Dreams DO Come True..... Keeping That "Dream Seed" Alive (Learning to block out the negative voices & Pursue at ALL Cost)

 I wanted to write this blog post to let you know that, Dreams DO Come True!!  When you block out the negative voices and pursue at ALL Cost!! 

Recently in my life I have had an amazing opportunity come across my path, and I am pinching myself.  I have always known my value and my worth and in what I bring to the table, but never felt valued or appreciated.  I know that God made me different and that there is nobody else in the world like me.  I have had close people in my life speak death over me and told me I would never amount to anything.  Words like that hurt, especially if it comes from people you love.  Words like that can leave scars and cripple you from moving forward in life.  I never let those words truly sink deep in my ears, I was always able to block them out.  In my heart I knew what I deserved, and I always kept that dream seed alive.  I would feed that little seed with the word of God and motivation that I would speak to myself.  I am blessed that I have a supporting family that believes in me and encourages me when I am feeling down.  I would see people around me living "their" dream and I knew it just wasn't my time yet, but it still inspired me.  

The purpose behind this post is to keep your dream alive.  Do NOT have any back up plans!!  Whatever you are believing God for, write it down and put it in a place where you can look it in the face everyday!  Watch how you speak to yourself!  Be careful with the people you surround yourselves with!  My dream has kept me awake at night because I have been expecting God to show up.  I knew it had to be on HIS timing, and that I needed to be patient.  

When I look back on the people that were toxic and spoke "death" over me, I realize that they were a stepping stone for my motivation.  Each time they put me down, it ignited that spark inside of me, and it grew into a blazing fire.  I am actually thankful and appreciative for their words since I came out stronger!  

I am so thankful and humbled for this opportunity, and God knows how much this means to me.  This is an answered prayer, and I will forever treasure it.  It is important to celebrate the wins in life, and document those moments because God is alive and well!!  He does answer prayer, and he does hear the desires of your heart.  I hope this post encourages you to keep your Dream Seed Alive!! Let it thrive, do not starve it!!  Learn to block out the negative voices and Pursue at ALL Cost!! 

Enjoy Life Today, Yesterday Is Gone & Tomorrow May Never Come.

 

Enjoy Life Today, Yesterday Is Gone & Tomorrow May Never Come.

I have this quote in a place where I can see it everyday and I am reminded to live by it.  Many times as humans we love to "plan" and keep ourselves busy.  When we do this we are living our lives saying that "we are the masters of our domain and we hold tomorrow in our hands."  The world teaches us the mentality of "serve me."  If we are not careful we can become self serving and forget the true meaning of life and why we were put on this earth.  Yes, God wants us to enjoy our life and wants us to do well, but there is a greater purpose and calling on our lives.  We will not wake up and automatically start living this way, we need to "set" our minds ahead of time.  We need to have gentle reminders set around the house.  We need to read the word of God and pray daily.  

I was reminded of this recently because I have several people in my life that are going through some real intense battles right now.  It is a shame that difficult situations always seem to put things into perspective.  Just waking up another day and being able to breathe is a gift.  Do we wake up and say to God "Thank you for the breathe in my lungs and my beating heart?"  We can take things like this for granted.  This is a reminder though that we have NO control over our lives.  We can play games and think that we do, but sooner or later you will come to the realization that we can do NOTHING without HIM.  I have been reflecting lately and I have found myself continually cutting certain things out of my life, and adding in other things.  I am making sure I do not stay the same and get stagnant. It can be VERY easy to get stuck in the day to day routine.  We have to remind ourselves that we are ALIVE and that we need to maximize our time here and live each day like it is our last.  I refuse to make excuses and believe that "this is all there is to life."  I believe there are so many other things I have not uncovered yet.  The world teaches us that we need to grind it out to have the "best" life.  What is the "best" life according to the world........ More Money, Fancy Clothes, Big House, Dream Car, Into Looks, If something doesn't work, move onto the next best thing, always someone else's fault/ no accountability, do whatever your heart tells you to, live according to how you "feel"/ etc.

I am IN this world not OF this world!  I refuse to conform to society and what the world says I should be doing.  I feel like at times I am swimming up current and it can feel lonely.  At times it can be discouraging because you see "others" getting things that you think you deserved, or things that you have prayed for.  I would like to get personalize and break the above quote down and put it in my words and how I interpret it.

