How many of y’all know that God looks for perfection? Well, if no one else understands that, I do. In addition, I can recall how many preachers have indicated that what a person is in their flesh, they are like that in the spirit. So, I got to thinking about the many times I have heard that discussed. During those times, I did not think those words were plain and simple. Yet, a year or two ago, I began to understand that a person’s flesh is like their spirit.
For instance, if a person is a hard worker in their flesh, then they will be that way for God. In the same respect, if that person is lazy in their flesh, then they will have a lazy spirit as well. Thus, one immediately begins to understand why after a person receives the Holy Ghost; there are some things that God has to still work out of that person. Yes, the bible does say God won’t dwell in an unclean temple (1st Corinthians 3:16-17 and Isaiah 6:5-7, KJV). However, too many people have mistaken that to mean that they are 100% ready for heaven and that no “evil” (bad habits, etc.) dwells within them when they receive the Holy Ghost.
The Holy Ghost is given to help us live holy. In the bible, it informs us that after we receive the Holy Ghost, we will have the power to walk right, talk right, and live right (Acts 1:8, KJV).
So, I believe that people have the wrong perception of the Holy Ghost. Then, at what point does a person receive the Holy Ghost? Well, when God decides that person is clean enough for him to give it to them. There still may be some things in that person that the Holy Ghost must take. And that person must constantly seek after God so that Holy Ghost spirit can grow. That is how the person gets closer to God.
I was thinking that some Saints have the wrong perception about how God operates. For example, I know this prophet that use to talk about how he was sick. He also talked about being scared of small spaces—especially when big, African mosquitoes invade that space. Yet, this is one of God’s prophet’s saying he is not perfect. Still, this imperfection does not mean that prophet lacks the Holy Ghost.
What it means is that God may have used those incidences to keep the prophet rooted and grounded in him. The sickness could have been a humbling experience whereas the healing from the sickness is a testimony that can help others. As for the small space circumstance, well, it only lets others know the prophet is human. Sometimes people believe that those who sit in high places are out of their league. I did not know that God had a league.
My bible says that God is no respecter of persons (Romans 2:11, KJV). So, the same Holy Ghost he gave to one Saint (who is living holy), he can give to another. Yet, the bible also says there are different gifts that the church has (1st Corinthians 12:4-14, KJV). Thus, it is only appropriate that one person may have more of the Holy Ghost than another. I see this for two reasons. One, that person may have been ordained to be that holy. The second reason is because that person may have pleased God and earned that level of holiness. In either situation, the amount of Holy Ghost that one person has over another is within the will of God. Why? Well, it is because the Holy Ghost is the power…to even be a witness of God (Acts 1:8, KJV).
Anyway, I sometimes wonder why I act certain ways. As I said before, some preachers have talked about a person’s spirit being like their human side. If you are always trying your best in your flesh, then that is how your spirit is as well.
I know that even when taking classes, I try to get “A’s”. At times, things happen where I might get a “B” grade for the class. However, the fact remains that I tried my best. All a person can do is their best.
I was passing da ball and scoring left and right, all night.
So, I decided to write this section about how each of us should give 100% in the things we do. We say that we are of God. Yet, we don’t try to give him 100%. When we were not of God, I know that most of us gave 100% to a number of things we did.
I remember this one time I had told my basketball teammates that we would score 100 points in one game my senior year in undergraduate school. I had told them I wanted that team to be forever known as the first one at that school to reach a 100 point game for women’s basketball there. So, by the time we reached the last home game of the season back in 1997, we still had not scored 100 points. My teammates and I got to talking before the game and I gave them my word that before that night was over, we would have those 100 points.
Well, in the first half, we put up about 40 to 47 points on the scoreboard. I remember mostly allowing my teammates to score as I was “padding” my assists. Yet, I also remember that during half-time, the two refs were arguing over who was the best on our team. One ref thought I was the Most Valuable Player (MVP) and the other thought the second best player on my team was the MVP. I walked by those refs that night. And I remember thinking that before the night was over they both would consider me the best. I thought that there would be no discrepancies about it.
