Sister Table Talk

Following is a list of The SOFEI Group's top ten YouTube videos for motivation, inspiration, and hope: Am I Wrong - Nico & Vince Try - Colbie Caillat Beautiful Flower - India Arie Hear My Call - Jill Scott Golden - Jill Scott Bravo - Ledisi Superwoman - Alicia Keys Just Fine - Mary J. Blige Didn't Know My Own Stength - Whitney Houston Turning Around for Me - Vashawn Mitchell

An elderly woman lost her life in a house fire because she hoarded stuff that didn't add value. Her neighbors recognized how hazardous her house had become and offered assistance to help her clean, to no prevail. Just as the elderly woman collected worthless items, there are many people who gather and hold onto people and things that deplete or bring detriment to their spiritual or emotional well-being. Worthless items like negative thinking, self-denial, stressful living, defeat, deceit, jealousy, fear, anger, covetousness, envy, anxiety, lack of self-control, hatred, low self-worth and self-esteem. When we pray and ask God for deliverance from our trials and tribulations, healing from a broken or wounded heart, or for a financial blessing, He can't deliver when our internal being is cluttered. For example, when a pilot attempts to land a plane, the pilot verifies if the pathway is clear. If it isn't, the pilot goes into a holding pattern. God is like the pilot! ...

Genesis 34 talks about a young virgin woman, named Dinah who “went out to see the daughters of the land” (Genesis 34:1). She was spotted by Shechem - a victim of lust at first sight , who took Dinah and violated her virginity (Genesis 34:2). A Jewel, such as Dinah, was defiled and violated because of Shechem’s strong sexual desire to have her (Genesis 34:3). In Hebrew, the definition of violated or defiled, means to be taken by force (i.e., raped). Shechem’s actions resulted in harm instead of satisfaction because Dinah’s brothers, Levi and Simeon lied, stole, and murdered for revenge. Dinah was a Jewel taken by force, but there are many women (Jewels) who voluntarily place themselves in the hands of Inexperienced Jewelers due to: Soft Spoken Words According to Genesis 34:3, Shechem spake kindly unto the damsel . Women can become prey to soft spoken words if they were raised in negative environments, were victims of verbal, emotional, or physical abuse and never heard or experience...

Growing up as a dark-skinned woman can be difficult. The teasing and caustic remarks can diminish a woman's self-esteem until they discover.... They came from the mind of God. In the secrecy of their mother’s womb, they were fearfully and wonderfully made. To live and fulfill God’s divine purpose and perfect will, with their shape, size, and beautiful skin shade. They are who they are, by God’s grace. They have strength, courage, and perseverance to run and finish their race. Their spirit has been quickened, they are no longer God’s enemy and Satan’s slave. By God’s unconditional love and power, they were raised from the carnal grave. As a chosen, redeemed, and predestined Saint, they know how to behave! Everything God created is good, and we were created to bring glory and honor to Him (Isaiah 43:7). We all have unique features and characteristics to fulfill God’s purpose. Whether we are light or dark, full or small figured, we should not allow ourselves to be vi...

Be responsible for your actions. No one can make you behave the way you do. Be responsible for your thoughts. No one can make you think what you think. Take ownership of your feelings. No one can make you feel good or bad. Be responsible for your life. No one can make you have a fulfilled or dreadful life. Be responsible for your well being. No one can define who you are or your purpose for living. Be responsible for how you are treated. You are treated the way you allow yourself to be treated. Be responsible for how you treat others. No one can make you respect or disrespect him or her. Be responsible for your relationship with God and others. God and no one can make you love them. The choice is ultimately yours.

I weep for Sisters looking For a man that’s so hard to find My sisters try, they trip, they tremble Because the search goes on all the time. I weep for Sisters looking For security in masculine form They’re tossed and thrown by emotions Like a small ship in a big storm. I weep for Sisters looking For a “brother” whom they can respect Not a pretty boy or millionaire Just someone With whom They can connect. I weep for Sisters looking Because of the pain and heartbreak They endure The loneliness that turns to emptiness Will there ever be a cure? I say Yes, Dear Sisters, There is a cure A real cure from my point of view For perhaps wisdom is dictating That you pray and wait, Serve and work Until Mr. Right Finds You! By Evangelist Emanuel Scott, Jr.

