60 Seconds of Hope with Horace McMillon

Send us Fan Mail Purpose: Kwanzaa Day 5 When our purpose is centered in the hope for a better tomorrow… When our purpose is centered in the faith that we are an important part of something bigger than ourselves… When our purpose is free of anger, bitterness, and hate… When our purpose is free of envy, and exploitative  greed and lust… When our purpose is centered in humility, and free of arrogance...

Send us Fan Mail Cooperative Economics: Kwanzaa Day 4 “All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.” - Acts 2:44-45” Many of the early Christian communities practiced cooperative economics. Individuals with financial resources understood that they were to use their gifts to help others. Just as people with gifting...

Send us Fan Mail Collective Work And Responsibility: Kwanzaa Day 3   “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” - 1 Peter 4:10 Many of us live in highly individualistic societies where we focus almost exclusively on individual on personal wellbeing. Others live in societies that place an emphasis on the wellbeing of our family, clan, tribe or group as opposed...

Send us Fan Mail Self-Determination: Kwanzaa Day 2 “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”- Joshua 24:15 We may not be responsible for the things that happened to us. We may not be responsible for the circumstances in which we find ourselves. But we are always responsible for how we respond.  Do we respond out of our fear, anger, and ha...

Send us Fan Mail 60 Seconds of Hope: Unity (Kwanzaa Day 1) “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.” - Romans 14:19 Unity doesn’t require uniformity. Unity doesn’t require conformity. Unity doesn’t even require agreement except that we to agree to live together in the peace that gives everyone the opportunity to thrive.  Unity requires each of us to...

Send us Fan Mail The Darkness Shall Not Overtake Us  “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it.” - John 1:5 Evil may appear to be ascending.  The darkness shall not overtake us.  The callous may sit on the throne. The darkness shall not overtake us. We have suffered set backs and losses. The darkness shall not overtake us.  We may grow weary from the fight. The darkne...

Send us Fan Mail While We Wait For Christmas  “Live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” - from Titus 2:12-13 Our swords have not been yet beaten into plowshares. Our spears are not yet pruning hooks. The lion does not lay with the lamb. And we are still studying war. Th...

Send us Fan Mail Holding Treasure In Our Hearts  “Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.” - Luke 2:19 Mary experienced so many spectacular and extraordinary moments… The visit of the angel, her fearless decision to answer her calling, pregnancy, a new husband, and the miracle of birth.  Many of us have had moments of transcendence, where we experience the luminous. Others o...

Send us Fan Mail If It’s Not Good News For Everyone… “But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people:” - Luke 2:10 We fear that there isn’t enough to go around. We suppose that life is like a pie, where when someone gets a slice that leaves a little less for anyone else to have. And we’re not trying to do without.  We operat...

Send us Fan Mail Waiting For Delivery  “While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.”- Luke 2:6 We are like expecting mothers. Our lives are pregnant with possibility and potential. Yet there are no short cuts to delivery. There is no way to hasten the time. Instead we do the best we can to care for ourselves in order to care for the life within us while enduring the pain and...

Send us Fan Mail Let Us Embrace Our True Identities  Our true identities are those of gods and goddesses, children of the most high God. Our lives are to serve dwelling places of the most high. (Psalm 82 & 1 Corinthians 3:16) In our verse for today, Jesus “ was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead…” -from Romans 1:4  We too are...

Send us Fan Mail Saved From Our Sins For Love “She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."-Matthew 1:21 Saved from our fear and anger… Saved from our injustice and oppression… Saved from our hopelessness and despair… Saved from our apathy and indifference… Saved from our greed and lust… Saved from our hubris and pride… Saved from our fault...

Send us Fan Mail Wake Up And Get To Work  “When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him;” - from Matthew 1:24 We may be able to distinguish body, mind, and spirit, but in this life, there is no separating them. They are interconnected and interdependent. Proper rest is essential to our physical and spiritual wellbeing.  It’s essential for us that we dream. “People wi...

Send us Fan Mail When We Feel Like God Is Angry  “You have fed them with the bread of tears and given them tears to drink in full measure.”- Psalm 80:5 When we feel like God is angry… When we feel like we must be going through some kind of punishment or divine retribution… When we feel forsaken, abandoned or alone…  Do as the ancient psalmist did. Trust in the power of God’s love to restore and de...

Send us Fan Mail When Our Purpose Is Bigger Than Our “Face” “When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife.” - Matthew 1:24 The concept of “face” has to do with one’s reputation, social dignity, and respect in the eyes of others. One’s social standing matters in just about every society, and particularly matters where honor and shame carry gre...

Send us Fan Mail Do Not Blame And Shame “Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to divorce her quietly.” - Matthew 1:19 Joseph’s honor as a man in his society had been deeply insulted. The woman to whom he had been engaged and had never touched, was pregnant.  Yet instead of seeking revenge and retribution against her and her family, he so...

Send us Fan Mail What Are We Looking For? “Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to look at?”- Matthew 11:7 Many people went out into the wilderness to see John the Baptist. But they didn’t all go for the same reasons.  Some went out to see the spectacle and be part of the crowd. They wanted to be able to say that they were there.  Others want...

Send us Fan Mail Are We Part Of The Solution? “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?"- from Matthew 11:3 At this very moment, John the Baptist was very hard pressed. He was in prison and would soon lose his life. John knew that God has a better way for us to live in this world together. He dedicated his life to seeing it come into being. He believed this reality was c...

Send us Fan Mail We All Have Our Issues  “Brothers and sisters, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged…” - from James 5:9 It’s long past time that we need to stop talking about people behind their backs. It’s time to stop complaining about them. It’s time to stop praising ourselves in comparison to them.  It’s time to acknowledge that we all have our own issues. Phased m...

Send us Fan Mail What Should Be Seen And Heard In Us? “Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those with a skin disease are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.”- Matthew 11:4-5 Actions say more than words. What we practice is  more powerful than what we preach. What is i...

Send us Fan Mail Patience Isn’t Passive “The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.” - from James 5:7 Very few worthwhile things happen effortlessly or instantly. They take time, planning, effort, and patience to see them through.  Patience isn’t passive. Patience is faith in action.  Patience allows the farmer to do...

Send us Fan Mail Do Not Be Afraid  “Say to those who are of a fearful heart, "Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God.” - from Isaiah 35:4 Anytime a person tells us to not be afraid, we usually have very good reason to be afraid. And there are so many things to fear.  Some of us fear for ourselves and our families, that we will not have enough money to keep a roof over our heads, food on the...

Send us Fan Mail Our Lives Shall Blossom  “The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus” - Isaiah 35:1 Oh things are hard, but we are not without hope. The struggle has gone on for a long time, but it won’t go on forever.  The prophetic words of hope and encouragement, spoken by Isaiah to the beleaguered community in exile, were not empty. Th...

Send us Fan Mail None Of Us Are Chaff “His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” - Matthew 3:12 When speaking of God’s unfailing love, I’m often asked about God’s wrath. Sometimes a verse such as the one we just read will be cited as a purported example that God’s love has...

Send us Fan Mail The Baptism Of Fire And Spirit  “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” - from Matthew 3:11 The baptism of fire and spirit is not a judgement or punishment, but instead refines us into our best selves. The baptism of fire and spirit warms our hearts and sustains our lives during our cold winters of hopelessness and despair.  The baptism of fire and spirit burns away d...