Repent before it is too late! Judgment is Coming! The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, during the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah: Judgment on the Whole Earth in the Day of the Lord – I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the Lord. I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumbling blocks with the wicked: and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the Lord. I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests; And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship and that swear by the Lord, and that swear by Malcham; And them that are turned back from the Lord; and those that have not sought the Lord, nor enquired for him. I will punish the princes, and the king’s children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel. In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit. And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord, that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and a howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hills. [Zephaniah 1:2-10].
Get Ready, Get Ready, Get Ready! The great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness; the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all of them that dwell in the land. [Zephaniah 1:14-18].
I tell you, the importance of discerning the times and seasons. God’s prophetic time clock is ticking. God’s judgment is coming. Don’t be like the rich famer. The rich farmer had no idea that judgment was coming. He had just decided to build bigger barns and live a good life. God immediately said to him: “Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” [Luke 12:20].
Listen, whether Christ returns tomorrow or a thousand years from now, your life may be required of you tonight. Don’t be a scoffer. Wake up and get things right! Live in the awareness of God’s judgment to come. For the Lord is stripping the earth bare and making it desolate. He is twisting its surface and scattering its inhabitants. The earth will be stripped completely bare and will be totally plundered, for the Lord has spoken this message. [Isaiah 24:1-3].
The importance of discerning the times and seasons. Ye hypocrites, you can discern the face of the sky and of the earth but how is it that ye do not discern this time. Wake up from your slumber! In one hour, judgment will fall, and all will be laid to waste.
Ample warning times – but many will go to hell because they have chosen to ignore the warnings and continue life as usual, what tragedy.
Last week, the Bay Area Black Housing Advisory Task Force (BABHATF) — a coalition of more than 40 groups with housing and community expertise –unveiled a $500 million plan to make housing more accessible and affordable for Black families.
BABHATF is asking the region’s leaders and residents to support the “Bay Area Regional Black Housing Fund” initiative. The organization is also calling on the Legislature to include funding for the effort in this year’s state budget.
The task force is supported by Assemblymember Lori Wilson (D-Suisun) who was sworn into office April 6 after winning a special election in the 11th Assembly District.
The investment “will help repair the injustices that have shaped the housing experiences of Black people in the Bay Area and in California,” BABHATF leaders said in a letter drafted to bring awareness to a problem that the group says is statewide.
“It will also create new opportunities to expand housing for Black people in places where they have largely been — and are still — excluded. Increasing Black homeownership will benefit our entire region,” said task force members Fred Blackwell and Melissa Jones in the letter.
“The work we do to reduce the rent burden for Black people will provide a way forward for the Bay Area overall,” the letter continued.
Blackwell is CEO of the San Francisco Foundation, a community nonprofit committed to advancing racial equity and economic inclusion. Jones is executive director of the Bay Area Regional Health Inequities Initiative. Her work focuses on health, social inequity, and well-being.
The task force points out that there has been no regional response to California’s housing crisis’ well-documented impact on Black communities. It believes “a targeted solution” is necessary for an “issue rooted in racial injustice,” Blackwell and Jones wrote.
The California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) reports that Black homeownership rates are the lowest among California’s ethnic groups.
The Black homeownership rate was 50.98% at its peak in 2004. Since then, the homeownership rates for Black Californians have fallen at a steeper curve than those of all other racial and ethnic groups in the state.
During the early 2000s, several mortgage lenders specifically targeted Black homebuyers offering them subprime loans. High default rates on those loans contributed to the Great Recession, which began in 2007 and lasted through 2009. As a result, the Black homeownership has dropped by more than 10% since 2004 and has yet to recover, according to CalHFA.
BABHATF illustrates how affordable housing impacts Black communities throughout the state, pointing out that there is no major ethnic group over-represented in the state’s homeless population than Black people.
Various reports state that 150,000 Californians experience homelessness on any given night and nearly 40% are Black.
“We envision a Bay Area with thriving, healthy and resilient Black communities, where all Black residents have a home. We want a region that rebuilds Black commercial districts destroyed by highway development, regains the Black homeownership losses from the racially targeted lending schemes that drove the Great Recession, and creates the affordable housing our region has failed to deliver over the last two decades,” Blackwell and Jones stated.
The task force is certain that with California’s $98 billion budget surplus, there is a historic and unprecedented opportunity to help right past wrongs and invest in Black communities and housing.
