Yesterday’s homecoming celebration of Mr. Tim Russert, television journalist and moderator of “Meet The Press,” has inspired this post. To Tim’s wife, Maureen, may God’s love comfort you and your family during these difficult days. To Tim’s son, Luke, may your father’s precious soul rest in God’s peaceful presence always and forever.

Never again will my Sunday mornings be the same without the privilege of watching the one man whose effective example of “personal leadership” has inspired millions of ordinary, everyday people to “Go Get Em!!” May today’s post challenge all who read these words to live without limits, love without conditions, and lead like Jesus Christ did — by example.

If tomorrow never comes, how much more valuable would your yesterday become to you today? If you knew beforehand when your last tomorrow was going to come, what would you choose to do differently with the rest of your todays?

“For the first time,” would you choose to finally face your biggest and deepest fears? Would you challenge the people you love to dig deep enough inside the heart of their gifted souls to unearth the courage needed to learn how to love loving one another?

If tomorrow never comes, how would you choose to live the rest of your life today? Think about it. But please don’t take too long because it’s later than you think.

Copyright 2008 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.

“You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.”

1 John 4:4

Quick question. Who or what is still keeping you from steppin’ out of the darkness of the hopeless that Despair creates and crossing the troubled, white-water rapids of Jordan’s River? Think about it.

“Greater is He” who dwells within me than ______________.

End this sentence by “filling in the blank” with the name of your biggest antagonist, your biggest obstacle, your greatest weakness, your worst bad habit, your biggest fear, or whatsoever is exacerbating your efforts to beat the odds with God’s help. As you already know, “impossible ain’t nothing but a word” to Greater Is He.

May completing the aforementioned sentence inspire you to face your biggest and deepest fears so you can begin to honestly believe that you can achieve great things and do what you’ve never done before. Overcoming your crisis of faith will challenge you to believe that you can achieve what you previously thought was an impossibility.”

But be forewarned! Steppin’ outside the imaginary box of your comfort zone will severely test your faith in God and challenge your ability to trust God when the invisible fist of Adversity strikes. I double-dog dare you to see if you posses the inner core strength to stand in the menacing face of whatsoever can make you faint each time you try to take the first step across Jordan’s River.

As many of you who’ve been reading this blog already know, “personal leadership” is an “act of faith.” Leadership is a personal choice that will always be yours alone to make until a defining moment in your life occurs and challenges you to “live, love, and lead like Jesus Christ did — by example.”

As evidenced by the Prologue to my book, Steppin’ Out Of The Darkness, “When Good People Become Great,” always expect the unexpected to happen when least expected.

Copyright 2008 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.

I’ve posted Senator Barack Obama’s speech, “A More Perfect Union,” for those of you who still need a compelling reason to believe that this 2008 Presidential Candidate is a brilliant person who just happens to be a Black man whose time and season has come.

There’s absolutely nothing that Senator Obama’s critics can do to change the inevitable. Sit back in the safety and security of your own skin as you listen to Barack’s wise words prayerfully and carefully.

The failed attempts by the Clintons to “marginalize” Senator Barack Obama and “minimize” the accomplishments of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. validated my honest belief that voting for Barack on “Super Tuesday” is the right thing to do. Obama is a courageous candidate, who just happens to be Black, that will give all Americans hope. Matters not what ethnicity, what gender, what political affiliation, what generation, or what income bracket you claim.

Unlike Senator Hillary Clinton, Senator Obama spoke truth to power in love when the majority of our political leaders believed the infamous lie President Bush told to justify a war that has bankrupted our children’s future. Obama got it right when he refused to go-along just to get-along with the status quo who got it wrong once again. Americans are not the only great nation of great people who desperately need Change that we can all believe in. The whole world is watching and waiting to see what will happen during what will become America’s defining moment in 2008.

