Most of my previous years in life were spent people pleasing and lowering myself to meet others where they were. No matter how much I tried to get them to come up, they only brought me down. As a result of all that I’ve endured in recent years, particularly the last two, I’m only going up from here. I’ve grown exponentially and have outgrown a lot of people and things, and now that I’ve been untied from them, I can’t ever make a connection again. Moving forward, anyone that wants to get next to me, work with me, or have any type of access or relationship with me, has got to come up to where I am. There will be no more lowering of my standards or self-esteem to make anyone feel comfortable. If you can’t rise to my level, don’t expect me to fall down to yours. Too many things have taken place in this world and our everyday lives, for us to not want to do better and/or be better. Some people are secure with complacency and others are not. I’m one of those that aren’t. It’s okay to want better, although it may cause others to think you are acting better than them. Despite their negative thinking, if they aren’t willing to do better for themselves, don’t let them stop you from doing so.

La’Rue

Some months back, one of my family members invited me to fellowship with them. I’ll admit, I was a bit skeptical, only because I was not used to their style of “worship.” Nonetheless, I obliged. I made a point to be open to their form of service, because I know not everyone communicates and praises God the same, nor is one particular church, religion, or denomination, better than the other. After my arrival, I walked in and made my way towards the back. Not long after, my family member arrived. They started out with songs of praise and worship and the reading of God’s word, which is what I’m accustomed to doing at my place of worship. About mid-way through the service, as we had our heads bowed and eyes closed in prayer, a gentleman came and tapped me on the shoulder.

“Yes,” I stated while looking puzzled. “The Bishop has asked for you.” I thought to myself, “You stopped me in the middle of my alone time with God to tell me the Bishop has summons for me and it couldn’t wait.” I nervously made my way towards the front of the church, as everyone continued with their eyes closed and heads bowed. “Yes, sir,” I stated. He replied, “Lift up your hands.” Before doing so, I silently prayed earnestly that “what the enemy meant for bad, God would turn it around for my good.” After all, I didn’t know this man nor did I know what he was about to do. As I lifted my hands, he prayed over me and told me that my hands were going to be used to do the work of God. I thought, “Is that it? Tell me something I don’t already know.” After the fact, God shared with my that it’s not just my hands, but what’s in it; a pen.

I’ve shared many times how I’ve struggled with knowing my purpose in life. I began writing poetry at the age of 14, and my first book in my early 20s. While I didn’t know entirely what my calling was, I knew one way or another it’d involve writing, I just didn’t know how or to what extent. I also knew I wanted to write full-time and earn a living from it, and let me tell you it hasn’t been so easy. However, I know God promises in His word that our gift(s) will make room for us. I may not be where I’d like to career-wise, but I know I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be, doing what God has equipped me to do, write. I don’t know the gifts/talent that God has given you, but whatever it is, use what you’ve got.

La’Rue

Recently, I was invited to a very special event. I was so excited for the opportunity to attend and beyond grateful, because I haven’t known the person who bestowed the honor upon me for very long. When “the big day” arrived, I got dolled up and made my way to the venue. Upon my arrival, I didn’t know which entrance to take, so I asked one of the members of security. A gentleman directed me to a nearby table and what I encountered next took me completely aback. “May I help you?” asked the person seated at the table. “Yes, I’m looking for my table.” After momentarily looking at me, they asked me for my name and ticket. I provided them with the requested information, and they stated how they never heard of my last name, before telling me they couldn’t find it on the list.

Confused, I re-stated my last name, because I knew I was invited and expected. However, what I was not expecting was their response. They stated, “My name meant nothing to them, to which they presumed was the reason they couldn’t find it.” I was shocked, appalled, and a bit disappointed, while firing back, “Oh, it (my name) means everything to me.” Clearly upset, I walked out and processed what had transpired. Despite the check-in fiasco, I had a wonderful time and even enjoyed a mini concert by an award-winning artist. Here’s the moral of the story, God will put you in places people feel you don’t belong.

Although that situation wasn’t the first I’d experienced, I didn’t let it make me question my worth or who I am, because I know Whose I am. I could’ve easily thrown a canon ball of attacks towards them, but would it have made me feel better? No. But let me tell you what did. The fact that the person who said my name meant nothing to them was seated at the door checking for MY name! To add icing on the cake, they were seated outside an event that I was invited in. It didn’t matter if they knew my name or not, God does. That’s why I was there!

La’Rue

Is it just me, or did we leap from January straight to December? This year has gone by incredibly fast, so fast, that if you blinked, you missed it. Before you know it, December will have come and gone, and we’ll be starting a new year, which I’m pretty sure is what most people (myself included) are waiting on. We haven’t even concluded this one, and we’re already making preparations for the new one. We’ve already written out our resolutions, yet we’ve failed to resolve what we planned 11 months ago. Just a suggestion, before you start jumping (and counting) ahead, can you at least finish what you’ve started? This year has been full of (unexpected) surprises for me, not to mention I battled (and overcame) lot of things privately. While I do anticipate and look forward to the upcoming year, I’m going to use the remainder of this month to finish strong. I have one major project that I’m still working on and hope to tie up all loose ends before I embark on the new.

As we can obviously see, time (literally) waits on no one. So, what are you waiting for?

La’Rue

I don’t know much about cars, but I can tell when something isn’t right, which is exactly what my car does when I let the wheel loose; go to the right. Turns out, my intuition was right (no pun intended). My car is out of alignment, which I’m thankful that it’s only that, considering things could be much worse. Luckily for me, each time I lost control, Jesus was there to take the wheel. A lot of times, we often find ourselves losing control over a situation, our kids, our finances, and our own lives even. We struggle to figure out what to do, when God is quite happy, we’ve lost control. Besides, He doesn’t need our assistance. He only needs us to recognize when things are not within our power, we should turn it over to Him, because He holds all power. He sees when you veer off from Him. He sees when you drive your life recklessly. He sees when you’re headed for disaster. But most importantly, He sees when you’re too stubborn to ask for help. You don’t have to do everything on your own accord. However, when you do, don’t be surprised when it gets you nowhere.

It’s better to lean on and trust God. He can take you places you’ve only dreamed of. Your life won’t always be a straight and narrow path. Sometimes, you’re going to go left, but don’t worry. God will get you back on the “right” track.

La’Rue