Sunday’s Thought: Okay, So Why Are You Still There?

photo above courtesy of bing/onlineincometeacher

Long ago, I had a job that I hated – for most of you I bet you’re saying “Join the club, Girl,” while this job was a dream come true in the beginning; the longer I stayed there the crazier, wackier and more dysfunctional it had become. I found myself hating to get up in the morning to take the long commute to get there, most days I cried before I got out of the car to enter the building – Yes, it was just that bad. I mean, I was (in my opinion) a good worker, I did my job and caught on quickly to any new tasks that were given to me, but no matter what I seemed to do, I still wasn’t liked or favored by upper management. They were the type of boss that showed favoritism to the people that didn’t do their jobs, they took glory in the gossipers whom sat in the corner and talked about everyone else; I mean, they joined them and talked about people too including the ones that were doing the gossiping; but here I was, trying to put out good work and still couldn’t get ahead with them, everything I did was wrong and even if it was right – they would always find a piece of the puzzle that just wasn’t put in securely.

I couldn’t win for always loosing – but I persevered on and kept doing what I was supposed to do. Suddenly one day the job that I had always wanted came up for grabs – thinking that I would be first choice for this job (since I was working closely with the person that was already doing it) I put in my application – to my surprise, quite a few people put in their applications as well for the same job – which was ridiculous to me because why would they do that and they hadn’t lifted a finger in the job that I was currently doing; but I kept my hopes up – when it came time for me to have my interview, I was excited – I was asked questions about the job that I had already known but……things turned when I was asked, “So, how much time are you willing to put into this position because it’s a lot more work than what you are doing now.” I stated – “I’m going to give it 100%.” 100%?, they asked. “I mean – you can’t commit 100% to anything, you’ll burn out.” Suddenly, I began to think about my current job and how I submitted this big report, a report that had all these mathematical numbers to it which involved budgets and accounting – no one had submitted that report and passed it error free, not even the predecessor that was once in that job – but, I had done it with flying colors – THE FIRST TIME! then I was asked the question, “Are you married?” by another interviewer, a friend of the boss in whom they felt like was knowledgeable about the job. I said No, and they both looked at each other like it was a crime to be a single mother and have a demanding job. All in all when the interview was over, they said decisions would be made tomorrow and that was it.

Tomorrow came and I was asked to come into the office, I was told later that a deputy was called in (just in case I got upset, in which is so out of my character but that was the way the authority figure was in that job – they would make hasty decisions and then call security, because they loved drama) once I sat down – I was told that I didn’t get the job and that they were sorry, they found someone else more qualified. I took a deep breath and said “Ok, is that all?” They said yes and I got up from my seat and walked out. I was told later that they were nervous because they didn’t know what I was going to do – but I had no intentions of doing anything. That was one incident out of many, many, many more incidents that happened while I was there but I continued to stay, in hopes that maybe they would see me differently and see that I really was a good worker, I worked with people whom came in the door one day and watched them take the job that I so desired, seems like the next – but I kept a good attitude through it all. So, you might say – well why did you stay? And my answer for that is “I wanted to see that authority figure fail” I wanted to see them get what they deserved because they had not only mistreated me but many other people in the process – everyone was tired of it, but no one had the power or the guts to stand up to them. I wanted God to allow me to stay so I can see them get payback for every wrong thing that they had done……what I failed to realize was this famous scripture “Vengeance is mine saith the Lord, I will repay” Romans 12:19 KJV you see, while I was sitting and waiting on them to “get theirs” I was  holding my own self back from moving forwards. Suddenly, years had passed by and I was still holding on to seeing them get their “revenge”

Staying there to see the “action” unfold had literally kept me in bondage – I had applied for other jobs and had good leads but didn’t take them, I just couldn’t let go. We can’t make someone pay for the things or the wrong doing that they’ve inflicted on us, we truly have to leave that to God. I felt the urge from God to move many times, but I had grown so accustomed to what my mind wanted to do – I ignored his voice. When God says move, we have to move or we’ll waste unnecessary energy and time in the dry place and not our new place which is flowing with milk, honey and less headaches.

I don’t know what place you’re in right now or what situation you’re facing that may be causing you to stay in the same place but let me tell you  – God left a long time ago and if you want the “new” blessings he has for you – then you have to leave the place that’s got you stuck. God can’t and won’t bless us if we continue to stay in the same situation, especially when he has provided a way of escape for us to get out.

After years of being waste deep in swamp land, I finally put my faith into action; I brought some boxes to work, went into my office and began to take my things off the walls and box them up; I then told the lord that I was finally ready to move on. While it hurt me deeply to leave, I knew that it was the best move and I have to say, while moving forward has had it’s ups and downs – God has given me more than what I had before and has put me in places and in front of people that I wouldn’t have met or experienced had I had stayed in that dry place. And when I finally left?, God did exactly what he wanted to do, Vengeance really was his, I just had to get out of his way and let him pick up the tab.