The words, ” I see your true colors shining through,” came to mind while watching the Clintons execute their failed character assassination of the only 2008 Presidential Candidate whose time and season I believe has finally come. Their publicly televised, fear-based actions reminded me of what frequently happens privately to Black men who boldly stand in the way of powerful people precariously perched in positions of influence. The end does not justify the means. Never did. Never will.

Together, we, as Bloggers For Barack Obama, can make a difference by casting our votes for Senator Obama on Super Tuesday. As one of the many bloggers, who are not ashamed to publicly stand with Senator Barack Obama, I honestly believe that we can impact the ultimate outcome of the 2008 Presidential election process.

Together, we can beat the odds and achieve what Obama’s opponents refused to believe was possible before now if we choose to walk together in peace and work together as one for the greater good of humanity’s global village. Do you believe? I hope so. We can’t afford to get it wrong again.

“Yes We Can!” Divide and Conquer No More!

Copyright (c) 2008 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.

Last year, my wife, KWiz, and I watched the movie “Freedom Writers.” This year, we watched “The Great Debaters.” Both are unforgettable films. If you’re an aspiring writer who needs a reason to finish writing your book, please don’t wait to see either of these films. Both are amazing examples of the art of story-telling.

It’s true! Everybody has a story to tell. Some of you are extremely talented, gifted writers who can effortlessly employ the power of the written word to tell your stories. For me, writing is a struggle, which is why I started blogging last year. Have you ever wondered if there’s some secret formula or writing technique that will make one book sell better than another?

Can “talent alone” ensure the success of the books that authors allegedly choose to write? Who or what enables prolific writers to repeat the meticulous process behind the creative chaos that made your book a success? Does the timing of a book’s release play a significant part in its author’s ability to emotionally connect with one generation and not another? Do you believe that book sales, or the lack thereof, are an accurate indication of the perceived success or the failure of a book?

According to prolific author Paulo Coelho’s profile, “Slow initial sales [of The Alchemist] convinced his first publisher to drop the novel, but it went on to become one of the best selling Brazilian books of all time.

Have any of you ever pondered the possibility that the part you played did little to determine the success of your book? Did God’s sovereign will and perfect plan have anything to do with the success of your book? If yes, does it really matter whether or not an author chooses to employ “urban street teams” or “main stream” marketeers to promote a book that’s destined to become a national best seller? As writers, what part do we play in the books we author?

Do books choose their writers or do writers choose the books they pen? I had no desire to write a book before I began to pen Steppin’ Out Of The Darkness. I believe the book that I birthed chose me. I can still recall waking up in the middle of the night to write the first page of my big dream. Once I began writing it, I couldn’t stop. Whenever I felt inspired to write, I didn’t sleep much. I didn’t eat. I didn’t talk. Since I didn’t have anything to distract me, I just wrote. I constantly canceled or rescheduled appointments until the words stopped flowing from somewhere deep within the heart of my soul.

Am I crazy or has this ever happened to any of you? What did you do initially? Did you look around the room to see if you were all alone? Did you ignore the words you heard or did you heed the still, small voice that inspired you to believe that you could achieve something bigger than yourself? Did people laugh at you, ridicule you, and reject you when they heard about the genesis of your big dream? My mother and my wife stood by me at a time when I needed their love and support the most.

Writing Steppin’ Out Of The Darkness was an act of faith for me. I wrote on anything and everything I could get my hands on as evidenced by all the cardboard boxes still stuffed with the hastily scribbled notes that I stockpiled over the years. During those difficult days when I had no place to lay my head, I didn’t have time to feel sorry for myself. For reasons that still escape me, I refused to give up after the fall I survived.

Nevertheless, trusting God when nothing made sense wasn’t easy. To challenge myself to keep getting up and showing up for my street fight with Adversity, I started writing poetic essays. Writing literally saved my life after my business failed and I was forced to file bankruptcy. Because of the vision that God gifted to me, I had a plan that I could believe in. God’s unchanging love gave me hope during my darkest days. It’s true! Without a vision, people with no reason to hope will perish.

