Gospel Sunday Funday

in the backyard, cooking pancakes, eggs, hash browns. We just feasting as a family, enjoying the Sunday is no clouds in the sky. We're playing our gossip with me. It is gossip or Sunday. I love gospel music. Gospel music, Um just touches my soul. Touched my heart. You know. I love music about God. I love inspiration music about God. That's why I like books that uplift and motivate and inspire gods from music. Just it's just it is touches

my soul. Touches my heart. Just makes me think about the amazing world that we live in, the opportunities that we have don't matter what, how or how you started. The fact that the matter is, there is a God and you can overcome any and everything that you're going through. You got to reinforce your affirmation. You got to reinforce the world the way you want it. You gotta reinforce where you want to go. So you have to surround

yourself with good music, affirmations, good books, good people. That's how success comes about or change. If you gotta have it, you gotta break your habit. Well, small things, big results. Just start with little things. Putting on some good music that's inspirational, reading a good book to an uplift you and make changes, putting on you know, surround yourself with our informations, waking up every day and just reading I am somebody. I want to be somebody. I am going

to change a little simple things like that. Well this Gods from me. We got me on fire. I love music. Then praises God. You know, I grew up in the church every Sunday. We went to church every Sunday, and we didn't go with my mom. Guess what we couldn't do nothing, couldn't go outside, couldn't go play outside, couldn't do nothing. So hey, we all went to church and you know what my most every part about going to church was growing up. What's the music now? You know?

He could you know, I'm young, you know, I'm gonna take your Spanish short. So hey, I passed out. Sometimes that church, you know, go to sleep, read reading the scriptures, go to sleep. But the minute they put on that gospel, the minute they get the doing the praise and worship partner. And this was a Baptist church. The minute they get to do the praise and worship song, Oh my God, that really spark me, move me, touch me, uplift me. I just couldn't help but feel joy, feel happiness, feel good,

you know. And sometimes, you know, the music makes you sad. You know, things you're going through, things that you have to deal with, makes you sad, makes you cry, makes you, you know, feel a certain way. But we need a surrounded with music that uplifted. We've been crying too long, We've been sad too long. We need to uplift ourselves. Praise and worship songs should be just uplifting and make us. If you're gonna cry, it's good cry, it's good tears.

It's good. You know, reason why you're crying, not because you're sad because you're joyful, because you're happy because you're giving God all the glory. That should be why we cry, because UM, life is too good and too short to waste it on dwelling on something that you can't change or something that you can't do nothing about. Focus on what you can do, what you will do. That's what we need to focus on, UM, because there are a lot of things that we can do to make a

difference and to make a change. And I think gods from music. You know, at at Malik Books, we put on gospel music on Sundays. Uh here to day, we did a cook out, a brunch in the backyard and had our gods from music go on and we just praised God and all the goodness and glory that He gave us. And it's given us personally and in the world. We just gotta give thanks with thanks but long all praises due to God for everything and everyone. So today, UM,

it's Sunday Funday, having a good time. And I hope you enjoyed this episode number twenty sets because it's called Gossipel Sunday, I'm gonna do some book reviews. I'm going to um talk about UM just different things that I think that's important. But the most important thing today is that we're gonna have a fun day. Is Gospel Sunday Fun Day. Enjoyed the episode. Hey, let me talk to you about a book that Elizabeth Ace Fiddo came out with.

She has an award winning poem that she wrote over the years and won a lot of awards, and her famous most Spoken Word poem award winning off The Poet, Elizabeth Ace fiddle celebrates a beauty and meaning of natural black hair her wards Vibrate. Illustrated by the artist Andrea Pippins, This powerful book embraces all the complexity of Afro Latin, the history of pain, pride, and powerful love of that inheritance. This book I'm talking about it called Inheritance a Visual Poem.

It's a beautiful book. It's beautifully visually illustrated by Andrea Pippins. Elizabeth Ace Vido, the author of her most famous work and award winning book called The Poet X, just came out with her new book card Inheritance a Visual Poem.

So Hey, I'm just saying it's beautifully illustrated. It's a beautiful poem that talks about women um and their beautiful hair and all their dynamics that they have to deal with in terms of in this country and around the world, because there's so many different ways black women wear their hair and there's no one way to signify beauty because

there's no one standard. So this book talks about, hey, how to love your black and beautiful hair no matter how and the style your hair, whether it's it's corn rolls, whether it's curly, whether it's straight, whether it's braided, whether it's you know, whatever. But the point is if it's wrapped up, and if it's tucked, and if it's in an eye frow, love it because guess what, it's your inheritance. So pick up the copy of Inheritance A vire's your

Poem by Elizabeth Ace. Video. Sometimes we don't say this enough. I am blessed. That's right, I'm blessed, and I'm gonna tell you why. I'm blessed. And I don't care what I'm going through, I don't care what I'm dealing with. At the end of the day, I'm blessed. Life it's wonderful, life is beautiful, life is amazing, and I'm blessed. I'm blessed because I'm alive. I'm blessed because I have a family, I have children. I'm blessed because I have a home.

