MY THOUGHTS ON JENNIFER HUDSON, AND DANIEL RICHERSON

A couple of things I want to get into, so here we go.

Have y'all seen Jennifer Hudson's new video?



When I watched it for the first time, I was blown away at how much weight she lost. One of the comments I read below the video said something to the effect that for 30 secs. he thought it was Brandy Norwood. Yes, Jennifer Hudson has lost that much weight. She looks good too. I mean she really looks beautiful. Now as I say that, the question comes to mind. I think she's fine now, but what did I think of her when she was fluffy? That kept ringing in my head as I watched the video for the first time. It's like I was forcing myself not to be attracted to this woman that went from being bigger or as big as I am now to being compared to Brandy. Hopefully, for Jennifer's sake, she lost the weight for her and her alone, and not because she was in Hollywood, or because David Otunga, her fiance, is fit so she just had to follow suit.Was Jennifer fine before? I will say this, physically she was not my type. Sound fair?

That's always been something I thought about when it came to losing weight. If or when I lose weight, would I get treated any differently then I do now? Would I have a better shot of finding a wife one day? Would I have a better chance of finding the direction I need for my life to get it going? These are the things I think about. I mean I would be the same Daniel aka Big Dusty I've always been. Obviously, after losing weight, I could get through leading a song without feeling like fainting afterward. Look at Jennifer. She could sang before and she can still sang now.

If you were able to pick it up in the last paragraph, my life is at a stand still right now. In a little over two months, yours truly, Big Dusty, will be 24 years old. In a little over 3 months, it will be 6 years since I've been out of high school. This all really hit home last night before I went to bed. I know I've blogged about this, podcasted about this, and even took some shots at myself through video, but it's still sad on my part. Something happened this morning that hit home too. This morning I was messing with my dog, Ginger, like I usually do. I came off with a comment, "I'm trying to teach you about life." My dad then asked the question, "What are you going to teach her about life?" In other words, "What do you know about life?" That coming from your father can really hit home. I'm sure he meant no harm by it, but Holy Crap did he have a shot and did he ever take it.

I wake up every morning not understanding how or why God lets me live day after day knowing that the last 6 years was completely wasted. Don't get me wrong, my spiritual life is on the rise. I'm singing with more confidence at church. I'm reading the Bible and praying more than I've ever have. If you read through the blogs, you can see that I've grown spiritually. I'm not downing that for a minute. But my natural life has been wasting away. Singing God Is, Made A Way, and I Won't Forget at church and it going over every time is not getting me off my butt and naturally getting my life on acceleration. Naturally speaking, I've been riding the breaks. Spiritually and church speaking, I've been on acceleration. I keep wondering how can I get my natural life to step up. As I'm typing this, my hands are shaking because this is hard for me to just open up about, but the truth is the truth. The smiles I make on dailybooth, the randomness I come with through podcasts and YouTube videos, is not moving my life forward spiritually speaking.

Now I can hear my dad's annoying voice--it is annoying. I'm his son. What else do you expect from me? Back on topic--in my head. "When you pray to God, you got to be specific because God has a sense of humor." I hear it every time I get on my knees to pray. The problem is, at least in my opinion, I don't have direction. I don't know where to go or where to start. Would I want to get paid doing what I'm doing now which is putting my thoughts down through blogging or writing a column? Of course I would. Would I love to make an income entertaining? Of course I would. Would I love to make an income doing podcasts or talk radio just sharing my opinion? Of course I would. So I do have dreams like writing a best seller, or playing drums in a successful band. But what's the use of having dreams with no direction? That's my problem. I have no direction. Again that's my opinion, and I'm sure, as a matter of fact, I KNOW all of you have an opinion on this.

For those that are worried and praying for me, trust me I'm not in denial. I know what I'm doing, or should I say in this case, not doing. When people ask me how I'm doing, I say I'm fine to stay away from conversation. When I'm the subject of conversations, I try my best to keep it short in sweet. That's probably why I have no friends that I can call on, because I don't open up to anybody. I've had the bad habit ever since High School of hiding my feelings from people and faking it. But as you can see through my blogs, I have a lot on my mind and my heart that's just waiting to be shown to the light.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below. I know you got opinions on me and my situation, but feel free to share your thoughts on my thoughts on Jennifer Hudson. If you're a member of this blog site, follow me so you'll know when I post another blog. If you have a Twitter or FaceBook, my information is on your right. As mentioned above, I am on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/danielakabigd and DailyBooth: http://www.dailybooth.com/bigdusty . Plus you can listen to my podcasts. I just did one yesterday as a matter of fact: http://bigdusty.podomatic.com.

Again thanks for reading and I look forward to your comments.

Stay Saved.

Daniel Richerson aka Big Dusty

SORRY FOR THE, UH, PAUSE. I'M BACK!!!

SORRY FOR THE, UH, PAUSE. I'M BACK!!!

Hey y'all. I'll come with a real blog later, i promise. Until then, check this out

Was CBS right to cancel Two and a Half Men?

So by now I think we all know what's going on with Charlie Sheen. If you don't then use these search engines called Bing or Google. I think they will help a lot.

Charlie recently went on a radio rant which was reported to be the cause of the cancellation of his successful show and a show that I'm a fan of, Two and a Half Men. During this rant he went after the higher ups of the show and blah blah. Am the only one thinking that this is not a just reason to cancel the show? I'm not condoning what Charlie did, don't get me wrong, but I thought this was show business? Wasn't the show like one of the top sitcoms on TV? So they had a show that was a money maker, and they cancel it because Charlie was honest when the host asked him a question. Way to save money in a bad economy CBS.

I know, I know, Charlie's unstable. Charlie's a drunk. Charlie's doing home rehab. Charlie's this, Charlie's that. Let me introduce y'all to a little known performer, arguably the best wrestler of all time, and he's going to the WWE Hall Of Fame by the way, Shawn Michaels. Shawn, in the mid 90's, was what Charlie Sheen is now. I don't think he did rants on radio station, but he was a pain in the butt backstage. He spoke his mind to the higher ups when he didn't like something. All the while Shawn was on drugs. See the comparison? Did the WWF/E fire Shawn? No. Did the WWF/E kick Shawn off the main show? No. Shawn was making money for the company. WWF/E was smart to know that yes Shawn was a pain in the butt, but he was stealing the show and holding the company together while WCW was kicking their butts in the ratings.

Please save the "money isn't everything" stuff, ok? While I do agree the money is in fact not the most important, it is important. Is Charlie right in the head? No, but is any actor in Hollywood right in the head? I rest my case. The only difference between Charlie and everybody else is that Charlie got caught.

Doesn't that remind you of religious people? When you make a mistake and get caught, they ride you until they or you die, but at the same time they have done the same thing or something worse than you did.

Now, I know that not many people is going to agree with me on this, but this is my opinion, and I'm sticking to it! I am American, fat and opinionated.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to leave your comments below. As always the Facebook and Twitter info is on your right. My DailyBooth is http://dailybooth.com/bigdusty My YouTube is http://youtube.com/danielakabigd Share this on Facebook. Retweet this on Twitter. Share with whoever you think will enjoy it.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

YOU THINK YOU KNOW SOMEONE...

Before I get going on this blog let me say that yesterday was a day like I haven't had in months. I posted a new video and a new podcast. That's right, I am back in the podcasting game. I'll plug the website at the end.

