Song & Verse: HELLO by Adele

This song was on repeat as soon as I saw the release on my FB feed at 6am the day Adele greeted the world again in song. Love her. Love her voice. Love her expression of her life journey. That said, I just watched Joe Thomas cover Hello and that's why this post is happening! (Click to check out some covers of Hello.)

Thoughts On Faith and Prayer: ALL AND NOTHING

The Thoughts on Faith and Prayer messages are short sermons (15-20 min) given during my congregation's corporate prayer service on Tuesday nights. I'm really excited to learn that they are being recorded and can be shared. This is a great message about the totality of what we are called to be in Christ Jesus. Be blessed. Be a blessing. (Click to listen.)

Joint Statement from the Fourth U.S.-Brazil Global Partnership Dialogue

"The participants reaffirmed the shared commitment to remove barriers to access economic opportunity, education, health, and justice for historically marginalized groups, including people of African descent through the ongoing implementation of the U.S.–Brazil Joint Action Plan to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Discrimination and Promote Equality, and lauded the successful Joint Action Plan technical meeting and seminar on Equity in Education, both held in Brasilia in August 2012. The participants further agreed that empowering and protecting women and girls requires strong, coordinated action by the international community."

Joint Action Plan: Brazil and U.S.A. To Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Discrimination…

Recognizing the democratic, multi-ethnic and multi-racial nature of Brazilian and U.S. societies, which strengthens the ties of friendship between both countries; Recognizing further their governments' commitment to racial equality and equal opportunity and the historic friendship between their nations;....

“Not just an American problem, but a world problem” by Malcolm X

"All the nations that signed the charter of the UN came up with the Declaration of Human Rights and anyone who classifies his grievances under the label of “human rights” violations, those grievances can then be brought into the United Nations and be discussed by people all over the world. For as long as you call it “civil rights” your only allies can be the people in the next community, many of whom are responsible for your grievance. But when you call it “human rights” it becomes international. And then you can take your troubles to the World Court. You can take them before the world. And anybody anywhere on this earth can become your ally. So one of the first steps that we became involved in, those of us who got into the Organization of Afro- American Unity, was to come up with a program that would make our grievances international and make the world see that our problem was no longer a Negro problem or an American problem but a human problem. A problem for humanity. And a problem which should be attacked by all elements of humanity. A problem that was so complex that it was impossible for Uncle Sam to solve it himself and therefore we want to get into a body or conference with people who are in such positions that they can help us get some kind of adjustment for this situation before it gets so explosive that no one can handle it." (Click to read the full speech.)