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Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

Sunday’s Thoughts: What is The Meaning of Life?

 

Photo above courtesy of bing

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I recently had someone to ask me out of the blue. “Hey, Roshonda – What is the Meaning of Life? and honestly, I was mute….Okay, so I’m the type of person where I can’t answer questions like that off of a whim, I mean it works for some people but for me, I’m a thinker, so I have to think about the question being asked, ponder on it for about 10min and get back to you. It’s sort of like the instances when people say something to you and you give them the first answer that pops off in your head but later on you think….Wow, I should have said this or that. But when the moment is gone, it’s gone and I knew I didn’t have 10min to ponder on a response so I asked them, “What do you think the meaning of your life is?”

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photo courtesy of bing by way of Brainless Tales

You see, life in itself has so many different meanings and it’s easy to look at life and try to compile a list of meanings based on what life throws our way. It’s not our job to try to figure out the meaning of life but, what the meaning of life is and how does it pertain to our current life – “US” and not someone else. So the question we should ask is – What is the meaning of my life? It’s easy to look at someone else’s life and determine what their meaning is. Whether it’s by what they do, say or act, we know what their life could mean. But the most important question of the day is … What does my life mean? God gave us life, but he didn’t just give us life to just exist, he gave us life to live it fully and on purpose. Life has no meaning whatsoever if you’re only existing. Are you walking in your purpose? Are you living out the things that God wants you to do?

We were all put on this earth to fulfill our main job and that’s our purpose. Outside of your regular 7am-3pm, 8am-5pm or 9am-5pm we have another job that we’re supposed to fulfill and that’s our purpose. Life was not just created for us to be born, go to school, fulfill our career goals, get married, have children, work hard, enjoy the pleasures of the above, get old and die. Our lives were created to do so much more and be greater than where we are; you’ll be surprised at the people whom feel as though getting married, is their main purpose in life but once that’s done, then what??? Life can seem meaningless if that’s all you feel you were put on earth to do. There has to be much more, right?

There’s a quote that says:

“Life has no meaning, each of us has meaning and we bring it to life. It’s a waste to be asking the question when you are the answer.” Joseph Campbell

So, from this day forward – don’t ask the question, what’s the meaning of life, instead look inside yourself and ask God what is the meaning of MY LIFE! Because it’s then and only then will you discover what the true question to that riddle really means but just in case you still haven’t figured it out? Let me give you a little hint – The answer is YOU.

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Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

Sunday’s Thought: Following Peace Is Not Easy Peasy…

A little over a year ago I left a church. It was a church that I truly loved, it wasn’t big, it wasn’t too small but as Goldilocks said as she said ate, sat, slept and finagled her way into baby bear’s things “It was just right” – I mean I’ve been to other churches before but this one allowed me to really express myself and use the gifting that God gave me. I mean, while there’s no perfect church. I felt as if this one was the perfect fit for me. Well as you know anytime you get comfortable with someone or some-thing –  the enemy has to come in and play his dirty card hands to make sure “your perfect sunshine” turns into doom and rain and that is exactly what happened in this case.

All I will say is, there was something heard, a whole lot of wrong communication said, my emotions took over and went into overdrive and I became very sarcastic, distant and said a bunch of things I didn’t mean (I never said I was an angel). I ended up leaving that church as fast as I had become a part of it, I vowed that I would never step foot into that place again. While I didn’t share what happened with anyone outside of the people in whom were involved; the incident left me very bitter towards them and a silent grudge within my heart.

So what does the bible mean when in Hebrews 12:14 (NLT) when it says:

Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.

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You see?, following peace is really about maintaining relationships with people, because as funny as life is, we never know whom we might need to reach out to in order to ask for a favor, we also never know whom may need us, so we must maintain a peaceful spirit and character as well, I mean think about it, if you say you’re a Christian (and most people have their different meanings as to what this means to them) and you’re supposed to be repping Christ, do you really think you should not have a good, peaceful, approachable attitude? I mean how would Jesus look if every time someone approached him with a question, he gave you the Ice Cube look…..

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Ice Cube pic courtesy of Bing

Not only would you not want to approach him but you’ll be afraid to ask him for anything. You should think about that the next time someone steps to you, are you giving them the Ice Cube look? (nothing against Ice Cube by any means =)

But following peace with all men is not an easy thing to do as they definitely wouldn’t care if you have peace concerning them. My mom used to tell me often, “Roshonda, it’s not what they do but what you do that matters.” And while I couldn’t understand what mama was saying at that time; as I became older, her words of wisdom became perfectly clear. When you’re representing a higher power it really does matter how you carry yourself. When we took the charge to be a Christian, we took an oath to not only be a follower but also a doer of his word, which means we have to represent him no matter what others do or don’t do.

