The Shepherds Have Sided With the Wolves

Barabbas(notorious murderer and robber) is freed. 

The high priests led the charge to have Jesus crucified. When Pilate asked the people do they choose Jesus or Barabbas, a known murderer and robber, to be released for passover. With the urging of the priests the people chose Barabbas. Jesus was later crucified. The people chose to live a murderer than a teacher, a healer, a perfect man.

In the past 18 months I have seen a similar scenarios play out. Law enforcement officers are in the streets daily, protecting the people. Yet the people side with the criminals. This charge is led by area ministers who jump on the band wagon just to have their name on the news, increase their congregation size, or some other  selfish agenda.

I’d like to remind the pastor coalition of Memphis the 9th commandment… Thou shalt not lie… Darrius Stewart's mother lied when she said her son was not wanted. She said it was a family dispute. Her sister said her sons were raped. Despite the evidence that she lied, you stand strong behind her.

Pastor coalition of Memphis, need I remind you that Jesus loved the little children. Jesus said, “But  if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone hung around your neck.”  Your actions are disrespectful to the two boys that were victimized by Darrius Stewart. While you're clocking TV time none of you have offered one thought or prayer for the boys, who have not become teenagers, who are true victims.  These young boys are living with the thoughts of Stewart did to them.  They have a long , emotional road to travel.  Yet, you have not reached out to their mother or offered assistance or prayer to them.

Pastor coalition of Memphis, you are not good for the city. You are supposed to be the shepherds that protect the flock.  Yet, you coddle the wolves for your own selfish gain.  You are supposed to encourage the citizens to live the way Jesus did. Yet when the elderly are robbed  in this city, you're quiet. When an elderly woman was robbed and raped on a church parking lot, you couldn't work a press conference into your schedule.  When our youth commit random acts of assault and vandalism, you say nothing. When two underage girls are killed within 24 hours of each other, you're quieter than the mice in your churches. When an officer is gunned down on a traffic stop, you say nothing.  You hide behind the letters NAACP, but what are you doing to advance the people of color?  Teaching them that the law does not apply to them? Teaching them to fight the police and if you win its cool, but if you loose we'll march for you?  Is that what Dr. King would have done?  Of course not.  Dr. King said that one day a man would be judged by the content of his character, not the color of his skin.  If this was white on white or black on black, would you have come out of your bubble to hold a press conference?  Probably not.  I say that because every morning, the new is laced with black on black and white on white crime, but there have been no statements issued.

I listened to all of the irresponsible rhetoric many of you spouted during the press conference. How are your actions Christ like? When the storm raged and the disciples were afraid, Jesus stood up and said, “Peace be still.” He didn't agitate the situation. He didn't go back to sleep. He didn't ignore the situation. You are agitators not peacemakers. That is not Christ like. You're asking for criminal justice reform before you demand that the citizens, your congregants, properly raise their children and be responsible parents. Tell the citizens to stop killing, stop stealing, stop robbing, and stop raping.  Live by the ten commandments and respect the ones that have accepted the call to enforce those commandments.

I grew up in the church. I may have logged more hours in a church before I turned 18, than many of you have logged in the churches you “lead” today. One thing I was taught, you can not serve two masters. I’m not saying that the people don’t need a voice when there are police brutality issues when the facts and evidence support brutality.  But in this case there are no indications that this was police brutality. This case was very similar to the case in which officer Sean Bolton died. But since the officer died your little coalition kept quiet. Darrius Stewart was a wanted felon. He was trying to flee.  He assaulted a uniformed law enforcement officer.  I don’t understand why you believe the situation is anything other than what it is. But instead of you taking a neutral stance,  you picked a side.  I go on record saying you picked the wrong side.  You have gone against the very bible in which you preach from every Sunday.

Pastor coalition of  Memphis, you need to sit down and think about the sincerity of your actions.  If you are true men of God, you understand that you will be held accountable for your actions one day. I will close by saying you are not on the side of God.

Cafe Rue Brings the French Quarter to the Ozarks

Exactly 25 years ago, I hopped on an airplane to go meet the family of my future wife.  I went straight to the airport after finishing my night shift at FedEx.  By the time I made it to St. Martinville, LA, I was exhausted.  The first person Kim introduced me to was a wonderful woman, Beatrice Leon, affectionately known as "Grand-maw"(May not be spelled right but with the creole accent you get the point).  Ten minutes later, I was sitting at the dining room table with a plate of crawfish stew in front of me.  Up to that point in my life, I had never eaten crawfish.  After the first bite, I was hooked.  Later that evening, I met my future father-in-law, Francis Leon.  It was then, I tasted jambalaya for the first time.  I was absolutely hooked.  The next day, which was Easter

Sunday,  we had dinner at Grand-Maw's house. I had no idea that so much food could fit into one house.  For the first time, I had red beans and rice, etouffee, and rice dressing.  25 years later and a 75% increase in body mass, I'm still a fan of creole dishes.  Grand-Maw is no longer with us, but my father-in-law is still hooking it up.  Many restaurants tout that they serve authentic creole dishes.  I have given many the thumbs down due to the standards that have been set.  This past weekend, Kim and I found a place at the base of the Ozark Mountains, that is very close to the real deal.

