state home. The kicker is all her kids have space to house her they just won't. Instead they made the GoFundMe."

It is a powerful statement to the life you've lead. That your children, and your family will not house you once you become old and disabled. That sends a very strong message that you are so insufferable, that they are not willing to have you under the same roof with them. These are the things you should think about as you go through life stepping on people especially your own relatives.

A few of you might know her on here and I do not care if you tell people what happened. Cuz I don't like her, and most of the people I know that know this woman don't like her either. And I will also say I had a big stupid grin on my face when I hung up the phone. How funny is it, that a woman who gleefully insults people and their spouses and children? Ends up having a stroke, that paralyzes her right arm and her ability to speak? How often has that right hand went across somebody's face? And that mouth said something that no one could get over?

You may think you are big and bad, but time is bigger and always patient.

I want to add that Karma…is giving her the blues. You reap what you sow. This lady has sown disrespect & hate to people, and her own family doesn’t want to care for her, so they let her go to a state home. I can’t say I blame them, because honestly…I would consider doing the same because if you’ve been hateful all your life, chances are you’ll die that way.

Friday Throwback: You’re Solid?

 Everybody swears they're solid until you put heat on them, then they melt like ice.

When Something Feels Off…Listen

 Your Spirit will WARN you when something feels off.. LISTEN TO IT‼️🎯

Relationship With God: Personal, Not Public

 Your relationship with God is personal, not public. Folks can talk all day about being a Christian, but if the walk doesn’t line up with the talk, it makes one look crazy. Note: I know believers fall short (myself included). Unbelievers would rather see an example of Jesus, than a hypocritical version of Him.

1 Kings 2:3

 “Do what the Lord your God commands and follow his teachings. Obey everything written in the Law of Moses. Then you will be a success, no matter what you do or where you go.”

1 Kings 2:3 CEV bible.com/bible/392/1ki.…

Imagine…

Imagine doing for someone without caring about credit or recognition. I do my best work behind the scenes. I’ve never cared about props, notoriety or any of that nonsense.🤷🏾‍♂️Too many times, people want recognition for what they do or have done, and while it’s nothing wrong with receiving praise, watching the recipient shine is all the credit myself, or anyone should ever need.

Settling: Monica Regina Jones

Repost: Monica Regina Jones

Just a thought: It's good to know the great qualities you possess and all that. It's also good to know that you're not for everybody. But it's  even better to get to the place where you don't want anyone SETTLING for you. It's a good thing to get to the place of " if I'm not what you're looking for, it's ok to keep it moving". If I'm not your "type" I'm not gonna be mad. I'm not gonna tell you it's your loss or you're missing out either. I've come to the point, that I don't want what doesn't want me. Life is short enough. No one needs to have anyone in their life that doesn't want to make room for them or doesn't want them there. #NotASubliminalPost #OnlyAThoughtAndRealization 

I can respect someone telling me I’m not what they’re looking for.🤷🏾‍♂️Everyone is allowed their preferences. Truth be told, we would be wasting each other’s time by forcing something to work that’s not meant to be.

Saved By God’s Grace

 “You are saved by God’s grace because of your faith. This salvation is God’s gift. It’s not something you possessed. It’s not something you did that you can be proud of.”

Ephesians 2:8-9 CEB

Friday Brief

To God Be The Glory. That’s The Post😎 

Thursday Thought: Moving Forward With God

 When we fall short (and we do), God gives us the grace we need to keep moving forward with Him.

Morning Thought: Pet Adoption

Daily Thought: I share videos of shelter dogs looking for forever homes, and sometimes it gets to me because so many pets are overlooked for being less adoptable (Senior, special needs, long-term resident, abused/neglected, etc)🥹. It also makes me happy when some of them finally find forever homes. 

Reminder: DON’T Leave Your Pets & Children Inside Hot Cars

 If you have to be reminded NOT to leave your kids or pets in hot cars during the summer, you shouldn’t have either. I don’t care if you’re going to the store for a quick minute, or getting a bite to eat.

Miracles Happen When…

 Miracles happen when trying ends, and trust begins!

