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Good day all! Hoping all is well with you and yours on this lovely Fall evening. 😊

Recently, while taking inventory of all the blessings in my life– the amount of unmerited favor dispensed, obstacles that were overcome, storms weathered, and goals achieved, I came to the realization that although I didn’t succeed at each and every endeavor I attempted, neither did I fail.

In fact, I could probably count the number of failures that I have experienced in my lifetime on one hand!!! Please understand, I am NOT in ANY way saying this to be boastful, and this is not a declaration of my inability to fail or any attempt to display any hint of superiority. It is however a very real and very honest acknowledgement of the fact that if I did not succeed at something, it is not because I failed–it is because I QUIT!! 😃 And if I sound excited, it’s because I AM, especially now that I know what I know!

And the reason WHY I quit more times than I care to admit?  It is always because ‘SHE’ won.

SHE. HER. For my male readers– HE. HIM. That inaudible, yet very loud nuisance which resides inside the head of each and every living and breathing human being. Some call it ‘the enemy’, the inner critic, Satan, the devil, the list goes on and on, but no matter what you may call it, him or in my case, ‘HER’, we have all fallen victim to the lies they absolutely LOVE to tell us–particularly the one called ‘ I failed’ but the truth is, ‘I Quit’.

I listen to HER because she sounds a whole lot like me—after all, SHE knows all of my weaknesses, insecurities, and fears and reminds me that if anyone should discover those things which I would prefer to stay hidden, it would be my ruin, so SHE keeps me scaled back, in sort of a safe space–my comfort zone. SHE is relentless in reminding me that there are countless glass ceilings in existence and that there are only certain people who possess the pair of pumps sufficient to break them, but sadly those pumps don’t come in my size, so I should spare myself the embarrassment of daring to dream of accomplishing anything outside the norm.

I was harsh and unkind to myself because I believed that I had failed in some very significant areas in my life. Whew!!!!The years I spent on regret, self-loathing and branding myself as a failure–only to discover that the real failure is not realizing that I did not fail—I only quit.  Frankly, I am sick of HER and HER lies. SHE only won because I let HER–in fact, SHE only existed because I gave HER my attention,my will and my power.

Do you know what this means????!!!

I didn’t fail at obtaining my MBA—I Quit!!

I didn’t fail at writing and publishing children’s books–-I Quit!!!

I didn’t even fail at blogging—I Quit!!!!

That was an extremely short list of ‘NON-FAILS’ for the sake of time, but I now realize that I am just as capable as any other who has succeeded at the things that I attempted—the difference and what I perceived as a failure is that they kept going and I Quit.  If I am still living and breathing, then there is still time to pick up where I started. And there is ABSOLUTELY a pair of glass shattering pumps designed specifically for these feet—- Sized 9 to be exact! 😏💪🏾

If you are reading this blog, I pray that you too can silence that SHE, HE—that pessimistic critic within, and re-evaluate what you may have labeled as ‘failures’ in your life. You may discover that you too didn’t fail–you just quit!! AND–if you have the desire, simply pick up where you started. It is not too late.

Be blessed everyone and thank you for reading. 🤎😘

Good day everyone, hoping all is well!!  💕

Quick question: Have you ever faced a giant? I certainly have and am willing to bet $$$ that anyone reading has too, but if you haven’t, just wait because you will.

Imagine how you would feel if you were walked onto a battlefield and forced to stand trembling while a 12 ft+ hulking giant with rippling muscles, a thunderous voice and superhuman strength (kinda like the image above, lol) towered over you, anticipating the battle cry which would signal the beginning of your very brutal end. You would be terrified and certain that you were no match for this beast—in fact, who in the world thought you would even BE a match?? Your only hope would most likely be that the end would be at best, very quick.

While what I just described is a bit of a stretch, the giants we often face in our lives are quite similar.

Real life ‘giants’ are problems, situations, and circumstances which seem impossible to kill, or even fight for that matter.  They seem to be much bigger and stronger than we are, and any attempts to defeat them would be useless because we are no match for these massive enemies.  What’s worse is that these ‘giants’ are menacing and never seem to approach quietly. Their footsteps can be heard from miles away, constantly taunting and threatening to end you the entire way.  And as an added bonus, their voices are so loud and deafening, it is difficult to hear anything else, even after they are gone–for the day that is. Their reign of terror seems to last for what seems like ages.

‘Giants’ come in many forms–they could be people, physical or mental illness, death, infidelity, insecurities, debt, an exam you can’t seem to pass, or anything that threatens to destroy you and crumble before it in defeat.  Just as sure as we live and breathe, we are certain to face our share of them and in many forms—that is inevitable, but as terrifying as they may be, the good news is that they CAN be defeated.

I want to share with you what God revealed to me years ago, and it has been a reminder that He has delivered me from countless circumstances which I thought would kill me, and probably SHOULD have killed me, but did not, and because of that I am able to view my ‘giants’ in a different way and even rejoice for the victory to come.