For reasons now known, “But by grace still go I” is not just some empty Christian phrase that I casually toss around to sound spiritual. If you’re a published writer, did your book choose you or did you choose your book? I hope this post has encouraged somebody to rise to your feet and inspired you to honestly believe that you can beat impossible odds with God’s help. If so, please let me know.

Copyright (c) 2008 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

“Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

“Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” — Ephesians 6:10-20 kjv

Always remember that the final outcome of spiritual battles all God’s children choose to fight by faith, not by might, nor by power, or by sight, has already been predetermined and predestined. The perpetual spiritual war that’s raging amongst us as we speak has already been won by the King of kings and the Lord of lords.

So don’t allow yourself to get deceived by the “weapons of mass distraction” now trying to entertain us by lying to us in order to maintain the undivided attention of the masses. Don’t be deceived by the “smoke screen of superiority” created by a few misguided strokes from a pen in the mere mortal hands of myopic, misogynistic men who appear to have self-serving, hidden agendas.

Don’t let yourself, your families, your friends to get so stressed by the stroke of a pen that it provokes you, angers you, and pokes you in eyes until you become blinded by Rage. As you already know, any person who can blind you with rage can control you. Cooler heads must prevail so you will recognize the clear and present danger that awaits all who fail to choose the battles they fight and the paths they walk wisely until it’s too late to respond proactively and effectively.

Trust God. Lean not upon our limited understanding. Until the truth that desires to “make you free” prevails over the lie that desires to “make you a slave,” stay dressed up, not stressed out by all the billowing smoke coming from a perpetual spiritual battle too hot human hands to handle alone. Keep your eyes focused on the task at hand. When you’ve done all you can do, stand for something instead of falling for nothing.

Oh! Be forewarned. It’s not wise to stand like a sitting duck on a fence stuck between the diametrically opposed ideologies of all the people still standing with God and all the people still standing against God. I prayerfully petition you to “choose you this day” where you will take your stand during such an “emotionally divisive” season as this.

I, therefore, challenge each of you to choose love over hate and refuse to discriminate based upon the colour of a person’s skin instead of the “content of their character.” As always, the choice to “think critically” about where you will take your stand with the “spiritual weapon” in your hand, disguised as a pen, in your hand today is yours alone to make.

Copyright 2007 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.

To the humble, courageous, “great” ones among us who exemplify how leadership is a choice, not a position.

– Stephen R. Covey

“We’ve Come This Far By Faith,” was one of the Gospel song selections the church choir sang during my uncle’s homecoming celebration last Friday. The soul-stirring words of this song bolstered my honest belief that getting up and showing up daily to engage all who actively participate in the spiritual chess game of life is an act of faith.

Only God truly knows what tomorrow will bring. Do you? Only God knows when Adversity will strike. Do you? Only God knows what the future will hold. Do you? I don’t. For me, trusting God is not an option. After failing and falling flat on my face, trusting God is an act of faith. Must one be “humbled” before one can be “humble?”

Although God has humbled me, am I humble? Some have accused me of being arrogant to believe that I could pen a book and be successful doing so. Am I arrogant because I choose to believe ordinary, everyday people can achieve great things with God’s help? Am I arrogant for believing in myself when nobody else does?

Do humble people dream big dreams? Do humble people believe they can make big dreams come true and achieve greatness with God’s help? When one dares to dream dreams as big as the ones I’ve dreamed, my mentors helped my humbled soul to realize that it’s not wise to lean upon my own limited understanding. Who, or what, has humbled you?

Watching the leadership of the great men in my life over the years has taught me that leadership is a choice one makes by faith. One can assume a “position” of leadership but if nobody is following you, are you qualified to be referred to as a leader?

“We’ve come this far by faith” is the message that kept resonating deep within my soul while driving back to Atlanta this weekend. These inspiring words also confirmed the following quote from my pending release of my book, Steppin’ Out Of The Darkness.  The Prologue, “Always Expect The Unexpected Parts 1 – 4,”  to this introspective story about personal leadership has been posted

“It is by choice that great people like you with great weaknesses like ours believe, by faith, that we can beat impossible odds and achieve great things with God’s help.”