Some time ago, I tweeted something to the effect that if you really wanted to know somebody, follow them on Twitter. Well recently I found out that goes with all Internet social media. It's crazy to me what some people say on here. I will admit that I was guilty of being one way on the Internet, and being another way in person. So I know how it is. It's not until you actually see someone else do it, that you realize how nuts it is. I mentioned before that I did a podcast. I'll be the first one to tell you that if you listen to my old podcasts, I was no where near like that in person. In person, you would be lucky if I said more than two words to you. It wasn't to be mean, it was just how I was. I wasn't comfortable talking to people in person. On the Internet, I could do it easily. In person, not so much. Now what kills me is how people act saved in person, then you follow them on social media...good gosh. I finally figured out why some old saints are against social media. Think about it, who in their right mind wants to mess up their reputation? One thing that will never change in this world is the fact that people are very protective of their reputation. People get real offensive when there's false gossip being spread about them. Why? Because their reputation is getting affected by it. Weather we believe it or not, people do care what you say about them. I believe there's something in all of us that care about what people say, however, it's up to us to acknowledge that something.

Lately, I've been blown away seeing people I thought I knew in person being a complete 180 on the Internet. Be who you are. When I wasn't saved, I was honest about it. I knew better than to lie in God's house. I remember some years back, I was at this youth meeting, and the guy teaching asked who was saved. Some people raised their hand, some didn't. I didn't. The teacher then asked a question to the effect why aren't you saved? My answer was peer pressure. Completely honest.

What really blows me away is the language some use. I expect that from my unsaved friends, but from the ones that shout in church on Sunday, then on Monday...yeah, holy goodness. I believe that's how we stay in the bubble we put ourselves in. It's not healthy to be free on Sunday and bound on Monday. To be in Eden on Sunday then back to Egypt on Monday. BTW, yes I'm a husky man talking about what's healthy and what's not. What?!?! And just so you know, I know that from personal experience. Being free on Sunday, jumping and leading songs, then going home and searching...yeah. So believe me, I'm not trying to come off as perfect Big Dusty because I'm no where near perfection. What I am saying is, it's dangerous territory. Seeing what's going on in Egypt and the middle east, we have no time to be playing both sides against the middle. The Bible says that God would rather us be hot or cold. If we're lukewarm, the Bible says, God will spit us out his mouth.

Contrary to belief, the Bible is around for us to use it for cliches. As Donald Lawrence said, we got to let the Word do the work. In order to let the Word to the work, we got to believe it. It's hard to execute a game plan when you don't believe in it. Athletes, am I right or wrong?

So let's make a decision today that we will no longer be lukewarm. If we're going to be saved, let's be saved on AND off the Internet. Let's be saved in AND out the church. Let's be saved away AND with friends and family.

Thanks for reading people. I hope you got something out of it. Please leave your comments below. As always, my twitter and facebook info is on your right for the blog site people. My podcast site is http://bigdusty.podomatic.com/ check out the latest one. Of course my YouTube is http://www.youtube.com/danielakabigd .

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

2-21-11 WHO IS THIS GUY? OR GIRL? WRESTLING BLOG

So if you’re a wrestling fan like me, you’ve probably been keeping an eye on the dirt sheets to see what’s going on. Especially with the whole 2-21-11 mumbo jumbo. Is it Sting? Is it Awesome Kong? Is it Undertaker? It’s the talk of the wrestling world. Let me say, I highly doubt its Awesome Kong because let’s face it, WWE cares nothing about Women’s wrestling. Look who the Divas Champ is, Eve Torres. I rest my case.


Most likely it’s the Undertaker, which would be the most typical WWE thing to do. I understand Undertaker is who he is, with the whole “most respected guy in the locker room” stuff, but is it just me, or is it getting old seeing Undertaker leave and come back, then leave and come back again? I don’t know about any of you, but I will not be happy if this whole thing is for Undertaker to make another comeback. Taker is coming back. That’s a given. How bout this? Figure out who he’s going against at Wrestlemania, and while whoever that guy will be is doing a promo, Undertaker shows up. No vignettes. No warning. He just shows up. That would be unique. Again though, if this whole 2-21-11 thing is for Taker, then please WWE, spare me.

Now there’s been a lot of speculation involving Sting. Is he in talks with WWE? Is he not? Is he signing back with TNA? Is he not? Is he the father? I mean there’s a lot of talk going on about Sting and where he’s going. Now if I was Sting, first of all, I would be happy that my name out there. Everybody is talking about me. As I’m typing this, the latest thing I’ve read was that Sting was close to resigning to TNA. If that is the case, I really don’t get the logic from both sides. From TNA’s side, Sting is 51 years old. Bringing him back, you have to put him in a major storyline because of who he is. The problem with that is that it leaves the young and great talent you have taking a back seat to a guy past his prime. Why not push the guys that are in the prime of their career now? Why bring in a legend that only has maybe one good year left? And on Sting’s side of things, I don’t get why he loves being on a sinking ship. I don’t get why he wouldn’t want to go to the WWE where he could go out with the reaction he deserves. Why not go out in the biggest company in the wrestling world, like it or not, and end your career in the WWE Hall of Fame? You’re not going to get the big reaction in a studio in Florida. I have no doubt the higher ups in the WWE would respect the status of Sting and use him correctly. Sting is no doubt a legend in the business. He’s no doubt a hall of famer in any wrestling hall of fame.

I will admit that I am a Sting mark. I have been for all my life. Sting has always been in my top 10 list of favorite wrestlers of all time. I want to see him go out with a bang that he deserves. Not in a company that is copying the mistakes of WCW. Plus Wrestlemania is in Atlanta this year. Perfect setup for a Sting run in, isn’t it? Ah well, wishful thinking.

I would love to hear your feedback on this. I know there are a lot of opinions on this. Feel free to share them below. Of course, as always, Facebook and Twitter info are on the right if you’re reading this on my blog site. My YouTube is: http://youtube.com/danielakabigd Also if you have an account on this blog site, feel free to follow on here as well.

Thanks for reading.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

THIS YEAR IS MY YEAR!!

(Originally typed 1/14/11. Edited on the date of the post)

Well I ended last year with controversy. That’s all I got to say about that. It’s a new year so as far as I’m concern, that blog is last years problem. Yet, I still welcome your comments.

So, Happy New Year! I hope all of your 2011 has gotten off to a great start. If you’re alive to read this blog, then it has. This year has already gotten off to a fresh start for me. I’m already doing stuff I’ve never done before. That’s not a bad thing either. I’ve heard it said that if you want different, you got to do different. I’m not going to say exactly what I’ve been doing, but let’s just say that it has not been easy.

I came into this year with three goals for myself. Just three. The first two kind of go hand and hand. The goals were to make some money either by job or doing what I love to do, get my drivers license, and go out on a first date. Yeah, I know the last one seems a little like, really Daniel? Really? Well for one, I didn’t say these were your goals for me; these are my goals for me. Got me? Now, this would usually be the part where I talk about what I’m looking for in a woman, but to stay away from trouble…moving on. So far this year, I’ve drove to the library with my dad, and I’ve applied for a job. Who knows? Maybe at least 2 of the goals can be met before the year really gets started. How awesome would that be?

Now shifting to a completely different mood and subject because that’s what I do. It’s my blog. Years ago, I sang my first solo which was Victory Chant by Donnie McClurkin. To say I was nervous…you would be right. I was. I was so nervous that by the end of the song, I forgot the words. After that, I sang a couple of solos here and there, did some praise and worship, but nothing to brag about. My “stage presence” was not that good yet. Then a couple of years after that, we switched churches and came to the church I attend now, New Harvest Ministries C.O.G.I.C. I was just chillin by the drum set not doing much. Unbeknownst to me, my sister and mom was telling the music president at the time that I could sing. So one Sunday, after church, the music president called me up and told me to sing something. So I sang a little bit of Password by Canton Jones. Then bam, I became a member of the choir. I stayed in the choir not volunteering to lead anything. One night the choir was learning You Are the Living Word by Fred Hammond. I got volunteered to take a crack at it. It ended up being that I took the low part and my mom took the high part. Looking back on it, it was the right thing to do because I had no confidence whatsoever. I remember when it came time to sing it on Sunday; I didn’t look up from my feet once. I really didn’t want to do it, but I was obedient.