" Enjoy Life Today"

I look at one day at a time.  I only look at that day alone and make sure I keep my blinders on. I am not looking to the next day ahead.  I am working on to truly value the gift that is presented to me and not grumble and complain.  There are many others that did not wake up today, or may be missing someone that did not wake up today.  I am thankful for the gift of that day and I want to tell the Lord "Thank you!"  I want to maximize that day.  By maximizing I mean have all the key elements: Mind/Body/Spirit.  I want to exercise my body for that day, I want to explore my mental side (journal), and I want to feed my spirit with the Word of God.  I am yearning for balance.  If I had a great day, then that is awesome.  If I had a bad day then I am happy I survived it and I am looking to learn the lesson from it.

"Yesterday Is Gone"

Once I wake up to another day, I remind myself that yesterday is in the past and that chapter is closed.  There is no need to revisit it or dwell on what happened.  There is literally nothing I can do with yesterday.  The only control I have is to see what I learned from it.  Maybe there was a big important lesson that God needed me to learn.  Many times when people are on their deathbed they look back over their life and revisit the: would have/ should have/ could have reel.  They like to open up the entire book and revisit the regrets.  This is honestly a #1 fear of mine.  The thought shakes me to my core and I have made sure to live my life with no regrets!! How can I do this, you ask?  Let me go into further detail.  I do not hold grudges with ANYONE.  I forgive ALL who hurt me.  I say sorry even if it was not MY FAULT.  I say I LOVE YOU.  I choose to spend quality time with my loved ones and put my phone down and turn the tv off.  I see that relationships are the most important thing.  We are not guaranteed another day, so spend time living in the NOW with your loved ones. It is easy to become bitter and have that turn into hate with friends and family.  Don't drink the poison!!  This is what happens to those who lay alone on their death bed.  This is something I will never have and it is a choice.  You can start living this way every single day!!

"And Tomorrow May Never Come."

There is no guarantee that I will wake up tomorrow.  I can have all of the plans mapped out in advance, it still doesn't guarantee me another day.  Everything is on God's time and he decides!  So what does this mean for me? This means that I need to maximize today as much as possible.  Spend time with my loved ones, have no regrets, spend time with God, forgive others, and love others!!  In life it is pretty rare to get second chances, so we need to give it our all.  There is no time to waste.  If you died today can you honestly say that you have a relationship with Jesus and you would go to heaven?  If you died today what is the last thing you said to your family?  If you died today are their relationships you wish you could repair?  Be proactive and do things right now!! Start moving in that direction!!

I hope this blog post encouraged you and helped you take a moment to see what you maybe need to cut out or maybe develop some new habits. I encourage you to take this quote and put it in a place that reminds you daily of how to live!!  I wanted to close up and put some examples below of a few things I have added in and cut out:

- Spend time in silence journaling, and collecting your thoughts.  This is the layout for how I journal.  I made it up but it works for me. 

- Mon-Fri I make sure to workout and do physical activity (Sat and Sun I am off). After working all day at a computer I can honestly say I look forward to going outside and doing a garage workout and sweating.  I physically and mentally feel better afterwards.

- Eating Healthy- I document in my mobile calendar everything I consume.  It helps hold me accountable and it is nice to be able to look back and see how I am doing.

- Read The Bible With My Family- Every night we get together and go through our Bible Reading Plan and then discuss what the verse meant to us.  We also go around and pray together

Some things I cut out:

- My phone is 100% down and I am 100% engaged with my family and self

- Limited TV time

- Alcohol

- Stress and Anxiety

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Self Discovery

This post will be different from all the other posts I have written in the past.  This year (2021) has led me on a journey, and I am only just beginning!!  I have started to do things that I have NEVER done before.  I feel like I am on the path to "self discovery."  I am truly learning the importance of taking care of myself on ALL levels.  In the past, I have done small adjustments but never fully committed to going ALL IN.  In this post I will explain what I am learning as I walk down this path of Self Discovery.

I had a health scare earlier this year and it honestly caused me to wake up.  It heightened my senses to see all of the things I did on a daily/weekly/monthly basis that had a negative impact on my body.  Yes, I make look ok on the outside, but what about the inside?  How is my immune system, how are my organs, how are my muscles and bones?  These are things we do not think about, until we have a health scare.  I talked to health professionals to see what changes I needed to make, and educated myself.  Anything I mention below you can do research for yourself.

