It's Monday, let's talk about jealousy

Lately, I'm reading 1 Samuel. You've got these 2 dudes, Saul & David: same heritage, same team, same cause and one thing divided them: JEALOUSY.
Jealousy is a disease that makes us sick, it gets inside of us, grows throughout us, ultimately ruins us. At Flamingo, when I interview prospective staff, I always include a jealousy-warning; 'cause I've seen its demise. For me, I feel jealousy coming on like a cold & I hate it! I zap it with prayer for forgiveness & for God's help. It's hard enough dealing with my lung disease that I can't cure, but jealousy? That DOES have a cure...Dr. God!! And we should relentlessly race toward the cure He offers and experience His great results!

Easy as 1-2-3

I.d. an opportunity to give, such as an un-festive office in need of a Christmas makeover:


















Gather the team to fill the identified need (& feed them heart-healthy lunches from Beverly Hills Cafe!)


















And in the name of The Gift Revolution, leave a theGiftRevolution.com card in the newly Christmas-decorated office. Wah-La! It's THAT easy!














"25 days to inspire the world...the Gift Revolution.com"

NBC 6 & The Gift Revolution

Tomorrow between 9-10am, Pastor Troy is going to be on NBC-6's South Florida Today show. He will be interviewed about The Gift Revolution. Check it out!

I'm a 'theGiftRevolution.com' recepient

OK, someone saw on my twitters that twice I tried to get Stephen Colbert's book but it was sold out, 'cause 2 days ago, when I checked my mailbox, the book was in there with a thegiftrevolution.com card! I have a slight suspicion who the giver was, but since she gave it anonymously, I'll keep it that way. This made my day! So far, I've been on the giving end of The Gift Revolution, this was my first time being on the receiving end. Let me tell ya, in just one little gift, I was surprised, blessed AND inspired. Today, I shall do the same for another.

Great-full

One of my favorite words is "grateful." When I think about all God's done for me, I am "full" of God's "greatness," which equates to "great-full" (aka, grateful).
Today is thanksgiving, I propose we rename the holiday "Gratefulgiving!" Hey, I'm grateful you stopped by. While you're here, leave a comment about something you are great-full (grateful) for. I'll get us started...
A - America, the sweet land of liberty!

An Answer to Another Movement

I love getting daily reports from, "Trend Central," they keep me in the loop with trends & culture, but today's made me sad. Today's title read, "'G-O-D in the 21st C'...Religion gets a modern makeover." In short, the Atheist Associations pumped $$ into bus ad campaigns with slogans like, "Why Believe in God? Just Be Good, For Goodness Sake," and "There's Probably No God..."

You know what I think? I think it's time for a REVOLUTION to counter-love this. Something global; something that's about God, for God & gives God's love to every honkin' human on the planet. Hey, wait! There IS such a thing!! The Gift Revolution! A 25-day revolution to inspire the world by pumpin' God's love back into it. Whoot Whoot! Make some noise and give it up for:

Five Fall Fashion Fuggestions

1. Boots! Tall, short, cowboy, Uggs. You name it, boots are in. EVEN in hot & sunny Florida.
2. Scarves! A great accessory to a tank top, a tee-shirt, a jacket, a henley, a hoodie. You can wear one side over your shoulder; both sides crossed in the back and draped in the front; or bunch it all up in the front, tie it and tuck the knot in. And yes, EVEN in Florida.
3. Skinny jeans! They're great to wear w/ boots, converse, pumps, ballerina slippers & stilettos. Remember: SKINNY jeans = BIG shirts cause too much "skinny" looks silly.
4. Skirts! I recently bought a dark gray cargo skirt at Target for $12. Skirts are great with leggings and/or tights. Throw a scarf, jacket and tee and you are good to go!
5. Hats! A tricky accessory for me cause I have a big head & I never know what to do with my hair. Take your time putting your hat on. It's an art. Don't smash it down or you'll look like a mushroom. Don't puff it up or you'll look like a character from Alice in Wonderland. Just work with it and do what I do...find a chic who will give you an honest opinion. :)

"You are never more like Christ...

...than when you give." My FAVORITE line by my pastor this weekend. I sat in every service & got something out of it every time. I'm so full of good vibes from our BIGGEST weekend in history that I'm purging it all, right here, right now:
1. We had an unprecedented 2100 people in ONE Saturday night service. Folk sitting on the stairs & in the lobby!
2. Good buds of mine over at JuiceBlendz have decided to GIVE away an unprecedented amt. of gift cards for the revolution!
3. After the service, an acquaintance of mine went to Publix & bought groceries for a fam in need for the revolution!
4. I invited 9 peeps this weekend, 6 came. I'm so grateful for that.
5. Click on those 2 icons to the right. Don't watch the revolution, EXPERIENCE it!
6. God allowed me to meet 2 more chix who are gonna join our LeadHership Team!!
6. LEAVE a COMMENT with what you're doing to inspire the world for theGiftRevolution.com.