Don’t get me wrong, this “following peace” way of handling things sometimes is not the most popular stance to take as I want to get my Ice Cube look on and break some necks and dare somebody to say something but I took an oath to follow Christ and with that, that means that I must follow peace. That also means that I have to apologize, even when I don’t want too – even if it wasn’t my fault. I have to forgive people, even when they laugh in my face and I know they talking about me behind my back. I have to do good to the people that just last week, threw me under the bus just to cover their tracks and I have to pray for the ones that I don’t want to pray for because I feel like they’re evil and don’t deserve God’s mercy, but then again, None of us do….

In prayer the other morning – God laid that church strongly on my heart and I reached out to the pastor….not expecting a response because it had been over a year, I imagined all the things they could have said to me, but what I got in return was love and a warm welcome. I was so elated and grateful that God put on my heart to go back and make amends and I was glad that I was still in the land of the living to do it. A lot of times we don’t want to admit when we’re wrong because we want to shift blame and refuse to humble ourselves, but if Jesus can forgive the people that done him wrong and still die for their sins inspite of their attitudes toward him, What about you? What about Me? Are we any different or above the law? NO, we’re not.

Listed below are a couple of tips to help you follow Peace more Easily…

 

Forgive and Move Forward, Literally

I can’t tell you how much time we lose trying to get people to respond to our plea for forgiveness. Listen, they’re not God and their opinion of whether your forgiveness was real or fake will not put you in heaven or hell. It’s not what they do or don’t do, it’s what you took the courage to do in spite of. The only person you should ever worry about is God himself, you know the one who actually created you? Yeah, him. Don’t waste no more time on people – whether they forgive you or not is their business and between their God, do what you were asked to do and Move On…

Expect Nothing In Return

Just because you had a come to Jesus moment with yourself doesn’t mean others have taken out the time to have that same conversation with him. God dealt with you about what you needed to do – don’t expect anything more from them. If they are true believers, they’ll come around otherwise again, do you and move boo.

 

So, What is a Christian Again?

Being a Christian means doing things as Christ would have and you have to ask yourself, would Christ hold a grudge, would he be upset at someone for years and not speak to them or bless them? Just as he wouldn’t, you shouldn’t either. Being a Christian means being Christlike even when we don’t want too.

Sometimes Peace Is Hard – Forgive yourself for your actions

Romans 12:18 (NIV) says, If it is possible as much as depends on you live peaceably with all men. When the Apostle Paul wrote that scripture he was referencing that the believers aim should be to live peaceably, but knew that sometimes peace would not be within our control. People will be people, while some will forgive – others will not but you’re not responsible for their actions and can’t help the feelings that they may have toward you, just know that God forgives you and once you’ve forgiven yourself? Feel free to move forward. When you’ve done your part, then you have to step back, let go and let God do his.

 

See ya in the next Post!!-1

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

Sunday’s Thought: Will You Please Listen To Me??

Image above is courtesy of blog site by: Moïcani – L’Odéonie

Early last week, I became annoyingly frustrated at my 13yr old daughter. Ever since she’s crossed over into “TEEN-VILLE” I’ve noticed her attitude has changed tremendously, every time I tell her what she’s going to do, the first thing that comes out of her mouth is “I Can’t Do That” or “Why??” or “That’s not for Me” or “Mama, but I” I mean don’t get me wrong, I understand when the crossover happens, everything goes haywire in their minds. Their bodies are changing, their attitudes are unbearable and their mindsets are totally different.

What happened to that 5Ib little cute baby I brought home from the hospital, the one that would stay seated when I said too and when I talked, she listened. The girl that once used to smile brightly and be grateful for everything she got, has now become the teenager whom gives me such looks as this one….

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As mama used to say, “When children are young, they’re on your lap but when they get older, they’re on your heart.” and she couldn’t have been more right. So, while I gather my heart strings together, let’s move on shall we to what I really want to convey. Every parent glories in the fact when their child comes to them and asks for advice, at that particular time, that’s our moment to shine. It’s our moment to give our kids the good, solid knowledge and wisdom that we obtained over the years. However; once we give that information to them, it hurts when they don’t take the advice and decide to do it the way they had planned in their head all along.