At half-time, that is when one lady from the college showed up. It was the lady that normally came to my games. In fact, she attended the games so regularly that some people from other teams thought she was my mother. She was not. We were just good friends and luckily for me, I had someone to talk to while up north attending school. My own mother had died back in 1993 just before I went off to college. This lady (her name was Brenda from Bradford College) had always tried to cheer me up and make me feel welcome at the college—as did many others.
Anyway, on this particular night, she told me that she might as well go home. This was due to the fact that we were already blowing the other team out. (I think the score was 40 or more to 10 at that point). I told her to stick around because I was going to put on a show in the second half. I told her that we were trying to reach a 100-point game. She started laughing and went to sit down.
I remember the 2nd half starting with me doing some scoring. I think at half-time that I only had about 15 or 17 points. Well, in the second half the other team got wind that we were trying to score 100 points on them. They went to knocking me down, stalling the game by keeping the ball for long periods of time, and putting some of our worst free throw shooters on the free throw line just to slow the game down. Yet, every time I got fouled the refs let it go. So I asked them why I was not receiving any free throw attempts when I was being fouled so much. They told me that I did not need any help and they felt sorry for the other team. I shook my head. It was not my fault that I was executing what I had told my teammates before the game so well.
I knew what was going on and told them (both the refs and the other players) they could not stop me. As the game progressed and was winding down, I remember it being about 2:45 left in the game. We still needed 17 points to win and it was the other team’s ball. My teammates told me to give up because there was not enough time to get to 100. I told them that the game was not over yet. My teammates told me to take myself out the game before I got hurt from being knocked down so much. I told them I could handle it and the other team would regret what they had done by the time I got through with them. My teammates did not believe we could score 100 point. My teammates did not believe in me.
Yet, I believed in me. So, after that timeout was over, I pressed the inbounds passed and took the ball away from one of the other team’s players. Then I hit a lay-up. After that, the other team stalled the ball for a while. When we finally got the ball back, I went down and hit a 3-pointer. I begin pressing again and stepping behind the line hitting 3-pointers every time I got the ball from that point on out.
I brought us to 97 points, with only a few seconds left in the game. It was the other team’s ball. I made them turn it over. Then my teammate took the ball out on the side, threw it to me and I let it fly from behind the 3-point line. (In fact, I was a good distance behind the 3-point line when I let the ball go. Everyone could see that—including the scorekeeper). As the buzzard sounded, the ball went into the net with a swish.
One of the guys from Bradford College’s men’s basketball team was keeping the score clock. He put up 99 points on the score board. All of us were saying that I was well behind the 3-point line. Then the refs raised their arms and said it most definitely was a 3-pointer. The guy changed the score board to read 100 points and everyone erupted. The refs left the floor talking about how they had never seen nothing like that and shaking their heads. My teammates were rubbing my head. Everyone was jumping around in excitement. They had gone wild!
I gave them the show. I gave them the victory. The refs agreed that I was the MVP. When it was all said and done, the newspapers said I scored 47 points, of which 15 of the points came off 3-pointers in the last 45 seconds of the game.
I almost recorded a quadrupled double that night: 47 points, 12 to 14 rebounds, 10 assists, and 9 steals. Numbers that even the professional ball players would feel good about. Those numbers earned me national recognition…and I have the stats to prove it. (That is just a side note to all those who find this too good to be true).
Later on, the athletic director told me that I must have scored 51 points in that game because 4 points were unaccounted for. He told me that I must have been hitting them so fast that they could not keep up with it in the books. At any rate, I did what I said.
This is an example of how 99 and 1/2 just won’t do. As I sought perfection on that night back in the Spring semester of 1997, God seeks perfection from us every night. Always remember that God told us to be perfect like he is perfect (Matthew 5:48, KJV). By doing that, within the will of God, we cannot go wrong.
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an original exert written by the author:
Christine E. Jones