The group is calling for the Legislature to include the fund in this fiscal year’s state budget. The fund will create more affordable housing with a $500 million investment that includes:
No.1, Financial support for initiatives such as down payment assistance for low- and moderate-income Black households, preserving Black housing and neighborhoods, pre-development resources for housing development by Black-led developers, and preserving cultural districts and anchor institutions.
No. 2, Community support for strengthening smaller, Black-led community groups so they can better serve the housing needs of Black communities, plus community planning to develop ideas and blueprints for future projects.
The Black community in the Bay Area has been disadvantaged in the state’s housing market for decades because of discrimination, including redlining, unequal access to wealth and good jobs, and other systemic problems.
All of these issues have been discussed in the last 12 months during meetings conducted by the California Task Force to Study and Develop Reparations Proposals for African Americans, under Assembly Bill (AB) 3121.
BABHATF says that increased disadvantages will leave Black communities facing multiple systemic barriers leading to massive displacement in the Bay Area
“As a result, San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley each lost between 40% and 50 % of their Black residents between 1990 and 2018. In Oakland alone, more than 60,000 Black residents have left. East Palo Alto had a 66 % decrease. This is a profound loss,” Blackwell and Jones stated.
Efforts to combat housing across the state got a partial boost last week. Homeownership for low- and moderate-income moved closer to reality after the California Senate approved a plan to establish a $25 billion fund financed by voter-endorsed general obligation bonds.
Senate Bill (SB) 1457, authored by Majority Leader Emeritus Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), now goes to the Assembly for consideration. It establishes the California Family Home Construction and Homeownership Bond Act of 2022.
If SB 1457 is adopted by voters on the November 2022 ballot, it will authorize the $25 billion bond fund to finance homeownership opportunities and promote new home construction.
Hertzberg stated that “the underlying problem is simple: A lack of supply” and says his plan “tackles this problem head on.”
“California policymakers have a responsibility to create more opportunities for first-time or left-behind homebuyers,” Hertzberg said. “Purchasing a home, attaining a middle-class lifestyle and building generational wealth cannot be accomplished without addressing the severe lack of housing production that is fueling the state’s homeownership crisis.”
Black women leaders in California want to raise COVID vaccine awareness among young people across the state as the number of infections creep back up.
Last week, Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA), a statewide political advocacy organization, hosted a town hall meeting via Zoom organized to engage youth through their Young Enough to Know Campaign.
The effort is aimed at educating young people and their families about the importance of being vaccinated to protect themselves against Covid-19.
Vashone Huff, co-director of BWOPA’s Black & Vaxxed campaign, opened the town hall with a welcome message and stated the purpose of the gathering.
“We are focusing and engaging elementary, middle school, high school and college students in conversation and highlighting the voices and lives of those that are not too young to know about the impacts of Covid as well as the actions they can take to advocate and protect themselves and their families,” said Huff.
In East Oakland Council District 7, for example, there have been 1.3 million cases of COVID among youth ages 5-17. Less than 25% of youth in that age range are fully vaccinated.
Experts say there are many factors that contribute to this number including the short time the vaccine has been available for youth.
Last week, 19 California counties were recategorized as “medium risk” from “low risk,” based on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) three-level ranking system for tracking COVID hospitalization rates. Thirty-three of California’s 58 counties are now ranked in the “medium risk” category, accounting for more than 75 % of the state’s population, according to numbers compiled by the California Department of Public Health.
BWOPA says that is one reason the organization is working to encourage Black and Brown communities to fight the stigma surrounding the vaccine and encourage youth to become fully vaccinated.
At the beginning of the event, Huff introduced the hosts of the town hall: Lady Ray of iHeart Radio and Tyler Baty, a 7th grade student and athlete at St. Leo the Great Catholic School in Oakland.
Baty, an accomplished student athlete and orator said it is important for kids his age to remain safe and continue to wear masks in public places. He also shared that many of his friends had come down with COVID and wants more youth and their parents to take the vaccine seriously.
BWOPA wants young people to know that that children ages 5-11 are eligible for the Pfizer vaccine, and kids 12 and older are now eligible for boosters.
Patricia-Blue Pharr, 11, shared her experience contracting COVID while at a summer camp last year. Pharr said she began to feel sick shortly after she arrived at the camp and had to return home.
