"It's Never Too Late"
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I wasn’t exactly a good kid when I was growing up. I guess that’s why my mother never had much time for me. She would always send me to my grandmother’s house to be disciplined. I didn’t mind though, because my grandmother would always say the same things to me over and over. In fact, there were a few quotes that my grandmother used faithfully. She said them so much that I came to know them by heart. It actually got to the point where I used to mimic the words behind her back when she would lecture me about always getting into trouble. Usually I would just promise her I’d do better tomorrow. But she would always say to me Michael, tomorrow might be too late. Then she’d pull out her bible and start reading the three verses that she thought applied to my life. The first one was, "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps." Proverbs 16:9 and then she’d go to the next one. "Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of understanding." Proverbs 9:6 but this next one was her favorite. "Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice," Proverbs 13:10. She would always read the chapter and the verse numbers to me, as if I was going to look them up. Then she would end her lecture by saying Michael, "Don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today" because "Today is the first day of the rest of your life." My grandmother had said these lines to me so many times that I finally came to the conclusion that she was trying to tell me something. I never really thought of these quotes as anything more than expressions. I guess by her saying them to me so often, it must have meant that my life was pretty screwed up. So after being locked up for the countless time, I finally decided to evaluate my life and as I looked closely in the mirror I came to the realization that my grandmother’s quotes were more than just expressions. It seemed they had become to me a wake up call, more like words to live by and if I didn’t apply them to my life, I’d soon be dead. The truth is, my grandmother saved my life. The sad part is, I never got a chance to tell her, although she would have given all the credit to God anyway. After she past away I left my mother and my little brother back in "Philly" you know, Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love and I moved to "Cali," California that is. Thinking about my grandmother as I stepped off the plane and headed for a cab, I said over and over again to myself, "Today is the first day of the rest of my life". The first couple of weeks were kind of rough. I kept wondering if it was the right move for me. I thought about a lot of things, but mostly I thought about getting my life together. You see, I not only owed that much to my grandmom but I owed that much to myself. So as the months past I began to adjust to my new life. And as I settled into my new apartment I could actually start to see a change in my life and I started giving all the credit to God. But there was another quote I had soon became familiar with that I had never heard before, and that was, "What a difference a day makes," literally. After finally adjusting to my new life, it all started going down hill. I received a phone call from my good friend Brian back in Philly telling me that Jermaine was killed and he wanted to know was I coming back for the funeral? I was reluctant to answer him knowing that it was more to it than that. You see, knowing my old crew and how they are, going back would mean helping them kill the guys that did it. So I tossed and turned the next couple of nights having never answered Brian whether I would go back to Philly or not. But Instead, I waited on God to tell me what to do.
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About the Book
This book is a very powerful, inspirational story based on a young man's struggle to live in an inner city faced with drugs, violence, revenge, and gangs. Headed for self-destruction he decides to move to California for a better life and finally realizes that without God his new life would not have been possible. After adjusting to his new life he receives a phone call informing him that one of his close friends has been murdered. So led by God he returns to his old neighborhood for fear that his old gang may retaliate. Upon his return he attempts to stop them from an all out war. He then tries to warn his best friend Brian of the danger he sees ahead and is met face to face not only with the leader of his old gang but with his gun. Still believing that God has sent him to save his long time friend he fights on but is met with more resistance. Who will win?
About the Author
Stephen B. Thomas was born in Darby, Pa. He is a graduate of John Bartram High School in Philadelphia, PA. Stephen has always had a desire to write but during his busy life with work and family he was unable to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming a writer until the early summer of 1999. This is when he completed writing his first two manuscripts which includes his current release "It’s Never Too Late" and his soon to be released "Both Sides Of The Badge." Currently he is working on two other inspirational stories. The vision and inspiration that encourages him to write is strictly owed to God. He highly gives honor and glory to God the Father for allowing him to share the love of Jesus Christ through writing. Stephen resides in Philadelphia, PA with his wife Velma and their three children, Trenell, Tiara and Stephen II.