I strongly feel that For Colored Girls helps deepen our sense of reality for what has happened in the past, and what is happening now to individuals throughout the world.  It has opened our eyes, and our minds to understand the root of a person.  We often wonder why someone’s head is always hung low, or why someone chooses substance abuse over their children.  The answer lies at the core of the problem which is not always easy to interpret.  It still remains a mystery as to why someone chooses eternal death over eternal life.  I believe the key is to ask for HELP, and realize that it’s always available to those who want it.

As I saw in the film, For Colored Girls teaches us a lesson of Love and the meaning of Luke 15:9 “And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost.”   For Colored Girls embraces characters from all walks of life.  

The clear message that came from the film, is that throughout life God knows what we must go through in order to get us to the place where we are destined to be.  God is the potter, and we his people are the clay.  For every trial that we experience in life, a mold of who we are becoming is formed.

In For Colored Girls, we witness each woman being sculptured at the hand of God.  At the end of the film, a great transformation has taken place.  Eight lights began to shine bright that were once hidden by darkness.  For Colored Girls, is not a movie just for women of color, but it’s a story relatable to men and women of all shades.

About contributing writer Whitney Stein:  A young woman of great character, Whitney P. Stein continues to prove she is a woman of many talents. Whitney graduated from the University of Houston-Downtown with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business. From Real Estate, to Construction, to Fashion, Whitney has a diverse level of knowledge in many industries.  She has continued to express her passion for writing as a freelance writer for various publications.  She is also the CEO of Paige 78, a clothing company geared towards helping raise money for under privileged children across the globe.  Whitney is continuing to flourish, and leap to higher heights with her artistic style and business savvy.  Contact Whitney at whitneypstein@yahoo.com

Mary Mary is back with a new single, a new book, and a new CD project on the way. The new single titled ‘Walking’ debuted last week and is already in heavy rotation on the radio.

In the accompanying video Mary Mary talks briefly about their new book “Be U.” They voice their excitement for their new CD, and talk about the preparation that went into the project. Additionally, Mary Mary will be answering fan questions on a LIVE broadcast on U Stream Tuesday, November 9, 2010 at 8est/5pct.  Go to http://www.livestream.com/marymarylive

Until Tuesday watch the video and then listen to the single below. What do you think, is the track hot or not?

The Super Bowl Gospel Celebration, which is an NFL sanctioned event, will be sponsored by Verizon Wireless for the next two years. Verizon also sponsors How Sweet The Sound, and the winner of the Best Church Choir in America title will perform live at the 2011 Super Bowl Gospel celebration.

“We are absolutely delighted to have a truly impressive brand like Verizon Wireless as part of our team. Verizon Wireless is a highly respected brand and we are proud to have them on board to help make this the biggest and best Super Bowl Gospel Celebration ever,” said Melanie Few-Harrison, founder and executive producer of Super Bowl Gospel Celebration and president of Results Marketing & Media Inc.

Launched in 1999, the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration is the NFL’s only sanctioned Gospel music event, and attracts top gospel/contemporary Christian and mainstream artists, as well as marquee NFL players, and features the NFL PLAYERS Choir, which is made up of active and retired players. The 2011 concert will take place on Friday, February 4, 2011 at 7:30 p.m. at Music Hall in Fair Park in Dallas, TX.

Gospel music artists who have performed at the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration in the past include music icons Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, BeBe and CeCe Winans, Kirk Franklin, Yolanda Adams, Fred Hammond, Jaci Velasquez, Donnie McClurkin, Mary Mary, Marvin Sapp, The Clark Sisters and many more. NFL greats Donovan McNabb, Ray Lewis, Cris Carter, Kurt Warner, John Elway, Jerry Rice, Tony Dungy, Lovie Smith and others have also participated in the event.

Follow the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration for announcements and updates at www.twitter.com/SuperBowlGospel.  Tickets are $35, $55, $75 and $95, and now available at Ticketmaster locations in North Texas and at www.ticketmaster.com.

I know a lot of actors. Great actors don’t only study the script they exhaust all the information that they can find on the character. If they know that the character is from Madison, WI, they may drive there and take in the city and people. If they know the character loves to dine at a certain restaurant, they may go there and take in the ambiance and clientele. They will do all that is, humanly and financially, possible so they can become better acquainted with their character.

The other thing good actors should have is commitment. It is not enough to connect with a character; the actor must commit to the agenda of that character. If the actor connects, researches, exhausts but doesn’t commit to the agenda of that character all of their preparation is in vain. Commitment to a character is what garners Tony and Academy awards. When an actor has totally lost himself in the character, he will begin to feel as the character feels. This commitment to the connection allows the onlookers to become engaged.

