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I’m sure I am not the only one whom has let the cares of life take you by storm and the next thing you know you’re swept away into it’s waves never to be found again….this is depending on how long you decide to let those cares be the driving force in your life. It’s so easy to get “caught up” in the hype of “I’m tired of being the first to always lend a helping hand, I’m tired of always being the one whom has to smile first or I’m tired of always being the one to say “I’m sorry first……For once, I would just like to be like everybody else, doing what I want to do and saying what I want to say, so why can’t I…

Some months ago, that was me – I had let the cares of the world, my job, home, church and everything else to take the ride with me to “I don’t care-ville”. I had allowed my environment to get the best of me, people were used to seeing me smile and have a “happy-go-lucky” attitude no matter what, so much so they even wondered if I ever got mad or upset about anything, so when I was beginning to show another side of me that they had never seen, I began to get questioned about my behavior….anybody that had something to say that was negative, I quickly joined forces with them and became negative too. If someone said they hated work and how disgusted they were to be there; I joined the bandwagon with them and began to hate my work as well, I suddenly began to disassociate myself with the positive-upbeat person that people had become to know, I was now joy riding on the wings of disgust, disappointment and depression for almost 3 weeks until…..

A co-worker of mine approached me, she said Roshonda? Where’s Mary Poppins! At first I was like who? I had heard of Mary Poppins but could not readily put who she was and my association with her in my mind. Just to give you a backstory – Mary Poppins was the nanny to a couple by the name of  Mr.. and Mrs.’s Banks; whom had four children, Jane and Michael; and baby twins John and Barbara. When the children’s nanny, Katie; storms out of their lives, Mary Poppins mysteriously arrived at their home, complete with her traveling carpetbag, blown in by a very strong wind. She accepts the job, and the children soon learn that their nanny, though she is stern, vain, and usually cross, has a magical touch that makes her wonderful.  In the end, Mary Poppins is satisfied with the work she has done with the Banks family, and the West Wind carries her away

So why was my co-worker calling me Mary Poppins? Her version was this – Roshonda, I am not used to seeing you this way, I’m used to you smiling all the time and when I come to your office, it smells so sweet: it literally brightens my day and for a moment, I know that all things are good in the world, I see you as Mary Poppins because you have a joy about you all the time, like her you have an umbrella of happiness spreading it around to everyone. I have to say this shocked me because I did not know that she thought or seen me that way, when she left I began to take inventory of my behavior and simply thought, Lord I let you down. The bible says in : Matthew 5:13-16 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.

As a Christian, I was not representing God in the best light or  even in the best way, as Christians we have to realize that we are the only bible that a dying world will ever pick up to read and if our inward bible is not on point, then they will put us in a basket with everyone else, if you are proclaiming to be a Christina then you have to do your best no matter what to represent God in the best way….that’s through your giving, your smile, your warm and gentle demeanor, the way you talk, the way you respond, the way you act toward craziness or unpredictable circumstances, we are being looked at and tested in more ways than we realize….If we FAIL, then that means we have not only failed ourselves but we may have failed to lead people to God.

People today are depressed, hurt, suicidal and have the mind set that no one loves them, some even believe that there is no God, they don’t believe he exist. So, we as Christians are supposed to be the examples that he is ALIVE AND WELL! we show this by the way we live on a daily basis. I decided that day to change my mindset about my situation, yes, things get hard and Lord knows they get tough but I have a greater power at work living on the inside of me, in which I ask God daily if my attitude for  that day was pleasing in his sight, because its not about ME but about the soul that is watching me.

So where is my Mary Poppins? she’s right here ready, motivated and willing to serve –  Because greater is he that is within me than he that is within the world. 1 John 4:4

Is Mary Poppins active in your life?