Navigating Seasons

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Hey Family! I hope this finds you doing well! Today I just wanted to share something that has been in my thoughts. In a few months I will be turning a year older and always around this time, I’m nervous. I’m usually more nervous and asking myself if I had done enough or did I do everything I wanted to do in this current year of life. Often times I would get a bit stuck into it because I would find a list of things I had planned for the year around my last birthday and would get completely overwhelmed over not getting everything done. In the last 6 months I’ve realized that the best way to navigate time and pace is by season. The definition of season is the 4 divisions of the year (spring, summer, autumn, and winter) marked by particular weather patterns and daylight hours, resulting from the earth’s changing positions with regard to the sun. We can easily compare these stages to our lives and we can really conclude there is a time and place for everything. Some of us have a period of seed planting. You don’t get to see the result right away but you know that the outcome could be great. This is why some of us go to college, or take up a trade. We plant seeds in the ground because we know that the rainfall can help cultivate and grow the seed. I start really paying attention to my life and what has and has not been working. I think we all should take a glimpse to see what is actually going on. If you do this, you would be able to define the season that you are in. I really believe that we should never stop learning and growing. I remember just a few months ago, I wanted to changed careers and find a new job. I filled over 50 applications, did interviews, and even second interviews but for some reason I didn’t find anything that fitted my interest for moving into something different. I often asked God why was it so hard to move forward. Finally, the revelation came and it came from a seasonally perspective. I was in a season of building. Harvest time wasn’t quite there yet for me. So I begin to continue working on what I had put off because I was irritated with not getting the instant results that I thought I needed. Literally 3 months later I started walking into my harvest. I plan to share this more in depth but I’ll share this. In a one month span of time I had went from teaching 3 piano students to now teaching 12. I realize now that if I had moved to quickly and even got another job, I couldn’t do what I really wanted to do. I wouldn’t even have the schedule or time to make it happen and honestly i am really doing something that I really enjoy. I enjoy seeing the light bulb come on while teaching music to my students. So I encourage you right now. If you find yourself feeling stuck and not knowing where or what you’re doing, try figuring out what season you’re in. It could possibly be a season for you to sit back and listen, and learn. It could also be a season for you to start taking leaps of faith because you might have been too comfortable for too long.

Be Blessed!

Going to Church Every Sunday with No Personal Relationship With God is Dangerous Pt.1

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Hey Family! Welcome back to another blog with me. I won’t be before you long today but I posted a status a couple of days ago that says, “ Going to church every Sunday with no personal relationship with God is Dangerous”. So just from reading the title some might get it but others might say, “how so”? So let me explain and dive in. This observation comes from a man who has been in church since he was 3 years old, and I’m not claiming to know everything but from over the years, I’ve gained some wisdom and knowledge and have seen a lot of things.

First, lets start with what is the church and it’s duty. Let’s go very basic. I promise I won’t be super spiritual here in any ways because it’s not that deep, but the basic definition of a church is a building used for public Christian worship. We can also go a little feet in and sum it up as a community of faith with other believers. This is pretty standard across the board of all denominations. This is the glue. All churches have their own set of beliefs, standards, and way of doing things. Some churches have services that start very early while others have services that start late. Some churches have mid week services while others have small groups on the weekends. Our various local churches make available these opportunities for people to grow in their faith and build their relationship with God.