When I Was Fat

A while ago, I blogged about, "My Thoughts on My Weight," and how I had no self control with food & beverage (beer) in college. Consequently, I quickly climbed to a size 14. Recently, my college sweetmate found me on Facebook and sent me a picture of me back then. (for those of you who didn't believe me when I blogged about it the first time, here's proof) The moral of my story is once I went fat, I never went back. Since college, I've pursued a lifestyle of eating right & exercising. Thank you, God, for releasing that pursuit within me. I have learned to give you my life, my body, my weaknesses & You have shown me Your grace.

It's a Tell-a-Thon at LeadHership.net

Today I am having a Tell-a-Thon. Leave a comment and tell me your plans for the BIGGEST weekend EVER at Flamingo Road Church:

1) WHICH service you are attending
2) WHO you will be inviting.

And I commit to hard-core praying that this weekend, your paths are clear and unobstructed...from your house...to His.

Keller Williams, Turkey & Me

Today, Keller Williams had it's annual Thanksgiving Luncheon and because their sched'ed motivational speaker canceled last minute, they invited me to speak. FYI about communicators: sometimes, WE think we'll do the motivating; when in reality, our audience ends up motivating us! That's what happened today. As I listened to the KW managers and agents, I was blown away at their ethics, values & passion to not quit. They motivated me to believe in them. Heck, I almost wanted to go into real estate today! Do you know what their corporate values are? God first; Family second; Business third. Is that awesome or what?? Today I was honored to be their motivational speaker. Tomorrow (or whenever I need real estate help), I'll be honored to be their client.
PS - special shout out to Natascha and Melissa! Thanks, leadHers :)

Fav Christmas Song

A couple days ago, I learned that our local jazz station, Love 94 (93.9FM), is playing Christmas music 24 hrs a day! I am stoked! I'm not uber-crazy about Christmas decorating or Christmas baking, but I LOVE Christmas music. Hands down, my fav is, "O Holy Night" and my fav line is, "Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel's voices." Every time I hear that, my imagination takes me there of me falling before God with the angels. Josh Groban has a great version of it on his Christmas CD, Groban takes it to a whole 'nother level. What's your favorite Christmas song?

3 Crosses

Tonight, DJ drew a picture that had 3 brown crosses on it. In DJs words, "those 3 crosses are what Jesus & the 2 bad guys died on." Now I'm not sharin' this 'cause I'm all that. I'm not even sharin' this cause my kid's all that. I'm sharin' this cause DJ's 6, he doesn't understand religion; he doesn't need to. Faith isn't a mind matter; it's a heart matter. And in DJs heart, he knows Jesus loves him & died for him. And that's all Jesus is asking for. Jesus doesn't make faith hard...we just do.

Casting Call

Do you attend my church? Have you been impacted by any of the following?

1. A Flamingo Road Church Christmas Service
2. A Flamingo Road Church Weekend Invitation [sitting in a chair, taking a rock, spilling milk, watching blue & yellow make green, grabbing a seashell, grinding coffee beans, holding onto a rope or taking a domino]
3. The Flamingo Road Church TV Show
4. The Student Ministry at Flamingo Road Church
5. The Children's Ministry at Flamingo Road Church

If so, I need you to email your experience HERE. Thanks!

It's Gonna Be BIG

Unemployment went up again. Merck, Google and GE stock were down 50%. Mainstream humanitarian organizations like Salvation Army are closing sites because of low funds. The recession is at its worst. And economists say the Government Rescue Package came too late. BUT GOD'S STILL IN BUSINESS & SO IS THE CHURCH.
Life's tough? Need something? Visit Flamingo Road Church on November 22-23. Oh, you live far away you say? No problem. WATCH IT online.
It's gonna be BIG.

Laugh-In at LeadHership

As a mom of two boys, these pix make me laugh so hard! I love to laugh. I love TV shows that make me laugh (The Office); I love people who make me laugh (Brian Vasil); I love pix that make me laugh. Remember: it's the JOY of God that is your strength. Find things that make you laugh. It's so good for you.

3 Easy Steps

I know, I know...there's more than 3 steps to leadership; and attaining it is a lot more complicated. But if someone would give me a million dollars to concisely give just 3, they'd be:
1. Pray for God to unleash His leadership within you.
2. Pray for the willingness to endure on the unglorious days.
3. Pray for God to enlarge your territory, broaden your mind, but keep your heart humble.