Don’t Figure Everything Out

In my case, this is easier said than done:

Repost: Glory Brown Inspiration Coach-Don’t waste your time trying to figure everything out. There are some things you’re not supposed to understand right now. We can’t see the plan of God. We can’t fathom how He does things. If you’re always trying to figure it out, it’s going to frustrate you. Instead of using that energy trying to understand what’s happening, use it to thank God that He’s working, thank Him that He’s fighting your battles, thank Him that He’s making crooked places straight, thank Him for His favor. 

We Are Not Anyone’s End All, Be All

Repost: Monica Regina Jones

Just a thought: The sooner we can realize and recognize that we are no one's end all be all, the freer and more easier we can move in our own lives. 

Right Place, Right Time

 Retweeted The Secret Teachings (@TheSecretForYou):

God is going to put you at the right place at the right time. He’s going to send divine connections, people that will go out of their way to be good to you. You couldn’t make it happen. It’s the favor of God bringing you into your yes.

Judging Harshly: 2 Things

Even if someone apologizes, is the apology sincere? Most likely not, so the offender can keep their half-hearted apology. I'll forgive, but that's it. I'm a different breed because now...I make people stand on how they choose to treat me.

Give Him 15: A Great Symphony Of Prayer

 

Under 40 In Authority

 People under 40 should NOT hold leadership positions in a company. What leadership or life experience could someone have at 35-40?🤷🏾‍♂️. It’s that age group who’s prone to letting authority go to their head. #ISaidWhatISaid

I’m going to spotlight a few responses: 

Monica Regina Jones: But bro I have known ppl that were in their 50s and older who have let leadership positions go to their heads also. It's not really about age. It's about character and maturity. Trust me, I literally know ppl that are younger than me that have both. I also know ppl older than me that lack both.

Interpretation: I see where she’s coming from because it’s 40+ people that are terrible leaders, but they play politics to get in authority. This usually stems from toxic management who hires those like them.

Lorraine London: My husband was dorm chief at the age of 18 in the air force. He was over men twice his age. Now he’s a police major in a very large department. He’s been tapped to be police chief twice and turned it down, twice. Too political he says, and he’s nobodies do boy. Some people have natural leadership abilities. Age isn’t necessarily a factor in that. It’s character, mental maturity and intelligence.

Response: This seems to be common in the military, groom young servicemen for leadership until retirement. Like Ms. Lorraine said, it’s character, mental maturity & intelligence. I stand corrected because you have young leaders who have been groomed right: They’ve sat under seasoned leaders with good character, intelligence & maturity so it’s natural for them to emulate that.

Hurt People, Hurt People: John Johnson

Repost John King Johnson

I know the saying 'hurt people hurt people' and all. I (based on life experience) am willing to say what's more common is "Uncomfortable people, make people uncomfortable."

Really sit and think about it. Mofos really be at comfortable people, especially comfortable children. I hate and resent how often growing up that either I or another child was harassed, bullied, hit and beaten by a GROWN ASS ADULT because the kid was relaxed and chill.

Humans envy comfort, and don't like seeing it on other humans, so various forms of harassment come into play.

My view: No lie was told. Humans are used to discord that they can’t believe there are well-adjusted drama-free folks. My mission in life is staying as drama-free as possible, and if I have to deal with it head-on or remove myself from the situation, I will. 

Cheaters

 Thought Of The Day: In my eyes, cheating is an abomination. An abomination is a vile, detestable action, condition or act. In other words, you're stuck like chuck if you commit an abomination. When you take someone as your man or woman, you do so with the intent of staying faithful to them. If you don't want them, why cheat? It's stupid. You two need to part ways because cheating is just going to make you look the fool once you get caught (and you will). Cheaters are not only fools, but so are the men & women who take them back. A cheater didn't care about you when he/she creeped with another man/woman so why on earth would anyone be so dumb to take a cheater back? They said "baby I'm sorry, please forgive me I won't do it no more" You take them back and boom! They cheat again. At some point, you have to cut toxic people loose. If you're with someone that doesn't respect the relationship or you to remain faithful, it's doomed from the start. Then people become hardened and finally cut the person loose, another man or woman comes along that wants to do right by him/her but they won't give them a chance because of what their ex did. Most baggage can be avoided by enforcing boundaries from the start. If someone doesn't respect your boundaries and they walk off, they did you a favor. By showing you who they are, that's less drama you have to deal with.

Sunday Real Talk

 When you pray for something, be ready for the blessing; however it comes.

No matter what plans we make, they should be subject to God’s agenda.