This is all leading up to something, believe me.

Time moved on, and the church got a new music president. Still I was fine with staying in the choir. Again, I had no confidence in my voice. I was told I was natural baritone. So I automatically didn’t even try to push myself to increase my range. Then one night, we were going to learn Perfect Peace by Marvin Sapp. Guess who was volunteered to lead it? I took a stab at it. Had no adlib what so ever. It’s not that I didn’t know the song, it’s just my mind drew a blank. So I came home and listened to the song and studied the Bible thinking I was going to lead it. Come time before service when we go over what we’re going to do before service, and I’m no longer leading it. I was told that the right song was going to come to me. The song in my “range.” Up to my move to the Midwest, that didn’t happen. I was beginning to feel not needed not wanted. I couldn’t hit the notes I was supposed to hit as a tenor. It was not a fun time.

The beginning of 2010, I made a move to the Midwest to “start a new life.” The “new life” was a same old life, different time zone. At no fault of anybody but my own. Now some good things did happen while in the Midwest. Somehow or another I gained the confidence that I was lacking. I was no longer afraid to lead a song. I played the drums with more confidence and sang with more confidence. That part of the move was fun. The main and only song I led while up there was Made A Way by Bishop Larry Trotter. I knew the song from when I learned it at New Harvest. So it wasn’t hard for me to take and lead the song. That became “Daniel’s song,” and it would go over great every time. When we went to another church and I had to lead, I took it and ran with it. With no fear. That was big for me.

So June came and I’m back in SC because I didn’t do what I was supposed to do in the Midwest. I’m back in the choir a couple of weeks later. Weeks went by and it was the same thing. Until…One night I walked in, and I heard it a familiar song playing over the speakers. It was one of my Dad’s favorite songs, God Is by DeWayne Woods. We were going over it and I, along with my dad who was sitting in the back of the church, was helping the choir with the words. Come time to find a leader, and viola, I was chosen. I grabbed the mic, and with the same confidence I had in the Midwest, I went in. No fear. It was crazy. Low and behold, weeks later, I also ended up leading Made A Way. I went from no songs with no confidence to two songs with great confidence.

Now to the point of this part of the blog, this past Sunday night (1/09/11) I went back to the church where I had my first solo. I went in thinking that I was just going to stay in the congregation and enjoy service, but come to find out, the choir was up for 2 selections. The first selection was God Is. Again to say I was nervous…again you would be right. This time however I prayed. I asked God for strength and to have His way. I went up there and just let the Lord use me. To do that in front of the people, and in the church where it all started, and for the people to see how I’ve grown up literally before their eyes, was overwhelming. I broke down afterwards.

All the glory belongs to God. That experience right there let me know that 2011 is going to be a completely different year for me. I’m ready. I hope you all are ready.

Facebook and Twitter information is on your right. My YouTube is DanielakaBigd. Thanks for reading. Share your comments below. Feel free to share with your peoples. Feel free to tweet this to your followers. It’s a new season! Let’s go!

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

The "N-Word..."

So a few days ago on Twitter, there was a debate or "healthy conversation" about the word nigger, or what some people call, "the n-word." Brian White, an actor that was in Stomp The Yard and I Can Do Bad All Myself, was retweeting responses on the issue. So here's what I said:

"the whole nigger, nigga, or "N-Word" debate is a to each his own debate, in my opinion."

Low and behold, Brian White responded:

"It is systemic, no? A global issue. Look on FB right now and view 16-20 year old Asian; Latino teens using it with each other - no Black kids in sight. WTH? So basically, we intended to embrace the word so it hurt less; in theory, elevate & empower ourselves by changing its meaning...But the real net result is that all races descended to embrace that awful word; use it among their own as it is used in hip-hop."

Brian wasn't the only one that wanted to jump in. A lady named Dawn jumped in with this:

"Mos def systemic! Not just "to each his own"

Ok, let me explain something. As some of you know, I spent about 6 months in the midwest. Just about every day of my stay up there, I heard black folks use the word, "nigga" as if it was everyday vocab. During my whole life time, I've heard preacher after preacher use, "nigga." Saved, sanctified, holy ghost filled...preachers. Now the Bible talks about how we can't judge somebody on if they're saved or not. I can't judge somebody on their salvation. That's between them and the Lord. So, I'll say it again, and you can disagree with me if you want, it IS a to each his own debate.

Now let me say this. Nigger is a racial term and I understand that. It is offensive to some people. Some people have stopped using this "offensive word." Yet they still cuss. So it's ok to cuss someone out but it's not ok to call them a racial term? I didn't do well in school, but even I know that something ain't right with that equation. I believe that if you can stop saying nigger, you can stop cussing all together. But don't tell me a word is wrong when you're liable to cuss somebody out for looking at you cross-eyed. A sin is a what? Sin. So that means what ever the sin is, it's what? Wrong. So being a racist and/or being a cusser is what? Wrong. Or am I wrong? You tell me.

And another thing. What makes nigga so special that it gets to be called the "n-word?" Like it's the only word in dictionary that begins with the letter "n." Nine, number, next, nucleus, neighbor, neighborhood, neck, nasty, nosy, noise, nose...I think you get my point. I was just wondering.

Remember before any of you go in on me, this is my blog, and my opinion.

Share your thoughts. I'd love to read and respond to them. Twitter and Facebook is on the right. Youtube is DanielakaBigd.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

Treat others how you WANT to be treated

So I was talking to this man, and this man hates Sarah Palin. I mean he literally hates the ground she walks on. It’s to the point where she shows up on TV, and it’s like his blood pressure rises. Watching Inside Edition on NBC, they show portions of Sarah’s interview on GMA, Good Morning America, on ABC. Sarah came off with the line that was something like, “You can’t take down a caribou with a bb gun,” and made a little smirk after it. This man asks me if I saw it on TV, and I said yeah. He says, and I paraphrase, “She’s so stupid. Did you see that smirk on her face? Just stupid.” Mind you this is coming from a man that doesn’t like being called stupid. He doesn’t like being insulted. Yet he’s insulting this woman who’s just stating her opinion after being asked a question. Before I go on, I’m not a fan of Mrs. Palin’s politics. I think she’s not quite ready for prime time when it comes to politics. Just my opinion.


Now listening to this man, I got to thinking. I tweeted this after this man went on this rampage of hate against Sarah Palin, “So if you dont like being insulted, why insult others?” Everyone knows the phrase, “Treat others how you want to be treated.” Growing up in elementary and middle school, I was the smelly kid in class. I got cracked on by what seemed like the whole class everyday. No body cared about my well being. They didn’t care about my feelings being hurt. I would stand in line, and people would automatically hold their nose. I would sit beside somebody and they would immediately be disgusted. My point is this, I didn’t like being insulted. I would come home crying. Sometimes I would cry in school. And one of the many faults in my life, I would take it out on my little sister. I become a hypocrite later in life because I would treat others the same way I got treated. The phrase is, “Treat others how you WANT to be treated.” Not how you got treated.