“It just comes to show that Covid can spread really quickly. That’s why you have to be very careful,” said Pharr. “I had a lot of doctor’s appointments and had to stay home and not have contact with anybody. Anytime I wanted to eat, I had to take it to my room and eat it by myself. I couldn’t even sit on my porch which was really upsetting.”
Angela Sou, Program Manager for the Youth Engagement Program of the state’s Vaccinate All 58 Campaign, followed Pharr and shared her support for BWOPA and its efforts.
Vaccinate All 58 partners with BWOPA to providing funding for outreach and engagement within communities disproportionately affected by barriers to healthcare and information.
“These projects nurture a culture of trust, engagement, buy in and civic engagement. We want to make the conversations surrounding COVID-19 more accessible and collaborative,” said Sou.
According to BWOPA, hospitalizations due to COVID-19 are eleven times higher in unvaccinated children than fully vaccinated ones. Across the United States, ICU COVID hospitalizations for children are on par with the numbers for adults.
Oakland City Councilmember Treva Reid (District 7) also spoke at the town hall, offering encouragement to the youth attending and sharing a message to the people as they prepare for a safe summer.
“As people are going back to their daily activities people are not wearing masks,” said Reid. “Be sure to get involved in these conversations and influencing people in your family and communities. You are young enough to know, you are young enough to advocate as we all work to come through Covid and love each other through it all.”
Other speakers included Dr. Norlisa Cooper of BWOPA, Jessica King and Aldane Waters, who helped produce a public service announcement (PSA) aimed towards youth and their parents about the importance of wearing masks, staying socially distant and becoming fully vaccinated.
Visit blackandvaxxed.org to learn more about BWOPA’s efforts to raise awareness.
Gervonta Davis’ fights guarantee high-drama, celebrity-filled crowds and knockout victories, and Saturday night’s clash with Rolando Romero was no exception.
“Tank” Davis scored a highlight reel sixth-round stoppage of Romero, defending his WBA 135-pound title before a sold-out arena record 18,970 fans at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
“Tank is the biggest puncher out of the guys at 130 and 135,” said trainer Stephen Edwards. ”I don’t care what anybody says: He deserves top pound-for-pound consideration.”
Previously unbeaten Rolando Romero (left) rolled to all fours and rose on unsteady legs from a counter left hand by WBA 135-pound champion Gervonta Davis. Referee David Fields (right) waved an end to the fight. (Amanda Westcott/Showtime)
The 27-year-old Davis (27-0, 25 KOs) won his fourth straight pay-per-view match in defeating Romero (14-1, 12 KOs), having consistently produced between 200,000 and 230,000 pay-per-view buys.
Davis knocked out Romero in a star-packed venue including Madonna, tennis star Naomi Osaka, television personality and former NFL star Michael Strahan, former NFL running back LeSean McCoy, Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson and other current and former NBA players.
Davis’ knockout was his third in as many appearances at Barclays.
“This meant a lot to come back to Barclays, where I won my first belt,” said Davis, whose 96-percent knockout ratio ranks second among world champions to that of IBF/WBC 175-pound titleholder Artur Beterbiev (17–0, 17 KOs).
“I knew my Baltimore fans were going to come, but I also have a huge fan base in New York. So to see them show up was amazing. It wasn’t just me who won tonight, I think it was the whole [sport of boxing] that won tonight.”
Rolando Romero (left) fell face-first into the ropes from a counter left hand by WBA 135-pound champion Gervonta Davis (right), resulting in Davis’ sixth-round stoppage victory. (Amanda Westcott/Showtime)
A five-time, three-division title winner, Davis delivered the highest-grossing boxing match at Barclays, which was hosting its first post-pandemic fight since heavyweight Robert Helenius’ fourth-round knockout of Adam Kownacki in March 2020.
There was talk that the bout with Romero might be Davis’ last fight with Mayweather Promotions, but the champion hugged the company’s CEO, Leonard Ellerbe, at the post-fight press conference, stating, “We’re still with Mayweather Promotions, baby!”
“Gervonta Davis is a terrific fighter who does a phenomenal job inside of the ring,” Ellerbe said. “He has a great trainer in Calvin Ford, and when all of these things are working together, this is what you get. That’s big. It shows that we know what we’re doing.”
