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THE MANHOOD LINE: LIVE! ™ BY MIKE RAMEY

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BROTHERS: WATCH YOUR PANTS!

With all of the modern technology available, and more coming out into the marketplace every week, one would THINK that the Millennials and the Gen Disney crowds were smart regarding common sense.  Several recent events have proven THIS assumption–wrong!

*According to published reports for the year 2017, the Federal Trade Commission reported that more than 40% of Millennials were taken advantage of, or fell victim to financial scams.  Thus, the so-called ‘masters’ of the electronic universe can’t tell the difference between a real or phony financial opportunity.
But, it gets worse. In the arena of common sense for the ‘younger set’, it seems that more and more young men–and young women–can’t seem to keep their hands, lips, or other body parts to themselves.  In short, the twin terrors of fornication and adultery are making a dramatic comeback in the social vocabulary of America–along WITH sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).  From the classroom to the boardroom we continue to read about the shattering of marriage vows to the ‘convenience’ of ‘loving the one you’re with’.
The late Pastor E. V. Hill warned a gathering of Ministers more than 20 years ago that they needed to: “Keep control of their pants”, if they effectively wanted to put forth a good witness of Jesus Christ, and properly Pastor HIS church.  I still play his tape of this sermon, from time to time.
Brothers, let’s make it plain.  If you can’t control yourself sexually, you are heading for a major league crackup in both the short, and long term.  Adultery brought down King David.  Willingly chasing whores and ‘shady ladies’ brought down Samson for a haircut.  Joseph ran into sexual temptation.  Potiphar’s wife ‘maneuvered’ herself for Joseph (and she set the bait table day after day); he RAN from her.  Even though he was innocent, he wound up doing some time in prison…but, he was later released by God’s intervention, because Joseph chose NOT to dishonor God–nor his employer–even though Potiphar KNEW his wife’s reputation for ‘bedding the help’.
Let’s wrap up this section with a Jewish proverb, brothers:  “Save your sweat for your job, and your lips for your WIFE!”  Men in my father’s day had a better saying: “Never where you live, and never where you work!”  I amended that saying with another line:  “…and, NEVER where you worship!”

BASIC ECONOMICS:
With the various bits of information flooding the electronic universe, it is getting more and more interesting to watch young men flounder with their finances and their banks accounts.  Here are a few tips from the ol’ “P-School Ranger” to help some brothers out:
1.  IF you decide to have someone deliver your dinner or groceries, get ready to pay surcharges of 10% above costs PLUS a tip to the deliverer.  Yes, it sounds good to have an Uber or Lyft driver to deliver McDonald’s to your house.  However, by the time you add on all the costs, the price of your burger will be roughly three times of it’s price.  Cheaper to go to the drive-thru yourself…or cook your OWN burger on a grill!
2.  Saving is delayed spending, and spending is delayed saving.  Know how to prepare a budget and STICK to it.  You can cut expenses and keep more in your pocket by KNOWING the difference between a ‘want’ or a ‘need’.  Example: you may ‘want’ to update your iphone…but you ‘need’ to pay your rent.  Answer is simple: better to keep your out-of-date iphone AND pay your rent.
3.  Last one: Education expenses.  I got through college debt-free.  It’s called work/study…meaning that you work during school breaks, or, work at part time jobs on/off campus and save your money.  Better yet, IF you have a GPA (Grade Point Average) of 3.0 or above in Middle and High School, you can find a boatload of scholarship money for you to GO to college…IF you plan ahead, and get your grades UP from 8th grade on!  Dummies don’t get scholarships.  Smart students DO.  You’ll be sitting pretty where some of your friends will be swimming in debt.  Oh, a little word of advice.  MOST students that have ‘piled up the debt’ used their college loans for things and creature comforts instead of books, bed, fees, and board!

THIS MONTH’S “WOMAN TO AVOID”:  
Brothers, keep in mind that the KJV Bible has other such sightings of the “Woman To Avoid” other than the Book of Proverbs.  I use this section of Scripture for this section because it is compact in its assessment of the matter.  You can learn more about women in this ONE area of the Bible, than in many of the ‘self-help’ dating rags and books on the market.
Our target for the month: the Evil woman.  She is covered in Proverbs 6:24-25.  Her cousins are Delilah, Jezebel and Potiphar’s wife.  Make no mistake.  This sister is into power, and is NOT above witchcraft, physical force, or outright lying to ‘get her man’.  Matter of fact, IF you happen to spurn her (if you happen to watch ‘Judge Judy’), expect to have your car ‘keyed’, and your reputation and apartment and your job threatened.  She may look cute…but, take it from this column, brothers…she earns her drinking money by posing for poison bottles (skull and crossbones).  Don’t say you ain’t ‘Woke’ after you’ve met her.  You will be blessed IF you are!

THE GAY AGENDA AND SPORTS:
Interestingly enough, ESPN Magazine is the latest tab to embrace the LGBTQI (I added the ‘I’ for “idiocy”) mantra, with its “Body” issue.  I seem to recall a former WNBA player who spoke out against the lunacy in her sport, in a published report, by saying that more than 80% of the women in the WNBA were lesbians, and that she was ‘propositioned’ more than a few times.  She was a Christian woman, and did NOT yield!
Sodomites (the biblical name for homosexuals) are an abomination to God, and are not well received by many athletes.  I say, their non-acceptance is a welcome sign that people are still accepting a standard for right and wrong in this country…for now.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH:
“Wanna be a hero?  Do your job!”   –Benson Dubois (Benson TV Series)

Mike Ramey is a Minister, Book Reviewer, P-School Ranger and Syndicated Columnist who lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.  “The Manhood Line: Live” is one of a variety of columns that Ramey has in cyberspace.  To drop him a line…or a whine…the address is still the same:  manhoodline@yahoo.com.  ©2018  Barnstorm Communications.

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