By Terry Allen
Big Mama stood on her front porch and told us, “There is a secret place in the presence of God, and it is a place that we can ABIDE in. It is a place that everyone does not go, but it is completely accessible by the blood of the Lamb.”
Big Mama was certain that it was not our fear that controls us, but is our anxiety of an unknown outcome that prevents a person from creating a prosperous journey. She said that when you feel uneasy about something, you could not prosper because you think you might be headed for a bad outcome. She said, “some people forget that God is the answer.”
Go ahead, Big Mama.
What I know for sure is fear is not the problem. Our threats, more often than not, aren’t real. Our problem is anxiety, an uneasiness or nagging sense that something bad might happen. And at the root of anxiety is uncertainty. Big Mama would say that God is the only answer to anxiety, Big Mama’s Playbook clearly reminded me that there was never a time when Jesus didn’t pour from His cup into the cups of those around him.
To me, that is what we should be doing as His disciples. We are prone to seeking certainty in the wrong places, and God uses the Bible to remind us not to fear or be anxious about things.
My Texas Metro News family has showcased articles, opeds and ads about us getting our souls to the polls yet I keep hearing,” It is not a presidential year our vote is not that crucial.”
Big Mama would step right up to you and say, “You need to feel your cup first and let the overflow fill others without fail!”
Since January 2021, 18 states have enacted 30 separate laws that directly suppress the vote and make it difficult for others to vote.
Those laws include vote-by-mail restrictions, restrictions on early voting, and broader authority for purges of voter rolls.
This is why as a voter, you must turnout and fill your cup with elected officials who believe in your values and your ideas of authentic community so that our democracy stays intact.
That is what I mean by filling your cup. Brother Abdul Dosunmu founder of The Young Black Lawyers Organizing Coalition (YBLOC), says we must protect Black Ballots.
He has five points to that and I also say take five of your allies to the polls and ask them each to bring five more voters to the polls. I call it Gimme 5.
Will you join us at the paper and vote? Email me at terryallenpr@gmail.com
Terry Allen is an award-winning media professional, journalist, and entrepreneur. He is also the founder of City Men Cook and 1016 Media. Reach him at terryallenpr@gmail.com