Toxic Products- Once I started reading the labels of things that I was putting on myself daily, it honestly scared me.  The chemicals in products seep into your skin and go into your bloodstream.  Educating myself on this topic made me do research to look for all natural products.  I no longer wear nail polish at all, I changed up my toothpaste, my hair products, my skin care products, deodorant, etc.  This is a small change, but to me it was important.  Once you educate yourself, you are called to do action.  I was not going to sit back and continue to lather my body with chemicals. ( I do not wear makeup during the day, I let my skin breathe and I love being natural). I will only put on mascara, eyeshadow and lip gloss if I have a special occasion.  90% of the time I am all natural. :)

No Alcohol- I took the time and studied the liver, and the process of what happens to the liver when you drink alcohol.  I learned about (NAFLD) and (ARLD).  I learned about how alcohol affects other organs in the body.  After understanding what I was doing to myself after every time I have a drink, I realized I was only doing harm to my body.  I realized that I needed to cut ALL Alcohol out of my life.  I need to build my organs up, not tear them down.

Healthy Foods- I realized what processed foods/ high sodium, and sugar do to the body.  I realized that I felt like I never had energy and felt always tired.  I exercised but still didn't feel good internally.  I made the decision to cut out sugar from my diet.  I focus eating on healthy whole foods.  I now make sure to eat more vegetables, healthy whole grains, make my own smoothies, drink plenty of water, cut out soda, no more deli meat, and healthy carbs.  I do not call it a diet since this is a lifestyle change and this is something that I will continue to do.  *** Yes, I had sugar withdraw headaches/ migraines that lasted for 2 weeks***

No Caffeine- I drink my coffee every single morning, but realized I did not need all of that caffeine.  I have switched to decaf coffee and I love it.  I can now enjoy my coffee every morning without all of the caffeine.  

Fasting- I have done fasting in the past, but only for a certain period of time.  I now fast Mon-Fri from 7pm-1pm.  On weekends I take two days off so that way it changes it up for my body.  I look at it as a body reset, it resets all levels and improves organ functions.  It also regenerates new blood cells.  While fasting I drink decaf coffee, water, and tea.

Walking- I was never a walker.  I am a runner, I do HIIT, Boxing, Strength Training, etc.  I now make sure I walk a certain amount of steps every day.  It forces me to get outside and walk more.  I now enjoy taking walks.  I find that during this time I am able to think and get away.  It honestly is good for my mind.

Oils- I have studied Essential Oils and what they can do for your body, and how they are natural remedies that can be used for health issues.  I use Essential Oils DAILY and NIGHTLY.  I use them while I am working, when I have a headache, before bed, and mix them together for other benefits.

Yoga/Stretching- I have listened to my body as I have gotten older, and my body is craving TLC.  My body always feels tight and at times in pain.  I now dedicate 20-30min a night doing stretches.  I put on music, have my oils going and I spend time loving my body and giving it what it needs.  I look forward to this every evening, and my body feels better afterwards.  I struggle with Sciatica, and I now have a flow that I do every night that helps me properly stretch that area.

Reading The Bible- I have been on a Bible Reading Plan since January, and I make sure to take time (Usually after stretching) to sit down in my massage chair and read the Word of God.  This is important time with God, and it is important to do it DAILY.  We also have a separate Bible Reading plan that we do as a family, and talk about what we read, and then pray.  

Vitamins- I spoke with a Doctor and found out which Vitamins I should be taking for my age/body etc, and I now take them daily.  It is helpful to know where you need to increase certain levels, and vitamins can help do that.

Journaling- I now make time for Journaling.  I did this when I was younger, and I have fell in love with it again.  I spend time writing down what I am currently feeling/going through/prayers/ etc.  It helps to get it down on paper.  I feel better afterwards, and I am able to see the different stages of when God answered my prayers, and what he has done in my life. 

These are the main changes I have made, and I hope it brings encouragement to you.  Maybe one or several of these areas have spoken to you.  If so, I recommend doing research for yourself, talk to a doctor, and pray about it.  God will reveal to you what you need to cut out of your life.  I am thankful that I have a loving family that supports me.  These things above are important to me and I have made time prioritizing them so I do them daily.  

