Be assured promotion comes from God as a result of your hard work. As believers, we can never forget the importance of mixing our works with our faith. God gave Adam dominion over land, animals and substance, but it came with a price. He had to name them and work to take care of them. Our education and experience have given us the opportunity to be used by God in the workplace. Not to thump around with our bibles, quoting scriptures at people and commanding people to be subservient to our every whim. Our lives are the bible that they need to see. Although we hear that all the time, I’m not sure we realize that our work product is just as important as abstaining from foul language or not smoking or drinking. The bible is best seen when we walk it out in our conversations, our actions and our motives. As employees or supervisors, our heart should display an attitude of serving with integrity and credibility.

Remember that although promotion comes from God, it is coming through your supervisor. God uses people to get things to us on earth. To see promotion we have to know how to work with those who have authority over us and with those who work alongside of us. Being a good employee isn’t about doing just enough to say you’ve done your job. I have heard several people say, “That’s not in my job description”; neither is the promotion or raise in salary you desire. So you must stretch yourself to receive the more you desire. Do your job with an eye towards your performance review. Do your homework to know how your work is being evaluated. If it is not clear through a standard performance review form, ask your supervisor. Communicate clearly with your supervisor. Understand his/her expectations and work style. The best way to ensure you become a lasting and elevated member of the team is to make the overall work environment easier for your supervisor.

Every problem doesn’t need us to give voice to it publicly. Sometimes the best solution is to be still and know. God knows the right time to exalt you. Resist the urge to say everything you feel or know. You may be right but your timing may be wrong. The facts may be revealed in a different way at a later time. You may ruin relationships or your chances to become a part of the solutions by sounding too critical of the organization and its leaders. Never burn bridges; be the bridge that provides solutions.

Below are a few questions to evaluate whether you are promotable:

• Are you at work on time?

• How is your relationship with your supervisor?

• Do you follow up after completing tasks?

• Do you provide status updates without being asked?

• What do your other co-workers think of you? Do they come to you to provide solutions or to talk gossip?

• How well do you manage your own time and priorities?

Album: "In Spite of Me"

Release Date: April 13, 2010

Label: RockSoul Productions

Website: www.michellebonilla.com

Recently, African American communities in cities all across America have been rocked with a string of senseless shootings, muggings, home envasions, and gold snatching flash mobs. Almost all of the victims were African Americans, and the perpetrators were most likely also African Americans. Unfortunately, this is not shocking news to most people living in the United States or part of the planet earth. The sad reality is, African Americans are killing one another, in what I call a “self-imposed holocaust”, and we don’t know what to do about it. We have marched, held town meetings, supported tougher sentencing guidelines, called on God and cried. Every step we take forward against the Holocaust it appears that we lose a step. We are a resilient people, strong and vibrant at our best, but even the strongest foundation can begin to crack, over time, if the steady drip of destruction is not repaired.

I want to propose something to all ministers, pastors, and Christian church members of the African American Community. Let’s refocus our energy, time, and talent toward the total destruction of the African Holocaust in America, Africa, and anywhere it prevails. Let’s put aside our fixation on relationships that divide us, such as denominationalism, church membership, and religious showmanship, and gather together under one God-directed path for the complete and total destruction of the African Holocaust. We will only preach, teach, and create ministries and missions that eliminates self-murder in our communities. We will not adopt the language of “religious division” and pretend that our “brand” of worship is the only way. We will not allow our “voices”, through preaching or teaching to fill our churches with gossip, put-downs, and sinful language. As a community of Christians, we should demand that all ministries be held to this standard or we will simply stop supporting them. Our Christian Churches must take responsibility for their role as moral leaders. And we must take this stand not to destroy our Churches, but to say “NO” to the misuse of our God-giftedness any longer. We must take this stand, because we know that the Christian Church leadership has major influence over the minds of our community.

Much of the negative energy and negative life choices that are being made in my home town, Harrisburg, PA, and major cities in the United States, such as Philadelphia, PA, can sadly be found in most towns and cities where our people reside. The common thread that connects us as a community is too often the movies, television programs, plays, radio shows, magazines, and sporting events. What is said and portrayed through these outlets carry an enormous amount of influence in the African American community.

Too often the messages and images that our people hear most loudly come from the media, and not the church and religious leaders of the community. The Gospel song says “My Soul Looks Back and Wonders How I Got Over…!” The Christian Church was, and must continue to be, the “ever-present help of the Lord.” This is how our people got over slavery and Jim Crow laws. The Christian Church is the way we will over-come our present-day Holocaust.

The African American community has a tremendous resource that may be the answer to our prayers. Senior citizens in the African American community, sixty years old and older, who have lived through the Civil Rights Movement of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, fully understand the context of the Black Church as it relates to the advance of our people. This valuable collection of “tested souls”, those who endured blatant racism, brutal beatings, and lynchings, only to be denied justice in the courts of the land that claimed “Liberty and justice for all” have been largely ignored by the beneficiaries of their struggle.

The Hip Hop youth movement is not soley responsible for the moral decay within the African American Community, but it must accept a lions share of the blame. In past generations “The Club” was the joint that you went to on Friday and Saturday nights to get your groove on. The church was the place that you went to even if you were out clubing all night long. There used to be an expectation that Sunday morning and church was as natural as bacon and eggs;the two just went together, period. While some churches in the African American communities across America can still draw a large number of African American youth into their sanctuaries, it is evident that our youth are abandoning the church in search of the next thrill.

We need a cross-generational meeting of community, which would allow for our youth to be heard and our elders to teach the wisdom that is engrained in them. Pastors, elders, church leaders, it is up to us to make this happen. In every African American community across America, it is our responsibility to open the doors of the church and allow the healing to begin. It is clear that our community is sick and getting sicker. We know who the Great Physician is and how to call on him. What are we waiting for? Our youth and our Elders are crying out for help!

I would like to hear from you. Let’s start a movement of “Christians Without Division”, dedicated to saving the lives of our people. I envision an organization with local and state chapters, called “Christians Without Division” with the sole purpose of sharing resources and networks to combat crime and other social issues in our communities. We can sponsor conferences, employment data bases, Family Group Conferences, and Christian-based schools. What do you think? I can be reached at (717) 608-2312 or email: pgadsden@aol.com. My Web page is: www.nathanielgadsden.com

Written By: Nathaniel Gadsden