I'm blessed because I have a book store. I'm blessed because I have a podcast, a book mobile. I'm blessed because I have a beautiful, loving wife. I'm blessed because I have friends and all walks of life. I'm blessed because I'm blessed. Things are amazing. No matter what I have to deal with, I can't lose sight, I can't forget that I am blessed. I'm blessed. I'm not the only one blessed. But so are you. Look at the amazing life that you have. Look at the amazing things

that's going on in your life. I don't care what's happening in your life that is a distraction, always upsets you, or something you have to deal with. At the end of the day, you have more good in blessing than anything else. I'm blessed, and so are you. We're all blessed despite, We're all blessed despite we all didn't get here this at the same time or the same reason or the same circumstances. But you're still blessed. We bless I'm blessed. I'm blessed, and I'm loving the fact that

I am aware and acknowledge that I'm blessed. It's a lot going on in this world. It's a lot happening in this world. It's a lot happen in your own life, and it's a lot happening in my own life. But I'm blessed and you're blessed. You know, we can't always be victorious. We can't always. When we can't always, you know, set out and set a goal and reach the goal. We we can't always become the very thing that we

want to be. But there's always a place for us, and there's always a goal for us, even if you have to adjust it. That's what life is all about. But at the end of the day, you still bless Hey. You didn't create the water you drink, but it's an abundance of You didn't create the oxygen you breathe, but

it's an abundance why because we're blasted. Listen, everything in this world came here before we were born, and when we leave, it's all gonna be here, no no matter what someone says or what someone believes, all right, none of us is more powerful than the forces that created this universe and created this earth. Water is always gonna be an oction is gonna be here. Life is gonna

be here. And I don't care what some dumby downer wants to say about the excetential threat in all of this bs that is thrown out in this world, like you ain't got enough power to stop life. You ain't got man. Life is indestructible. Blessings are indestructible. There ain't no one, no one, single entity or reality or civilization is gonna stop the blessings and the abundance of life that's emanating and permeating and evolved it in this world. Life is a blessing and life is going to continue.

And don't live in fear. What you need to do is challenge your fear and step into your blessing because at the end of the day, no matter what curveball we're throwing, what obstacle we gotta overcome, you are still are blessed. I'm blessed. That's right, I'm blessed, and people after me are going to be blessed. And life is going to continue, and it's going to continue to bless them, and it's going to continue to grow and magnify and elevate and rise because life is a blessing. It's the

most scarce resource in the universe. Man, we are fortunate. It's a whole lot of space, but they a whole lot of life. And the life that is here is a blessing. In the life to come will continue to be a blessing. You know, the universe is vast, but there ain't a whole lot of life. So look in the mirror and tell yourself, I'm blessed because you are. I'm blessed. A new hot book on the shelf, Let Us to the Sons of Society by Shaka Singore. This

book is brilliantly written. It's a book about letters written to his sons. Now, Shaka spent some time in jail for second degree I believe murder. He redeemed it. So he went on to write his first book, which is Writing My Wrongs, Life, Death and Redemption in American prison. That went on to become a New York Times bestseller. And he's a leading voice in criminal justice reform, a tech investor, and lectures all over this country at universities.

He's the head of Diversity, Equity Inclusion at Triple Action. He's a former m I T Media LAPT director. He's spoken on Oprah and Trevor Nor. He's he has been a tad talk speaker. If it's an example of a story of redemption and change and metiphestation, it is Shaka sat Grey. So his new book let us to the Sons of Society, a father's invitation to love, honesty and freedom. Shaka had a son when he was in prison, and Shaka has a son when that he had to raise

out of prison. So he had to raise two sons, one while he was in prison, one while he was out of prison. So this love letter has led us to his sons. It is a great book where it talks about honesty, love and freedom. It deals with subject matters that a lot of men don't typically like to talk about. You know, men are hold on to a lot of things that oftentimes are embarrassing or upsetting or

just we don't want to talk about. So Shaka reveals some of those details in this book in these love letters to his sons, and as a man who has redeemed themselves in society, he's come a long way. He's an a war winning author, and he speaks all over his country about the prison and incarceration system and social justice.

And this book is just a great good read for anyone who wants a success story of redemption, of change, of elevation, and anyone who wants to find a true relationship between a man and his sons or to find out how to communicate with his sons. So I definitely recommend it's a good read. Um, it's a page turner. I definitely think that it is one is not a lot of books out there in my community that talks about,

you know, book subject matters like this. So pick up your copy of Letters to the Sons of Society, A father's Invitation to love, honesty and Freedom by Shaka Sere. Thanks for listening to Melik's Bookshelf where topics on the Shelf, our books, culture and community. Be sure to subscribe and leave me a review. Check out my instagram at Melik Books. See you next time.