So did Davis against the 5-foot-8 Romero, who had vowed an early knockout against the 5-foot-5½ Davis.
“Even when we weighed in, I knew that I could out-think him, easily. I knew that I was going to out-box him,” Davis said. “I thought I was going to wind up stopping him in the later rounds, but I knew he was strong off of the first punch he threw.”
Romero troubled Davis with a timely jab, twice forcing the champion to clinch after landing hard second- and fifth-round right hands.
“He caught me with an early shot, and I knew I had to stay out of the way. But I knew that down the stretch, I was gonna break him down,” Davis said. “I knew he would run into something. I was just trying to figure out his range and see how hard he hits. But he definitely has power.”
Davis ended matters with 21 seconds left in the sixth. Davis’ head-jolting, counter-left hand to the face sent Romero crashing forward into the ropes and eventually onto his butt.
Romero rolled to all fours before rising on unsteady leg. Referee David Fields waved an end to the fight. Davis led, 49-46 and 48-47, on two cards and trailed, 48-47, on the third.
“I want the fight again,” said a defiant Romero, 26. “I exposed him and won every single round. I jumped into something and ate a stupid shot.”
Davis compared his fight-ending blow to the right hand by Juan Manuel Marquez that floored southpaw Manny Pacquiao once each in the third and final round of his come-from-behind, sixth-round knockout victory in December 2012. The blow left Pacquiao knocked out cold and in a prone position.
“[It was] something like when Manny Pacquiao got caught. The crazy thing is that I didn’t even throw it that hard. He just ran into it. He just ran into it,” Davis said.
WBA 135-pound champion Gervonta Davis “is a terrific fighter who does a phenomenal job inside of the ring,” said Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe after Davis stopped Rolando Romero on Saturday before a record 18,970 fans at the Barclays Center. (Amanda Westcott/Showtime)
A similar scenario played out in October 2020 for Davis’ sixth-round knockout of four-division champion Leo Santa Cruz, who was knocked out and stopped for the first time in his career by Davis’ ripping left uppercut.
“That was a different shot than the one against Santa Cruz, which just shows you that a focused Tank Davis is a dangerous Tank Davis,” said Ford, Davis’ career-long trainer. “That’s a factor, which speaks for itself in that Tank’s an exciting fighter.”
Davis yet again displayed “an elite IQ,” according to Edwards.
“Tank knew [Romero] was a threat, and his punches had heat on them. Rolly also has reflexes where you can’t just hit him when you want to,” Edwards said. “Tank was trying to take Rolly into deep waters, moving and not allowing Rolly to get set. Tank felt the impact of Rolly’s punches and used his legs to box Rolly and not get touched. While boxing, he got Rolly to run into a money shot.”
“I’ve never seen Tank under-perform, which says a lot about his courage, character and integrity…,” said retired two-time 147-pound champion Shawn Porter, who attended the fight and is a Showtime and Premier Boxing Champions analyst and host of The Porter Way Podcast.
“Tank is a sharpshooter who is very vast and a very good counter puncher who can throw the fight punch at the right time,” said Porter, who called Davis the best fighter at 130, 135 and 140 pounds. “Gervonta Davis is a sellout and a main attraction in Los Angeles and everywhere else when he’s from Baltimore. From a media standpoint, it’s long past the time to give this man the credit he deserves.”
Davis’ victory preceded this Saturday’s 135-pound unification battle of unbeatens in Melbourne, Australia, between IBF/WBA and WBO super titleist George Kambosos Jr. (20-0, 10 KOs) and WBC counterpart Devin Haney (27-0, 15 KOs).
“If you win, and you’re saying all of that. If you win … let’s make the fight happen since you wanna talk crazy,” said Davis of Haney, who must grant a rematch to Kambosos if he wins. “Let’s do that. I wanna fight you if you win. Devin Haney. Just know that the winner [of Haney-Kambosos] can come and see me.”
By Alton Thomas Stiles | California Black Media Partners
As the costs of goods surge nationwide along with gas prices, Gov. Gavin Newsom is committing $18.1 billion in “inflation relief” to Californians through the California Blueprint, his mid-year revised budget proposal.
The White House is also taking steps to ease the pinch from inflation Americans across the country are experiencing.
