Where I have been..

I have a new blog. It is called Shonda Ponder Enterprises and it is found by clicking HERE

Pray for the Voters

Good morning, World.

I am late going to church today because there is not going to be any Sunday School. Broken Vessels is visiting our church today, and they will be recording their new album live! I'm looking forward to it. The last time they came, they said they loved our church because we "know how to clap". LOL

There is a news article from CNN about how Donald Trump broke the Fox debate rules by consulting with his campaign manager during the debate. It seems he broke other debates' rules the same way. If he will beak the rules now, what makes you think he isn't going to break the law once he is in office? Do we need another President that doesn't respect the law?

I have a friend in Kansas who said that if he could, he would have voted for Trump. He's progressive, and said he would register as a republican in order to do this. THIS is why we need to get out and vote. We have a fight on our hands. It seems that a lot of people in South Carolina are doing the same thing, hearing what some of my other friends say. This is voter fraud, and there is no way whatsoever to stop it.

So I am challenging all of you to do something: Tuesday is another big voting day in other states in the U.S. If you have already voted, please get on your knees and pray that day. Fast. Ask God to move to protect your candidate if it isn't Donald Trump.

Have a blessed day!

Beliefs and Politics

Good morning, World.

I wish some folks could see that it is religion, values, principles and ideology that give people the ambition to get the job you want done done.

When you elect someone, you are choosing the one who's belief system is matched to your own. 

Without a belief system what's the point?

If you take away people's core beliefs, then you take away their hope for the future, and they will throw up their hands and roll with the tide.

Being a good businessman does not translate in being a good diplomat or military general -- or commander-in-chief. How many jobs have you had that you quit? Was it because you couldn't do the job or because you disliked your boss? We can't fire Donald Trump before he pisses everyone off, and we can't quit him once he is there. Just remember that.

I feel sorry for this country because it is full of people who will believe anything anyone tells them without checking the source of the information for the truth. I'd rather be considered a troll in some circles and tell the truth than to know I mislead millions of Americans into believing a lie and electing someone who will ultimately destroy them. To me, that's treason.

Are you listening to the rags or the candidates that say it? Are you researching the courts to find the actual charges or are you hearing what others are saying the charges are? Are you believing what they will do based on what they say they will do, or are you believing what they will do based on the history of what they have already done that can be verified in the records? Are you thinking for yourself or repeating what somoene you admire thinks?

I'm praying you all have a blessed day, and remember who you are voting for.

About the The Welfare State

Why should anyone get an education to better themselves if the government is going to care for them? Add to that the cost of higher education and not only do you have the apathetic masses of people who think they have a right to be taken care of rather than doing for themselves, but you have a dumbed down society who will believe whatever the government tells them to believe....hence the reason Obama was elected twice.

Mirror of Life

God saved me at a young age because He knew it would take Him this long to teach me all He wanted me to learn.

He knew how stubborn I am, and He knew where I got it from...and that I was a piece of clay that was going to take a LOT of patience to mold.

He's still working on me...but man I love what I see when I look in the mirror today!

Isaiah 64:8
“But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.”

What I learned in 2015

As 2015 rolls to a close, I have begun to reflect on things that God has taught me this year. Each year it gets harder to pick out these things, as much of what I experience I already know -- I just seem to have to be taught again. LOL

I learned that Faith CAN move mountains. I started out the year trusting God to not only provide for me, but to make my situation better. I needed better opportunities, and the tools it required to accept and embrace them.

In February, I bought a car after not having one for several years. Not only did I buy a car on an already tight budget, but I was able to pay for it and the upkeep without having less than I already had. As the year wound down, I found myself with better phone, which allowed me to share more with my friends, and pay less to do it. The money saved was a blessing. I was also able to switch internet providers, which now allows for unlimited access, as well as less cost to me for having it. Another blessing. Finally, I was able to pay off a monthly bill that had been shadowing me for nearly two years. This blessing was the best. I went from hand-ups to being able to hand-out more in groceries. My insurance was lowered after several months. At work, I received a raise, and was able to work a lot of overtime. I received even more pay when I changed shifts. Today I even have money in my savings account. God is GREAT!

I learned that it is not my job to reap the harvest, but to plant the seed. I learned to invest and spend wisely.

I learned to prepare for the worst, yet hope for the best.

I learned that what I give, God gives back in abundance: emotionally, physically, financially and spiritually.

I learned that willingness is the first and most important step toward success and fulfillment.

I learned that contentment is the key to being trusted more.

I learned that people who judge you by what others think or say are tyrannical cowards who are not worth emulating or following. And, that if you find yourself on a path that is forged by them, it is best to remain slow and methodical in order to stay out of the ditch until a detour can be made.