One would make the case, and I make this case when I’m playing around, “She can’t hear me.” It doesn’t matter. An insult is an insult weather one can hear it or not. Especially if their honest insults, not in the Don Rickles insult comic sense of insults. I told this man after his rampage, “Just come out and say it. You hate Sarah Palin. It’s not about the smirk or anything, you hate Sarah Palin.” To his credit, he didn’t deny it. Me personally, I’ve only disliked a handful of people in my lifetime. By handful I mean by like 2 or 3. Don’t bother to ask who they were because honestly, it’s none of your business, and it’s not even worth it.

The Bible says that we should love others as Christ loves us. The Bible also says that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. Clean heart, clean mouth. Create in me a clean heart. As the song says, “I know the Bible is right.”

Thanks for reading this. Share your opinion on this subject by commenting below. Be free to check any of the old blogs and share your comments on them as well. Follow me on Twitter. Friend me on Facebook. The links to those are on this page to your right. Subscribe to me on YouTube: DanielakaBigd.

Stay saved,

Daniel Richerson

My God is more than enough

This Holiday Season is expected to be a rough one for this country. It probably already took its toll on some of you that are reading this. I know personally, it’s taken its toll on me. Here’s what gets me through though: my God is more than enough. There’s song we used to sing that says, “My God is more than enough. He shall supply all my needs. He is my El Shaddai. He always looks out for me. Jehovah Jireh, He is my God.” I’m just crazy enough to believe all that.

If you go to Matthew 14:13-21, you’ll find view of the familiar story where Jesus fed 5000 people. All they had was two fishes and five loaves. Jesus took that and with the help of God made it more than enough. All 5000 were fed and full and there were leftovers to take home. And I’m crazy enough to believe, that if God can do that then, He is able to that now. I believe God is going to be more than enough for families that are going through this year.

I’m not saying that a fat old white man is going to drop presents from a flying sleigh, sorry kids, he doesn’t exist. What I am saying is that if you give God the very best you can, He will honor that. Now I’m also not saying that all this will happen over night. God is able to do that, but you may have to wait. Some of us need to learn the value of patience. Now being patient does not give the right to do nothing. Someone told me once; you do what you gotta do, until God puts you in position to be blessed. The Bible says that if a man doesn’t work, he doesn’t eat. People use that for people who don’t have jobs, but I think it also means that if you don’t work in the spiritual since, you don’t reap the benefits. I heard it said, “When the praises go up, blessings come down.” Praise is an action. Praise is a form of work that will get you what you need to eat in a sense from God.

So don’t be sad this Holiday Season. Don’t focus on the bank account or what little you got in the cabinet. The Bible talks about being faithful of a few things. I just choose to believe that God is going show us that He is still God. He is still the one who provides for His people. The Bible says, “I’ve never seen the righteous forsaken, nor His seed begging for bread.” What do you choose to believe?

Just remember that God is more than enough this season.

Stay saved,

Daniel Richerson

P.S. The Bible also talks about being content. We got to learn to be content in where we are. We may not have a “baller” house, but we have shelter. We may not have the drop top we want, but we have transportation. We may not be eating Fatz Café every night, but we have food in the cabinet. Like the song says, “If God never does anything else for me, He’s done enough!”

I am not a grown man...yet

We know the phrase, we quote the phrase, "Age ain't nothing but a number." I got to thinking about that. I was on the phone with this lady on Monday, and she called me a grown "A" man. Yes, this grown lady actually said, "A." Side bar: if you're a cusser, than just say the word. "A?" Really? Anyway, I guess based upon my age, 23, that she put it together that I was a grown man. Why? Because of my age? My age does not make me a grown man. My facial hair doesn't make me a grown man. I do not consider myself a grown man. I'm a 23 year old boy. I have no job. I live with my dad. I am not a grown man. How's that for honesty?

In my opinion, the action makes the man more than the age. As my actions change, as my choices change, I think that's more of the man I will become. I think the more I mature get, the more I look for a job, the more I act like a man, the more of a man I will become. There's a lot have grown boys like me out there. Again, I know legally I'm a grown man, but mentally, I'm not there, yet. But I will be there one day. I still have a lot of things to work on.

What's your opinion? Share your thoughts below.

Thanks for reading!

Stay saved,

Daniel Richerson

My thoughts on the "Obesity Epidemic"

Ok so for that past months, years, or what ever, America has been going through this “obesity epidemic.” The young generation is apparently getting fatter. Airlines are charging people that are last 3 levels of fatness for two seats. For those who are not fans of Gabriel Iglesias, there are 6 levels of fatness. There’s big, healthy, husky, fluffy, [dang], and aww [heck] no. I consider myself level 3.

Anyway, with this “epidemic” going on, the higher ups in San Francisco is making a law that the Happy Meals will no longer come with toys if they meal including the drink has more than 600 calories. Only about 135 of the calories can be from fat. First of all, I got two words for them people making the law, and trust me, I mean this with in the most Christian way, shut up. Ha-ha, y’all thought I was going to say suck—never mind. Seriously though, shut up. McDonalds is not the reason people are fat. Happy Meals are not the reason the youth are getting fat. It is not the government’s job to dictate what we eat. It’s not the government’s job to be the parents to the youth. The fast food restaurants do not force the food down our throats. Restaurants in general don’t make people go in and order the “fattening food.” We as people, or Americans, have to take responsibility of our choices and stop blaming the food. All of you who are parents need to take responsibility of what you feed your kids. If you want your kids to eat right, you feed them what’s right. You go to the store and buy what’s right. If you keep taking them to McDonald’s everyday, what do you think it’s going to happen? My mom used to say this all the time, “If you eat fat greasy food, you’re going to be a fat greasy dude.” It’s your choice of what you eat. It’s your choice of what you put in your mouth. Stop blaming the food at the restaurants.

Life is all about choices. If I choose to go to Five Guys and order a bacon cheese burger with the words and a regular order of fries, it’s my choice. When I go to places like Five Guys, Fatz, Applebee’s, etc, do you actually think I’m worrying about calories? No! If I’m worried about calories or my weight, why would I go to those restaurants? I’ve said for years that common sense needs to make a comeback in the worse way. It’s been gone for way to long and this so called epidemic proves it. Come on people. You watch the news and they have all this stuff about how many calories are in this or that…who cares? If you don’t want to eat it, then here’s a crazy thought, DON’T EAT IT!! Feel the weight off your shoulders? Do you feel it?

Listening to the radio, this disc jockey was saying it was a good idea that the government was going to dictate what our kids eat. Ok, first of all, what do the toys have to do with it? This disc jockey, who needs to stick to playing Gospel music because he’s comments are mostly idiotic, said that kids only want the toys anyway. He said sometimes they don’t even eat the food. So putting “healthy” food in the Happy Meal is going to make the kids eat it? Id-i-ot-ic! Clap clap clap clap clap! Id-i-ot-ic!

Let me put this in, the biggest hypocrite through all this is, Jay Leno. Everyone’s favorite Tonight Show host, especially after he took the show back from Conan. He the main guy talking about, “You know, how fat are we getting in this country?” Now I’m a husky guy. I admit it. I know my diet is not the most “healthy.” Last I heard, though, Jay’s diet is worse than mine. So a man with a diet like his is talking about the food in restaurants being bad. Come on Jay! For one the fat jokes are not funny, as most of your jokes now days are not funny. BUT I digress. You make these fat jokes, and then you have Paula Deen on your show? SHUT UP!

I would love to hear your opinion on this subject. Share them below. Let’s make healthy, no pun intended, conversation. Thanks for reading.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

Walk Your Own Path

I don’t watch Oprah much or not at all. I never was a big fan of hers, and really got turned off when she denied Christ. So safe to say, it would have to be something interesting for me to watch it.

