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Education and Retirement Benefits

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Birmingham Times
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Educatioand RetirmentOver the last few decades, numerous studies have revealed that education is the best indicator of lifetime earnings of individuals. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that median weekly earnings of individuals with bachelor’s degrees were approximately $400 higher than that of high school graduates in 2012. But workers with professional degrees had weekly earnings about $1,100 higher than those with only a high school education.
Now, new research from a variety of federal agencies indicates that education also increases the amount of retirement income. This is underscored by U.S. Census data for the period 2000 to 2011. Income in the Census study excludes Social Security benefits.
On average, college graduates received $8,482 in retirement income annually not including Social Security. This was $6,500 per year greater than that of high school graduates. Moreover, each additional year of education increased expected non-Social Security retirement income.
The Survey of Consumer Finances published by the Federal Reserve verifies that persons with more education not only have more retirement income. They also  have more financial assets than those with less education.
To understand the importance of education, data compiled by the Social Security Administration indicate that 60 percent of elderly individuals have no retirement income other than Social Security. The Social Security Administration also estimates that each year of additional education reduces the probability of having no retirement income by 3 percent.
In addition to education increasing retirement income, Census data indicate health benefits are associated with additional education. Among those greater than 65 years of age, college graduates are 6.2 percent less likely to have problems with independent living than high school graduates. And college graduates are 21.8 percent less likely to have independent-living difficulties than those with an 8th grade education.
All of the above should be good news to those currently attending college. It should mitigate some of the anxieties students might harbor about finding a job in the current environment as well as repaying their college debts.
The studies also have special meaning for those who are still in high school. And they should encourage them to seek additional education if they want to earn more income, have greater retirement benefits, and enjoy a healthier life.

Wayne Curtis, Ph.D., a former superintendent of Alabama banks and university business school dean, is retired from the board of directors of First United Security Bank. He may be contacted at wccurtis39@gmail.com.

Senate Sketches

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Birmingham Times
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hank_sandersby Senator Hank Sanders