–Roderick O. Solomon

Yes, it’s true. For those of who noticed, I’ve changed the title of my book from When Least Expected. Doing so was both an act of faith and an act of obedience. I’m trusting God with the consequences of my obedience.

Watching the leadership of my Uncle Bay over the years has taught me that strong men are humble men who understand that meekness is not a sign of weakness. Humility is not a sign of weakness. Strong men cry when we see the people we love hurting. Meekness is “power under control.”

“The joy of the Lord is my strength. When I’m weak, He is strong.”

I don’t know about you but the Scriptures remind me of the reasons why I need Jesus Christ to do what only He can — the impossible. When one dares to beat impossible odds, you realize just how much you need God’s help. It is the example of Christ’s leadership that I choose to follow by faith.

Writing a book is definitely an act of faith. Only God knows what will happen next. Nevertheless, I trust God to do what’s best for me and my family. Do you?

“We’ve come this far by faith…”

Copyright 2007 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.

As many of you know, I’ve been in the process of birthing my big dream, but it doesn’t want to cooperate. For all the new members to our culturally diverse group of critical thinkers, my big dream is the pending release of my first reality-based novel which bears the same name as this site. It’s no secret that I’ve been carrying around the weight of this ever evolving literary project for over 10 years.

Yes, there have been many days when I’ve felt like giving up and quitting. But my faith in God has brought me too far to turn back now and feelings can be deceiving. Besides, meeting the “greatness of God’s faithfulness” has made it impossible for me to lose hope and abandon my vision and forget my big dream. In the meantime, what do we choose to do while we’re waiting on the Lord to open doors and windows no mortal hand can close? If you’re a writer, keep writing. Do some additional research. The faithful remain hopeful.

Use the extra time to see if there’s a better way, a more cost effective way, an unforeseen way to make your big dream come true. But whatever you do, don’t take your eyes off Jesus like Peter did and start looking at the winds of Adversity when they begin to blow. Isn’t it interesting that as long as Peter stayed focused on Jesus, he managed to do the impossible by “walking on the water.” Quick question. Who or what are you still allowing to distract you, to annoy you, to wear you down, to discourage you, to hinder you, just to keep you from doing what God created you to do with excellence?

Can it be that our “fear of failure” is still keeping many of us from getting out of the boat of what’s giving us a false sense of security? Since the first day of this unpredictable “year of firsts,” how many times have I challenged each of you to keep getting up, showing up, and pushing past the pain? How many times have I tried to encourage and inspire you to believe that we can help each other achieve great things with God’s help? Quit? Never. Give up? It’s not going to happen. I’m too close to finishing the task that my skeptical antagonists alleged was impossible for somebody like me to do.

When our big dreams don’t cooperate, what should we do during those “dark days and lonely nights when all seems lost?” Cry if you must but trust God absent any reservations. Quitting is never an option if you honestly believe that you were born to write or do what you’re doing now. Remember, God’s delay does not always mean that your big dream has been denied. I’ve learned not to argue with God when the answer to a prayer is “no.” Sometimes God’s no is an indication that now is not the time. One never knows how close they came to succeeding until after they give up and quit. Matters not what happens after our big dreams refuse to cooperate, trust God anyway.

Besides, not doing so would also make me a “hypocrite” since the main character of Steppin’ Out Of The Darkness, “When Good People Become Great,” is faced with the same adverse circumstances, unforeseen obstacles, and character building challenges I’m struggling to overcome now. If time permits, you can read a brief excerpt from an earlier version of the “revised” chapter, “Sun Dried Bones, Abandoned Visions, And Forgotten Dreams,” to see how the protagonist responds to what he discovers in this modern day “valley of dried bones.” You’ll have to wait a little longer to see what additional editing can do to make a manuscript worthy of your prospective readers’ time, respect, and hard earned money.