I heard Tyler Perry was going to be on, and me being a huge fan of his, this was a definite watch for me. The whole interview was hard for me to watch. It wasn’t because I experienced what he did because thank God I didn’t, but just the graphic and craziness that went on in his life was just unbearable to hear. I literally had chills listening to what came out of his mouth, and it’s amazing that he’s walking tall using his past as a spring for his fame now.

I can’t and don’t even want to imagine what it felt like to go through what he went through. This is why you got to be careful about saying, “I want to be like this guy,” or “I want to be like that guy or gal,” because you have no idea what they went through to get where they are now. I heard Shawn Michaels say this in a shoot interview where he was talking about Vince McMahon. He said, paraphrasing, that a lot of people go to Vince and ask him to “make me a millionaire” but don’t want to do the work.

There’s a phrase I heard a lot growing up that says, “You got to go through to get to.” There’s a lot of truth in that statement. All of us got our own paths to take. Me, myself, personally…I’m having trouble with my own path, so why would I want to walk in Tyler Perry’s shoes, or Donnie McClurkin’s shoes, or any other celebrity. Heck for that matter, I wouldn’t want to walk some of the paths you guys take every day. I think that’s why some people are scared to live out the best of their lives because they know that it’s not going to be a “cakewalk.” I know that’s sort of my thing now. I grew up with this mentality that life was going to be easy. I wish I could go back to that kid and tell him the truth.

Like I said in my blog on Job Core, I do have dreams. For a while I didn’t have dreams. I had dreams when I slept at night, but never had the kind of dreams of what I wanted to do with my life. Now I realize my dreams and aspirations, I’m trying to figure out how to pursue them. Why would I want anybody to walk in my shoes, when I’m still trying to figure out what my shoe size is? Know what I mean?

So don’t wish to be like anybody else. Wish to be like you. If you don’t like you right now, wish to be a better you. How do you be a better you? I really can’t answer that because I’m on the path of becoming a better me as I’m typing this. I’m still trying to figure that out. I do know one thing that helps. Being saved. Having Jesus in my heart. That helps a whole bunch.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

I'm just a wrestling fan, what do I know? (10/14/10)

Originally posted on WWE Universe, but I decided to share it here also:

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged period, let alone about Professional Wrestling. A lot has been on my mind about it, so I’m just going to get right to it. First of all, Kevin Nash. I’ve been a Kevin Nash fan ever since Diesel in the WWF. I’ve been a mark for the Clique for the longest time, even before I knew they were actually a group. In my opinion, he’s easily a Hall of Famer for the WWE. Now since he’s gone from TNA, wouldn’t it be crazy if he turned out to be the Raw GM? Just a thought. I mentioned Nash mainly because of his decision to go home and spend time with his family. I hope his wrestling mind will continue to help the business in the future, but his time in the ring is done, in my opinion.

Now for the guy I once called the “Loose Cannon” of 2010, Matthew Moore Hardy. When all this craziness started, I was a fan. I thought it was a great addition for his character and that he was going to finally get the push he deserves. Then Matt did something that I still think was a mistake. He came out on youtube and said that “MATTHEW (ALL CAPS!)” was a character. I think he could’ve gotten so much out of it, and he still can, but coming out and stating the obvious that MATTHEW is a character was a mistake because I feel that it could’ve gone over like Brian Pillman, where people would question what is real and not real. I guess people still will, but the effect won’t be as strong. Also through all this drama, I was hoping along with other fans, that Matt was NOT going to go to TNA. Turns out that could be a possibility. Another mistake. TNA doesn’t push the guys they have, and Matt coming in would not be fair to them. If/When Matt goes to TNA, they would have to immediately push him because that would be smart business. WWE is really losing out on this whole deal. I’ve said for the longest that the two people that deserved a push in the WWE the most are Matt Hardy and Christian. It’s done for Matt in the WWE for the time being, so hopefully when Christian comes back from this injury, he’ll FINALLY get the push for the title that he rightfully deserves, and hopefully we’ll finally see an Edge and Christian reunion which all fans have been hoping for ever since Christian came back to the WWE.

Now for this PG rating. I admit, I’ve changed my opinion on this time and time again. I’ve come to this conclusion. The PG rating is not the problem. WWE lost its balls. And I know who took them. Chris Benoit, yes that guy, and Linda McMahon. When the Benoit fiasco happened, and when Linda decided to run for the Senate, the balls of the WWE got taken away. Chris died, and you could see the beginning of the watered down product. Then with Linda running for an office. She didn’t want WWE to hinder her chances, so WWE watered down the product. All this is bull. The age demographic of the professional wrestling is male 18 to 35. I’m 23 years old, so I’m right there in the mix. WWE is catering to tweens and little kids who have to be in bed when Raw comes on anyway. It makes no dang sense. Why not cater to the 18 to 35 male demographic? The people that can actually buy the tickets? The people that can actually buy the merch? The no blood thing is just stupid. Really? Stopping a match for blood? Doesn’t that take away from the match itself? Nobody backstage think about that? I guess it makes to much sense.

I’m just a wrestling fan people. I’ve been one most of my life. I am a man, and I’m 23 years old so I fit in with that 18 to 35 male demographic that pro wrestling is supposed to cater to. I’m not a wrestling promoter. I’m not a “creative genius” that writes out story lines, but here’s how I would do things. If I’m the top company, I would try to keep the company on top by continuing using what works with the crowd. Why get away from it? The original ECW made it work for 7 years, and if it wasn’t for bad business management, they’d still be doing it today, not messing up their careers in TNA. Yes I said it. Then I would make it less of a priority for the writers to come up with character development, but make it more of a priority for the wrestlers themselves to come up with something for their character since they’re the ones that have to go out and perform. I would ask questions like, Where do you want your character to go? What ideas do you have? If the ideas are usable and good, I would try them. What do I have to loose? If they don’t work or lose money, then we end the storyline and go to the next one. Plain and simple. As for the divas or any other wrestlers that are not quite ready for prime time, I would put them through a 3 to 6 month wrestling boot camp. Those who survive go to developmental and continue to learn. Those who don’t survive will hopefully have the heart to continue trying or if not find something else. If any in the locker room doesn’t have the passion for the business, they’re gone. Again, I’m just a wrestling fan. What do I know, right?

Wrestling needs a make-over in the worse way. I do like the youth movement going on in the WWE right now. What I don’t like is Daniel Bryan jobbing for Sheamas. That’s not smart business. Daniel Bryan is over with the crowd and the internet, number one. Number two, he’s one of the best talents you have in the locker room. So why would you have him win the US Title one night, then the next night bury him. What kind of business is that? Dumb, that’s what it is. Btw, with CM Punk on Raw now, WWE would be stupid not to put Punk and Bryan in a feud. I’ll guarantee if given the right freedom, they’d steal the show on any pay-per-view or Monday Night Raw.

TNA is again proving that it is indeed WWE’s graveyard with the signing of Mickie James. I wish Mickie James nothing but the best in TNA, and I’m sure she’ll do well there.

One last thing that needs to be said. FIRE JOHNNY ACE!! FIRE MICHEAL COLE!! That is all.

Thank for reading this lengthy blog. Comment below on what you agree with or disagree with. Share with other wrestling fans.

~Daniel Richerson

First Impression: Job Corps (Hi, I'm back)

Oofa! Has it really been 2 months since I’ve done the blogging? My fault y’all. I’m going to get back to doing these things on the regular. I did do a blog on wrestling yesterday, but I didn’t post it on here. Here’s the link if you want to read that one: http://bit.ly/ajyOJI

So before I share what’s been going on, let me give a brief history that some of my new readers might not know, and some of my old readers might not remember. I did go to college. I went to college, chose a major that I wasn’t interested in, and some semesters after, I quit. The smart thing would’ve been is to change the major to something that was suitable to enhancing the skills I already had, but I did just the opposite.

