Daily Devotional – 4/2/14 “What in the hell is going on?”

We have 2 teenagers at home and sometimes I really think they are strangers. I just don’t understand. Kids now days want to be disrespectful yet ask for something in the same breath. They’ll lie to you in your face and then not expect anything to happen. More parents are burying children who’ve died at the hands of other children. Young girls would rather be referred to as a bad b**** than their name and young boys would rather their pants sag than pull them up. What in the hell is going on? These kids have no sense of urgency yet they want you to move every time they call. They have no respect for themselves so how can we expect them to respect their elders? Yea, we take them to church yet they aren’t learning a thing because their heads are still in their phones the entire time. Yea, I know the bible says in Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it,” but what about now because they may not make it to grow old. No ma’am, no sir; I am not placing all of the blame on all parents because even those that care enough to act like it still raise rebellious children so I am placing the blame back on them. My 17-year-old says she can’t wait to move out yet she has no car, no job and no sense of responsibility even though she’s being raised in a home with 2 parents, morals and responsibilities. However, all I can do now is continue to try to correct her skewed thinking before the world slaps her in the face. Sometimes I believe the smart phones these children carry around are smarter than them and it’s sad.

I thank God every day for my upbringing because every day it continues to bring me up. We were taught how to be ladies in our homes, we cooked dinner at 13, helped momma raise our brothers and handled the household because she had to work. We didn’t sleep in on a Saturday morning because there were things to do. We didn’t act up nor skip school because we got our butts beat when momma or granddaddy found out. We didn’t disrespect adults because then everybody in the neighborhood could discipline you. We didn’t talk back because parents weren’t afraid to discipline you, even in public. Oh but now, we ask the kids what they want for dinner, stand in a line for hours to buy them the latest Jordan tennis shoes that are the same ones they already got just in a different color, leave them at home on Sunday morning because they stayed out late the night before, give them the option to do chores when they are at home all day and tip toe around them because you don’t want to make them mad when they ain’t even old enough to drive. What in the hell is going on? Instead of your daughter being on the phone while you cook dinner, teach her how to make the cornbread. While your son is chilling on a Saturday, teach him how to cut the grass. If we don’t teach them, how will they know? Teach them how to responsible and respectful so that he’ll know how to treat one another. Teach them the value of a dollar so they won’t sign away their life the first time a credit card application comes in the mail. Teach them how to pray so that they can call on God when times get hard. Teach them how to worship so that the Holy Spirit can abide in them and speak for them when they can’t. Teach them how to be responsible drinkers when they get 21 so they won’t end up dead or in jail before they turn 22. Teach them how to work hard for the things they want instead of stealing and robbing folks. Teach them that it’s ok to love themselves but not become self-centered and full of themselves. If you have a trade, teach it to them because even if they act like they aren’t interested now, they will be when they least expect it because if you start early building their foundation, they’ll always have it to build on and then Proverbs 22:6, fits!

Daily Devotional – 4/1/14 “Control your tongue!”

I find it kind of ironic that after I did a devotional on yesterday about getting in our place, Pastor Letcher taught on controlling your tongue last night in bible study. (Humph!) Now, if you’re like me you might, no scratch that, you have a problem with this but I’m working on it, for real, I am since I am the kind of person that usually doesn’t bite my tongue because if you ask me a question then I have to be honest in my answer but sometimes the way things are said can be taken wrong. So it isn’t all in what you say but it’s also how you say it. See, when folks say sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt, they lied! Words hurt worse because as someone said in bible class, scars heal but what you say can’t be taken back. This is why you have to watch what you say and how you say it.