“Senator Sanders, why are you going to the March on Washington?”   This question sprang from two different reporters using similar words.  This question took on added significance because I just had surgery some five days earlier.  The answer was multifold.
I wanted to go to the 2013 March on Washington because I missed  going to the 1963 March on Washington 50 years ago.  I wanted to go because voting rights are under severe attack requiring us to take a strong stand.  I wanted to go to send Congress a message that they must revive Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act by passing a new Section 4(b).   I wanted to go because the attacks on all the Trayvon Martins of the world continue.  I wanted to go because the 1963 March on Washington was a great historical event that turned the tide of history for the better and 50 years must be celebrated/commemorated.  I wanted to go to the March on Washington.
In August of 1963, I was working at Honeywell as an electronic technician in New York City.  I was scheduled to enter Talladega College in the middle of September, just weeks away.  I checked on the free busses and made plans to go to the March on Washington.  However, I did not have anyone I knew to go with me so I did not go.  I have been sorry ever since that I missed the 1963 March on Washington.  I can’t correct the past but I can prevent it from repeating itself.  I had to go to the March on Washington.
Voting rights is the right that protects all other rights so it is absolutely critical.  It has been under increasing attack for several years.  Many states attacked by passing restrictive voting measures starting in November of 2010.  In June of this year, the United States Supreme Court attacked by striking down Section 4(b) of the 1965 Voting Rights Act thereby killing Section 5, the very heart of the Voting Rights Act.  Then some states immediately commenced passing or proposing or implementing all kinds of restrictions on voting rights.  North Carolina is the poster child for the attacks on voting rights.  I had to go to the March on Washington.
Only Congress can correct the destructive action of the U. S. Supreme Court.  The March on Washington is on August 24 but the date of the 1963 March was August 28, 1963.  There are commemorative events scheduled for the 28th, but the March that sends the message is August 24th.  I want to help send the U. S. Congress a message:  correct Section 4(b) so Section 5 can be revived.  I had to go to the March on Washington.
We have just seen how the legal system mistreats the Trayvon Martins of the world.  Trayvon Martin, a boy just pass his sixteenth birthday, was gunned down by 28 year old George Zimmerman.  Trayvon was not doing anything wrong but he died anyway.  Then his killer was turned loose by a nearly all White Florida jury.  There are just too many Trayvon Martins of the world being sacrificed.  I had to go to the March on Washington.
There are other rollbacks of rights from affirmative action to education to immigration, etc.  I want my very body to speak jointly with hundreds of thousands of other bodies saying, “We will not go back!”  I had to go to the March on Washington.
The March on Washington is the greatest march ever.  It changed the course of American history.  Before the March, African Americans could not eat in the same restaurants, sleep in the same hotels, use the same bathrooms in public places or vote to elect candidates of their choice.  Before the March every advance in human rights came from the courts.  After the March, the Congress of the United States moved.  The result was the 1964 Public Accommodation Act that removed the forced separation in public places; the 1965 Voting Rights Act that gave every citizen the right to vote and other laws that made life better for all.  We were no longer dependent just on the courts and efforts in the streets to protect rights.
The 1963 March on Washington was conceived in hope and desperation.  There were little marches in various locales across the South.  There were “Freedom Rides” and “sit-ins” and boycotts and other protests that brought the courts into the picture.  Progress was scattered when it existed at all.  The 1963 March on Washington brought together all the protest streams into one big river of protests and big progress followed.
Most of the responses to the proposed march were conceived in fear and implemented in harsh haste.  “The March is going to turn into riots.”  “The March is going to wreak violence.”  “The March will not do any good.”  “The March will hurt rather than help,” and so on.
The organizers of the March hoped for a hundred thousand.  Two hundred fifty thousand showed up.  Dr. Martin Luther King made a speech for the ages.  Those who predicted violence, riots and failure were wrong.  With hundreds of thousands at the March, there was not one act of violence, not one arrest, not one act of ugliness.  It was a thing of beauty that changed this country.  The media was enthralled for days after the March.  The United States Congress was moved.  Other national institutions were moved.  The people were moved.  The whole country moved.  And I failed to go 50 years ago but I am going to the March on Washington this time.
EPILOGUE – We don’t always get a second chance.  Even when we get a second chance, we don’t always recognize or take it.  I am glad that I got a second chance to help move us forward.  I am glad I seized the second chance.

Doubling Down on Dumb

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Birmingham Times
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Horace CooperBy Horace Cooper

Justice Department lawyers should not attempt to prosecute George Zimmerman for the death of Trayvon Martin.
They likely won’t succeed, and would probably compound the awful precedent set by the state of Florida in pursuing this case over objections from the lead criminal investigator, police chief and the community’s prosecutor.  These missteps were followed with a decision to bypass a grand jury.
Adding a pro-prosecution judge, all the safeguards protecting Americans from political or unwarranted prosecution were missing, allowing this train-wreck of a case to proceed.
If the feds follow suit, they will head down the same path of an unjustified prosecution — re-establishing, nationally, a practice not seen since Woodrow Wilson pursued his political goals through abusing federal prosecutorial authority. Wilson’s use of the Espionage and Sedition Acts to arrest and silence critics as well as the media rolled back the clock on constitutional rights.
Like Wilson era abuses, today’s Justice Department must distort the meaning of hate crime statutes to charge Zimmerman. First, prosecutors lack a definitive finding that Zimmerman is, in fact, a racist. After interviewing 35 people — including co-workers, neighbors and even an ex-girlfriend — an FBI investigation failed to find proof that Zimmerman’s actions were racially motivated on the night Martin died.
Even the so-called profiling issue disintegrates upon closer review. The lead detective in the case told the FBI that Zimmerman was suspicious of Martin because of his clothing and the time of day — not Martin’s ethnicity.
With its own investigatory arm already doubting any racial animosity, it makes prosecuting the matter as a hate crime extremely hard.
But it gets harder. The next hurdle requires finding Zimmerman’s specific intent to kill Martin. The jury in Sanford established Zimmerman was acting in self-defense when his gun discharged.  Zimmerman intended to protect himself from death or great bodily harm.  With murder in the second degree and manslaughter on the table, jurors found Zimmerman not guilty of both.  While not dispositive, it creates a difficult hurdle to overcome.
Finally, unlike the judge who all but embraced the prosecution of Zimmerman, a federal judge is likely to be truly neutral. Recognizing the importance of protecting all citizens, federal courts will review any new charge with a jaundiced eye. Evidentiary rulings and a host of procedural hurdles would likely make the case stillborn at the earliest stages. Issues from Martin’s use of the term “cracker,” testimony from unreliable witnesses and Martin’s drug impairment at the time of the incident will be far more relevant in federal court.
President Obama should never have politicized this case, but instead allowed it to run its course wherever on-the-ground investigators took it. But Obama injected himself early on when he speculated to the media that the son he never had would “look like Trayvon.” His Justice Department then funded agitators and community activists to try to influence the initial Zimmerman investigation.
A Justice Department interested in the rule of law and not the rule of the mob would steer clear from this case and any like it. For the sake of millions of potential Zimmermans in the future, let’s hope so.
Horace Cooper, a former law professor and former congressional leadership staffer, is the co-chairman of the Project 21 Black leadership network. Comments may be sent to Project21@nationalcenter.org.

