As a young child my grandmother Nettie used to drag me to Beulah Baptist Church on West 130th Street in Harlem. I dreaded it, especially when she’d tell me it was the usher board day, children’s day or some other special occasion. This meant we’d be in church from before 10 am until after 3:30 pm.

I thought I hadn’t absorbed much. But, the scriptures like Psalm 23 and the bedtime prayer, “Now I lay me down to sleep,” became a part of my soul. So much so that in college I didn’t just go to church, I sang in the gospel choir all four years. I took religion courses. I also volunteered to tutor kids on Saturdays.

I don’t go to church anymore. But, my faith sustains me, especially through my health battles. I’m even an ordained minister. So, my pet peeve is when people say merry X-mas. I don’t like faith being removed from the holidays. You should never be ashamed of believing in something.

So for day 21 of my Christmas countdown I’m sharing a lesson from “Pulp Fiction” character Jules Winnfield. Ezekiel 25:17

“The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness.”

MerryChristmas #PulpFiction #christmascountdown #christmassweater #holidayseason #spoonie #invisibleillness #chronicillness