Rejoice in the face of those that claim to not like you because they are watching your every move. What they are really doing is trying to see if you will slip up and make a mistake. Yea, they are trying to see if you are as holy as you portray on social media. (Are you?) See, the last thing you should do as a Saint of God is claim to be holy when you’re really hellish, a praise giver when in actuality you’re petty, a messenger of God’s word when you actually pass mess and gossip or an encourager when you know your words are empty. Baby, the last thing you should be, if you claim to be a Saint, is anything less than that. Please understand; I’m in no way saying you have to be perfect (I’m not) but don’t chastise me for cursing when that’s all that comes out of your mouth. Don’t criticize me for getting pregnant out-of-wedlock, just because you’re a season Saint, when you’ve never been married and have five children. Don’t turn your nose up at me when my skirt is shorter than you think it ought to be when the truth of the matter is, you have one just like but you can’t wear it anymore. All I’m saying is keep it real in this thang!

God has enough phony Saints on the roll, He doesn’t need anymore. He needs some folk who are who they say they are. God is looking for those who can own up to their mistakes and not make them again. God needs some folks who don’t mind sharing about the times they’ve been without. God needs some folks who will share their testimony from addict to abundance. God needs some folk who will stand in the pulpits, on the sidewalks, in the middle of the grocery store, on their jobs and on social media and keep it real. Yes, I am a preacher of God’s word and I still struggle. I’d be lying if I said I had it all together. I sometimes struggle with paying my tithes or a bill. I sometimes have moments when it gets real and I don’t feel like praying for folk. I have times when I need encouragement and times when I might not know the answer to your question; I’m just keeping it real. Are you? Can God count on you to keep it real? See, if we, as Saints of God, always try to act like we never struggle then we are setting up the newly converted to think that once they accept Christ, all their problems cease. It doesn’t work like that. We’ve got to keep it real because then we are being who God has called us to be. This is why 2 Timothy 2:15 says, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”