“Global inflation, the war in Ukraine driving up costs, climate change impacts – everyone is feeling the weight. So, we’re putting $18.1 billion on the table to help lower costs for Californians – tax refunds, [money] for healthcare, rent, utility bills, public transit [and] more,” Newsom tweeted.
California’s economy is the largest in the United States and is currently experiencing a budget surplus of close to $100 billion, according to the governor’s office.
“Backed by a robust surplus and grounded in our unshakable values, we’re paving the California Way forward to prosperity and progress for all,” said Newsom recently, referring to investments the state is making in financial relief efforts, including an increase to the minimum wage, rental and utility bill assistance, tax refunds, health care subsidies, and more.
As Newsom and federal government officials announce relief packages to tackle inflation, they are taking the opportunity to criticize their colleagues across the aisle.
“While gridlock persists in Congress and Right-wing fanatics turn statehouses across the country into laboratories of hate and oppression, here in California, we’re putting in the work to grow our economy and implement real, inclusive policy change to create a brighter future for all,” said Newsom.
President Joe Biden also urged Republicans in Congress to cooperate with Democrats on their inflation efforts.
“I encourage Congressional Republicans to join us in our efforts to lower prices for families across the country, by making more in America, strengthening our supply chains, and cutting energy and prescription drug costs,” Biden tweeted recently.
The federal government’s plan for offsetting the impact of inflation includes giving Medicare the power to negotiate prices for prescription drugs and bringing food prices down in grocery stores by “bringing more competition to those markets,” according to Sameera Fazili, Director of the White House National Economic Council.
Fazili told California Black Media (CBM) about some of the unique challenges facing communities of color as the prices of goods and services skyrocket nationwide.
One such challenge is childcare, which is essential for many parents of color as they are less likely to work remotely.
“Often times, the amount that you spend on childcare may be as much as what you bring in from going to work,” said Fazili.
The White House has also received commitments from large internet providers to lower the cost of internet access for lower income households. such as Verizon, for example, has committed to dropping monthly payments for highspeed service by $10.
Housing is another challenge for Black Americans, Fazili told CBM.
“We don’t have enough affordable housing in this country,” said Fazili.
Fazili said the federal government cannot directly lower or raise the price of gas because gas is traded on the global market.
United States Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm told CBM that the increases in gas prices are due, in part, to U.S. sanctions on Russian oil because of the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
Granholm says since the European Union is following the U.S. with sanctions on Russia, there might be additional challenges around the corner.
“We’re going to see more volatility, more increase,” said Granholm.
To combat this, the federal government plans to tap into the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve in the Gulf of Mexico, which Granholm called the “biggest tool we have” against rising gas prices.
On the state level, Granholm praised California’s approach to combating these prices.
“Some states are providing direct payments to people — I know Gov. Newsom has looked at that – to try to alleviate this huge impact on people’s wallets,” said Granholm.
Fazili says she is optimistic. When the economy begins to recover from hardships it is currently experiencing, the financial outlook for Blacks will begin to improve as the equity and relief programs the Biden administration is implementing take effect.
BOULDER, CO — Evo Hemp is thrilled to announce “Dirty Words,” a new podcast produced in conjunction with the 40 Acre Cooperative that provides a platform for diverse voices and stories from the frontlines of our food and plant medicine systems. The mission is to show what is possible and what is necessary to create equitable access to food and plant medicine. Evo Hemp has also launched a campaign to connect BIPOC farmers with manufacturers and consumers to create solutions toward agricultural equity. If a BIPOC farmer would like to be included on the BIPOC FARMS MAP or a manufacturer looking to source from BIPOC farms, please reach out to customerservice@evohemp.com or visit https://evohemp.com/bipoc-farms-map.
“Our goal is to bring about change,” said Evo Hemp Co-Founder Ari Sherman. “The pandemic has brought the many racial inequities in our healthcare and food systems to the forefront, and this is a moment to ignite a cultural conversation around this public health crisis.”
Over the past 100 years BIPOC farmers in the United States have lost roughly $326 billion worth of acreage. In 1910, Black farmers owned more than 16 million acres of land. In 2017, that figure was just 4.7 million acres, about 0.5% of all farmland. According to experts, the land loss was due to discriminatory USDA lending policies and forced sales of co-owned land called heirs’ property.
