Choices

Facing the music on the results of choices can be tough. ..especially bad choices. Or even worse, dealing with choices that others made that are affecting you. I tell my son all the time, issues you are dealing with now are results of the choices you made two weeks ago, two months ago, two years ago, what different choices are you making NOW that will result in outcomes in two weeks, two months, two years?

Everything is a choice. Who you call, who you ignore, what you eat, what you put away, what you spend, what you save, where you go, when you decide to stay home, what rules you break, what ones you obey, what you say, what you hold back, what bills you pay and what bills you put-off....

I hate to see cycles coming sometimes...you look up and you are in a familiar place ..and its not a good one. I mean you are still cordial, polite, smiling and hospitalable, but deep inside you know...something is coming...something is not right...I will not be able to hold back this storm...this time its coming and I will not be able to stop it. Actually, I don't want to stop it..come what may...lets just deal with it once and for all....and THAT too is a choice.

I've figured out that sometimes the "run" wears you out. Running from your past...running from your future, running from the phone, running from the mailbox, running from those that can help, running from the fallout of previous choices. At some point you need to stop running, and that is a choice. You need to just stop trying to juggle all the balls alone. Take your superman cape off for a minute and be honest. Be vulnerable, be humbled. I know most of you are saying you must BE crazy..I'm not. I just know that continuing to try to hold it all together when the dam is about to break can kill you. This time make a different choice. Let the chips fall where they may, sincerely turn it over to the only one that really knows all the right choices ~God.

Or, you can continue to do what you've always done in your family, your job, your marriage, your church, your friends, your home, your relationships...hold it all together by the skin of your teeth...but if you do...you'll continue to get what you've always had. If you want something different, DO something different-make a different choice. Ask for help!! I know "FOREIGN..."

Trust somebody, your spouse, friend, pastor or even if its nobody you can trust but God. But this time...don't go it alone...this time the stakes are higher and you may not make it back...trust me.. make a different choice. I'm working on doing the same.

Why so downcast Camille?

To those of you that follow me on Twitter ( @ Queencdj) you know I “hit a bump” right at the beginning of the New Year. In just a two minute conversation with one of my kids, the enemy tried to get me off kilter right off the bat. Disappointment, discouragement, anger, hurt, fear, regret in myself and others streamed in and out of my head like a rushing river. I prayed about it. I went to church and tried to stay focused while going through the motions. But off and on all day, all evening my thoughts and fear betrayed me. I was afraid for some reason that God was going to leave me to face this alone. As if he was sitting on his throne saying “just deal with it, chick” Stupid I know, but that’s what I felt.

Then something interesting happened. I sat in my car before coming into work today and prayed for my job, my boss, the president of the company, my co-workers and staff members. Without thinking about it, I was suddenly not thinking about me anymore and prayed about our year at the office and thanked God for last year. I prayed for wisdom, creativity and favor for our CEO and those that worked with him.

After that, I went on into the office as I normally would battling back and forth in my mind as to what needed to be done and being resolute that I would not let my mind dwell too long on the negative things that are going on. Still felt a little down though, I was disheartened that a year starting with so much promise seemed to be getting off to a rocky start. I checked my email and there was...

Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.” Psalm 43:5

That scripture was placed there by God ahead of time to be there to minister to me when I needed it. He hasn’t left me or forsaken me. The issues are still there, the problem is still looming, but GOD is there too. So for my first official blog of 2010 I proclaim that I can do ALL things though Christ which strengthens me. I can't say I feel like jumping up and down like the woman in this picture. But I am putting it there anyway as a reminder that one day my joy will be restored and I will smile again real soon.

I believe that by praying for others and taking the focus off of "me me me" for just those few minutes allowed my heart to soften enough to feel the presence of God in the midst of my issues. I thank him for giving me the mind to pray about others and the Word he sent to remind me that “this too shall pass…”

The Optimus Prime Principle

On Sunday, Our Co-Pastor was speaking about “transformation” and encouraging those in worship to believe God for transformation in the area of their lives that needed changing. Moi, being the super spiritual power house that I am (riiiiiiiiiight.....lol) immediately began thinking about a movie. Yup, right in the middle of worship, I was thinking about a motion picture and I couldn’t shake it. It was relevant though, even though it seemed a tad inappropriate and intrusive at the time.

I thought about the Transformers…you know Optimus Prime, Bumblebee…decepticons, autobots..The Transformers! As soon as she said it, I saw Optimus Prime changing from an 18 wheeler to a robot in my mind over and over. I wasn’t too surprised as I know that God uses Movies and TV to teach me principles and spiritual things all the time for two good reasons; I am an extremely creative/visual type learner and the 2nd more obvious reason- I watched A LOT of TV in my day. So He's getting some use out of that seemingly senseless wealth of knowledge. Just wait to you see the pieces I am writing on Superman and Pinky & the Brain !! Anyway; immediately, I couldn’t say why that picture of Optimus transforming kept replaying in my head. What does this have to do with Parenting, Step-parenting? Or being married or being in a second marriage? Hmmmm, what can we glean from the “ Optimus Prime Principle” (lol)..?.

Everything they need to fight and function as a robot was in them as a vehicle. They didn’t need to pick up parts or add anything someone else had in order to operate as something else. They just heard the command “Autobots Transform” and then they switched. When they changed, everything adjusted to accommodate their new role. What were headlights is now armor for the chest. What was the engine, now serves as the brain for a functioning robot. Why? Because to prepare for battle you can’t remain the same way. There is a battle for your household and for your marriage. You can’t remain the same way, do the same thing and expect to be able to fight and win. You can’t see your child acting crazy and just “let them be”. You can’t notice the communication in your marriage getting touchy and just ignore it. You can’t continuously see your house falling apart and in disarray, kick the shoes and garbage to the side and keep going. You gotta use what you have, transform it and function differently in order to win.

What were executive administrative and office manager skills now serves at managing, organizing and maintaining a super-sized family. What was used in teaching in Sunday school and VBS, now is used for teaching children, god-daughters, nieces and nephews. The info gained from being the Secretary of the youth choir was used to take formal minutes years later in an executive auto meeting. Things my husband learned from his mother and sister (cooking cleaning, shopping and combing hair) prepared him for raising his kids alone when their mom died.

You have what is necessary to handle the roles you have been called upon to play out. Think, what can you already do well. What may seem insignificant, could be the transformable skill you need in a new area. Use the skills sets you already have and then adjust, refine, develop and transform. Transformers are really much “More than meets the eye”.