11/29/2016 0 Comments CatalystYesterday I got on Periscope and talked about the definition of catalyst. The definition that I chose to focus on was from dictionary.com:
a person whose talk, enthusiasm, or energy causes others to be more friendly, enthusiastic, or energetic. That is part of my mission. To allow my light to shine so bright that others will be caused to be "lit" lol. To fire people up so that they can be their best selves. To inform, instruct and inspire; unlock the cage, unleash the fire. So many people are stuck in cages or boxes that they've either put themselves into or that someone else has put them in. They become stuck in bad habits, harmful cycles, damaging relationships, etc. Until they become empty shells occupying the land and nothing more. Some barely functioning. So many people dying full instead of pouring out what God gave them to the world. My catalyst moment was a broken engagement. It followed a job loss and debilitating morning sickness. Initially it made me so mad and that's what fueled my steps forward. That changed shortly after (yet another post lol) Soon I was setting goals and smashing them, operating from a place of peace instead of one of pain and desperation. That catalyst changed my entire life and those around me even though the situation itself didn't change. That didn't matter to me afterwhile because I had gotten the best end of the deal, I got freedom
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11/18/2016 0 Comments GET IN FORMATIONNo. I'm not talking about Beyoncé's song lol.
It is important to get in the right formation with God. What I means is that you need to be in the proper posture. Think about this...When you have poor body posture it causes pain in various body parts and sometimes even deformation or deterioration. So of course being in poor posture in Christ could bring about similar results. Not only do you need to be in the proper posture in worship but you also need to be in alignment with where God called you to be. Proper posture in worship is visible. When you worship, you are in the presence of the King. It is custom to bow in the presence of royalty. So when you worship the King why wouldn't you bow your head and stretch your arms? It is also custom to address royalty with pleasantries and respect. So when worshipping the King of Kings open your mouth in adoration and praise. Not only does this confuse the enemy, it also pleases God. When I was 19, I told my uncle that I felt called to ministry. I asked him how I could be sure. In fact, I just short of grilled him for answers and clarity. Part of my asking was because I didn't want to misstep, and be wrong, but the other part was fear of what that required. I wasn't ready to be judged by my past. I wasn't ready for the attempt at condemnation. I wasn't ready for all of my mistakes to be magnified with seemingly no hope of redemption. I wasn't ready for people to reject me because I was so young. Mainly, I wasn't ready to be stretched. I wasn't prepared for the sacrifice that ministry would require. I didn't want to be cut, shaken and pressed for the anointing or prepared to bear the mantle. The strange thing is, my fear of being told that I was "wrong" for the position was the very thing that kept me from being in proper posture and alignment with God's will for my life. Either way, I ran for almost 10 years. And wouldn't you know that God STILL cut me, shook me and pressed me in preparation to do just what He asked of me. He stretched my understanding of ministry and that it doesn't always look like the examples that I grew up around. It didn't mean that I had to have a church, or that I had to be a pastor or that I had to be in a pulpit preaching. He opened my eyes to see that ministry isn't always about the vehicle or the location, the most important part is the message and the true source of that message. See God knew that I was going to run long before I knew. He also knew exactly which actions and events would need to happen before I finally yielded and gave Him a yes. Some of us don't even get to the yielding. Some way somehow God uses our situations, choices, and stories to accomplish His plans. In my opinion, there's more meaning to the pain that comes from saying yes. When you rebel and go through all that pain, you did so just to stay the same or become worse. At least if you say yes, that pain can result in a beautiful transformation. Back to formation lol. Proper formation and alignment with God produces order and requires discipline. Both of which are needed to accomplish the greatness that you are destined to. Even when it seems like things are all over the place; if you look a little more closely, you could find that everything is in perfect order. Not perfect by society's "standards" but perfectly tailored and ordered for you. When you get your mind and spirit aligned with the Lord and in proper posture to receive what He wants to share with you, your body and life must follow. Proverbs 23:7 says, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee". I felt that this scripture not only tell us of the importance of what we think in our minds and feel in our hearts but also shows an example of someone who isn't in proper posture. Here you have someone who's mouth is expressing hospitality and generosity however, their hearts say differently. It's fake. They don't genuinely want to be hospitable, it's all about keeping up with appearances, earning your adoration and showing off what they have. The moment it no longer benefits them to be nice, they turn the tables. That isn't God's desire. He doesn't want us to fake the funk. If you find yourself struggling to genuinely love, and wish well to, your enemy; ask for forgiveness and help. Don't pretend or vow to cut them off. Trust me, I know this isn't easy. God gave me a forgiving heart but even I had many moments where bitterness tried to creep in and settle. We can't allow that to happen. If you are like me, pray for discernment so that you don't fall for the okey doke trying to be forgiving lol. If you truly have difficulty forgiving, pray for God to work on your heart and soften it. Either way, find a balance between forgiving and loving, even those who have wronged you, and limiting their access to you. Jesus knew that Judas would sell Him into death but still loved him. But you better believe that Judas didn't have the same access as those closest to Christ. Getting in proper formation means not only operating in your gifts to serve God and others, it also means loving properly in its entirety not just when it suits you or is easy. Be blessed loveys!!! 9/10/2016 0 Comments You're Stalling!Let's talk about stalling labor. No, I'm not talking about being in the delivery room of the hospital and screaming about being in too much pain to push anymore; so you decide to tell the doctors that you aren't going to push any longer. Or was that just me? With my first child I was a teen mom and I pushed about 3 times before I decided that I was going to put my legs down and go home. The doctors said "you can't, we can see her head!" That was when I learned that you can't go back once you're in the active stages of labor lol.