“By bringing Black farmers to parity on a per-farm revenue and profit basis, there is $5 billion in economic value that can be created,” said Jourdan Samel, Co-Founder of Evo Hemp. “Increasing business participation for Black farmers could create ladders of opportunity for the 66,000 Black workers employed in the agriculture sector and beyond.”
Public and private programs exist today to support Black farmers, but they vary in maturity and reach. For example, many private programs are in pilot stages and have yet to achieve their full potential scale and scope. Further, many public programs have faced challenges to scale due to historical distrust of farming support and lack of awareness among the Black farming community.
“We want people to be aware that because of the color of your skin, there are disparities in your ability to cultivate and access food and plant medicine,” said Sherman. “We hope that our podcast and the BIPOC Farms Map will positively affect people, impact communities, and make change that will help us become a better society.”
About 40-Acre Cooperative: 40-Acre Cooperative is an agricultural company focused on addressing equity gaps within agriculture. The co-op provides technical assistance, and marketing support that supports Black, Indigenous, and other marginalized communities. https://www.fortyacre.coop/
About Evo Hemp: Evo Hemp has established a supply chain of USA-grown hemp in order to rebuild America’s agricultural system. With the help of retail partners, Evo Hemp has been able to create countless opportunities for small family farmers, while providing consumers with organic, USA-grown hemp products. https://evohemp.com/
You see, God began human history with a warning. He told Adam and Eve that if they ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would surely die. [Genesis 2:17]. The soul that sins shall die [Ezekiel 18:20]. There are consequences to pay when one does not heed the warnings of God. If you continue to disobey and live in sin, God’s anger will descend on you like King Manasseh. Don’t take God’s grace for granted. Repent before it is too late!
“A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.” [Proverbs 22:3]. How long will you simple ones love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?” [Proverbs 1:22]. “How long will you keep ignoring the warning signs and live for your own ways and desires as if there are no consequences for doing so?” Proverbs 14:12; 16:25 reminds us that, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” God’s warnings always precede God’s judgment!
Case in point, before the tragedy that befell the house of Eli, the death of his two sons and his own death, God had warned about the sin of Eli’s sons and his failure to discipline them. He warned of the impending judgment. “Then the LORD said to Samuel, ‘I am about to do a shocking thing in Israel. I am going to carry out all my threats against Eli and his family. I have warned him continually that judgment is coming for his family, because his sons are blaspheming God and he hasn’t disciplined them. So, I have vowed that the sins of Eli and his sons will never be forgiven by sacrifices or offerings” [1 Samuel 3:11-14]. Why? Because they had squandered the opportunities, to repent. God’s warnings always precedes His judgment.
The angels who came to execute God’s judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah told Lot, “‘Run for your lives!’ the angels warned. ‘Do not stop anywhere in the valley. And don’t look back! Escape to the mountains, or you will die.’” [Genesis 19:17]. But Lot’s wife didn’t heed their warning. She looked back. Therefore, God’s judgment came upon her. She became a pillar of salt [Genesis 19:26]. I tell you, there are consequences to pay when one does not heed the warnings of God!
Be like the people of Nineveh who repented and believe that God will do what He said he would do. Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes”
The king took Jonah’s message very seriously and caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, “Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water. But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?” [Jonah 3:5-9].
“When God saw that they had put a stop to their evil ways, he had mercy on them and didn’t carry out the destruction he had threatened” [Jonah 3:10]. God’s warning always comes before His judgment. Your response to His warnings determines what happens to you. As Daniel told King Nebuchadnezzar [Daniel 4:27] please listen to me. Stop sinning and do what is right. God’s warning comes before His Judgment. [Ezekiel 18:20].
God did not just let them go into sin. He sent messenger after messenger, prophet after prophet, judge after judge, king after king—and they never listened. Even though God had compassion on them and wanted to save them from this, they were not willing. [2 Chronicles 36:15].
“Prepare to meet your God, O Israel!” [Amos 4:12].
SAN BERNARDINO, CA — As the Apostle Peter warned, for if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly [2 Peter 2:4-5] killing every man, woman and child who spurned and ignored his warning, what do you think will happen if we continue to ignore His warnings? We too will experience the utter wrath of God. [Romans 11:21]. Isaiah warned the people that they must be in tune with God’s timing and not presume that they would always have the ear of the Lord. His words, “Seek the Lord while he may be found,” stressed the urgency of the time of decision. [Isaiah 55:6-9]
“We’ve Been Warned” encourages its reader to repent while it is still daybreak. Get your copy today online $10.00 for Book; $5.00 for eBook at:
The fatal mass shooting inside a Buffalo, New York, grocery store on May 14 has shaken the faith of national political leaders by echoing a tragic and familiar refrain across the country — another mass shooting that appears motivated by race and hate.