This was the dilemma I faced with my daughter. She came telling me about the lockers at school and how they were hard to get into. The teacher showed them how to unlock them, but they only showed them one time. My daughter went on to explain how she has been having the hardest time getting into her locker, last year was easy because they had to bring their own locks but now the 8th grade halls are filled with lockers that already have pre-set locks on them. So, she was complaining about how she didn’t have anyone to help her with her combination. “Mom to the Rescue” I said – Why not ask your friends? “They’re all busy and I don’t want to bother them” (puzzled) but they’re your friends…., okay, well what about asking your teacher for help again and so forth and so on, each time I came up with a possible solution – she kept coming up with excuses as to why my plan wouldn’t work. The more scenarios I came up with the more she debunked them…

Finally she said, “I’m just going to carry my stuff around, It’s really no big deal” By this time I had gotten a little frustrated and just told her to do what she wanted to do. But at the same time, I thought – Okay, so why did you come to me again?

As I walked on the treadmill that morning – I began to think about the situation with my daughter and how it related to God. I began to wonder how God must feel when we come to him with an issue and he gives us a solution but we make excuses as to why his way wouldn’t work and why our way is better. And I’m sure like me, he wants to say – But, Would you just listen to me?

Shunning my daughter away after a failed success of listening etiquette, is exactly how God does us. When we refuse to listen to his way, he let’s us go to do it our way and when our way fails?, unlike our so-called friends whom shame us by saying such lines as “I told you so” or “See, you should have listened to me” or “You feel crazy now, don’t you” and in most cases, they wash their hands of you altogether – All because you didn’t “listen” to their instructions. But if you’ve suffered or paid the price for not listening to God (and I believe we all have) Get ready to be celebrated because God in all his mercy and grace doesn’t do us like that, he’s not the God that’s going to make you feel badder than what you already feel, instead he accepts us back with forgiving arms.

And that’s how I did my daughter when she came back to me that same day to apologize. Just as a good parent would do, God is available to give you his wisdom and instructions for you to have a good life, what seems like the right choice in our head at the moment; may not be the same way in which God would like for us to handle the situation. I promise and it’s not always popular – But getting advice from God is the best way, it may take you longer to get through it, but you can rest assured that the end result will be a “sweet success”

While I continue to work on my patience with my daughters up and down ways, God wants to know from you today “Would you just listen to Me?” – Are you listening?…

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Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud & Love Hard!

All other images used were courtesy of Bing ~

Sunday’s Thought: You Betta Get Your Time Back!!!

If you don’t know Devon Franklin by name or the fact that he’s an award-winning Hollywood producer, best-selling author, preacher and motivational speaker – Oh and the fact that he’s produced several movie’s such as “Miracles From Heaven”, “Heaven is for Real,” and was named as Beliefnet‘s “Most Influential Christians under 40”

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Devon Franklin – Image Courtesy of Bing

Well, if you’re still clueless – then you might have seen his face with this gorgeous young lady, mega actress Mrs.  Meagan Good – in which he married in 2012.

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Meagan Good – Image courtesy of Bing

Together they both co-wrote the New York Times bestseller “The Wait.” in which chronicles their story of finding love, remaining celibate until marriage and offers inspiration for couples and/or singles going through the same thing. Their story was one of those whimsical fairy tales that you seem to only hear about in movies; although theirs was the real deal. Now, while I love this couple – this post isn’t about them in particular, but how my life literally changed overnight listening to Devon Franklin’s message of “Reclaiming My Time” in which he spoke about at The Potters house – ONECHURCH LA, where Pastor Toure’ Roberts and first lady/Evangelist Sarah Jakes-Roberts (daughter of mega pastor Bishop T.D. Jakes) are the pastor and co-pastor.

Don’t get me wrong I’m always talking about time and how we should maximize every moment given to us; but the message that I heard on last week from Devon, was like a big rush of wind that went in and out of my body. Because of that message, I am now getting up at 5:45am in exercise and prayer. Can I get a AMEN!!!

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Of course, I’m not one that likes to keep good things to herself – so, I had to share this message with my audience and hope that once you hear it and get your burst of wind; that you in turn, turn around and share it with your friends, family, co-workers or anyone that you know whom could use a message such as this. I pray it blesses you to not only look at the time that you are wasting but to get UP!, BE PRO-ACTIVE! & DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!!

We’ve all been the slave of giving too much of our time away to unnecessary people and relationships or spending too much time on senseless things; let this be your wake-up call to quit hitting SNOOZE! and do what God has equipped you to do, because……..TIME! IS PRECIOUS & TICKING!!

Enjoy this message – For more information on Devon Franklin, you can click on his name above to find out about and pre-order a copy of his forthcoming new book entitled The Hollywood Commandments” – A Spiritual Guide to Secular Success. You can also follow him on various social media outlets to check out what he’s doing next and trust me, you’ll want to become an avid follower when you do…

Check out the powerful video below and make it a point after today to “GET YOUR TIME BACK!!”

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud & Love Hard!

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