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God NEVER Stops Amazing Me.......

 I am just once again blown away by God's faithfulness.  He always exceeds my expectations.  When you humble submit yourself to him, you will see him move in a BIG way.  I have started my mornings off in the Word, covering my family in prayer, and spending alone time with God.  I find myself confessing the Word of God OVER my circumstance, and not by what I am seeing.  I know where I stand in God's eyes, I know where I am held.  It is in the palm of his hand and he holds me up in his Righteous Right Hand where the enemy cannot come near me.  I was going through a health situation and I asked God to use the Dr to speak specifically to me as if he was speaking himself.  The Dr addressed me and exactly pin pointed what I needed to hear and it was customized.  That is God!!!!  God is faithful! God shows up! He is moving even now in 2021, in the middle of a pandemic!  Do not put limits on God.  I recently removed social media from my phone and I can tell you it has eliminated an extra distraction.  I want to spend more time on what really matters. I want to focus on my relationship with God.  I want to focus on my family and my health.  Life is too short to be buried in a phone, and scrolling through it.  I also want to encourage you to Journal Daily/Weekly.  It is a beautiful reminder of God's faithfulness.  I find myself falling more and more in love with God in 2021 and this year has just begun.

Through it all, through it all, my eyes are on you.  Through it all, Through it all, it is well. 

AND THAT IS A WRAP.....2020!

 What a year this has been!!!  I don't even have the words to describe what kind of year this has been.  I believe this has been a year of pain.  This year has taught us to deal with fear of the unknown, and how to endure.  This year has been fear for 365 days straight.  Fear on the virus, Fear on the news, Fear on statistics, etc.  We have been hearing it from ALL sides!  We put up our Christmas tree before Thanksgiving.  I feel like this is the year that we needed to get Christmas going early.  We needed some cheer.  This world needs some cheer.  Thank God For Jesus!!!  That CAN be celebrated in the middle of a pandemic.  

We have 4 days until 2021!!  I believe this is a great year to start Resolutions.  I know that some may laugh at this and roll their eyes, but once again after 2020, we need something GOOD to focus on and look forward to.  I can't go into another year and still feel the effect from the year prior.  I NEED a fresh start, I need NEW vision, I NEED hope that WILL REMAIN!!  I wanted to share how I am starting off the New Year, and what I am choosing to focus on.  

Spiritual/Mental:  First and foremost, I researched a Bible Reading Plan.  There are several plans out there, I will include a link at the end of this paragraph.  I wanted to pick the right reading plan for me.  I have chosen "The Bible In Chronological Order of Events."  This will take my the entire year and take me in order of the events.  I have also chosen a Bible Reading Plan to do with my children.  I will also include that link at the end of this paragraph.  We need to get in a routine for the new year in starting the day with God first.  The way to start that is to read his word and get it in our hearts and minds before we start the day.  We do not know what each day will bring us, so we need to make sure we are prepared in advance.  We can FULLY rely, lean and trust God at his word.  This is a Must for 2021!!

Bible Reading Plans: Bible Reading Plan Link

Bible Reading Plans For Kids: Bible Reading Plan for Kids Link

Physical/Mental:  This will be short and sweet.  Yes I know everyone starts off the New Year with fitness goals and this is a cliche.  However, this is going to be different.  My goal is to "MOVE."  This means to be active EVERY SINGLE DAY.  It could be simple as going for a walk.  Our bodies are a gift and we need to be kind to ourselves.  So for 2021 I am going to make sure that I MOVE for the entire 365 days of the year.  This is a way I show myself love and also show love to the Holy Spirit.  So I want to challenge you to MOVE for everyday in 2021!!

Nutrition:  I want to be FULLY transparent in this category.  This will probably be one of the hardest for me.  I do not have a specific plan I wish to follow.  I do not want to follow a certain diet.  I want to be a smart human being and use the brain that God gave me.  For instance, whatever I am choosing to eat, does it....... Fuel my body?  Bring nutrition to my body?  

