told her that I wanted to stay, but she told me I couldn 't. I thank God for bringing this woman into my life I love her still until this day, and that I never wanted to leave but she told me I had to go. Her parting words were that God would bring us back together one day. As I got into the car with the social workers, mama Jackson turned her head and walked away because of her strength I think she did want me to see her cry, but I knew that the pain she felt on that day was equal or greater to that which was inside my heart. And so I departed on that day at age 11 armed with salvation in my spirit and nothing but God to watch over me in the coming years. After leaving Grand Rapids, my life was filled with both trial and tribulation; …show more content…
And through it all, I still prayed not knowing if my prayers were being heard, never once going to church to worship since my time with mama Jackson. Eventually, I joined the U.S. Marine to escape the pandemic poverty of my neighborhood setting. Each step of the way, I saw God sometimes only in little flashes or spirts, but it was definitely the presence of God.
There were two major events that have occurred in my life that caused me to never doubt that God is real. The first was when I was 16, my mother had put me out of her home not for any wrong doing on my part, although at the time I was quite resentful that she kicked me out, but it was more so to protect me from her boyfriend a convicted felon and murderer with a rap sheet as long as your arm. His name was Jimmy Pouncey (my brother Orlando 's father) he is dead now, he died from complications of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (aids) contracted by using dirty needles to shoot heroin. Well, one day when I stop by my mother 's home to check on her and some of my younger siblings there was a man laying on the floor in front of the patio doors. He
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Marine Corps, Desert Storm and four tours of U.S. Embassy duty, it was not easy as in those days you had to fight daily as a Marine. It was just par for the course so to speak, this I believed harden my spirit along with frequent drinking. I think the drinking became a way of coping with the tragic death of my mother among other things.
While in the Marine and living in Africa I had a vision of a mountain and a gathering of people dressed in white. I later determine that the mountain and the people were in Ethiopia. The people all looked as though they were in a trance and were walking to and from the mountain. When I would walk up and asked them what they were doing they would only say one word to me "Exodus" the Greek word meaning to depart just as the Israelites had departed Egypt. At the moment I did not truly understand what God was saying, but I now I realize that God was telling me to turn away from my worldly ways.
See as a Marine I became very aggressive and would fight at the drop of a hat. I was a drinker and womanizer and the more of both I had the better I thought I was doing. That said, the vision I had was the embarkation line of my departure from the Egypt of my flesh and the beginning of my journey and transformation; not to say I am perfect now because I am still a finite being, but I am not who I used to
military members who share harsh, traumatic, or even funny events obviously become closer through the bond of a mutual experience. This is particularly true for Marine infantry; many Marine are brought up in different areas of the US, with different values, ages, religious and political beliefs. However different we all might look on the outside, the fact that we’ve all been through good times and bad with each other makes us closer than any civilian could understand. After being a Marine, I find that I’m close to, and always will be, than my civilian friends who I’ve known for years. Along with this, Pressfield talks about how, under all the glory and allure of fighting for one’s country exists the real reason that warriors fight; for our brothers in arms. Political beliefs, government stances, and flags go out the window, only to be replaced by concern for the safety and well-being of the men to our left and right. All of these things are reasons why it is difficult for civilians to understand what it’s like to be a warrior. This is perhaps embodied best in our motto, Semper Fidelis; Always Faithful, to our brothers and those who depend on
I was kept in basic training for an additional five weeks. My optimistic outlook on the events taking place at the time were now as shattered as my hand, yet I still couldn't find it in me to quit. I did all that I could to make my hand recover as fast and efficiently as possible to get back and complete recruit training. The long weeks only made the stay in Cape May all the more difficult as I was known by every intimidating and angry instructor on regiment and was exposed to even more bizarre and grueling moments within the program. Eventually, I made it through and was off to my first unit in Galveston, TX. A week after my arrival I was subject to medical discharge do to a spontaneous back
and Drill Instructors see Boot Camp. Why did he pick the Marines as his topic? Attracted to the Corps perception and morale, Thomas E. Ricks expresses the Marines as the only service still upholding its honor and tradition. Due to society changing into a commercial society with a “me” attitude, civilians focus on how they can splendor themselves with material items—never looking at the big picture at all that we can accomplish as a team if we give our heart and soul to life. Team means everyone on earth, for we are the people that provide for one another with peace and prosperity.
As a second language learner I have never expected myself to be a perfect writer throughout the semester. Even If English was my first language still, I would not be a perfect writer. It is not about first or second language, it is about how well I understand the learning objectives. Then organizing and writing with my own ideas and putting them in my paper. I am going to be honest, I am not good at English subject and English subject is my strongest weakness than the other subjects. In this paper I will discuss and analyze my own writing, reflecting on the ways that my writing has improved throughout the semester.
I have always had the knowledge of Christ, but up until this last year, I realized I did not truly believe in him. I questioned the things in my life and why I always ended up with the same misery over and over. I had grown up in an abusive life from my early years. I can honestly say I had brief periods of peace when I was allowed to go with my grandparents, but they were short lived. I was taken to a variety of counselors from a very young age and put on prescription medicines starting at 16. Everyone around me could not figure out what was wrong with me and why nothing would “fix” me. Sin was a normal for me, and I carried on that lifestyle into adulthood. I had no concept of trust and what love really was.