So, what does that have to do with our Christian walk? If we have all been contracted to portray and be imitators of Christ ( Eph 5:1) than we must learn to connect with His character.

In being imitators of Christ, we must study and exhaust all the information that we can about Him so that we can connect with His character. It is this connection with Christ that will allow our lives and witness to be effective and powerful. We must also learn to commit. There are some people who have made a connection with Christ. They have studied and know His word. The issue is they have not fully committed to the agenda of Christ. So, when people look at them they perceive them as phony because of the lack of commitment. If you want to be effective in ministry you must learn to fully give yourself over to the agenda of Christ. Once you do, you will feel how He feels and react how He reacts.

These two things may cause someone to be engaged by the production of your life which in turn could lead them to wanting to know Christ. Connect with Him! Commit to Him! Stay on the path!

About the Author:Path contributing writer Calvin Walker has been writing editorial content for Path MEGAzine since 2007.  Calvin’s ability to break down the word of God with thought provoking analogies and real life analysis makes an impact on Christians seeking a closer walk with God.  An accomplished author, Walker released his debut book titled “The Gallery” early 2010.  Click here to read excerpts and purchase Walkers’ inspirational novel.  Email calvinwalkerauthor@yahoo.com

‘For Colored Girls’ opens this weekend at the box office, will you be there? Tyler Perry’s most talked about film is hitting theaters near you. In his most talked about film since the production of Dairy of a Mad Black Woman, Perry introduces his interpretation of the 1974 award winning Broadway play, For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf.

Los Angeles theater producer Gary Levingston calls “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf” one of the most transcendent works of the American stage.

The play made its stage debut, offering a winning combination of poetry, dance, and music. The bright light that it shed on black female issues and experience were front and center. The play won an Obie and Tony Award after two years of gracing the stage on Broadway. Perry exposes his interpretation of the play to the big screen through a narrative, exploring the overall meaning and conception of what it is to be a woman of color or a woman of any color, in the world in which we reside.

Lionsgate and TPS present a 34th Street Films / Lionsgate production. The film overflows with some of the most well known African American actresses and actors of our time. It features well known heavy hitters like Whoopi Goldberg, Kerry Washington, Loretta Devine, Anika Noni Rose, Thandie Newton, Kimberly Elise and Phylicia Rashad, Omari Hardwick, Michael Ealy, Hill Harper Janet Jackson and Macy Gray complete the all star cast.

FOR COLORED GIRLS weaves together the stories of nine different women – Joanna, Tangie, Crystal, Gilda, Kelly, Juanita, Yasmine, Nyla and Alice – as they move into and out of one another’s existences; some are well known to one another, others are as yet strangers. Crises, heartbreaks and crimes will ultimately bring these nine women fully into the same orbit where they will find commonality and understanding. Each will speak her truth as never before. And each will know that she is complete as a human being, glorious and divine in all her colors.

Essence magazine, which is targeted at black women, is showcasing “For Colored Girls” on two different covers of its December issue — one featuring Perry and the movie’s actors, and one featuring the actresses. Regina R. Robertson, West Coast editor of Essence, said word of mouth and the early trailers have ratcheted up interest: “People really seem to be excited now. They can’t wait.”

Fans of Perry can begin to countdown! I am highly aware of the great anticipation and anxiety that many of his fans have as they await the opening weekend of the most talked about film in Hollywood. Save the date, Friday, November 5, 2010. Check your local theaters for times. Will you be in attendance?

About PATH Blogger Shuntia Wheeler: Shuntia Wheeler is a graduate student at Prairie View A&M University. She graduated with honors with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Communication from Prairie View A&M University in December 2009. Ms. Wheeler has demonstrated leadership in various organizations; She is the former Financial Secretary of the National Association of Black Journalists PV Chapter, a member of Lambda Pi Eta, the national honors society for communication, she has served as the Academic Editor of The Pantherland Yearbook, and she is a contributing journalist for The Panther.  Check out her blog at www.shuntia-wheeler.blogspot.com, as she presents world news from a fresh perspective through fun, fierce, and factual stories impacting the world we live in.  Email her at shuntia@pathmagazine.com

Houston, TX — Music World Gospel/Interface recording artist Micah Stampley will release his new EP project on November 16. Release Me is Micah’s fourth CD and a joint project of his independent label, Interface, and Mathew Knowles’ Music World Gospel.

In early October, Music World Gospel will impact both gospel and INSPO/Light AC radio with “Heaven On Earth” and “I Believe” respectively.

CLICK HERE to Download Micah’s single “I Believe” FREE!

