In 1965, Jimmie Lee Jackson, a resident of Marion, Alabama, was shot at close range by an Alabama State Trooper for attempting to protect his 82-year-old grandfather from the brutal swings of police bully clubs during a night march to the local courthouse. After 26-year-old Jackson was shot, he stumbled out of the diner and continued to be beaten by other State Troopers. During Jackson’s funeral, Martin Luther King Jr. asked and answered a critical question. “Who Murdered Jim

The day I met her, May 21, 2016, I ended up singing Luther Vandross - So Amazing to her. I had no idea that song’s message would ultimately embody the time we would spend together.. It was the first Sunday prayer service in the mountains and as I told my story, she cried. She cried uncontrollably and I knew we shared a horrible reality. Her pain bellowed through her tears and she didn't need to say a word. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. She had been broken

2008 was a difficult year for me. That year, I was indefinitely suspended from the University of Alabama, my grandmother died, and two weeks later my father died unexpectedly. It was a very difficult year. Near the end of that year, the voice of the Lord spoke to me and instructed me to pray for the nations and people in the places the Lord would send me. I found these instructions strange since I had barely ventured outside the state of Alabama. Nevertheless, I began to pray

Recently, I traveled to Palestine/Israel and visited many sites, including the southern Negev Desert. There, I visited the Lakiya Negev Weaving Project. This project’s aim is to empower Palestinian women by utilizing their traditional weaving skills. Even more impressive than the amazing garments and rugs that are created by these women, is the story of the buildings where some of the women live and carry out their work. The buildings were built over a long period of time. Ea