ClydeStyle

Tag: Giving

  • Politics as usual: They don’t really care about us

    Things are ramping up for the 2024 elections, and in every election year, politicians attempt to tell us what really is important. Their talking points start off with, “The American people want this…” Make no mistake, the elections are never for the American people. In a democracy, elections are used to make the people believe they have a say or control of what is happening in their country.

    Talking points work like worms against a fish. Politicians debate and talk about topics that interest the general population, but never are these things changeable. For example, President Joe Biden, who is the architect of the 94′ crimes bill responsible for putting millions of minorities in prison, went on the radio show The Breakfast Club and said if Black people did not vote for him, they weren’t Black. He talked about police shooting unarmed Black people was a problem; he talked about voting rights being a priority; he talked about the criminal justice system being a problem, but they didn’t make his radar once he was elected.

    What Biden did is what every Democrat does: Their interest is not in helping minorities but in helping the base. Republicans are the same with favoring their base. The problem is the majority of the people in both bases are white!

    So then brown people continue to struggle with immigration and black people struggle with everything else. Doing things for the masses or serving you base doesn’t scratch the surface of the people for minorities.

    When I say minorities, I am talking about people in America who make under 80k per year. The best part of America is the ability to earn money. A sample of all races is earning money in America, but the overwhelming majority of Americans are struggling. I am specifically saying that there is not much being done to help their situations. Some temporary Covid protocols made a difference for a short while, but these benefits don’t compare to the benefits given to citizens in other countries.

    So after each election, politicians prove to the masses that they don’t care about us. We should begin hearing about the “big scare” that the democrats do every election year to cause fear among the people of the dangers of not voting democrat. The Republicans do they same thing on their side, and while the fear is increased, the benefits for the poor decrease. Don’t think this is a racial divide because it isn’t. This divides us by class.

    The greatest vote you can make to a politician is to contribute money to their campaign because that’s who will be satisfied with the win. Imagine if you are a politician and one constituent gives you $50, and another gives you $1000 per month. Who would you listen to?

    Until this system changes, the common man will always get the shaft during the elections.

  • The reason for this season

    Christmas time is here! We are right in the midst of the holiday season and most things are quite festive and beautiful!

    I love Christmas! I loved it as a child, I loved it while raising my own children and now I still enjoy it with my granddaughter! My family does it pretty big! As part of our tradition we can’t help but think about why our lifestyle is possible.

    Despite the ills of America we are enjoying a wonderful life, guilt-free because of the blood of Christ! All of our blessings come directly from him!

    Like the Ark, the bible tells of the story of Noah and his family’s obedience to the will of God in building an ark for the saving of souls. The time of building gave him the opportunity to preach a warning message to the people to surrender their sinful ways and serve God.

    Noah preached about 100 years while the ark was being prepared but only 8 souls were saved. The point is God made a way for those souls to be saved by being in the safe zone of that ark. As long as they were in the ark nothing could harm them.

    Being in Christ works the same way today! Those of us in Christ will be the recipients of his propitiation — meaning to avert the wrath of God by the offering of a gift! Jesus was that perfect gift/ark and those who have entered the ark or been baptized into his death (smae thing) we have made it to the safe zone and will be saved at judgment day.

    Jesus is our ark. He is our safe place and if the nation wants to recognize him coming during this time of the year, I’m all for it! Merry Christmas everybody!!

  • A network of togetherness

    There is something to be said for being together. Our closeness or unity or connection to another person or group of folks quenches the thirsty we have for belonging. As humans we need to be a part of something — good or bad we need to belong. We yearn for inclusion and to be entangled with other people.

    Togetherness is defined as a state or feeling of closeness and happiness among people who are together as friends, family members, etc. Some have several groups they associate with. In these groups you should find all you need to balance your life such as encouragement, support, wisdom, intimacy, family, networking and entertainment.

    Togetherness is so important that we should have a societal rule that everyone must be a part of a crew. You choose your own crew but your Togetherness will also be charged for trouble you get in. That alone would make us choose our friends more closely and truly be our brothers keeper!

    Togetherness greatly helps with mental health issues and it single handedly lowers suicide rates. In fact, overall crime goes down in areas where people cluster together in unity. Many foreigners to this country take their togetherness to a foreign land and excel! They live in close quarters together for a time to save money and get ahead. So two families may move together and live together here. All able-bodied individuals work and the money made is shared with the cluster. Each family helps the other get ahead and they slowly bring in more families as others advance.

    This just proves that we are better together. We were created to be a part of a pair that would have the ability to increase it’s nunber and the. They would all work together and look out for each other. We also call this a family!

    I remember the crew I had in junior high, high school and college. Then I had a different group of professionals when I entered the workforce. As far back as I can recall, I have never existed without a crew. And all of my groups were successful. How about you my friends? Do you have a crew? Do you support your crew? Is your group successful? Can you rely on them? These are very important questions if you plan to get by with a little help from your friends!

  • Share the God in you

    It takes a special type of person to give.

    There are enough stingy, stubborn folks in the world and what we clearly need to see more of is that good ole’ fashioned, unconditional giving.

    Many things have been written and said about givers or volunteers, as they are sometimes called. I had the privilege to speak at a volunteer symposium hosted in Bay City, MI and sponsored by the Michigan Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. I had the opportunity to meet some seniors who really knew how to live. They understood the meaning of “good living” as they were at retirement age, but still working – yet this time for free.

    There are not many things in our world that are free. In fact, when you see something truly free, you do a double take because it looks too good to be true. I remember when air was free at any gas station. I also watched as the cost went from being just 25 cents to $1.00 in some places. Well, the other day I needed a little air in my tire and I immediately fished through my coins to find four quarters. I got out of my truck and low and behold there was nowhere to put the coins. I thought, “go figure, it would be broken.” I’m glad I took a chance, because it was actually free. I couldn’t believe it. Now this gas station is in Farmington Hills, MI and it more than makes up for the price of air with all the other items in the store. It seems they added a penny or two to every item to cover the cost of air, but that’s another story.

    I bring the issue up of volunteering because I wonder how many people really understand the spiritual dynamics of giving. First, giving is a God trait. You know the Bible says, “For God so loved the world that he gave …” Secondly, the Good Book tells us that it is more blessed to give than receive. Many people miss this concept. You see, if you can give, you’ve already been blessed. And finally, giving brings us face-to-face with our covetousness. When you live in a land as bountiful as ours, we tend to never get enough. We take, take, take and never even think about giving until we have a holiday that tells us to give.

    Givers are the people who recognize and exalt more their standing with God over their status with the world. They believe that their existence is much more than what they can accumulate. They seek out ways to change other people’s lives for the better – and they do it just for the way it makes them feel.

    Try unconditional giving this week. Allow your blessings in life to be shared with others who truly need it. Whether you are giving of your means or time, both are precious and they represent the God in you. So please, share.