Those are the two questions I will be asking myself.  If it doesn't check those 2 boxes I DO NOT NEED IT.  It is as simple as that.  The majority of the time I want to be able to ask myself those 2 questions.  I believe 2020 taught us that we need to keep our body healthy and our immune systems up.  As we get older we need to make sure this is a MUST.  We cannot afford to have our health decline due to things that we CAN control.  We CAN control what we put in our mouths.  We CAN control that!!  This will honestly take discipline but I feel that if I keep it simple, it is attainable.  I don't have a long list of "rules."

1) Does This Fuel My Body?

2) Does This Bring Nutrition To My Body?

Those are my Top 3 New Years Resolutions For 2021!! I told you they would be simple.  I want to leave off this post with some truth and encouragement.  

Do you know that we serve a God that knows the Beginning, Middle, and End?  Do you know that NOTHING takes God by surprise?  This pandemic did not take God by surprise.  He knows everything that is happening and that is to come.  I don't find my rest in the news stations or in the newspaper.  I find my rest in knowing that I serve a God that knows the beginning, middle, and end.  I find my peace in his word.  I know that when we remain faithful to him, he is faithful to us.  I know that we are under his covering and he will protect us.  So I want to encourage you to remain faithful.  Finish the race that is set out before you.  Endure until the very end.  Finish the race and receive your reward.  We were created for such a time as this.  You have something that this word needs during this time.  God has you alive in this specific season for this specific time!! It is an honor to be an ambassador for Jesus.  We are warriors.  We are to suit up each morning, do battle, and lead others to Jesus!!!  Sign me up!!!

Be blessed in the New Year.  Know that you are blessed and highly favored.  It is a pleasure doing this life together with other Brothers and Sisters in Christ!!

Adapting....

As Human Beings, we are creatures of habit.  We like routine, it gives us a sense of purpose and control.  We need to feel that sense of accomplishment, so when our head hits the pillow at night, we can smile with a sense of purpose.  Change is scary.  Adapting to a new environment is scary.  Trying to adapt to a changing environment is another beast in itself.   We can feel like we are treading water trying to stay a float and have the feeling of drowning at the exact same time.  

I do not have all of the answers, nor do I have it figured out on my end.  What I do have is the perception that something needs to be done!  There needs to be a concrete action in place that helps keep you accountable.  I will be going into detail below on what I am talking about. 

 Organization is Key.  You have to work with your current "schedule" and literally map it out to a science.  You need to be organized with what is expected each day, and even break it down to time blocks.  When things change, you need to start the process over from square one.  This is something that will help you stay on target and also help give that sense of control and purpose.

- Work on one day at a time (Mon-Fri)

- Have it broken down in time blocks (8-830, 830-9, 930-10) etc

- Do color coordinated tasks (you can prioritize colors etc)

- Create "free time" where you do not have to think or do anything

- Have a Rest Day.  * If God created the Universe in 6 days and took an entire day to rest, then you should too! *

Prioritize is the next step!  There are things that are more important that need to be handled first.  For an example, your health!  You need to make time to make sure your health is a priority.  If you are running on empty, then you are not giving your best to yourself, and you are giving your family members the last of yourself.  Start each day with a time block to your health.  This could be breathing exercises, mediation, yoga, going for a walk, reading the word, running, journaling etc.  Whatever helps your mind and body needs to be handled first thing in the morning.   

Being Realistic.....  This will vary from person to person on what is realistic.  If you are not a morning person, be realistic about it.  Don't come up with a plan that you know will be difficult for you.  If you struggle in the morning, then do things the night before so that way you have that extra time in the morning.  You know yourself the best, so customize a schedule that works best for you.

Forgive Yourself.  There are going to be times you may not stick to your schedule, or fail.  Learn to forgive yourself and not be so hard on yourself.  The beautiful thing is that we have another day to start fresh and get it right!! Thank God for his grace, favor, and mercy.  His mercies are new every morning!! 

I find myself currently going through a season where I find myself constantly trying to find my footing.  I feel like I can't find my ground at the moment.  I have a schedule and a routine and all of a sudden the rug is pulled out beneath me.  I find myself having to keep coming up with new routines and adapting.  This can be stressful and cause anxiety.  We just want that security blanket.  We want to know everything will be alright, and we want peace.  With the few things I mentioned above is what I find has worked for me.  I continue to work on this daily, and allow myself room for error.  If I mess up, I laugh at myself and try again the next day.  Thank God we don't need to be perfect.  I don't think I could handle that pressure. LOL

Uplifting/Encouragement Friday....