I learned that sometimes your enemy is not your enemy, but a potential loyal friend, and an opportunity to be lifted up, as well as minister.

I learned that Family can sometimes be more unforgiving and cruel than other people in your life, but that they represent the first lessons of what forgiving others is all about.

And finally, I learned that it's when you don't feel the love that you need to show it. When you don't feel the want-to, God is still there, patiently waiting and watching what you are going to do, and expecting you to remain faithful in spite of your emotions. His grace is still sufficient.

My New Year's Resolutions for 2016

1. Try to write more.
2. Do everything in my power to help change the course of America.
3. Keep my house cleaner.
4. Make more money than I did last year, working less. (So I have more to give and I won't be to exhausted to do it).
5. Witness to more people.

That's enough. Right?

Commercials

I was thinking about the time I spend on the internet or watching Netflix lately, and the time I don't spend cleaning house. Then, I remembered something from my childhood.

My mother let me stay home alone at a young age. My stepdad's aunt and uncle lived next door. My stepdad's uncle worked with him so they would carpool to work each day. My stepdad's Aunt was a home-body. So, she kept an eye on us from next door.

She never came over, but if we were outside, she knew it. If I took a stroll in the woods behind the house (which was against the rules), mom would know about it when she got home. Or, if I rode my bike to my cousin's house two miles down the road, she'd know.

I didn't know she was watching. It wasn't until I was grown that my mom let me in on the secret. LOL. I guess it's a good thing (for her) that we never got hurt. I'm sure the secret would've been out sooner.

Anyway, as all children who are privileged to be home alone while mom was at work are, I had chores to do. My "chores" was to clean the house. That included washing dishes, cleaning my room, vacuuming and picking up the living room. Cleaning the bathrooms, making mom's bed, and washing, drying and putting away the laundry. And, occasionally, having supper ready when they got home -- or at least started.

While Mom and Benny worked, I enjoyed listing to all of her LPs and 45s. (For the younger generation: those were those giant CDs with grooves in them that we'd place on a turn table with a needle that made the "grooves" make sound...) -- oh, and the 8-track tape collection (forget it, there is no describing those, unless you know what a cassette tape is...). When I wasn't listening to music (and pretending to be a star) I was watching television. We only had three channels back then (3, 6, and 12 -- ABC, NBC and CBS). My favorite show came on at noon on channel 6, "Days of our Lives." written by McDonald Carey. "Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives...." LOL.

I learned, after a few times of being chastised for not getting my chores done, that time management was a must. I had to allot myself time to clean the house. But, I didn't want to miss my soaps, or Gilligan's Island, or Good Times, or Leave it to Beaver later. I learned to welcome commercials.

Commercials would last anywhere from two to five minutes, at least every ten to fifteen minutes. That's 20 minutes of cleaning time for every hour I watched TV. That's about an hour and a half of cleaning time before mom came home. As clean as our house stayed, that was plenty of time to even do extra cleaning, like taking all the dishes out of the cabinets and organizing them every so often, and cleaning the walls...I actually did that.

Mom never thanked me. She refused to thank me for doing my job. "it's what you are supposed to do. I don't get thanks for what I do for you," she would say. But, one day, I was satisfied when my step-dad noted, "Shonda is really doing a great job cleaning lately, isn't she?" and Mom was forced to agree, without actually "thanking" me. LOL

So why do I find it so hard to clean house today? I think it's because Netflix and the internet has no commercials. (Not to mention, the challenge of being appreciated isn't there). I guess I'll have to start using a time clock.

It's an idea.

I never thought I'd ever see the day when I would say that I miss commercials.

Appreciating Healthcare Employees

As I clean bathrooms, waiting rooms, and patient rooms in the ER each day, I listen to the doctors and nurses all around me as they go about their business, caring for those who came there because they obviously could not care for themselves.

The hustle and bustle, tears, frustration, occasional laughter ... the overhead speakers calling for "Dr. Whoever" to pick up the phone, or meet someone in ER, along with faces and bodies running to and fro, updating each other about their patient's conditions so no misunderstandings in their care occur...It all reminds me of a heart-felt episode of M*A*S*H.

When they call for a clean-up job -- blood on the floor; someone puked; the bathroom stinks and needs attention; or the room is overdue for a terminal clean -- it's me that they call.

I don't mind. I stop whatever I am doing and I go do it. No one is going to get a contagious infection from their room not being clean enough on my watch. These Doctors and Nurses deserve to have the best environment for what they have to put up with, for what they accomplish, for the miracles they perform on a daily basis.

God bless our Healthcare Professionals.

They do a tough job...and they never complain.

They inspire me to do better every day.