Fast forward!! Job corps. As some of you know, I recently went to a meeting to maybe join it. Before the meeting I was hyped up because I was thinking it was going to be awesome. I was going to travel out of state and get some training. I was going to meet some new friends. I was going to possibly meet some of you that I’ve talked to for years online. I was going enhance my skills or find a skill that I’m interested in learning and get a job in that skill and live my life until I die!! I had everybody congratulating me in advance. “Oh, Daniel I have a good feeling about this one!” “Go, Daniel, go!!” *ting*

Ever had a dream or a vision of how something is going to be and then in reality it’s not anything like the dream or vision? Here’s my reality.

So I go up to the place where the meeting was at dressed in slacks and a nice shirt. I had all the stuff I thought I needed in a nice yellow folder thinking how impressed are they going to be, and I walk in! Then I see a young guy around 16-17 wearing a hat, jeans full of holes and a t-shirt with his mom. I see another guy with jeans, and boots on. I sit beside a guy in the waiting room with a long sleeve red shirt on and sneakers. So already I was feeling like I missed a memo. Then I heard that I needed something that I didn’t know I needed. So I walk in with all my stuff in a nice folder, and the fact is I don’t have everything and I’m over dressed. The meeting gets started and it’s like a round table meeting. Basically all who was applying sat a table with the speaker at the head of it. A business meeting like atmosphere. First we watch a video. I’m watching this video and I’m like, hold up! Am I joining a college? They’re talking about staying in dorms with roommates and eating on campus and all that. For up to two years. Remember I didn’t last in college, and that was for a TWO YEAR DEGREE. This is already not looking good. My dream and expectation looked nothing like this.

After the video, the lady running it, starts explaining more about what Job Corps is. She then says that if we don’t say anything and/or ask a question she’s not giving us an application. Okie Dokie. So I don’t say anything the whole time. I can feel some of you right now gasping and saying, “Daniel!” My response, “Ye shall know the truth…” The reason I don’t say anything for one, again, it’s nothing like I expected. Hard work? I expected that. Don’t get me wrong, I was not expecting this to be a cat walk. Another reason I don’t say anything is because I’m listening to all of the other people, and most of them have dropped out of high school. I’m not going to talk bad about them dropping out of high school, so just relax folks. The fact was, I got my high school diploma. I was clean as far as crime goes. I’ve never done drugs. I’ve thought about it, but never did it. I literally felt like I was in a rehab center.

So later on in the meeting, the lady looked at me and said and I quote, “Ask me something.” I didn’t know what to say so I sat and pondered. I didn’t have a question. I didn’t have a statement ready because again none of this was expected. I didn’t know I was in a meeting for basic training, which is what it felt like to me. I didn’t say anything, so she asked me, “Why are you here?” I told her the truth that I’m 23 years old, I don’t want to depend on my parents anymore…blah blah blah. She told me the truth that I looked like a grown man. I don’t know what gave it away; maybe it was the mustache and the beard. Smart woman this one was, but I digress. She told me that if I go through with this, I’d have to go all the way, which I knew and thought I was ready to do.

Anyway, we then get some handouts. Before I go there, we get told what Job Centers are opening. Now, I wanted OUT of familiarity. One center was outside of Ashville, NC. The other center was outside of Orangeburg, SC. Both are 2 ½ hours away. Yikes. Again, not what I expected. Maybe I should stop thinking to much into stuff before actually seeing what it is so I won’t be turned down. Back to the handouts. We get the handouts, and first thing I hear about is Polo shirts and kakis. So now I’m joining a private school. I didn’t say that out loud, but that’s what I was thinking. I don’t mind the khakis but I hate polo shirts with a PASSION. Here’s the allowance: $25 bi-weekly. I get more than that now. Again, not sounding like the dream I was hoping for. Not sounding like what I was praying for. This is sounding like the Army without the exercise and weapons.

I know I know. “Daniel, stop complaining! This is all going to lead to something!” I feel you. I’m with you. Now we get to what I thought would’ve brought me back into accepting to going into this. The occupations offered. Uh…what do I do here? I’m not interested in any of this. “Daniel this is a great opportunity. You have nothing going on. You have no room to complain.” I feel you. I’m with you. You’re right. 100%. Yesterday, I go on the Job Corps website to see if I find something on there that I might be interested in. Uh…

Now I’m stuck. I don’t know what to do. Oh, btw, I forgot to mention that back in college when I chose my major, my mom played a major part. Mom suggested Job Corps to me. I’m not throwing my mom under the bus. For one I love my mom, and I wouldn’t do that to her. She’s just trying to help. Me having nothing going on, I took a shot because it was something.

Back to the meeting, so we get to the point where we fill out the actual application. I haven’t had to write that much cursive since Elementary School. I signed my name so many times. Good Lord! So it came to a point where I had to choose 3 occupations. Remember, I’m not interested in none of this. I have no desire to pursue any of this. So I chose something I might be able to make a go at. Something I’m not that interested in. Remind you of anything? Yeah, this has potential to be a bust!

I know this all sounds like I’m ungrateful. I’m not, ok? I’m not ungrateful. I know and understand that at this point of my life I need to do something. I am 23 years old. I can’t depend on my Mom anymore. I got to come up with something on my own. On the real, I just want God’s will to be done, and if I got to join the Job Corps so be it. I just know, my heart won’t be in it.

Another thing on the meeting, we were told people can’t be trusted. Be careful what you bring, what you put in your locker because people will steal. Turns out there’s a big lesbian epidemic going on at one of the centers. It seems like one cluster after another. Again, I know it seems like I’m ungrateful and complaining. The question comes up, “Ok, Daniel, not this. Then what? Because you got to do something.” Want the honest answer. I don’t know. I do not know. There it is the truth.

I would love to get paid doing something like this. Blogging. Sharing my thoughts like this. I would love one day to write a novel and have it on top of the best seller list. I would love to one day do something musically, weather its sing and/or play drums. I would love an opportunity to work backstage for a wrestling company because I feel I have a great mind for it. A lot of stuff I would love to do. I would love to do a show on stage. Maybe do a stage play. I’m crazy. I don’t have any sense what so ever, and most of y’all know that. I say all that to let y’all know, I have dreams. I have stuff I want to do. And I think it’s good that I just admitted that stuff on here because it lets me know that I am capable of doing something. I have to ask God forgiveness for lying at the Job Corps meeting because I said that I don’t know what I want to do career wise. After all that stuff I just mentioned, it turns out I have a pretty good idea, huh?

I know this is lengthy but again it has been 2 months, so I just wanted to remind some of you and introduce some of you to what I do and what I can do. I was contemplating on rather to post this or not but it’s going up. Obviously you know that because you’re reading it. People are going to take this either way they want to. I can’t control how people feel. People have always either loved or hated my blogs. I’ve got chastised and praised on the same blog. So that comes with the territory.

Continue to pray for me, and please share your thoughts and opinions. I know you got some. Thanks for reading.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

OH, is THAT what they're saying?