Having a quiet talk with God in my secret place usually puts me at peace whenever the invisible fist of Adversity strikes. Reading the Word of God always works for me when I don’t understand the reasons why now is not the time. According to Ecclesiastes 3:1-22 NIV, “There is a time” and a season for everything that happens on either side of the “Great Spiritual Divide.” Do you mind sharing some of your favorite Scriptures that have inspired you to “keep risin’ after every fall?” For those of you who aren’t “Christians” or faithful followers of the Christ, which means “the Anointed One,” what do you do during your darkest night of the soul?

I can still recall all the days God made me experience whatever I was going to teach during my in home Bible studies to see if my actions spoke louder than my words. As you know, “a faith that cannot be tested is a faith that cannot be trusted.” Is my faith in God being tested and strengthened right now? Most definitely. But God has never let me down. Tonight, I’ll have to search for the poem that talks about what happens when we pray for faith but God gives us more challenges to overcome. If you already have a copy of what I’m seeking, let me know where I can find it. When all else fails, all you can you do is “stand.” Just be careful where you choose to stand.

To illustrate what I mean, here’s a verse from the popular hymn, “The Solid Rock.”

“On Christ the solid rock I stand. All other ground is sinking sand.”

© Copyright 2007 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, evidence of things not seen. For by [faith] the elders obtained [God’s approval]. Through faith, we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.”

Hebrews 11:1-3 kjv

Now much stronger and wiser than before we sat down to watch the Super Bowl, humbled men destined to achieve great things are coming back home to protect and serve all the courageous single moms and women who performed miracles on a daily basis by managing to bear the crushing weight of every cross belonging to all the single-parent families of humanity’s global village by faith.

On day 37 of 2007, we’re challenging real men to sit down for the first time this year to do the unexpected to inspire, encourage, and give great women like you a good reason not to lose hope.  Real men accepted the first challenge we posted before two Super Bowl Bound Black men played the NFL’s championship game in the pouring rain and made history.

After all the celebratory parties ended, real men employed the power of the pen to compose personalized letters of apology to all the unsung sheroes God appointed to help all the unfaithful, ungrateful, and hateful men who disappointed one too many of you with the violence of our betrayal of silence.

As a sign of our unyielding, undying love and respect, each of the real men still standing in agreement as one today will keep edifying and highly esteeming our most valuable resource until women begin to feel safe and secure in our presence.  With God’s help, all the real men with vision made a wise decision to publicly apologize to all the women we hurt and deeply wounded once we began to recognize the errors of our wicked ways.

Imagine meeting real men ready and willing to do whatsoever is needed to prove beyond any shadow your mountain of doubt may cast that we can achieve what one too many of you still believe is an impossibility. Imagine meeting real men divinely destined to achieve greatness who now possess the God-given ability to share a love that’s worth giving, living, and dying for if necessary to serve and protect man’s most valuable resource from harm.

Imagine the peace your emaciated soul will enjoy while bathed in the waterfall of a healing love that freely flows from the same raging river that feeds the refreshing wellspring pouring out of the very essence of God’s presence. Imagine how priceless your gifted soul will feel while lounging in the after glow of a love you rejected at first since it wasn’t like anything you’ve ever experienced.

Imagine meeting real men secure enough to cry our eyes dry in your presence until the raging rivers of tears we shed flushes away all the toxic, poisonous remains of the sticky residue from all the anger, bitterness, and hate we suppressed deep down inside the place where secrets reside. Imagine what will happen when single men choose the nail and care enough to bear the additional weight of every abandoned cross that crushed the spirit of every single demoralized woman who survived the traumatic loss of her great man, husband or baby’s daddy.

Real men will begin loving, honoring, and respecting every single woman we meet on the street where you live or work until man’s most valuable resource chooses to exercise her free will to respect every single man who comes correct. Despite having our own crosses to carry, real men with real big flaws finally realized why God challenged our humbled souls to keep choosing the nails and pushing past the pain of having to bear the extra weight of the crosses our wives brought with them until we can earn the love, trust, and respect of the woman we chose to marry. For now, only God knows how many real men actually exist who will choose to love, honor, and respect great women like you who kept raising the gifted souls of generations of great leaders out of the darkness of Despair by faith.

