HAVE A LITTLE FAITH

He replied, “ Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Movie from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you”-Matthew 17:20 (NIV)

He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planed in the sea’, and it will obey you”- Luke 17:6 (NIV)

Recently, I had the opportunity to learn about a leader in the entertainment industry that is truly an inspiration to me. Now, I was going to write about this particular leader beforehand but I am glad that I decided to wait. Now many of you are probably wondering whom this leader is. Any guesses? Well you don’t have to guess or wait for long; the leader that I am talking about is Mr. Tyler Perry.  Recently I took a class that required me to do a presentation on a leader that was influential to me and I thought it was awesome. I will tell you that you really do appreciate a person even more after you know what they have went through. Although I haven’t had to chance to talk to or meet Tyler Perry, everything about him is amazing to me. His story is amazing and I would like to share some of it with you.

Tyler Perry had a rough childhood that ultimately led to his success. To some that may sound weird but this is why the title of this post is called “Have a little faith”. You see to do the impossible or to get to where you want to be in life or better yet where GOD wants you to be, you have to have a little faith. The scriptures referenced above (some gifts from up above J) tell us a little about faith and how powerful it is. You see all we need is faith the size of a mustard seed. Now let me elaborate on the mustard seed. You might be saying, how can we need something of that small size for something so big? Did you know that although a mustard seed is real tiny, once it is water and grows, it turns into one of the BIGGEST trees! Keep this mind and I venture back into Tyler Perry and his story.

Tyler Perry grew in up not only in poverty but in a household of abuse. When he was he was 16 He changed his name to Tyler Perry, It was actually Emmitt Perry Jr. This was done in order to distance himself from his father who caused most of the problems in his household. In times of turmoil and almost wanting to commit suicide, Tyler Perry not only placed his faith in God but he found hope one day when He turned on the television and saw Oprah Winfrey’s Show. Many of you may know that Oprah has been very supportive in Tyler Perry’s life but God worked through her to give Tyler Perry hope.  He was watching a segment on her show about forgiveness and how therapeutic writing could be, it was then that Tyler started to forgive people that had hurt him and it was also then that He began his writing career.

Tyler was only in his early 20’s when he began his writing career. Tyler had saved up 12,000 dollars and he used that to write and direct his first play entitled “I know I’ve been changed”. He also used some of the money to rent out a studio, that was in 1992.  That also was the point where Tyler Perry became homeless. Tyler’s play did not do as well as he expected, but he was determined! What I love about Mr. Perry is that He never gave up! He always kept his faith in God and He knew that all things were possible with God! No matter what Tyler’s situation or circumstance was; he stayed persistent. Tyler worked hard and revamped his play. In 1998 he put the play out to the world to see for the 2^nd time and it was amazing! I actually remember going to see the play but I honestly did not know that Tyler had written it until a couple of years ago.

Tyler has broken a lot of barriers and records. He is the first African American to have a TV and film studio. Tyler Perry is most known for his role as “Madea” that he plays in most of his work but he is an all around entrepreneur. Tyler Perry is a writer, producer, director, screenwriter, playwright, songwriter and many other things!

If you have learned anything from this post, I hope it was to HAVE A LITTLE FAITH. Never give up on your dreams and goals. I want to encourage you to realize that YOU do have a purpose in life and that your pain is your purpose. Many times we go through things in life to help others. Yes what you are going through many be painful but trouble don’t last always. God will never put more on us than we can bear. Use your story for God’s glory! Share your testimony to help others overcome! Whatever it is that you desire to do, first put it Gods hands and then take the steps to pursue! Faith without work is surely dead! Live a purposeful life and remember to HAVE A LITTLE FAITH.

I would like to leave you with this song that had been running through my mind ever since I started writing this blog. The song is entitled…yep you guess it! “Have a little faith” by Mr. John Hiatt. It really is a beautiful and inspiring song! I hope that you all were blessed by this blog! Leave a comment if you want, God Bless you all.