A Shift of Focus

There was a time in your life where you chased and longed for God's presence so profoundly... To the point that your bible became torn and marked up because your desire to know him was so deep... A time where everything about ministry excited you, and no one could stop you from telling others of the goodness of God. 

I hear so loudly in my ear "Where has it all gone? Where have you gone to? 

This was like a dagger to my heart, it was  a truth that no one wants to hear... Faking it like everything is great. But what was my void? My disconnect?

I let myself focus on what the people were doing, what I was hearing, what I was seeing. A lack of care, respect and love. I was blinded by all those characteristics that as humans we all display at one point or another. What I'm saying is I took my eyes off God and became DISTRACTED! It was not the people it, it was my shift in focus... 

Have you ever been distracted? We usually don't realize the small distractions until we are Full-Blown distracted and disconnected. 

How can we come out of this?

Shift your focus back to God, take time to isolate yourself and build your relationship again. Through prayer (be as honest w/Him as possible, don't hold anything back! This is actually really hard, because it brings you to some harsh realizations and some feelings we may not be comfortable feeling) Listen & Read his word!!!  

RECONNECT! Every life craves community or friendship and that doesn't make us weak or weird. We are actually designed to live in relationship with the one who made us. Let your need for interaction lead to action and invite others in, its not always someone else's responsibility. 

Begin by rebuilding with Him, take a risk this new year build a deep relationship with your creator and create community with those around you.♥

~Freckled Marie

Make it a Powerful Friendship

Everyone has their definition of what a friend is... But today I want to focus more on what builds a POWERFUL FRIENDSHIP. 

Now here comes my "Honesty spiel" I struggle with being a great friend. I tend to fall into the "Out of sight out of mind" concept and I honestly don't do it on purpose. This past year, I've really been focusing on myself and trying to learn as much about myself as possible. This was a clear area of where I struggle for various reasons. 

Recently, I started thinking more about my friends and their strengths and how they are better at being a "friend" than I am... (Faced my truth, it hurt) 

         Below are a few key things I observed, I admire in them and I will be doing my best to apply: 

         1. GOD... "The mister before the sister" their ability to be friends with others is a direct reflection of their relationship with God. (insert arrow straight to my heart)

        2. SHOW UP... Schedule a day with friends(we're constantly planning something).

        3. THE GIVER... Call or text, send a gift, plan a surprise, or just do something nice to let them know they matter.

        4. SPEAK IN LOVE... Give compliments (its not a competition), and remind them that they are loved.

        5. TELL THE TRUTH... I'm a strong believer of this... (Tell me when i'm wrong or right - maybe I need that outside perspective) But also make every effort to reconcile relationships that have been lost due to disagreements... Approach them with love, patience, & kindness. 

If you struggle with friendships on the same level as I do, maybe these 5 areas are a good place to start...

I've been blessed with some pretty amazing friends and I definitely don't want to lose them ♥ 

IS IT TOO LATE??? 

Is it too late to chase your dreams? Too late to try new things? Too late to change? 

My friends & family know I am usually always up to something... I love trying new things, going to different places, and just exploring my options... 

This blog, was actually a big step for me, a new "something" & I'm happy I tried it. I actually love to write and get feedback from my readers.

But, sometimes just sometimes, there are choices in life that limit our journey... However, that doesn't mean our aspirations have come to an end. We can make decisions to move past our limitations and that's exactly what I have been doing and will continue to do.

Here comes my transparent moment... You ready??? 

Its really hard to get past failures and even harder to forgive myself for giving up and failing. The lack of forgiveness that I have had with myself has really created tons of guilt and honestly hindered my progress. Has anyone been here? I'm my worst critic!!!  I admire those that can fail and just get up and try try again. The feeling of shame, embarrassment & self-doubt come rushing in when I fail like a ton of bricks and knock me right on my butt. I guess I've grown a bit, I am looking through a new lens and here is what I see:

Feeding into my feelings over failure has held me back tons. I have missed opportunities, and beat myself up about it. I have accomplished some but not all my goals. Yet all my failures have taught me "What not to do" and I have wasted time. 

Forgiving myself has given me freedom, and I can now move forward to trying again and accomplishing what I set out to do. Don't be so hard on myself, as there is plenty that I "Have" accomplished and although I have wasted time there is still plenty of time left. Learn from my failures and let them inspire me. There have been plenty that have failed but it just takes that one time to get it right... Get up & try try again...Many already see you for who you are trying to be.  It's never too late, to be who you truly are ♥

*PUSHING PAST COMFORT*

DISSATISFIED! There are seasons in my life where I consistently feel unsatisfied. There has to be more to life! I have come to the conclusion that when I am most discontent is when I am most comfortable. I do not like being comfortable, it gets boring so quick, I seek thrill and new adventures. Yet I fall into my comfort level so quickly... For most we strive to achieve a level of comfort in life, to be at ease and in control. Some things that can provide that comfort level are; making good money, the purchase of a home, having a family, a retirement plan, etc... 