When we heard that AAU basketball was taking us to Fayetteville, AR, the only thing I knew was the Razorbacks.  I went to the food channel to see is they had any restaurants that have been featured on Man vs Food or Diners, Drive-in, and Dives.  Nothing.  However, trip advisor mentioned a place called Cafe Rue Orleans.  The reviews peaked our curiosity, so Kim and I decided to give it a try.

My first reaction when we pulled up to the restaurant was, "Uh-oh."  The second floor restaurant was partially encircled by a motel, whose sign would be the perfect foreshadow for a horror movie.  When we entered the restaurant, we were immediately greeting by a friendly face and was seated.  We looked over the menu and our eyes caught "The Bayou Boat."  This consisted of crab cakes, fried shrimp, fried crawfish, fried fish, fried oysters on a bed of french fries.  "Enough to feed 2 to 4 people" the menu touted.  "I'll be the judge of that,"  I thought to myself.  We ordered the bayou boat and sides of Jambalaya and red beans and rice. 

When the boat pulled into the dock, I heard angels singing and a bright light emitted from the table.  It was beautiful.  Everything thing in that boat was seasoned and fried to perfection.  We were provided cocktail, remoulade, and tartar sauces.  All of which were perfect as well.  As for the claim that it was enough for 2 to 4 people, it was on point.   There were so many french fries, not even Craig's daddy could eat all of them(From the Movie Friday). I had to throw in the napkin.  That was when I realized that there were two side dishes in front of us.  The red beans and rice had the right color and flavor, yet it was soupy.  The jambalaya was dry.  There was no hint of the tomato base, which I was accustomed.  The thing I like about it was that it had authentic andoullie sausage.  Many people list andouille as an ingedient; however, it is mere smoked sausage.   I signed up for their text club and we were given a free order of beignets.  They didn't revival Cafe du Mond in New Orleans, but they were great.

Needless to say, I boxed up our leftovers for a late night snack at the hotel and vowed to return. If you're in Fayetteville, AR, a visit to Cafe Rue Orleans is a must.  Stay tuned to read about our dessert experience while visiting Fayetteville, AR.

Estelle... A Dose of Inspiration for Our Youth

It’s a known fact, you learn through repetition. Unfortunately, parents repeating the same thing over and over again tend to go in one ear and out the next. I call this current generation the ear bud generation. They always have ear buds in their ears and listening to God knows what. Music shapes our lives whether or not we want to admit it. The messages in songs influence decisions in many people’s lives. Some good… A lot of them bad. I’m an Usher fan, but I am very disappointed in him (not that he cares) with his song, I don’t mind. To me, it encourages our young women to be strippers. Whether or not it is a proper career is another topic for discussion, but not today. What happened to the songs that inspire us to achieve or fight for what we believe?

 When I was growing up we had The Greatest Love of All (George Benson); Greatest Love of All (Whitney Houston); Free (Prince); One Moment in Time (Whitney Houston); Tomorrow (Tevin Campbell); and Believe I can Fly(R. Kelly). Songs that when things were tough, one of these songs would give you that second wind to focus on the task at hand. What do we have to motivate today’s youth? This generation faces more challenges than I could imagine. Well, Thursday night while watching “Empire”, I think I have found the motivator for this generation.

 I don't know if I never heard of Estelle or just didn’t pay attention to her. After watching her and Jussie Smollet perform Conqueror, I had to find out who this lady was. Nevertheless, Conqueror personifies all of the messages that I’ve tried to instill in my children. The songs addresses the nay sayers or haters that try to hold you down as well as not giving up if you stumble on your path to success.  The message is one that needs to be hammered into the minds of the youth.   Especially our inner city youth, who are taught at a young age that their future is limited.

 Join me in pushing our radio stations to play Conqueror over and over.   Email the program director, post on your favorite stations Facebook page, tweet #Conqueror.  Whatever it takes.  I think our youth will understand that message and hopefully it will have a positive impact. I still don’t understand Take me to Church and I'm rather tired of hearing it.

If you missed hearing their performance on "Empire"  you can purchase it on Amazon.