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REAL LYFE: Pimpin' Ain't Easy
(March 21, 2006)
Have you ever thought to wonder why the life of a pimp is so glamorous but on the flip side the life of a preacher seems to be so dire and broke up? Think about it. Not just preachers but think about the life of the "saints" of the most high! If you consider yourself to be a Christian, or as some say, a follower of Christ, how do you present yourself? Now, I'm a preacher but I'm going to make this statement. Some of you will not like it but, oh well! If I were a young person in the world today, considering where I lived I would think twice about being a follower of Christ primarily due to the way most saints present themselves. Listen, there is too much going on out in the world for the church to be so broke up like it is! I'm not saying the church of Jesus Christ has to be perfect because there are no perfect conditions, however, I'm saying that we have to remember that our marketing has got to be cutting edge and NOT the way we "did it" back when grandma and "n'em" were coming up in the country church.
I tell my young folks all the time that the church suffers from the "mom and pop" mentality and has for far too long refused to connect to TODAY! This is the main reason why we don't understand slogans such as "pimpin' aint easy!" I didn't get here overnight now so please don't think I'm trying to say that you just have to wake up and embrace everything that is going on. Because this most definitely isn't what I'm saying. What I'm trying to get many of you to see is that instead of turning your nose up at a statement like this, try understanding the other side of the tracks first! You'd be surprised what you could find out about the REAL DEAL if you just listened to the pain and anger in the hearts of our young people.
Today, most people don't have time to sit and listen...or if they listen, they only do it with their ears and not their hearts because they go right back to doing what comes natural rather than stretching themselves to make a difference in someone's life. I deal with this mentality in the church on a consistent basis because I get many leaders who want to understand youth but they really don't know what it means to understand the next generation. There was a day when a heading like the one today would have completely turned me off! I mean, my background is all church (as a preacher's son) plus throw in the Morehouse education and then on top of that, I'm an Alpha as well. :) Some would say that I tend to be a little cocky or arrogant! However, in order to reach this generation, I had to throw all of that to the side, and get into their world and make them feel important! Not just for the moment...But in every day life. Was it easy? HELL NO! It was a very big stretch but I made the least and the lowly feel like they were important. When's the last time you can say that you completely got into someone else's world and forgot about your own stuff for a minute?
Just something to think about today as you go your merry way. I sat with an "old head" for breakfast the other morning who high-fived me on the fact that "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" won an Oscar! He said that we've come a long way! I grinned because I thought real long and hard for a minute and had to say that he was absolutely correct! Think about it, another sect of people who for a long time felt like nobody gave a damn finally got some air time! Hmmm now I'm not endorsing either way but I do know this was the first time my young people watched the Academy Awards in droves and I'll leave it at that! So I close by asking you to reflect and ponder on where you are today and how far you've come. For some of you I know you still are in the same boat and don't understand what I'm asking you to do but for others of you I am sure you can remember from whence you've come and truly appreciate the phrase, "pimpin ain't easy!"
Pastor Rich is a voice to this present day fatherless generation. He is driven by his life-mission to re-establish the forgotten and abandoned societal structure, and to bridge the many disconnects across generations, by placing an emphasis on building solid relationships within families. He asserts that the disintegration of families starts and stops with Fathers, men accepting and walking in their true position of authority. Please visit his blog site at http://reallyfe.blogspot.com
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