Now the lesson on last night was taken from James 3:1-12 and in this particular passage James is talking on how a horse can be controlled by placing a small bit in its mouth yet here we are, humans, who say we can’t be controlled by folks but let someone say something you probably didn’t say (or you probably did) and you shoot off thus allowing your whole body to be controlled by a small bit of information. Yea, you allow your emotions and the actions of others to control your tongue when you should be. I get it, I know it’s hard to contain yourself when someone is lying on you, scandalizing your name or got an attitude at you for no reason but my bible tells me in Proverbs 21:23, “Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble,” and in the end the truth always prevail so control your tongue. James 3:6 says, “The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell,” yet you have no problem burning someone with it. Yea, you’re quick to lash out at folks and you didn’t even fully hear what they said when you should have controlled your tongue. Isn’t is a down right disgrace that even then, in the bible days, James knew that every animal, species and reptile could be tamed by man yet man can’t even tame their own tongue even now? How can you, we, us, them ever expect to be greater in whatever it is we decide to do if we never control our tongue because if the truth shall be written, our tongues have gotten a lot of our blessings blocked. It doesn’t take much to control your tongue because all you have to do is stop and think before you respond. You don’t have to fight the battles that are raging against you because God got it. Control your tongue and God will control temper!

Daily Devotional – 3/31/14 “Get in YOUR place!”

On last Sunday, the Evangelist at our church gave me this inspirational book that she had bought from the dollar store and she told me she wanted me to read it. Now, I’m thinking, why does she want me to read this book but I did. Now, I have to be honest, I didn’t read it until yesterday morning (it was a small book with a moment for each day for 30 days) but something stuck with me. On Day 27, it talked about geese. Yes, geese but go with me. When geese prepare to fly south for the winter, they do so in a V formation. In this formation, there is the lead goose that flies in the front and then all of the other geese fall in line thus forming a V. Now, the significance of the V is because if all of the other geese play their part, their range of flying and efficiency is boosted by the help of each other’s wings which means they fly faster and higher and when the goose who is leading gets tired, the next in line takes their place and they go to the back therefore minimizing them getting tired. I know you’re asking how this ties in to church but let me bring it home to you. As Christians, we need to get in our place. See, if we all supported one another by allowing the head to be the head as we fall into our V like formation, just imagine how efficiently our flying would be. Yea, then we’d be able to fly above the haters and those who want to tear us down. If we could all support one another like geese do, just imagine how far we could go because we wouldn’t be overworked and burnt out. And if we waited on our turn to be the head, just imagine how much better things would be because you do know that you have an appointed time, right? Yea, there will be times when someone will fall but get this, when a goose is injured or becomes sick and has to fall out of line, 2 more geese goes to and they stay with the injured/sick goose until they are well enough to fly or they pass away. In other words, they look out for one another. Isn’t that amazing? When will we as Christians, get in our place? When will we support one another instead of tearing down? Don’t you know that 1 Corinthians 12:26-27 says, “If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad. All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it.” It doesn’t matter about the amount of tithes you pay, the amount of time you’ve been a member of the church or the amount of work you do because we all make up one body of Christ. Do you part as a Christian and get in your place and see how much better things become! Get in YOUR place!

Blog Tour … Kharisma Kashmere “Sex Lies and Betrayal”

Sex Lies and Betrayal Book Tour

 “I left the only man I ever loved after killer the I was with.”-Erie Gold.
After taking off from her disastrous double life with Yay, then double crossing him along the way, where does Erie’s loyalty truly lie? Bitten twice, Yarnell is out for a vengeance no amount of cream can ever replace. But when these two lovers cross paths this showdown over love and money will leave more than a trail of blood and dollar signs. After fleeing to Mexico, Erie finds herself back in the States, in more than just her enemy reach.


No one is expecting Shawndrell Ford to be released from prison after being arrested so publically. But now that’s he a free man his only goal is to get back on top with the help of his partner Greedy. But will his own greed be the cause of their demise?


This explosive trilogy takes readers on a masterful journey through the mindsets of those who entrust everything they know and love into the almighty dollar. And in the streets that have no statue of limitation with more enemies than friends, one of these cash connoisseurs are bound to fall victim to all the Sex, Lies, and Betrayal.




1. What or who are some of your inspirations? The inspiration behind my writing is my mother. She was the first person to put a pen in my hand; I just never put it down. And anyone who knows me knows it gets no bigger than Wahida Clark in my little world. I respect what she’s done for literature and giving voices to women who society would have been otherwise cast away. She’s proof you can turn a negative into something very much positive.

2. How did you come up with the concept for Sex, Lies, Betrayal The Façade series?

People call me crazy or they never believe me, but in all honesty it started with a serious case of cold feet. I got engaged at 17 years old and I literally began thinking of everything that could possible go wrong if I considered marriage at such a young age. From there I played with the idea of what I would do in the even that things soured then the pen took on a mind of its own.