While I was worshipping God, my family came to mind. As I worshipped God for His faithfulness and goodness, I began to think about how my family may view God. A lot of my family members aren’t saved and don’t go to church. As I meditated on who God is, I couldn’t help but crave that same revelation for my family. I know that I fall in love with God more and more whenever I spend time with Him. I receive revelations of who He is and I desire to become more like Him the more time I spend with Him. I believe that as I was worshipping God, He gave me a strong desire in that moment to pray for my family. As I was prompted by the Holy Spirit, I began to pray for my family. I was praying that the Lord would send people to them. I began to pray Scripture over their lives and the situation. I ended my prayer with worshipping God and praising Him in advance for His work in them. I left with a peace that transcends a
When I was five years old, I was terrified of being left alone. I was afraid to ever be by myself. I had to be around other people or I would have panic attacks. Our dogs somehow had gotten out of our backyard. My mom, my sister and I got in the car and drove around the neighborhood looking for the dogs. My mother drove by our house to check if they had got back yet. My mom told me to see if the front door was unlocked. As I was walking across the front lawn, she drove away. When I was walking towards the house I didn’t hear my mom tell me that she was going around the block and that she’d be right back. To say the least, I panicked. I remember running down the dusty dirt road after her brown jeep thinking that my mom left me and would never see her again. Feelings of fear and abandonment filled my body, and I ran down to the highway screaming with tears streaming down my face. When I finally got to the highway I sat down and started to sob. A lady in a blue car pulled over and asked me what was wrong. She was concerned so she had me get in the car and drove me to my house. We sat there in the car together until my mom came back home. My mom thanked the lady for being so kind, grabbed my arm and pulled m...
As a young boy, I attended Sunday School for many years. I learned about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit once a week and was immersed in a family that was religious. We never missed a Sunday, prayed before every meal, and talked about God in our lives. I was baptized and began attending a Lutheran church up until the end of middle school. Our lives became busier, and our attendances to church became fewer and far between. In school I began learning about evolution and how humans came about. I remember that I did not understand how school could teach something different than what I learned my entire life. At first I did not know what to believe. I became skeptical about many ideas in the Christian faith. Is there one almighty God? Did he create man as told in the story of Adam and Eve? I thought these bold ideas were far-fetched. For a short while, I did not believe the teachings of the Bible or of God. I had many of the same thoughts as doubters of the Christian religion. How can the idea of one God or Heaven be real if no living person had ever witnessed it for themselves? Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people? The absence of God and the theory of evolution seemed like the reasonable explanation to me. As time went on, I continued to attend church sporadically and did a lot of thinking about my faith. Every so often, I would find
When I scheduled the class Persuasive Communications, I had no particular interest in the subject matter; I just needed to finish the general education requirement for a second writing course. It fit my schedule and sounded reasonably interesting, but I did not think I would gain much from it. It was a general education class after all, and would not be very high on my priority list. Now that the semester is almost over and the class work is complete (albeit after this paper), I feel as if I gained a lot from this class. The class’s main objective was to expand our skills as writers, but it served in teaching us many other things that hold value in our education and future careers.
Religion and faith have been a part of my life since the day I was born. My grandfather has been a pastor at Selma Church of God for 39 years and my mom, along with my grandmother and aunts, run our churches worship team. One could only assume, I have spent much of my life in the church. From years of children 's church and Sunday school, I learned of God 's unconditional love for me and His constant willingness to forgive me of my sins. My family and teachers explained the crucifixion and resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ. As a child, I knew all these things, these wonderful things about my God and my religion, but it was not until my early teens that I began to thirst for more.
In February of my eighth grade year, a dear friend of mine passed away in a tragic car accident. He was the first friend I made in youth group and his death definitely took a toll on the church. Shortly after, my father stepped down from his position as pastor, claiming to be mentally unstable to lead a church. A few weeks later my mother served him with divorce papers. Within a matter of months, life changed drastically. I had experienced the loss of a friend and the loss of a complete family and was left with brokenness. When I should have been angry at God the most, he showed me how faithful he was. Jesus was my only hope and stability during this time. Instead of running away from him, he drew me unto himself and gave me joy. Jesus ...
I grew up in a small town and after I graduated high school I wanted more in life than a 9 to 5 job; I wanted to see the world. I had a few friends that had joined the military and had come home to visit with exciting stories about their experiences. I noticed a change in a few of them; they seemed to walk a little taller, maybe act a bit more mature. This, along with the intrigue of life outside of my small town, drew me to consider joining the military. I met a recruiter in Lakeland Florida in July of 1989 and a few months later on September 26th I raised my right hand and took the Oath of Enlistment. I had no idea what I had gotten myself into.
The beginning of my faith journey can be described as rocky, at best. Each Sunday morning my dad would stay home just so that he could catch every possible second of Sunday football coverage. I wasn't even exactly sure who God was; my mom just told me I had to go to church "'cause I said so." This upset me, especially as a child. Furthermore, the example that my father set for me was far beyond comprehension. Who was he to tell me to go to church when he didn't even go himself? For a long time, I lost trust in my parents because I was being led on so many different paths.
What is done is done and I would not change who I am today. I do see how easy it is to lose one's self in life and how important it is to make sure that you get it back. The farther I get (the older I get), I see more clearly the effect that the military has had on me, and what I am most grateful for is a firm grip on my spirit that no one will ever take away from me again.
As mentioned earlier, I practically grew up in church. I went there every Sunday and every Wednesday. The concept of who God was, however, never became a reality to me until I was about 13. I remember being at a church camp thinking I had been living exactly how A Christian was supposed to live. While at the camp, God’s presence, or the Holy Spirit, convicted my heart. I really felt the presence of God that night and from that moment forward I believe Jesus had ...