Yesterday at church, the youth minister preached to the young people that are going back to school. He did an awesome job. Minister Wilson, if you’re reading this, it was great. Anyway, in his message he mentions some of the new generation songs and one of the songs I believe was called “Bedrock.” He shared the lyrics and something got to me. I realize the older I get, the more I understand lyrics. I’m a 90’s kid through and through, and I make no apologies for it. I grew up in the boy-band era. We had Backstreet Boys, N’Sync, 98 Degrees, Hanson, etc. Of course there was hip-hop, but I really didn’t get into that until like 6th grade. By that time it was No Limit, Cash Money…

Ok, let me get to the point. The major point of this blog is that you never know what the lyrics of a song actually mean sometimes unless you’ve been there or you’re intelligent enough to understand. Of course you can be intelligent enough but still lack the experience. Like that old song by Brandy called, “Have You Ever.” I always thought it was a pretty song. Nicely put together. Although I never truly understood the lyrics until I literally couldn’t sleep at night because I was in love, or until I literally tried to find the words but they didn’t come out right. Or that old song by the now defunct N’Sync called, “I Drive Myself Crazy.” Again, I liked that song. Yes I liked some of stuff boy-bands put out…sue me. Anyway, I knew the lyrics, word for word, but it wasn’t until that I drove myself crazy loving a girl the way that I did, or I lay awake at night driving myself crazy thinking of a girl.

Ok, let’s take it to church. “I Give Myself Away” by William McDowell. Anybody would say that’s an awesome worship song mainly because people go into God’s presence after hearing it and/or singing it. It’s not until you literally give yourself away, you forget about everything going on in your life, you give all of that up just let God use you that those lyrics mean something. How about this song that says, “When I think of the goodness of Jesus, and all he has done for me, my soul cries out Hallelujah, thank God for saving me.” You know somebody uses that line everyday. Some use it because it’s cliché. Other’s actually think of the goodness of Jesus, and all that He’s done in his or her life, and literally feels a joy inside of them that makes praise comes out their soul.

Sticking with church for a little bit more, this is exactly why it’s good to study the lyrics of songs your sing. No choir should ever sing a song just because it’s hot. A popular song says, “My heart is fixed, my mind’s made up. No room no vacancies, I’m all filled up.” Those words can’t have power when you’re living any kind of way. Live what you’re singing about. That’s a must. “Daniel, you got to live what you’re blogging about.” Yep, you’re right, and I’ll admit right here and now that I haven’t been doing a good job of that lately. I ask for your prayers.

As you comment, name some songs that you didn’t quite get at first until you lived it. Secular and/or church. Thanks for reading.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

Who got your back? (originally written 6/13/10)

So this past Thursday, I reunited with an old friend that I’ve known since the 3rd grade. This friend bought up another friend of both of ours that back in the day was my manager. To make a long story short about the manager thing, I wrote stories back then and he appointed himself to be my manager. That’s how I’m going to label him in this blog. My old manager.

Back in the day, I guess starting in like the 7th or 8th grade, my manager knew that I liked this girl. He knew that I wrote notes to girls but never gave them out. The main thing I remember my manager saying to me was, “Man, just give it to her!” Of course that didn’t happen. I remember he wrote a note for me to give to a girl, and I still didn’t do it. Sad ain’t it? I didn’t even write the note from me, and I still couldn’t give it away. Anyway, I thought about that because thinking about myself now, I really haven’t changed when it comes to that stuff. I don’t write notes anymore, but when I have the opportunity to open my mouth and say something to the opposite sex, I don’t. Can you imagine where I would be if I would’ve opened my mouth?

What am I saying? Some of the things we don’t have are due to the fact we didn’t open our mouths when we had the chance. We hear it all the time. When praises go up, blessings come down. When praises go up, healing comes down. And so forth and so on. There’s also something we hear all the time that says, “And his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” What I see there is in order for praise to be in your mouth, something has to be spoken. Don’t get me wrong, I know clapping your hands is a form of praise, but some of us live and die by the clapping of our hands and not ever opening your mouth. Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord.

My old manager would tell me when I didn’t have the guts to give a girl a note, “Man, just give it to her.” In other words, put some action on your faith boy. Faith without works is dead. What my manager was teaching me was that in order for the note to do the purpose it was written to do, I had let go of all fear, gain confidence and put action on it and give the note away. Some of us lost all faith because of fear. Fear of rejection. Fear of what other people think. Also because of fear, we lose confidence. Deuteronomy 31:6b says in the CEV (Contemporary English Version), “The LORD your God will always be at your side, and he will never abandon you.” Now my manager was a big dude, and I imagine if anything would’ve happened to me while giving away the note, I’m sure he’d have my back. It doesn’t come any bigger than God. With God on your side, there’s no need to lose confidence. In Deuteronomy 31:8, again in the CEV, Moses told Joshua, “The LORD will lead you into the land. He will always be with you and help you, so don’t ever be afraid of your enemies.”

Last Sunday from when I’m currently typing this, I led a song at church called God Is. It’s based from Psalm 73:21-26. One part of the song says, “God is the joy and the strength of my life. He moves all pain, misery, and strife. He promised to keep me. Never to leave me. Never ever fall short of his word!” Nuff said.

Philippians 4:13, “Christ gives me the strength to face anything.” Of course, I didn’t know better back then. I knew the verse, but I didn’t know that we were supposed to apply that. Plus I wasn’t saved then, but either way.

Basically what I’m saying through this blog is that the things we go through in our lives are not for our health. It’s to not only draw us closer to God, but I feel that also it’s to teach us something. Yes I understand the past is behind us. When God steps in your life, your past goes away. The Bible says, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature.” With all that said, your past is your testimony, and like I said, you didn’t go through your past for nothing. You can help people that are going through the same thing you went through.

Anyway thanks for reading. Comment, share with your friends!

Stay saved.

~Daniel Richerson

I miss...(originally typed 5/31/10)

It’s going on two weeks since I’ve back home. What’s real sad is that it feels no different from when I left. I feel like I took a step back from going forward. I’ve heard the saying that says, “Sometimes you have to go back to go forward.” Well I feel like I’ve step back so far, the process forward looks to be no where in site. Don’t get me wrong, I’m trying to stay positive, but right now I’m just keeping it real. No pun intended.

One thing I miss is the fellowship. Having fellowship with church family and not being about church. It was just about getting together and talking. Church came up in conversation, but that wasn’t the intent. I think that’s what missing in some churches. There’s no fellowship outside the church. I’m not downing the fact that we all hug, kiss, shake hands after church service to put on the front that we all know each other and get along. I know the act. I’ve been in the game for 23 years now. I’m not going to say I’ve seen it all, but I’ve seen enough. The church is not the building. The church is the people. The building is just a facility used a holding place for the gathering of the people. Ok, now the Bible says, “Behold how good and pleasant it is for brethren to gather together in unity.” Just because you’re in a clique doesn’t mean you have unity. I understand that there’s no perfect church. As my mom always says, “If you find a perfect church, leave.” Every church has its fault. I’m just saying that there’s nothing wrong with talking to and fellowshipping with each other outside the church sometimes. Going out to eat, and not just eating together after a church service. Now I know that you can’t eat out with everybody at church because well, people can and do work your last nerve. Yes I said it, and you know it’s true. I know we don’t want to admit it because it’s a church and everybody gets along! The devil is lie! Please tell the truth, shame the devil. So let’s get that out the way. You’re not going to be friends with everybody, but I’m going to say this, you should be able to find somebody who you can eat and fellowship with. I hope my point is getting across. Not trying to call out a particular church, I’m just saying what I miss, that’s all. Like I told someone who accused me of talking about her through Twitter, “If you don’t call yourself out, nobody will know.”