3. Where are some of your favorite place to write?
My all time favorite place to write is at my desk. It’s surrounded by my book shelves and its right in front of my window. So every morning I watch the sunrise over both my own little library and the actual library across the street. It’s pure solace. If I’m not there, I’m anywhere it’s extremely quiet and pitch black so that it’s just me and my thoughts.

4. What are some of your hobbies?
My only hobbies are reading, writing, and collecting rare books and watches. I love the concept of time and what it does.

5. What are something to have to have a comfortable writing experience?
I have to have Pulp Fiction playing on my IPOD, radio up on blast for 2 hours only, all my notebooks, favorite pen, and strangely enough my grandmother’s obituary.

6.How did you become a published Author with Leo Sullivan and how does it feel?
Mr. Sullivan was one of the many authors who I’d come across when I was simply a reader aspiring to be an author. I kept up with him on paperback then I was introduced to an e book by accident with his name on the top of the cover. Of course, I was hooked and began one clicking everything and I stumbled across some more amazing reads with his name on it and I had to send over my manuscript. Coming from a botched book contract followed by a self-publishing fiasco. Leo is a breath of fresh air. It feels amazing to be able to work with a veteran of his caliber and be recognized for something I loved doing. It’s an absolute dream come true.



Growing up in Maywood, IL, one of Chicago’s most violent suburbs, Kharisma Kashmere adapted to reading and writing in adolescence. Spending more time inside than out, she became enthralled with urban fiction and suspense at fourteen. Reading her means of escape from the tumultuous city surrounding her, Kharisma decided to start writing about what she thought maybe going on outside her home. The eldest of eleven children, she remembers sharing her stories with sibling who praised her maturing craft. Her husband whom she met at only eleven years old was the person that brought forth the more creative imaginations she pens today. At twenty four, having traveled from Atlanta, Texas, and New York, Kharisma quotes, “I’ve been blessed to have found a passion so deep for writing; I could have seen the world without ever leaving my room. Her first novel, Sex, Lies, Betrayal: The Facade which she penned in Georgia is only the tip of the iceberg, she states. Today she and her husband reside in the Englewood area of Chicago. And she says there’s no place like writing at home.

 

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Daily Devotional – 3/28/14 “Come on!”

I’ve been sitting at my desk since 8:30am without one thought to write on this morning. I mean, usually I can get a tanch of something but I have nothing, absolutely nothing. Yes, I’ve prayed for God to move me out the way and still nothing. What’s the deal with that? Then I realized that I won’t always have something to share or say and maybe no one needs another scripture to read or even another devotional telling them to hold on because I am here to tell you that living is hard! It doesn’t matter whether you’re rich or poor, black , white, Asian, Hispanic or any other nationality because it’s still hard. Sometimes I think I have too much on my plate and then other times I don’t feel like I’m doing enough especially with spiritual work but then the Holy Spirit says, “Girl you don’t even have a clue on the number of people you’re reaching!” (Wow) See, I spend a lot of time trying to get my name known as an author when God is saying folk already know your name as an encourager. I’m so busy trying to get my books in stores but God is saying, my child I got this, you just write. I apologize for being selfish in this devotional but see, someone is watching and following me and I have to ensure I am leading you (whoever you are) in the right direction. No, I have no clue where I am going but that’s alright, come on, God is the lead. Yes, I’ve made some mistakes along the way and I will again but that’s alright, come on, God is the head. Yea, the journey sometimes gets hard but that’s alright, come on, God is the tour guide. Yea, some days may be dark and gloomy but that’s alright, come on, God is the weatherman. Yea, some days may even be tiring but that’s alright, come on, God is the giver of strength. Yea, most days I may not even have a dime in my pocket but that’s alright, come on, God is my provider. Yea, I may even wobble in my steps sometimes but that’s alright, come on, God got me and if I shall fall because Philippians 4:13 tells me, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” and in Him giving me strength it flows from my cup to yours. So come on and go with me, God got us!

P.S. Thank you for allowing me to encourage you. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your day. Thank you for believing in me and thank you for supporting me!