Payton Gendron, 18, traveled 200 miles from his home in Conklin, New York, to Buffalo, where he strapped on body armor, walked into the Tops Friendly Market and shot 13 people in the store. He streamed the attack online before the police subdued him. Eleven people shot were Black, while two were White — 10 of the victims died.
Federal authorities found a racist 180-page document written by Gendron, who said the assault was intended to terrorize all non-White, non-Christian people to persuade them to leave the United States.
A Washington Post analysis of more than 600 messages found that Gendron had planned to target the Tops grocery store since February, because its customer base is mainly Black.
“The American experiment in democracy is in danger like it hasn’t been in my lifetime,” said President Joe Biden in a Buffalo speech May 17. “It’s in danger this hour. Hate and fear are being given too much oxygen by those who pretend to love America but who don’t understand America.”
Biden went on to say, “In America, evil will not win, I promise you. Hate will not prevail. White supremacy will not have the last word.”
Part of the crowd that gathered May 17 at the Delavan Grider Community Center in Buffalo to grieve with New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and President Joe Biden over the grocery-store shooting in that city. (Mike Groll/Office of Gov. Kathy Hochul)
Law-enforcement officials said that New York State police troopers were called to Gendron’s high school last June for a report that the-then-17-year-old had made threatening statements.
From President Biden to New York Governor Kathy Hochul, political officials have offered many words in the wake of a shooting that has stoked fear and worry across the country, while law enforcement searches for answers.
The Sunday morning after the incident, Hochul spoke at True Bethel Baptist Church in Buffalo, where she said: “Our hearts are broken, and I’m going to say one thing: Lord, forgive the anger in my heart right now.
“Forgive me, Lord. I know it doesn’t belong there, Lord,” Hochul said. “I was raised to love and respect and care. Well, to hear these stories and the pain that’s out there in a community that I love so well — I’m angry.”
The governor went on to quote Psalm 34: “’The Lord is near the broken-hearted and saves the crushed of spirit.’ Well, Lord, I know you’re here because we are so broken-hearted, and we are crushed in spirit at this moment. But this is temporary because with your love, Lord, we will rise up, and our crushed spirits will rise again.”
Gov. Hochul also took practical steps. On May 20, she issued two executive orders.
The first Executive Order is designed to fight the surge in domestic terrorism and violent extremism frequently inspired by social media platforms and internet forums. The Executive Order calls on the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services to establish a new unit, dedicated solely to the prevention of domestic terrorism, within the Division’s Office of Counterterrorism.
The second calls on New York State Police to establish a dedicated unit within the New York State Intelligence Center (NYSIC) to track domestic violent extremism through social media. The second Executive Order will require State Police to file for an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) under New York State’s Red Flag Law whenever they have probable cause to believe an individual is a threat to themselves or others.
In addition, Hochul is proposing legislation to close “Other Gun” loopholes by revising and widening the definition of a firearm to get dangerous guns off the street.
While she offered political remedies, spiritual leaders also made pleas to end violence.
Bishop Vashti McKenzie, the interim president and general secretary of the National Council of Churches, said in a statement: “Our communities have not healed from the onslaught of violence from past White supremacist attacks and now the scabs have been ripped off to bleed again.”
McKenzie stood with President Obama and other bishops of the African Methodist Episcopal Church after the young white supremacist Dylann Roof walked into Mother Emanuel AME in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015 and opened fire, killing nine people during a midweek Bible study.
“This racial violence has to stop,” McKenzie said. “We must all increase our efforts to bring racism to an end. That will not happen by only making ceremonial or performative gestures that don’t get to the root causes of the problems. We have to do the deeper work. This is especially true for Christians.”
The Rev. Eric Manning, pastor of Mother Emanuel AME, said in a statement that he and members of his congregation could empathize with the suffering from the May 14 shooting in Buffalo.
“We can relate to your hurt, pain and anger,” Pastor Manning said. “The congregation of Mother Emanuel was in the same place almost seven years ago.”
