Words of Wisdom: Daily Affirmations of Faith

243 Pages·2006·1.51 MB·English

by  Rev Run

Daily Affirmations of Faith
REV RUN
(cid:67)(cid:100)(cid:99)(cid:104)(cid:98)(cid:96)(cid:115)(cid:104)(cid:110)(cid:109)
For my wife, Justine,
and my five wonderful children,
Vanessa, Angela, JoJo, Diggy, and Russie
(cid:1)

Contents
Dedication
Acknowledge
Introduction
Begin Reading
About the Author
Credits
Cover
Copyright
About the Publisher
iwould like to acknowledge
some sources of inspiration:
Reverend Ike, Mike Murdoch,
Bishop Bernard Jordan, the King James Bible,
John Cook’s The Book of Positive Quotations
(cid:1)
vi

(cid:104)(cid:109)(cid:115)(cid:113)(cid:110)(cid:99)(cid:116)(cid:98)(cid:115)(cid:104)(cid:110)(cid:109)
While I grew up, I was Pentecostal. I am now a member of
a church called Zoe Ministries. I attend services frequently,
and have been doing so for many years. I became sodevoted
to the church that I studied and successfully became an
ordained minister. The founder and head of the church,
Bishop Jordan, inspires the members of the congregation and
helps guide them through their daily routines. For example,
he once told the congregation, “If you take shortcuts, you
get cut short.” Simple, but that got me thinking about the
direction I was headed in my life. His words inspired me to
do things that I thought were beyond my capabilities. I went
through a dramatic weight loss, started exercising daily,
and founded a sneaker company called Run Athletics. I was
feeling so good about myself that I even went back into the
recording studio to lay down new tracks. For my personal
edification, I began scribbling down my own words of inspira-
tion, often referring to and reflecting on books I was reading.
Some of those sources were the writings of John C. Maxwell,
Deepak Chopra, and, of course, Bishop Jordan. I also referred
to some of the world’s greatest thinkers and philosophers,
viii
(cid:104)(cid:109)(cid:115)(cid:113)(cid:110)(cid:99)(cid:116)(cid:98)(cid:115)(cid:104)(cid:110)(cid:109)
ixx
such as Sophocles and Aristotle. But my main inspiration
came from deep inside of me and the words and teachings
of Jesus. I began to sit with the bishop, whom I looked to as
my mentor, seeking advice and sharing my words and reflec-
tions with him. He told me that my words were becoming
so inspirational that I should start reaching out and sharing
them with others.
The first place I went with my daily Words of Wisdom
was the radio station Hot 97 in New York City. Every morn-
ing, Ed Lover and Dr. Dre would record me reciting my daily
words and then they would put it on the air. It instantly
became a regular and popular segment of the highly rated
morning radio show.
Then I discovered the two-way pager. It immediately
became my tool of preference for delivering my Words of
Wisdom. I began by sending them out, every morning,
to my closest friends, family, and others in the entertain-
ment industry who happened to be on my e-mail list. This
list included, among others, my brother Russell Simmons;
P. Diddy; Gayle King, editor at large for O magazine; and
Kid Rock. By word of mouth, my list of recipients grew. It
expanded to business leaders, sports figures, and entrepre-
neurs. There were politicians on Capitol Hill who would sit
with their morning newspaper and a cup of coffee waiting
for their morning e-mail. Soon recipients began to forward
my daily words to their friends. One particular person was
sending them out to more than four hundred of his clients