Sho Baraka

“Furthermore, the most important quality to maintain is spiritual centeredness. I was enamored with the praise and the rewards given to me by those who wanted me to be their cultural critic. My feet almost slipped because I lacked the centeredness of many of my Biblical Heroes. Without a proper centeredness, internal gentrification would’ve consumed Moses, Daniel, and Ester. They recognized the luxury at their disposal in the palace but they never let the luxury define them, or their calling. I still frequent the palaces of Christianity and academia. I’ve tasted their wines and I’ve learned their cultures and I know how to operate around kings and queens. I can seek the flourishing of Babylon as Jeremiah instructed without turning away from my God. Gentrification may come but I will never lose the prophetic voice in my heart. Besides, I do not like the god they have made.”
― Sho Baraka, He Saw That It Was Good: How Your Creative Life Can Change a Broken World