So the part that comes dangerous is this: You can attend every Sunday Service and every bible study meeting and miss having a relationship with God. Coming to the service is usually the easiest part to do but it requires behind the scenes work. What you learn on Sunday should be looked over, meditated on, and even prayed over during the week. This is how you actually bring your Sunday morning worship experience home and into your life. Out of religion or tradition we do things based on habit. Think about it. You wake up everyday and shower, Comb your hair, put on clean clothes, drink your coffee and go out the door for work by 9am. You’ve done this so well that you don’t even have to think about it because you have developed a rhythm or habit that requires very little of your brain to work because the task are being delivered by muscle memory. Isn’t it funny how some folks would go to a church service, and know all the tactics of the service and how to conduct themselves. I remember growing up in a baptist church, and when you needed to walk out of the service, you needed to walk by holding up one finger (as if you were saying, excuse me). Now that I think of these things, I wonder how much more noticeable were people doing this, as if not doing didn’t draw attention to the person walking. We already know you were going to the restroom. Let’s get back to it. Some of us have become programmed in a service. We know when to clap, stand, and when to say amen. Most of us have this on autopilot. You mean to tell me there are some people who go to Sunday services and do autopilot stuff? You mean to tell me you got up early on a Sunday morning to go to a place and do every single thing you did the last week, last month, and years back. If you are reading this and you think I’m talking about you then hear me clearly. There is no great attendance record for showing up to church every Sunday that will make you more righteous than the next person. How come? Well if you never take what you’ve learned from that one day of the week and never place it in your Monday- Friday, then you are forfeiting the precious relationship you could be having with God. God wants to hear from you every single day. Just don’t wait to pray on Sunday or talk about God on Sunday. When you think about it and really break it down, how can a 2 hour service impact and over come 144 hours of 6 Days you have away from your local church on a Sunday. Kids spend at least 6 hours a day in grade school learning everyday math, history, English, and other various subjects. Friends don’t expect your faithful Sunday mornings of attendance to get you brownie points for God. You can have that same Sunday service in your home Monday- Friday, even in the car, or even at your job. We are going to break this down into about 3 parts as we progress this week. I will share how you can develop your relationship with God while attending your local church. Part 2 is coming Friday!!!

Stay In Your Own Lane

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Happy Wednesday Family! I hope you all are doing well and that you had a restful holiday weekend. Today I want to share my thoughts on staying in your own lane and how important it is to own it.

So first, let me just say this. What God has for you, is for you! When you were created, he had your life mapped out from beginning to end. He has a destiny for you and after he created you he put you in your own lane. Now… what’s amazing about this lane is that you can see others in their own lane as you move forward. You can even see these people behind you if you decide to look backwards. Some of these people might even cross into your lane sometimes and you might cross into theirs BUT you have your own lane with your identity. Let’s break this down even more. In your own lane, you might have bumps in it, or even road construction and other may not. These things can be recognized as the struggles of life. We all go thru something but it happens at various times in our lives. I remember growing up and experiencing chicken pox. I was the last in my family to experience this disease. My cousins experienced theirs years before I did. That’s pretty much how life goes. What we can’t do is focus, or compare someone else’s life to ours just because it seems like they are making more progress than us. It can even seem like their doing less work than we are and we might even come equipped with more experience or even a longer resume. I want to encourage you again. Say this with me, “What God has for me, is for Me”. Trust his timing and also remember to use the vehicle of faith. God wants us to exercise our faith. Faith is believing and doing the thing you don’t see. So some things you will have to try. You may have heard the term “step out on Faith” well that simply means try it without knowing the outcome. Yes, in your own lane, there will be times when you must step up to the plate to bat your turn not knowing if it will be your opportunity and time to shine or it maybe a time for you know if this thing is for you or not. Regardless of the outcome, it will be add to your experience. Everything we go through contains a lesson. Lesson Learned. Whether it’s what to do or not to do, everything we go through contains a lesson. So I encourage you to own your own lane. I’m always saying to myself that I should be further along or I’m supposed to have done this or that. I remember just last week I finally applied for my passport. In my head I was always feeling some type of way seeing others travel internationally and I’m in my 30s and don’t have a passport. I remember last week walking into the post office for my appointment and the employee told me that there were a couple people in front of me and that I would be waiting for a while. I kindly said ok and took a seat. As I was seating there waiting, a elderly woman started to make small talk with me about how much info they needed for the passport application. While talking to her she told me her son was in Australia and eventually one day she wanted to be able to visit. This lady had to be well in her 60s. She told me she had never been out of the country, and she’s not in a rush to do it but if she has to she will able to now with her passport. I quickly thought to myself, that I’m 30 years ahead but not only that I’m on time and in my lane at the time I should have this passport. Don’t get caught up comparing yourself to others. I know it’s so easy to do it in this world of social media where everyone only post the good stuff lol but I guarantee even the people you think that are great have the same thought processes too. They might even be looking at you wondering how your process seems so much quicker than theres. Remember this! Your lane was tailored made for you. Carved out for you. Trust the process that’s will lead you to your destiny. God Bless!