Answering Life’s Greatest Question

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Birmingham Times
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Dr. Wilkerson
Dr. Wilkerson
Dr. Wilkerson

Life is filled with many important questions. As a nation, many of us are asking these questions:  Is the economic crisis over? When will we be able to find work again? When will be bring our troops home from Iraq and Afghanistan? As individuals, many of us are asking do I need to change occupations? Should I go back to school? Will the company I work for survive, providing me employment for as long as I need to work? Will I run out of money before I run out of life?
All these questions are important, but a Roman governor named Pilate asked life’s greatest question many years ago. He asked, “What will I do with Jesus?”
It is life’s greatest question because the way we answer it will determinate the quality of our lives. With Christ, life has peace, happiness, meaning, and purpose. We become members of the family of God, and we can enjoy fellowship with Him and His people. Without Him, life can be very bad.
Not only does the way we answer that question determine our happiness and satisfaction in this life, it determines our destiny for eternity. Jesus Christ is the door to heaven. He is the straight and narrow way. If we reject Him, we have no way. We need to ask ourselves personally, “What have I done with Jesus?”

Dr. Robert Wilkerson is a minister, writer, and founder of People for the Christian Way, an organization whose mission is to encourage all people to practice Christian principles in business, politics, and every area of life. drbobwilkerson@bellsouth.net, www.people-for-the-christian-way.org

Pick Up The Pieces

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Birmingham Times
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images-1Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! Ezekiel 37.4

Sometimes when reading the Bible we miss some very important points and far too often we hear scripture preached and accept the explanation the Preacher gives for what the scripture is saying. Unfortunately or fortunately, however you may look at it, most often we don’t understand the true meaning of scripture until it applies to our life. When you reach a point in your life when you are seeking God’s direction, His answer or a Divine explanation and turn to God’s Word, previously read scripture becomes just what you need. The scripture above is one of the scriptures. This story has always been Ezekiel’s story, Ezekiel’s test question from God at a time when he didn’t even know he was at a promotion point and I ALWAYS saw Ezekiel’s place (in the valley) as a bad place to be. UNTIL GOD put me in the valley by taking my Father at a time when our relationship wasn’t in the best place, giving me a vision that I wholeheartedly invested in that did not seem to be manifesting and producing issues in the lives of my children that I could not help them with (no matter how much I wanted to). One day I looked around and realized I was in the valley and everything around me was dry and disconnected. I was stuck with a whole lot of gifts and talents that were not producing ANYTHING!

Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say, ‘Our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off!’ “Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. Ezekiel 37:11-12

God’s thoughts and ways are different from ours, which also means what appears to be a valley for us is actually a mountain to God, what seems like a disconnected situation is actually a scattering of God’s plans for us and what looks like a dead end to us is actually a detour to God. Your apparent failure is a setup to your pre-destined success. You have been directed to this valley experience to prepare you for the next level God has planned for you. You MUST use every piece (bone) of this broken situation, your dream and God’s divine vision to become what God has destined you to be. NO MORE PITY PARTIES, STOP WALKING AWAY and most importantly DON’T LET GO! If you can pass this test and stay faithful, God will put it all together and give it life. Not only life but MOBILITY! You are not at the end, you are actually at the beginning of the next level of your life. This is training and I know it’s hot, the routines are repetitious (been here before), the coach isn’t noticing that you are exhausted and your muscles (heart) are hurting but if you don’t train, you won’t be able to play. In order to get the ring, the trophy or the championship, YOU MUST SHOW UP and you MUST GIVE IT ALL YOU’VE GOT.

Yes, your dream can live because God has given it life.
Minister Deidra Brown

” In Memory of Tommy Wrenn”

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Birmingham Times
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Henry Brooks; Shirley Floyd; Dr. Dina Avery; Mr. Charles Long ; Shirley Long Peoples; Frank Matthews; Mrs. Jerri Avery; Mrs. Cynthia Abernathy; Mrs. Donnell Anderson; Dr. Frank Adam and Rose-Marie Adams (not available) Rev. Thomas Gilmore

Honored Contributor’s Ceremony – Honoree Mr. Thomas Edward “Tommy” Wrenn – held on Friday, August 23rd, sponsored by Urban Impact, Inc. and the Civil Rights Activist Committee: Home of the Foot Soldiers, Inc.
The ceremony was held at the 17th Street Mini Park (Corner of 4th Avenue and 17th Street North) Birmingham.

A Foundation for Living

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Birmingham Times
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Rev. Reid
Rev. Reid
Rev. Reid

Blessings of Spiritual Rebellion
Rev. Reid

Moses was passing and he came across a man who was praying. But he was doing such an absurd prayer (not only absurd, but insulting to God) that Moses stopped. The man was saying, “Let me come close to you my God, my Lord, and I promise that I will clean your body when it is dirty. Even if lice are there, I will take them away…. I will look after you. When you are ill, I will serve and give you medicine. And I am a good cook also!” So Moses said, “Stop! Stop your nonsense! What are you saying? From who have you learned this prayer?” The man said, “I have not learned it from anywhere. Lice trouble me very much, so He must be in trouble. And sometimes the food is not good and my stomach aches. He must be also suffering. This is just my own experience that has become my prayer. So Moses taught him the right prayer. The man bowed down to Moses, thanked him, tears of deep gratitude flowing, and he went away. Moses was very happy. And God was very angry! He said, “I have sent you there to bring people closer to me, but you have thrown away one of my most sincere prayers. Now he will be doing the right prayer, but it won’t be a prayer at all – because prayer has nothing to do with the law. Prayer is LOVE. Love is a law unto itself; it needs no other law.
Here is the problem. Sometimes we think by being a Christian we are following Christ. To be Christian does not mean we even know Christ. Knowledge of Christ may have nothing to do with what we believe. Religion is organized by people in the world. Jesus had something in Him which cannot be organized. Jesus Christ is a rebellion. In that rebellion are the spiritual blessings of love, grace, truth, transformation, Christ-consciousness and eternal life. Let me share what I mean. I call the understanding of the spiritual rebellion of Jesus, blessings. There are three blessings of spiritual rebellion. Love as the fulfillment of law, grace and truth.
When we look at these three things, we see our failure as Christians and non-believers to go beyond the Laws of Moses to receive the blessings of spiritual rebellion. If we don’t move beyond Law to Love we will continue to believe, practice and worship false gods of this world including the worldly church and miss Christ.
Let me explain what I mean. First, it is the blessing of Love as the fulfillment of the Laws of Moses that made a difference, especially to the Hebrew people – considered the chosen of God. Throughout history there has been three great lawgivers – Moses (Western  World) Christians, Jews, Mahammedons or Islam; Manu (Eastern World) Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Karl Marx, China, Russia and Other Communist nations. These three lawgivers gave us the foundation of law throughout the world. But it has been the laws of Moses, especially the Ten Commandments that have guided the world, particular the Western world which is the mother of our laws in the United States.
There is a second blessing Jesus brought that cannot be overlooked. That is the blessing of grace. The Bible says “Grace came through Jesus Christ.” But what is grace? Grace is a way of flowing in life. Grace is the fruit of the spirit of Christ and that the fruit is defined in Gal. 5: 22, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.” Grace is purity, magnetism, attraction, loving. Jesus had all of these things and they are available to us as well if we are courageous enough to rebel against the status quo of this world.
Finally, Jesus brought the blessings of truth, “Truth came through Jesus Christ.” Truth is the law fulfilled with Love. Truth is an abiding love that last forever. Truth is a living faith. The truth is Jesus died and rose again to give us an opportunity for eternal life. The truth is, “if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body (mind and heart) you will live.” Romans 8: 13
These are the blessings of spiritual rebellion: Spiritual Rebellion brings chaos but produces love!  Rebellion is a storm with no organization, untamed, wild but it produces a new birth, a new life in Christ! Spiritual Rebellion is not religion, or a denomination, or church; it has no history, tradition or knowledge base. It creates a new consciousness, a Christ- Consciousness when we surrender to God. It is realness! It is a burning fire! It is new ground plowed by Christ for God to plant His seed in us. Through Him we grow into what God wants us to be. It is new light and new life! It is Alpha and Omega; the Beginning and the End. Yes, Moses brought the Law but Love, Grace and Truth is found in Jesus Christ. And Through Him “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be laid low – and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain – and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together – for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it.”(Isaiah 40:4-5)