But seriously, I'm talking about being pregnant with purpose and the pain that you feel, just before birth, being so painful that you want to give up on pushing. Just like with natural labor, you can't stall forever. Had I not just gone through the difficulty of my physical labor 2 months ago, and survived and rejoiced, I might have forgotten the feelings of joy and happiness that come along with it once it is over. That would have caused me to abort my purpose process yet again. But because I am so close to giving birth I have to push through the pain. The pain of trials and tribulations hitting left and right. The pain of feeling as if one thing after another is slamming you. The pain of feeling as if you're drowning under the weight of it all. But that's just it. It was all about my feelings. And even though my feelings were valid, they could not be relied upon for proper judgment. Feelings are fickle and even though they are a part of daily life, we should not allow ourselves to be controlled by them. The reality is, all of those trials and hardships helped to build my character. They helped to make me stronger, keep me focused and disciplined. They pushed me to go harder. Instead of retreating like I used to do, I pressed in. I didn't let up because I was too tired of the same alternative. My ex leaving me 9 months ago was the implantation pain of the baby that was to be birthed this month (even though I was about 2 months pregnant with a natural baby). I needed to carry this to term as well. If I didn't push through this process, and become who I'm destined to become, what happens? I would end up on the street, without my children who give me life and furthermore the people who are assigned to me and to hear God through my voice could be held up. If I don't push through, I'll still be stuck doing the same ineffective things, bound by the same oppressors, losing left and right. I REFUSE to let that be my story when God wants to write me a new one. A lot of us are in active labor this month and might be birthing ministries, businesses, projects, etc. and fear of the pain has caused you to try to stall labor. You know it has to come out but you're stalling. Don't feel bad, God is still going to bring beauty from it in the end of the process; you'll be relieved from the pain. Many of you are complacent with where you are in life. You feel the tugging in your spirit that's calling you higher but you're too afraid to leave your comfort zone behind. I know I was there not too long ago. Enough is enough though. Make your mind up that you will stay the course not matter what. That you won't shrink back and give up. Tell hell "No, I'm going to finish this." There is no turning back. Like I said, when the baby is about to come out, you can't say "I'll just wait and try again tomorrow or next month" So stop doing that with your destiny! Why in the world would I, or you, dare to give up when we're already in active labor? Even now, I'm writing this post during my 15 and 30 minute breaks at work because it has to get done. What do you have to do to GET IT DONE? Stop procrastinating and do it. I know it's easier said than done but if the former queen of procrastination can do it, why not you? lol. You better grunt, scream, breathe, holler, punch, kick whatever it is that you do while in labor, but as I said when I was pushing 2 months ago "get her (your destiny) out!!!!! Be sure to subscribe so that you can be kept up to date with the coming attractions! I will be releasing my book soon in which I take you through the wild ride towards freedom and inner healing over the last 10+ years! There is much more in store so stay tuned! Love you all and be continually blessed! ~Shalaya |
The Catalyst CoachFly With Me! Hope you're ready for one heck of an adventure! You never know what will happen!!!!
~Shalaya Author and Women's Wellness Coach. Archives
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