If you’re not happy with your job, whose fault is it? Is it your manager’s, co-worker, the economy, your bills, or you? What impact does your hatred have on the people you serve through your job? To show up every day to a job you hate doesn’t benefit anyone but your creditors. Hatred is difficult to hide. It will resonate through your attitude and your work. Staying at a job you hate may seem logical with the high percentage of unemployed and underemployed people. But if you choose to stay, why hate it? Why waste your time and your employer's? It’s challenging to have a servant attitude through hatred. If you’re not willing to serve, you’re not willing to work at your best capacity. Work isn’t solely about us! It’s about service. If we’re filled with hatred about our work, does it mean we’re too full of ourselves? Sure, people can be difficult and challenging, but their actions should not contribute to our hatred. Every day we show up for work, we should know our pu...

A young girl ran to her mother after school and said, "Let’s hurry and get to the car because I don’t want to get a tan." Mother’s response, "Why are you so afraid of getting a tan?" Her daughter’s response, "I’m not, but a girl in my group asked me if I was dark skinned because of the sun?" A portion of Psalm 139:14 states, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are thy works. Humanity was created in the image of God and He has never spoken negatively to Himself or to the people He chose to make an impact throughout the world based on their uniqueness. Our children are our future. Let’s be vigilant of what we feed them – directly or indirectly. Critiquing or teasing people about their looks (especially their hues) is a waste of time. Everything God made is good and was created for His glory. If God can see the beauty, good, and glory in His creation, why can't we?

A prospective partner contacted The SOFEI Group to offer their services to build their brand. This person was turned down because their main purpose to join wasn’t about helping us achieve our mission – it was self-serving. If your ultimate reason to secure employment or start a business is to make money, you’re off to a bumpy start. Many MLM (Multi-level Marketing) business owners plummet because they see an opportunity to make money, instead of an opportunity to improve the lives of others with their product or service. And, many businesses are not experiencing exponential growth because it’s replete with self-serving people who choose not to use their skills, experience, or education to serve. In this knowledge-based workforce, employers and business owners want to connect with believers, leaders, or servants. People who believe in the organization’s mission, goals, and objectives; leaders who can influence people to achieve greatness, and people who do not mind serving thei...

Attend this seminar to receive business secrets to grow your business. Really? Let’s face it; there are no secrets to doing business, just strategies. Instead of spending money and time attending seminars or workshops to find secrets, take a deep breath and revisit your purpose for going into business. Here are a few questions to think about when developing your business strategy: Who are your clients and how do they find you? What’s your strategy to deliver your product and/or service to prospective clients to meet their needs, solve their problems, or enhance their lives? Who are your ideal business clients? How well do you know your prospective and current clients? What’s your strategy to keep your clients happy and transform them to raving fans? What resources will you need to support your strategy? What’s your strategy to handle disgruntled clients and build their trust? What’s your strategy to continue moving your business forward when funds are low? What method(s) will...

Entitlements – programs (e.g., Medicare or Social Security) funded by taxpayers that supposedly benefit non-taxpayers. How can this be especially for taxpayers that worked and contributed towards these programs? And, why are Entitlement programs on the chopping block to balance the budget or reduce the deficit in an effort to stop people from riding free? Free riders are from different ethnic and economic backgrounds. They’re people who cheat on their taxes or avoid paying taxes due to tax shelters buried under complicated tax codes. They’re people who can afford to pay for healthcare, but choose not to; passing their expenses to the shoulders of people strapped with the high cost of health insurance. They're executives who receive government bailouts and bonuses, in spite of their misuse or ill investments of hard working citizens who lost their life savings. They’re also celebrities indulged with expensive gifts they can afford and may not want. What about the poor? A...

Another federal government agency was snubbed last week for allegedly wasting tax payer’s dollars (50 million) for training conferences over a three-year period. Training is a waste of time and money when its goals and objectives aren’t clearly defined and connected to an organization’s mission, and the actual value training will add when completed. Government waste didn’t start in this Administration; it has been a normal way of business to avoid a decrease in appropriation dollars for each fiscal year. When an agency learns that it has an excess in appropriation dollars towards the end of their fiscal year, many government employees reap the benefits of training, conferences, and/or new equipment. Training should never be used as a last resort to save appropriation dollars that will result in waste. This strategy decreases the value of education and training. If a government agency can operate on less money than originally appropriated, this money should be returned to Congre...

The SOFEI Group has counseled and trained many women who seem to pay more attention to what people tell them (e.g., their significant other or spouse) and not what they show them. Remember the saying Action speaks louder than words . What keeps women clinging onto the words of their loved ones while ignoring their actions? Hope for change, fear, blind love, or their religion? People normally show us their truth. However, some women second guess their intuition and what’s presented to them. Example, a man’s truth maybe sexual or financial infidelity – the woman’s reality is she’s living or in a relationship with a man who cannot be trusted. A man’s truth maybe, he’s married with children - a woman’s reality that dates him is she’s an adulterer and a person that doesn’t value the sacredness of marriage. Lastly, a man’s truth maybe physical, emotional, or verbal abuse – a woman’s reality is depression, fear; hope for change, low self-esteem or self-worth. Women have to take c...