“Heaven On Earth” is a remake by David and Nicole Binion, written by David L. Binion, John Brockman and Joshua Dufrene and produced by Micah and co-produced by Cameron Sankey. The song expounds on the notion that the believer is supposed to prosper, and not merely in terms of making money. “The Kingdom of God is His people who are living and walking in His ways, in integrity and with righteous character,” Micah says. “… The spirit of the Lord is upon me. His anointing is empowering. The Kingdom of the Lord is within me and He’s calling me to the heavenlies. Yeah!…To be walking in His favor and grace is just like heaven on Earth. Oh!” So go the lyrics to the moderately paced song, buttressed by acoustic and electric guitars, driving percussions and an emphatic choral back-up.

“I Believe” is a re-release from his sophomore CD, A Fresh Wind, written by Micah’s wife and songwriting partner, Heidi Stampley. “I Believe” is produced by Micah and co-produced by GRAMMY® award-winner Aaron Lindsey. “I Believe” is a contemporary, congregational, praise and worship song with a simple message of power and faith. Heidi wrote the song after attending a music award show. She was up late that night reading a book about a minister and faith in the 19th century. Around 5:00 that morning, she heard the song in her head and ran to the bathroom to write it down. When Micah heard the song later that morning, he immediately said that he wanted to record it. The song, “I Believe” is a personal declaration and confession of faith with which people of every culture and many nations can connect.

The other new song on the EP, “There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood,” is re-interpreted in Micah’s multi-octave signature style. He blends the traditional chords of that timeless hymn with a touch of today’s balladeering and graceful bellowing. “Wash all my sins away, ooo-o-oooo-o-oo,” he sings, knowing that God forgives.

Release Me also includes previous hit releases: “Lend Your Song to Me,” which begins in a mere worshipful whisper and rises higher, higher, higher toward a gift-giving God; “Corinthian Song,” an arrangement of V. Michael McKay’s that evokes the styling of the much lauded Richard Smallwood; “Marvelous,” with its piercing electric guitar, sounding brass and danceable drums; and a jazzy version of the holiday classic, “Angels We Heard On High, arranged by Micah and produced by Micah and Cameron Sankey.

“Spiritually, I feel liberated and I chose the title, ‘Release Me,’ because I’ve been coming through the struggles of being an independent artist in an industry that doesn’t always support independent artists. It’s like a load has been lifted off my shoulders,” says Micah.

“Micah’s gift of inspiration brings a powerful voice to the masses,” says Mathew Knowles C.E.O. and President of Music World Entertainment. “As a singer, songwriter and producer, his impact within the faith community is evident, with supporters filling stadiums around the world. Micah is creating a legacy as a true renaissance force in gospel music.”

Just prior to entering a new partnership with Mathew Knowles’ Music World Gospel and Music World Entertainment earlier this year, Micah had been traveling the globe ministering and leading worship for audiences near and far in places such as Amsterdam, Australia, Indonesia, Japan, London, and various African nations.

Micah came to international prominence in 2005 when he became the flagship artist for mega-pastor Bishop T.D. Jakes’ Dexterity Sounds/EMI Gospel label. His inaugural CD, The Songbook of Micah, debuted at the No. 3 slot on Billboard’s Top Gospel Album chart. That year, Billboard magazine placed him on its Top 10 Gospel Music Artists of 2005 list. AOL Black Voices also included him on its roster of the Top 11 Gospel Geniuses of 2005. The Songbook of Micah earned him nominations in the Stellar New Artist and Male Vocalist of the Year categories.

Micah’s critically lauded second album, A Fresh Wind, was produced by GRAMMY® award-winning Aaron Lindsey (Israel & New Breed, Marvin Sapp) on Interface. It spent 31 weeks on Billboard’s Top Gospel Album chart, peaking at No. 6 and earning Micah Stellar nominations for Contemporary Male Vocalist and Praise & Worship CD of the Year.

Micah’s third album, Ransomed was recorded live before a large, ecstatic, testifying audience where civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. once was the pastor. It received a Stellar nomination for Praise & Worship CD of the Year. That 16-track tour de force was produced by Kevin Bond (Donnie McClurkin, Yolanda Adams), winner of 10 GRAMMY® Awards and 30 Stellar Awards.

“When I’m singing, I feel like I’m giving God permission to invade my life,” he states. “Release Me is so Christ-driven. It is delivering a song of hope in these times when people are losing jobs, getting their homes foreclosed on. I don’t believe God wants us to linger in that heartbreak but to push through it, to worship and praise through the hard times as we look for answers and solutions. God gives instruction. Only the Word of God can get us through.”