But are you happy? I constantly come across people that have achieved everything on their list to be comfortable and most of them are unhappy and unsatisfied with their lives. Don't get me wrong...Yes I want to own my home, Yes my family is important to me, Yes making good money & having a retirement plan is important. Those are all comfortable goals, what risk are you taking? What happens after you have accomplished all of that? What other goals are there in life? I think what we all really seek is purpose, and we get so caught up in being comfortable we forget that we wanted more out of life and in turn become unsatisfied. 

If you're not happy with where you are than its YOUR responsibility to change it. Start with adopting a growth mindset, become a self expert (what makes you come alive? What are your natural gifts? What are your God given gifts? And which careers or positions align with those things?) These are all things I'm working on myself... Become comfortable with taking risks and embracing the adventures that come along with it. At the end we only regret the chances we don't take and I don't want to look back at my life and say I wish I would of done that.  

I've been encouraging myself more and more to pray, plan and prep for what's around the corner. Life can be thrilling if you let it. I don't want to settle for a good life, I want a great life and I want to be intentional in my pursuit of GREAT! I also want to enjoy the journey, take risks,  and not become complacent in my own comfort zone.

   In a Funk?




It's been a while peeps, almost a full year! But, lets jump right into it. This past year has been good, full of fun, some goals met, changes made, growth and some exciting things pending, etc. But what I want to talk about today is NEGATIVITY. I've dealt with a lot of mental negativity this year and mostly my own doing. I've let different sources influence my way of thinking...

          Gossip- the he said, she said or the "I heard's"
          Social Media (the worst)- there is so much negativity here I cant even begin!
          Music- all of a sudden i'm hood lol (I got a little in me tho)
          TV- There's plenty here too that can really adjust your way of thinking: be it in marriages,                           parenting, what defines you as successful, how you should be living life and more...
          Work- The constant complaining (that eventually rubs off on you), bickering, foul language                            (used so regularly that you are now bringing it home)
       
Negativity is literally everywhere!!! And its hard not to feed into it.

Overall I'm a pretty neutral and happy person. But all the negativity was starting to weigh me down and causing me to have a not so pleasant attitude along with a negative outlook on pretty much everything. It was also starting to rub off on to those that are around me all the time. The more negativity I fed into my life, the more unhappy I became. I was not a fan of who I was becoming and I'm usually always my biggest fan :)

So.... I made some changes...

I cut back on my social media use, started listening to positive music, barely watch TV and try to tune out as much negativity as I can. Along with praying about a lot that I usually try to handle myself and now I am trusting God with. This has made a huge difference for me!!!!

We have control of who or what we feed from... and if you're in a funk or struggling with negativity ask yourself what or who is influencing your life? Whatever is taking up most of your time is probably your answer.

I'm no philosopher and in no way am I trying to tell anyone what to do. I'm just using this blog to speak about my personal life experiences and what has worked for me. This is my way of being transparent...

Till next time ♥

GETTING RID OF THAT DEAD WEIGHT

Let it go...

I came across this picture on the internet two days ago, and it has pierced my heart ever since. Have you ever held on to something or someone for so long you haven't even noticed how heavy the burden has become? How long is too long? How much more can you carry, before breaking? As human beings, we try to work things out on our own as much as possible. Maybe a pride thing so we can say we can handle it and not seem like we've lost control (control freaks maybe lol). But there comes a point in our lives, where things are really out of our control and its simply best to let go and let things pan out on their own. Reality is, if its sucking the life out of you, is it really worth hanging on to? Could there be more or better if you simply let go? You will never know whats next or on the other side until you can move past your current situation. I'm seriously talking to myself here, for far too long I have tried to hang on to my comfort zone. I mean who doesnt like being comfortable? But as much as I've enjoyed being comfortable, there is this sense of dissatisfaction. As if there is more for me out there... So without risk, there is no great reward or fail. But if I fail, I will have learned a great lesson on what not to do and try again. As the saying goes... "Do what you always do, and you will get what you've always gotten". With this new season coming, I will be trying my best to let go of the old, break some barriers, and try try again. Is there anything that you have been holding on to, that could possibly be holding you back or weighing you down? Could there be more for you? 

These are just my thoughts...But... 

~Freckled Marie

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