Before I go on let me say that on the subject on fellowship that’s something I personally got to work on. Time and time again I was at gatherings, and I wasn’t the most sociable person. I stayed in front of a computer most of time and played music that nobody really listened to anyway. I made it hard on myself. Nobody made it hard for me. People invited me to a part of the conversation, and I passed. Why? The question tonight is why? I’ll tell you why. I labeled myself as a loner some time ago. Once I put that label on me, I made it hard on myself to open up at gatherings. The Bible says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” Be careful what you and what you let others label you as. Just saying.

Now, I will say that I miss some people in the two weeks I’ve been away from the mid-west. Amazing that in the almost 6 months I was there, I met some people that made me feel comfortable and wanted more than I’ve ever felt in the almost 20 years I spent…anyway. To those people reading, you know who you are. Thanks for making me feel like I was somebody again. Thanks for making it easy for me to be myself and not forcing a persona just to be accepted. Thanks for showing love. Didn’t say it much, but showing was enough for me.

All right. Thanks for reading. It’s probably a little dated, but I doubt my opinion will change by the time this gets posted. Remember to share your comments and share with your people.

Stay Saved.

Daniel Richerson

Last Blog from the 618...

Well they say all things must come to an end. And in a few hours, I'll officially be heading back to the 864. Again I repeat this is not how I wanted to end up at first. At first the plan was to move up here, get a job, and probably get settled. But it didn't work out that way. Without going into details, I no longer look at this move as a bad thing. I don't. When I first head that I was going back, I was depressed. That's the bottom line. Now, I'm looking forward to what's in store back in SC.

I look back on my time up here as a learning experience. I once said that my move up here was a waste of time, but it wasn't completely. I learned a lot up here. I met people that I'll never forget. I met people that I hope will remain friends for a life-time. It wasn't all good. It wasn't all bad. I laughed. I cried. I was happy. I was sad. I'm going to take what I learned up here and apply it back in the 864.

A lot has changed in the almost 6 months I've been up here. When I moved up here, I was ready for a change, and in a way, that's happened. So this is it. Goodbye 618, hello 864.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

Where are you going?

This thought came to me while I was sitting in a Y.P.W.W. session at church tonight. "Can't go somewhere without knowing where you're going." Then the preacher later that night said, "You can't go somewhere unless you know who you are." Now they're plenty of ways I can go with this, but to stay out of trouble, I'm going to talk about me. You've read the blogs, the tweets, and the statuses. You've watched the videos. I'm heading back to South Carolina. I was not to happy about that because in my mind I wanted to stay here in Collinsville, IL. Then I got the offer to go to Kentucky and weigh out my options there. So it's safe to say I'm a confused brotha.

So here's the deal. We as people sometimes base the decision to move somewhere based on the people. If you're at a place where the people work your nerves, you're ready to go. You don't have to pray about it or fast about it. You made up in your mind that a move is the best thing for you. So you move. For the first couple of weeks or months, you're having the time of your life. Things are going great. Doing stuff you didn't do, or didn't have the chance to do at the prior place. You become attracted to females and feel like you've found the one. Keepin It Real here. Then all of the sudden the masks come off so to speak. The true colors come out. You realize that you are as a annoyed as you have ever been in your life. Has that happened to anybody?

Now, the question comes, should we let people dictate our location? Because lets face it, not everyone you run into in your life is bad. Contrary to belief they're are still good people in this world. I mean I know, oh, 3 at the most. I hope y'all get where I'm going. I can't figure out where I want to go. I can't figure out where I want to end up. I think I've made up my mind, and then a couple of instances here and there and I've changed my mind. I do know I need a job. I do know I need to get something going. Don't get me wrong. I love these blogs. I love the podcasts. I love the videos. But as of now, I'm not going paid to do those. Somebody asked me if I had a website and I got paid for the hits. I said not yet, and then I got a please!

What are your thoughts? Have you or do you know anybody in this situation? Leave your comments.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

I'm still laughing...HAHA!!

Well, folks. I watched a couple of videos debating Kirk Franklin's appearance in the Monique Show about a month ago. One guy got offended that Kirk Franklin was laughing at Monique's jokes which happened to have some cussing in it. Ok, so you're judging a man laughing at something that's funny to him? So am I wrong for laughing at Dave Chappelle? Dave is one of the vulgar dudes out there, and yet I consider him one of my favorite comedians. Family Guy. I love Family Guy. Do they go to far with the Jesus jokes? Yeah they do, but I'd be lying to say that when I'm watching the show and I hear or see something funny, I'm not laughing. Look, if you're like me, funny is funny. I see something funny, I'm going to laugh. Weather it's a joke with a punchline, or if I see somebody slip going up or down the stairs. Now, can I be honest with you people? Most of the so called "clean-Christian" comedians and tv shows are corny. Yes I said it. Some of those shows are dry and corny. I know what some of you are saying. Ephesians 4:29 "Stop all dirty talk. Say the right thing at the right time and help others by what you say." Trust me, I understand. That happens to be one of my favorite verses in the Bible. Now do I think Monique is funny? HECK NAH! I've always thought, and I still do, that Monique is corny. She's never been funny to me. Now like I said before, I like Dave Chappelle. When it comes to vulgarity, Monique and Dave are right there at the same page. So I can't judge Kirk for laughing at Monique. Kirk and I got something in common. We both love music, and we both are clowns. So Kirk laughing at Monique is not surprising. Who am I to say what Kirk is supposed to laugh at? Some of us need to laugh.

Now another thing that people are tripping off of is the fact that Kirk is "conforming." Because Kirk went on a show like the Monique show and laughing at her "vulgar" jokes, he's conforming. Ok. Oh btw, Marvin Sapp was on Good Morning America, and Fred Hammond was on the View. I guess they were conforming too. This guy got on Kirk saying that he was on the Monique show just to sell his CD. Are you faulting the man for that? Yes, Gospel music is a ministry first. But it's still a business. The man gotz to get paid, sir. I know I know, "It's not about money, It's not about fame..." Yes, I like that song, too. But you cannot tell me that if you were in Kirk's shoes, you wouldn't take the opportunity and present your music to the world by going on a "secular" show like the Monique that gets millions of viewers for a chance to sell music. Don't sit there and lie with your religious self. Please don't get me wrong. Romans 12:2 "Don't be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to him."

Now I agree with one lady who said that today's Gospel Artist need to get more serious with the Gospel part of the music. I agree whole heartedly. But I'm not going to question ones faith for going on a show and laughing at the jokes. Yes cussing is wrong, but that's what Monique does. That's what Jay Leno, David Letterman, and all them do. Cuss. Yet you've seen the Clark Sister's, Kirk Franklin, and others perform on those type of shows. Now let me throw this in, just because it doesn't reach you doesn't mean it's not reaching people. Stop trying to base facts on how you feel. Me personally, I cannot stand "God In Me" by Mary Mary. I think it's garbage. Now just because it didn't reach me, doesn't mean it didn't reach you.

What am I saying? Just because you can't watch shows like Family Guy and laugh, and I can, doesn't mean you're more saved than I am. We're not all going to like the same music, tv shows, etc. I know some church folk that can't stand Tyler Perry. Yet, I know some church folk that love Tyler Perry. Tyler cusses. He does. But for me to criticize him for cussing, something I used to do a lot, would be foolish. Me to judge his salvation would put me out of place. Tomorrow night as a matter of fact, Mom and I are going to see his latest play, "Madea's Big Happy Family." I'm expecting a great time. Am I going to laugh at jokes that might have some cussing in it? If it's funny, yes I am. Sue me.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

P.S. Just an update from the blog, It's Over. I am going back to SC, but only for 3 weeks, then I'm going to spend some time in Kentucky. Where am I going to end up? I'm hoping it's back in Collinsville. But it's God's will, not mine. Continue to pray for me.