Welcome!

I remember and honor the long-standing tradition of wearing a hat to church that the women in my family have established and carried on. I mean finery, almost to the point of foolery, but fabulous nonetheless. My grandmother passed just a few years ago at the age of 96 and up until her last Sunday at church, was dressed to the nines – complete with a brim. 

But now, at an age where I can choose to, and maybe afford to buy my own millinery, I don’t have as many opportunities. You see, my church, especially in the summer months, is casual. And thank God for that. It’s HOOOOOOOT in the Carolinas.  I can’t help but think of how in so many ways this mirrors my spiritual journey; rooted in tradition, but basking in the freedoms of new-fangled worship.

I want to say that living in this middle ground is true of most women, but I’m not so sure. People more readily live in a place of extremes. But not true of me.  It’s certainly not true of most of my close friends – so as to prove the age old adage that birds of a feather flock together. We are a study in contrasts. A contradiction of terms.  We are extremely feminine AND extremely strong. We are as independent as we are reliant on our families and loved ones.  We are as submissive as we are opinionated. We are both appropriate and fashion-conscious. Conservative and wild. We can shout with the best of them AND do the two-step (the new one not the old one)! We love our jobs, own companies, kiss our babies and can make a mean sweet potato pie. Even, LIKE making sweet potato pie.  We are advancing in the ministry and don’t think it a sin to look cute doing it. Conversely, we will kick our designer shoes in the air and go for broke at the altar. We have fallen in love with Jesus AND our husbands, boyfriends and fiancés. We are Modern Church Ladies.

That’s why I’m so excited about this site and how it brings together lots of practical information with our spiritual perspective. As Modern Church Ladies (and Men), we need to know what is happening on the political landscape as well as what the Bible says about it. We need to know how to manage stress and what God has promised us on this day – each day. Elev8 brings all that together. There are lots of sites for African-Americans, just as many for Christians; but few that connect our cultural excellence with our spiritual heritage.  That’s what Elev8 is: a merging of life, faith and culture.