I LOVE surprises (I suck @ keepin' 'em)

I love, love, love surprises: love surprising peeps & love being surprised. When there's a surprise, it's immediate tears; it overtakes me with good feelin's. Well, yesterday, our leadership team conspired for a surprise. I sucked at keeping it, I blew it like 3x, but thankfully, our "surprisee" didn't catch on. Pr. Troy was invited to speak at this big Convention gig & our leadership team came up & surprised him with their support. JUST when he was gettin' ready to walk onto stage, they snuck in backstage. When he turned the corner, THERE THEY WERE! It was AWESOME! And so here we are, praying for Pr. Troy, just before he walked onto the platform. Truly, truly, exhilarating! Thanks for praying, Pr. Allen; thanks for capturing it, Pr. Heredes!

Leave the LeadHer Alone

Man, again, keeping my political preferences out of it (see prior post on Obama), I wish people would leave Sarah Palin alone. C'mon! Recently the media was babbling about who did her makeup? Who powdered her nose? Who cares? Don't they know that ALL politicians (women AND men) get their noses powdered before going on TV? So she won't be a leadHer on Capitol Hill; she's still a leadHer in her home. She's still a wife who needs to be a part of her marriage and a mommy who needs to be a part of her children and I hope the media backs off a little and lets her.

Home is Where the Heart Is

"Home is where the heart is." I have no idea where that adage came from but it's how I feel when I hang at my bro's house. Jason & his wife, Rig have created a house that feels like home because their hearts are so in it. Thanks for having me over the other day & for making a place called home. It's a blessing to everyone who visits there.

I Feel I Should Explain

Occasionally, folk ask me about my marriage, specifically why Raul and I don't have "PDA." In different circles, this has come up humorously and seriously, so I thought I'd shed some light. Nobody would argue that I'm very extroverted. However, when it comes to public affection, I am very, very, very shy. (Fact: the 1st time my parents ever saw me kiss was on my wedding day). There are reasons why I'm like this, but I chose not to share them here. I hope people always know they can approach me about this; I'm very open to talking about it. I also hope folk understand that it's an insecure part of me that will take time to become secure. Raul & I may not publicly display love, but privately, we're normal. And relationally, he's my best friend, my better whole and the only man I will die next to. And what makes Raul amazing is despite my insecurity, he has chosen to love me anyway.

White Thoughts on a Black Pres

Today, after reading Scott William's post, I was overcome with exhilaration for him and all blacks. You see, my parents raised me in a unique way. We were a pasty-white fam in pasty-whiteville, but my parents ran around in circles of color. My dad's BF was black, my mom's BF was black, so some of my buds were black. My parents also encouraged me to date black guys if I wanted. I'm grateful I was raised this way; I'll never change. Now I don't agree w/ some things Obama stands for, but I AM celebrating his victory as a black guy. It wasn't that long ago that blacks were fighting (and dying) just to vote. I'm so happy for the ones who did and are still living today... 'cause they got to see the fruit of their sacrifices.

Picture Pages of Voting Day

6:30am: I get in line & it starts to sprinkle. I'm cold, uncaffeinated and yes, crabby:















7:30am: While waiting, my Cuban drives by to drop off Starbucks & umbrella!















7:45am: Finished! And a cool little sticker to prove it.













How was your voting experience?

From the mouths of da boyz

In the last week, the following have been said by my 6-yr old & 3-yr old:

"Andy, you better start using your manners or you're never gonna get anything." -DJ

"Daddy, will you help me get to the next wevel on Pooper Mario?" -Andy

"Dee-Day, you're not my fwend." -Andy

"Mommy, vote for Obama because today at school, I did." -DJ

What I Beg For

Man, this weekend, I fought the tears during, "Came to My Rescue." We sang it in our church service. It's like my anthem; I identify with every lyric. As I sing it, I imagine God and I walking thru the pages of my life, highlighting His rescues. And I can't help but reach as high as I can to Him--I owe Him so much. If only you knew what was on some of those pages.
I've come a long way; but one thing I'm still begging God for is less of myself. I feel it when I'm full of myself. It feels like an infection; it hurts my heart and it breaks my spirit.
I'll always have to beg God to get rid of me within myself. My heart was shaped to hold love from Him; not love from me. But I know I can ask and He'll come to the rescue, and I'm grateful.

If u were a fly on the wall @ this mtg

Today we had a team mtg. Here's what we did:
1) We established 2 bible verses as our team's foundation: Ecclesiastes 12:9-10 and James 3:1
2) We established 3 practical ways we can live out those verses, as it pertains to the teacher, the teaching and the weekend services @ Flamingo.
3) We brainstormed 3 creative ways to help our upcoming series (major undercover operation)
4) We prayed for Pastor Troy & Steph, the weekend and each other.