God gave me this:  G.I.A.N.T–God Is Announcing Next Triumph!!! 🙌

When I recall some of the ‘giants’ that I have faced, I now realize that although they were fierce contenders, some of them turned out to be a fraction of the size I initially thought them to be, and that I already have all the resources for battle.  Fear is a master in the art of magnification and if you let it whisper to you, half the battle is lost even before it begins. The battles with these ‘giants’ are absolutely brutal, and I do get roughed up, beat up, sustain some very painful wounds, but I make it through.  And I have learned to declare myself Triumphant whether I kill my ‘giant’ or limp away without it killing me!!! In other words, the victory is not only awarded when you win, but also when you make it out alive.  Once the battle ends, and it will end, I am able to tell others in full confidence that if I made it through, so can they.

It has been said that God sometimes gives the toughest battles to the strongest soldiers, and often in the middle of a very heated battle, you may feel anything but strong, but when it ends and you live to tell about it, count it as another Triumph.

So, the next time you have to face a giant, go ahead and by all means prepare for a real tough fight, but rest assured that this G.I.A.N.T is a sure confirmation that God Is Announcing your Next Triumph!!!

I hope this blesses someone and as always, thank you for reading. 😊

Hello all! Thank you for stopping by and I hope all is well with you and yours on this day!  😊

You may recall that in my very first blog, I mentioned that this year, our garden is rather impressive—to us, that is and as compared to the gardens that we have attempted in the past.

You see, each year, Ray and I, attempt to plant a vegetable garden.  We consider it a family garden, as my parents, Floyd and Faye, do their share of the gardening work–helping to till and fertilize the rows, planting, watering, pulling weeds and sometimes even harvesting. Watching our garden grow is very peaceful—it reminds us of God’s awesome handiwork and it is even more rewarding if we are able to reap a harvest, which is rare for us, oh but this year!!! We are all just so proud of it, and each day, we walk out to see if anything new has budded or if anything is ready to pick.

A few days ago, Ray and I walked out to the garden as we normally do, and I was suddenly hit with a revelation.

Look at the pics below:

The first pic reflects rows of peppers, tomatoes, peas, okra, squash, and corn. But if you look closely to the second pic, you will see what appears to be patches of plants growing randomly in the garden.  These patches are not weeds—- these are turnip greens which were NOT planted this year, and were actually the first plant to pop up!!! In fact, we have NO idea what year they were planted!!!😃

This year, we decided that in order to have a chance at a harvest, we would need to take different measures in how our garden was planted. So, instead of tilling the soil and throwing out some seed and adding some store bought fertilizer, we decided to till our rows mixed with a natural fertilizer— chicken manure.

Not long after we made our rows for the first half of the garden and began planting peppers, tomatoes, peas, okra, squash, and corn, we noticed that there were turnip greens sprouting in those random spots, but neither of us had planted any. Ray and Daddy determined that these random patches were the result of old green seeds which were planted long before—at least a year or two prior, but had never taken root, that is until now.  We like to think it is because finally,  combined with the right fertilizer and a couple of different methods, the conditions were just right for growing. And though it was an uncomfortable process, because trust me, chicken manure STINKS—BAD, it was very much necessary, as it produced the best vegetable garden we’ve grown yet!!

This spoke to me, and was God’s reminder that there are dreams and goals that have been planted within me, but I gave up on the harvest because I saw no signs of sprouting, but just like these old green seeds, they too have taken root and have just  been waiting for the right conditions to make their appearance. And as of late, I have been in enough uncomfortable and stinky situations to unearth everything that was ever planted in me===good or bad!

Often, seeds are planted within us throughout our lives. Some seeds we plant purposely, and others are planted unknowingly and sometimes by others—and they could take root and sprout when least expected.

Seeds can be planted or manifested, by either word or deed and they are not always the good kind, so please be mindful of the things that you say and do to your children, to others, and just as importantly to yourself.  Many people grow to believe lies about themselves because of what one person said, or the lies they told themselves (Guilty)and it stumps their growth.  On the contrast, the same is true for those who have had kind words spoken over and into their lives, so they live a life which flourishes–believing that anything is possible.

So, may you speak kind words–they take root, especially if they are accepted as truth.  Do kind and unselfish deeds, so that these same deeds and better may be returned to you. The Bible tells us to do unto others, as we would have them to do unto ourselves–though it is not always easy.

I hope this post inspires you to revisit the dreams and goals in your life that you too may have discarded as seeds which did not take root. If you are like me, you may discover those uncomfortable, stinky conditions you found yourself in, were perfect and necessary to realize your harvest. And just as importantly, be aware of the seeds that have been planted within you that you don’t need taking root—things like limiting beliefs about yourself, malice, envy and jealousy, as these will always keep you from your harvest.

I am learning that life is what we make of it— what we put in it, so plant good seeds, and fertilize them with ‘good vibes’.😘

As always, thank you for stopping by to read my thoughts, and if it helped you, tell someone!!! Leave me a comment or suggestion–I would love to hear from you!