Full Nelson Worship & Word Summit

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Birmingham Times
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Nelson Siblings Stellar Award winning recording artist, Jonathan Nelson, who recently topped Billboard’s Top Gospel Albums chart with his latest CD “Strong Finish,” and his twin brother, Bishop Jason Nelson (currently rising on the charts with “Nothing Without You”), are partnering once again with their siblings to present the second annual Full Nelson Worship and Word Summit taking place September 19-21, 7:30 p.m. nightly at the CFSMM Worship Center in the Baltimore, Maryland area.
“It is our vision to come together to impact God’s people with key tools for successful ministry as well as empowering a new generation to establish Kingdom principles and best practices in the 21st century,” the Nelson family says in a unified mission statement. The family is bringing together an astounding array of today’s top psalmists, intercessors, facilitators and speakers for this unique gathering.
Last year’s summit was a rousing success and this year’s event promises to be just as memorable and life changing. The opening night speaker is Bishop Marvin L. Winans. Each morning begins with a prayer session facilitated by Pastor T. Renea Glenn of the Life Center in Greenville, S.C. There are daytime sessions with Dr. Carolyn Showell, musician Mike Clemons (Israel Houghton & New Breed) and Pastor Hart Ramsey. The night services open with praise and worship led by Sha Simpson. There’s special music by Grammy Award nominee Vashawn Mitchell, Kierra Sheard and Kirk Franklin protégées The Walls Group. Bishop John Francis is also an evening speaker.
Joining the Nelsons in coordinating this year’s event are their brothers Bishop James Nelson (Pastor of Destiny Christian Church in Baltimore) and Pastor Anthony L. Trufant (Emmanuel Baptist Church in Brooklyn, NY); their sister Janice Nelson Briley (Co-Pastor of New Harvest Ministries in Baltimore, MD); and their cousin Floyd E. Nelson II (Kingdom Harvest Ministries in Landover, MD).
The summit takes place at the CFSMM Worship Center, 701 Cherry Hill Road, Baltimore, MD 21225. Obtain registration information by calling (443) 468-7167 or emailing: info@fullnelsonsummit.com. Website: www.fullnelsonsummit.com.