“A faith that cannot be tested is still a faith that cannot be trusted.”

No wonder God challenged all the great men destined to achieve great things to bless man’s most valuable resource with an unselfish love that’s truly worth giving for the rest of our lives even if our love is never reciprocated as expected or when expected. Before Valentine’s Day comes and goes, all who refuse to give up and quit will begin to understand why the popular phrase, “all is fair in love and war,” is yet another classic example of what you keep hearing me refer to as a true lie. If the be told, all is not fair in love but all may indeed be true during the fog of war. Lord willing and if our team doesn’t freeze in the bitter cold, we will begin posting the letter of apology real men with real big flaws wrote to all the great women whose faith in God has already been tested beyond belief.

— TO BE CONTINUED —

©Copyright 2007 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.

Although tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday, it’s this man’s heart-felt belief that great women like you need some relief from the stress you feel while trying to raise the next generation of leaders with so little. On day 34 of 2007, an emerging generation of real men with vision are preparing to get up, show up, and challenge real men with the inner strength of character to step up to the neglected plate of personal responsibilities we left unprotected. For the first time during this unpredictable “year of history-making firsts,” great men destined to achieve greatness will hand deliver to man’s most valuable resource a refreshing, rejuvenating love that will come minus any unduly burdensome conditions or unresolved issues from past relationships. The mature love our humbled souls will bring when great women like you least expect it can only fit in super-sized bowls too big for mere mortal hands of the insecure, immature, abusive men who hit women to hold.

Despite what one too many angry women might think about all the abusive men you hated to love for more than one night, I’m not the only man God humbled after a great fall who honestly believes that no woman should have endure another “sunny-side-down day” alone. Man’s most valuable resource shouldn’t have to wait any longer to hear the same great men who claim to love, honor, and respect all women communicate just how much we appreciate each of you for doing so much with so little. The generation of humbled servants God is calling are coming to serve and protect each of you with a mature love unlike any the world has ever seen because one too many of us fumbled the ball, stumbled, and fell flat on our faces before crossing the threshold of our divine destinies. Nevertheless, the greatness of God’s faithfulness inspired our cast down souls to rise to our feet and step out of the darkness so thick that it made us too sick to care. Now that we know better, real men will choose to do better than anybody expects.

An entire generation of real men with vision made a courageous decision to follow the example of the leadership of Jesus Christ by choosing the nails now piercing all the non-violent hands now bearing the weight of humanity’s single-parent families. Real men with vision realized that we never apologized to generations of great women like you still caring for our children and bearing the weight of the crosses you kept carrying alone for too long and for all the wrong reasons. Nevertheless, real men destined to achieve greatness will appear when great women like you least expect it to keep all the antagonistic spiritual adversaries who still hate all God’s children from making a clean sweep of humanity’s global village unimpeded. On bended knee, real men now come ready and willing to pay whatever it will cost up front and in full to restore what we lost when we turned a blind eye to man’s most valuable resource when the single-parent families of humanity’s global village needed the calming, disarming presence of endearing God-fearing men the most.

Real men who still love, honor, and respect all women will challenge each other to care enough about great women like you to hold your hand as we stand by your side and bear the unduly burdensome weight from the plethora of abandoned crosses God never intended for man’s most valuable resource to carry alone. Although it’s true that what doesn’t kill the relentless will of resilient people — who still believe God gifted our blessed souls to achieve great things — will just make every diligent generation destined to achieve greatness stronger and wiser than before Adversity strikes. Nevertheless, no great woman — who survived a laborious birthing process that would kill all the men we know — deserved to receive the lukewarm love we served to one too many of you that we knew wasn’t worth giving.

— TO BE CONTINUED —

©Copyright 2007 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.