A memorial to the victims of another grocery store mass shooting, this one in Boulder, Colorado, in March 2021. (gotojbb/Flickr)
On May 17, New York City Mayor Eric Adams joined faith leaders who came to a Harlem vigil for the 10 victims of the racially fueled mass shooting.
During the vigil at Bethel Gospel Assembly Church, Adams placed one of the 10 pink roses on a table. But he also referred to a shooting closer to home — race and hate are not the only reasons why people of color are being killed.
“You are no less demonic,” said Adams to the drive-by shooter who killed an 11-year-old girl in the Bronx. Adams had just visited her parents, and he drew parallels between the Buffalo shooting and New York City gun violence.
Many communities around the country are hosting vigils for racial healing after the Buffalo shooting. In Rockville, Maryland, people from Jewish, Asian, Hispanic and other groups targeted by white supremacists were to gather for a vigil at the Rockville Seventh-day Adventist Church.
“As a family of faith, we pray for healing for all who have been affected,” the Seventh-day Adventist Church in North America said in a statement on May 19. “But as much as our prayers go up and our hearts go out to those who have been devastated by this horrific event, we cannot stop there.
“We denounce this mindless and premeditated act of hatred and violence. We call on all people of goodwill to use their voices and platforms to denounce hatred and racism in all of its forms. May we use this evil intention as a catalyst to propel us to action and demonstrate that love is stronger than hatred.”
Senior contributor Hamil Harris is an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, and has been a lecturer at Morgan State University. Harris is minister at the Glenarden Church of Christ and a police chaplain. He was a longtime reporter for The Washington Post.
Korea’s largest automaker, Hyundai, announced that it is entering the online community-based non-fungible token (NFT) market, becoming the first automaker to do so.
Hyundai said in a press release that it is collaborating with Meta Kongz on NFT projects and memorandums of understanding (MOUs).
“The Hyundai NFT community will provide its users with the Hyundai brand experience in the metaverse by sharing NFTs depicting its mobility solutions. The Hyundai NFT Discord and Twitter channels opened on April 15, and the official NFT website is scheduled to open soon in May,” Hyundai said in the press release.
A short film introducing the automaker’s Metamobility Universe was also released. In it, the automaker presented its vision for a future in which virtual reality will be used to enhance mobility.
“The Hyundai NFT universe will extend the Hyundai brand experience, especially with MZ generation, in a completely new way, further reinforcing our commitment to innovation in both the real world and in the metaverse,” Thomas Schemera, Hyundai Motor’s global chief marketing officer, said. “We are extremely excited to introduce ‘Metamobility’ through our own NFTs and start this journey with Meta Kongz.”
“We are extremely excited to introduce ‘Metamobility’ through our own NFTs and start this journey with Meta Kongz,” said Thomas Schemera, Hyundai Motor’s global chief marketing officer. (Courtesy of Hyundai)
The automaker distributed 30 limited-edition NFTs on April 20 to commemorate the premiere of the short film. Even as the Hyundai NFT universe evolves, these releases will continue throughout the year, the company said. The proceeds from the sale of Hyundai NFTs will be allocated to project and community management, it added.
“|The Hyundai NFT community will provide its users with the Hyundai brand experience in the metaverse by sharing NFTs depicting its mobility solutions.,” the automaker said in a press release. (Courtesy of Hyundai)
Meta Kongz has just completed governance voting on an agenda pertaining to the migration of the Klaytn chain to the Ethereum chain. The majority of votes cast were in support of the migration.
Meta Kongz will migrate to the Ethereum blockchain, a necessary step for the internationalization of the project. Due to the purported difficulty of attracting non-Koreans to the Klaytn chain, many NFT traders prefer to use the Ethereum chain with the Metamask wallet. As a result of the relocation, Meta Kongz it likely to receive increased exposure.
Hyundai Motor Co. has operations in more than 200 countries with more than 120,000 employees. “Based on the brand vision ‘Progress for Humanity,’ Hyundai Motor is accelerating its transformation into a Smart Mobility Solution Provider,” the company said in its press release.
“The idea behind Metamobility is that space, time and distance will all become irrelevant. By connecting robots to the metaverse, we will be able to move freely between both the real world and virtual reality,” Chang Song. Hyundai’s president and head of the transportation-as-a-service division, said earlier this year.
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