Griz, Beasley and Scott Named Volleyball Preseason All-SWAC

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Birmingham Times
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Volleyball MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) announced its 2013 All-SWAC Preseason Volleyball Teams and three members of the Lady Hornets were named to the first team.
Senior Luiza Griz was named the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.  Griz was named the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year last season and looks to build on her 399 digs from a season ago.  Griz was also named to the Preseason First Team All-SWAC list.
ASU had two other players named to the first team.  Junior setter Brooke Beasley was named the 2012 SWAC Newcomer of the Year after having 1,039 assists and averaging 8.45 assists per game.
Chelsey Scott was named to the first team as an outside hitter.  Scott, a sophomore, received second team honors last season as a freshman.  She had 288 kills during her first season and averaged 2.38 kills per game.
“I think it shows how well these girls played last year as to why they were named to the preseason First Team,” Head Coach Penny Lucas-White said.  “I am happy they are getting this exposure, but now they need to show it on the court.”
The Lady Hornets return all six starters from last season and have been picked to finish third in the East Division of the SWAC.  Last year’s SWAC Champion Jackson State received 86 points and 15 first place votes to lead the division.  ASU’s 61 points (1 first place vote) was only five points behind second place Alabama A&M who received 66 points and four first place votes.  Mississippi Valley State (46 points) and Alcorn State (31 points) rounded out the East Division voting.
Prairie View A&M picked up 82 points and 12 first place votes to lead the West Division.  Texas Southern was second with 78 points and seven first place votes while Arkansas-Pine Bluff was picked third with 51 points. Southern picked up a first place vote and was picked to finish fourth in the division with 47 points and Grambling was picked fifth with 32 points.
“We are not really concerned where we are picked in the preseason poll,” Lucas-White said.  “This team knows our goal is to win the SWAC and that is what we are working towards.”
The voting was done by the league’s head coaches and sports information directors.

Habakkuk Music’s April Washington compiles a Black Gospel CD Collection

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Birmingham Times
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April Washington

BALTIMORE, Md. – Noted entrepreneur April Washington’s Habakkuk Music recording label has compiled a Black gospel CD collection for Cracker Barrel Old Country Store®. Gospel Legacy: The Collection is available exclusively in all Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® locations and online at crackerbarrel.com.
“As a minority business owner, it’s important to stay relevant and inspired to create innovative ways to market your product,” Washington says. “We are excited to establish a relationship with Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® by providing this genre of music that we hope their guests will find inspirational and uplifting. What’s more, this CD creates a bridge to building a business relationship for diversity inclusion with such a notable corporation.”
This soul-stirring, 12-song CD boasts vintage and present day gems by some of America’s most beloved recording artists. There are rousing traditional gospel songs such as Aretha Franklin’s 1972 rendition of “How I Got Over,” Fred Hammond’s “Jesus Be A Fence Around Me” and Vickie Winans’ “Long As I Got King Jesus.” There are contemporary tracks like Kirk Franklin’s double platinum smash “Stomp” and Gerald Scott & Co.’s festive “Alright.”
Passionate songs like Kurt Carr & The Kurt Carr Singers’ “In The Sanctuary” and Shirley Caesar’s “Jesus” (I Love Calling Your Name) are some of the most memorable praise and worship tunes around. The Winans’ pristine ballad “Tomorrow” and Cece Winans’ “Mercy Said No” show off the softer side of gospel, while The Commodore’s “Jesus is Love” is a power anthem known throughout the globe.
Gospel Legacy: The Collection will be featured Labor Day Weekend (August 29  – September 1) at the 2013 Allstate® Tom Joyner Family Reunion (TJFR) in the Orlando, Fla. area. The Grammy® Award nominated artist, Kurt Carr, who appears on the CD will perform in concert at the TJFR Gospel Explosion, followed by an in-store autograph signing at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® located at 5400 W. Irlo Bronson Memorial Hwy. on Sunday, September 1, at 2 p.m. near the Gaylord Resort in Kissimmee, Florida.

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