 I wanted to do this post a little different.  I wanted to share some of my favorite quotes/messages and break down my outlook on each one of them!!! 

My Outlook from the quote above:  It takes absolutely No thought/rhyme/or reason to start complaining.  This comes across like breathing.  It is natural to complain and be justified in doing so.  Some situations come to our front door because we invited it there.  Other times we did not ask for it, and it comes breaking the door down, trashing the place, and setting everything on fire.  When we complain we submit to the "victim" role.  We want to pull the "red" card and scream the words "Unfair!"  We want to surround ourselves with the right audience that views and agrees with our thought/voice. In this state of mind we only see it from our perspective.  Saying it out-loud doesn't make it right or give us justice. In this quote above it says we have 2 choices.  1) Leave the situation 

2) accept it.  It is that simple!! It is cut and dry.  To keep talking about it out-loud will only stir up anger and bitterness.  It will also rob you of peace, and that is exactly where the enemy wants you!! He wants you to sit in that rocking chair, rocking back and forth complaining about what happened, and staying in the exact same place!!  I find it easy to "leave the situation" I struggle more with the "accept it" stage.  Sometimes it is hard to fully accept something and make that part of the bed.  Sometimes you don't want to accept what that person said, or what they stand by.  Sometimes it comes with pain and hurt that you didn't ask for.  

My outlook from the quote above:  I like to have closure.  I associate "Peace and Closure" in the same chapter.  I feel those two go hand in hand.  So if I do not have closure, then I find I lose my peace. This quote above opened my eyes to seeing that they both can be separate and not go side by side.   We cannot force reconciliation.  We cannot change someones mindset that is not set on being changed.  We are responsible for our part and our part only.  We can have enlightenment in our minds but it is ALL that we have control over.  I have to come to grasp that with peace,  I may never have closure with some people, and that it needs to be ok.  The most important concept I need to grasp is that IF and WHEN that person chooses to reach out, that I need to extend my hand and accept it with no questions ask.  This goes similar to how we are with Jesus.  We may be bitter and angry and do something wrong, but when we have the clarity we go to Jesus and ask for his mercy/grace and he extends it to us with no questions ask.  Some people may in-fact actually want to stay broken, and may never want to be fixed.  We are to fight that battle in the prayer room.

My outlook from the quote above: Boundaries are one of the healthiest things you can do for yourself.  You do not have to let any and everything close to you.  You are allowed to keep people outside of your circle.  When you forgive someone, you are releasing them to God and walking away.  It is a process of freeing yourself from bondage and anger. If you allow toxic people around you, they will continue to hurt you over and over.  Some people are ok with having the enemy take up a place in their heart and be used by him.  Sometimes you may need to keep extending forgiveness to those that hurt you from a distance.  

My outlook from the quote above: In this world we tend to care about what others think about us.  We live in a society where people feel just because God gave them a voice, that they can speak and shout whatever comes to mind.  In the Bible it says we are to be "Quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger."  We are to not speak every opinion that comes to mind.  If you are lucky you should have at least 2 people in your lift that you can always go to.  These should be people that are going to tell you the truth in love, and not always agree with you.  It should be people that live their life by the Word of God, and lift you up in prayer and encourage you.  If someone says something about you, ask yourself this:  "Would I go to that person if I needed advice?"  If the answer is no, then you do not have to accept what they have said.  You do not have to attach their words to your spirit.  You can set up those boundaries and forgive their words from a distance and move on. 

My outlook from the quote above:  You have a choice each and every day.  We can wake up and make the decision that we WILL BE IN A GOOD MOOD.  We can make the choice that NOTHING is going to dictate us, and steal our peace and joy.  We are to not be led by our feelings.  Feelings are not stable and they will vary from different circumstances.  Our feelings can change in a moment, that is why we cannot give into them.  We need to make up our mind in advance!!! When we feel that shift starting to happen, we need to shake those thoughts off, and once again say "I WILL BE IN A GOOD MOOD!"  This is something you could find yourself repeating throughout the day.  The important thing to grasp is that WE are in control of how we think.  We do not have to let ANYTHING or ANYONE steal our joy and peace.  We can hold onto it not matter what storm comes our way!!