Also Read: Joe Pace, Tye Tribbett, & Wess Morgan Release Projects

Path MEGAzine has learned that Bishop Eddie Long has filed a response to the sexual coercion lawsuits against him on Monday. Bishop Long is flat out denying the allegations made against him.

Attorney William Hill filed a response to the lawsuits against Eddie Long.

When allegations of sexual misconduct first surfaced, Bishop Eddie Long told the congregation he would fight, but could not speak further on his innocence at the time. Now, Bishop Long is coming out fighting. In court filings, Bishop Long categorically says he never had a sexual relationship with any of the plaintiffs.

“Enough is enough. He’s done too much damage. It’s time it stops,” said Jamal Parris in an exclusive interview with Atlanta’s FOX 5 back in September.

Parris and three other young men have filed sexual misconduct lawsuits against the popular Bishop and his 10,000 seat New Birth Missionary Baptist church.

The lawsuits allege the Bishop sent them provocative pictures, money and lavish gifts to the then teenagers, while having sex with the young men.

Spencer LeGrande, 22, Jamal Parris, 23, Anthony Flagg, 21, and Maurice Robinson, 20, all filed suits alleging Long coerced them into sexual relationships when they were teenage members of his church.

Now, Bishop Long has filed an answer to all four lawsuits, claiming, in bold letters on the first page “the claims of sexual misconduct are not true.”

CLICK HERE to Read Long’s Response to LaGrande.

In all four of the law suits, Bishop Long admitted he was a mentor to a number of young men, trying to build stability in their lives. He admitted to traveling with the young men and at times sharing a room.

In an exclusive interview, Parris said the Bishop gave gifts, money, and support in exchange for sex and always wanted the young men to consider him their “daddy.”

“You finally have a father that you’ve always wanted for and always dreamed of. He would just walk away from you if you don’t give him what he wants. So you end up turning into something you never thought you would be, which is now a slave to a man that you love,” said Parris.

In the lawsuit, Long admitted young men in the church called him “daddy” or sometimes “granddaddy” and he specifically denied in every lawsuit that he ever had sex with any of the four young men.

To make matters worse, a fifth lawsuit was filed by a woman who’s suing New Birth Ministries for sexual harassment. Tamara Colson, claims that a male supervisor of the church showed her pictures of male genitals without her consent, and the church did nothing when she complained. When she asked for a transfer she said she was demoted to a secretary, and eventually fired.

The lawsuit filed by Colson also claimed that New Birth church was aware of previous sexual harassments incidences between the male supervisors and other female employees but decided not to take action.

Also Read: Bishop Eddie Long Accuser Jamal Parris Interviews For First Time – Says to Long, “You are not a man, you are a monster.” 

Bishop T.D. Jakes Speaks on Bishop Eddie Long Case

Bishop Eddie Long Scandal Photos Released by Attorney

A singer, songwriter, motivational speaker, model, host, real estate broker, and CEO, Christin Gordon, believes in the saying: “The me that I see, is the me I will be”. Christin is a 2004 graduate of Texas A&M University, Mays School of Business and is the CEO and broker of C. Gordon Realty, LLC and CM Gordon Incorporated. 

It’s her goal to use not only her voice to motivate and sing, but to also be an example of morality by maintaining a Christian lifestyle by living by the principles that Jesus taught.

Christin is a faithful member of Lively Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Simonton, TX, under the leadership of Pastor Ernest R. Simmons,  a Sunday school teacher, and president of the choir, and finds inspiration in the biblical verse, Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Through God will people be able to identify with self, says Christin, and it’s a belief she holds to strongly and loves to share with others.  Contact Christin Gordon by going to her website: www.christingordon.com.

The Stellar Awards will open voting to the general public in selected categories beginning October 27, 2010. Fans will have the opportunity to cast their votes in the categories of Fan Favorite Artist of the Year, Fan Favorite Song of the Year, Gospel Announcer of the Year, and Internet Radio Station of the Year. All voting takes place at the Stellar Awards website. Voting concludes on November 22, 2010 with the winners to be announced at the 2011 Stellar Awards on January 15, 2011 in Nashville, TN.  CLICK HERE to Vote.

CLICK HERE to See Full List of Stellar Award Nominees

Join the Yolanda Adam’s Morning Show this Thursday for a conversation with President Barack Obama at 7:20am and 9:20am Eastern Standard time.  Don’t miss what Barack Obama has to say, as he talks to a faith-based audience.  Only on the Yolanda Adams Morning Show.

Also Read: Albertina Walkers Passing Prompts Barack Obama to Release Statement