Deuteronomy 15:11 states, For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land. The Israelites were instructed by God to help the poor when they arrived to possess the Promised Land to serve as a reminder of God's gift of freedom after their enslavement in Egypt. Some believe people that are poor brought it on themselves, and this belief makes it easy to close our hearts and hands towards them. Helping the poor demonstrates our faith in God and our country. Ignoring to care for the poor for any reason forfeits our humanitarian duty to care for our fellow citizens during their greatest time of need. The battle between Congress and the President on strategies to serve the poor isn’t simply about the rising debt, but the different attitudes towards poverty. Not extending unemployment benefits or decreasing government entitlement programs may decrease the Nat...

If you think you can’t accomplish your dreams and aspirations, renew your mind with “I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:13) If you think you’ve been defeated, you are “more than a conqueror in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:37) If you think the world’s system has control over you, remember “greater is He that’s within you, than he that’s in the world.” (I John 4:4) If you think you’re not loved and no cares for you, “God cares.” (I Peter 5:6-7) If you think you’ve been cursed and nothing good will ever happen to you, “there is no good thing God will withhold from those who walk upright.” (Psalm 84:11) If you think your efforts are going in the wrong direction, “the steps of a good [wo]man are ordered by the Lord.” (Psalm 37:23) If you think your hard work is going unnoticed, “do not grow weary in well doing for in due season you shall reap!” (Galatians 6:9) If you think your spouse will not surrender his will and life to God, they can becom...

While sitting in traffic one morning, a woman looked and commented about a dirty white car in her passenger lane. To further validate, she rolled her window down and discovered the white car was clean, and her car window was dirty. This experience is a valuable example about our minds. Our minds can be as clean or dirty as car windows depending on the environment or the number of times the car or windows are cleaned. Here are a few suggestions to get a clean mind: If you're a habitual negative thinker, get real with yourself and discover the root cause(s) Separate yourself from negative people and environments - even family members Watch what you feed your mind and determine its impact Read God’s word and meditate daily Become a non-conformist to the trends of the world Eat right and exercise to exert negative energy and get proper rest Forgive people that have wronged or hurt you and realize their actions could be a result of unhealed wounds or pain When a negative though...

Now's the time to not dwell on mistakes of the past nor worry about what the future may hold. It's time to live now. Today, Relishing every beautiful moment; making the most of every opportunity to grow and to serve. Now's the time to quit wishing that things could have been different yesterday, last month, last year. Today is the day to express your best. Today is the day to express love. Today is the day to be free and happy, at peace in mind and body, successful in all you undertake. Instead of wondering how things can change, instead of wondering where you can begin, realize the time is now! You're not bound by old thoughts, old fears, or old beliefs that once held you in bondage. In Christ you can be free. In Christ you can become new. In Christ you can do all things. You can be a blessing and live joyously. You have the power to change things now. What are you waiting for? Time is ticking.

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me. This idiom has been quoted by many children to indicate name calling or words will never hurt them. Proverbs 18:21 states, Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. So, words can hurt or empower! How will you use your use your tongue today? Will you speak life or death into the lives of others? What will you speak into yourself? If you choose death, why bother speaking?

When my sisters are weak, I become their strength. When my sisters are blind, I become their eyes so they can see. When my sisters cannot hear, I become their ears to help them listen. When my sisters are perplexed, I become their intuition for certainty. When my sisters are weeping, I become element that wipes their weeping eyes. When my sisters are sorrowful, I become their laughter. When my sisters are experiencing pain, I become their healer. When society puts my sisters down, I lift them up with honor and praise. When my sisters reveal their human frailties, I become their covering. When my sister's husbands or male companions approach me for temporary pleasure, I become my sister's compass to lead their loved ones back home. I’m my sister’s keeper.

At least I have a job – but it’s not rewarding, fulfilling, or impactful. At least I have a man – even though he’s married with children. At least I know dynamic, elitist people - but don’t have authentic connections. At least I go to church – but don’t have a spiritual connection to God. At least I’m liked – but you yearn for unconditional love and encouragement. At least I have a GED – but was born with potential beyond a general education. Energy exhausted striving for the least is a fast race to the bottom. If you’re going to run, strive for the top (i.e., your best). No one spends time practicing to enter a race with the intention to lose or end at the bottom.