I’ve been sick and shut-in the past two days, and I have been able to catch up on lots of reading and writing. I finished a book I started back in December and am on to the next one. The title of this post is a bit misleading. No herbal cleanses or liquid diets to follow, BUT more of a detoxification of the mind. Being locked in has also given me lots of time to think. So….

If you’re anything like me, you have been known to predict possible outcomes to certain situations. STOP IT.  We are not always privy to some outcomes. To be quite honest, that is the best part. That and the peace that comes from not worrying about it.

If you’re like me, you also, at times, don’t live in the present. You want to jump straight to where you want to end up. STOP IT. You will miss the very best parts of the process.

Replaying a situation that left you in tears, angry, or broken?  STOP IT. One thing about the past is, you CANNOT change it. You can only learn from it.

Today’s challenge! Romans 12:2 (NLT)- Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

We have so many thoughts a day. Some useful and some straight garbage. But you can change your thoughts by creating positive affirmations. My Coach gave us an assignment months ago to sticky note positive things and those stickies are still on my mirror. They greet me every morning reminding me of how AWESOME I am. Be grateful! Count your blessings not your sorrows. I’m certain the former outweighs the latter. I read a book and one of the assignments was to write down one thing that you look forward to doing each day. So today, I was thrilled about another day of rest. We get so busy that we ignore what our bodies are trying to tell us. Last, but certainly not least,  meditate, pray, read the Bible. Sitting still and being in tune with what God has to say is better than anything else you can do to rid yourself of evil, ugly thoughts. His thoughts towards you and I are only to prosper us.

The aforementioned are only a few ways to rid ourselves of the thoughts that mean us no good. But they’re a great start in the right direction.

Stay Charmed,

CC

“Are you the person who you are looking for is looking for?”

– Andy Stanley, North Point Church

What a loaded question, and as much as we would all like to say yes, it’s evident that many of us are not. I’m single, and I don’t claim to want  a man who has it all together, but I am guilty of wanting a man who does not bring out my crazy. Sometimes instead of becoming better people, we want the person to never force us to whip out our ugly side. For the past two years, I’ve had a friend that I never really let in. I could give many reasons why I didn’t, but it all boils down to I was not the person he was looking for. I know many that know me will disagree, but when it comes to relationships with the opposite sex, well, they can be quite tricky. He was not without flaws, but instead of stepping out on faith I chose to let fear hinder me from getting to really know someone great. That’s a hard lesson to learn.

But that relationship or the demise of it birthed this blog. It is something that I enjoy, can reach someone else who may have the same struggles, and helps me with a much bigger dream of mine. That relationship has also taught me to never let go of God. To never walk in fear. Through it all, we both learned valuable lessons about each other, ourselves, and what we look for in other people. I am not getting any younger, and I do desire my own husband, and kids, but above all, I aim to please the one man who I’ve never been able to push away, has never walked away, who has never mistreated me, so on and so forth.

We do not have to learn the lesson from personal experience. You can learn from my mistakes. Let go of fear, let people in,  ask God about everything, every decision. You don’t have to learn the lesson the hard way. Start now by becoming the person who you are looking for is looking for.

Stay Charmed,

CC

Today’s devotion is so fitting. I started this blog mostly as therapy for myself, but in the hopes that someone, somewhere could be encouraged as well. As you can tell, I am no great writer. 1+1=2 is more my thing. However, if anyone is interested in doing this Cost Accounting assignment, please let a sistah know. Seriously, I read a devotion everyday and this one really resonated with me. This year, I declared that I would not let my light burn dim. I am proud to be a daughter of the King, and I am excited about where He wants to lead me. When people see me, I want them to see Him.

So, today’s devotion was titled, “Brightly”, and the key scripture is found in Pro. 13:9. By the way, I have been reading Proverbs, and it has been an eye-opening and an awesome read. Who does not need more wisdom in their life? Who doesn’t have wisdom and needs some? I digress, the devotion reads, ” Christ has freely given you His righteousness by faith. You are a bright light in a world that desperately need Jesus. Shine your light into the darkness!”

I challenge you today to shine. Not just to be seen, but that the God in you can be revealed. Don’t shy away from the greatness that He affords you. We all have a purpose. We all have something someone else needs. You never know what sharing what God has done for you can do for someone else today. It could even save a life. Shine bright!

Stay Charmed,

CC

Spend time with the One who owns it all. One who desires to see you at your best. Living your best life. He desires to see us living out our dreams. After all, He’s given them to us. Let Him you bring them to fruition.

Stay Charmed,

CC

Today has been a long, super busy, but truly wonderful day. I woke super early, read, went to 7am Warrior Boot Camp, went to dance rehearsal, church, Coop Coop’s 2nd bday party, and finally, I am home. I had someone tell me that not everyone’s life is as perfect as mine. Ha. One thing I stressed to her is that although my life is NOT perfect, I serve a God that is. You may not hear me complaining about what I don’t have, how things don’t go my way, or not being where I want to be, but you will often hear me  talk about the people that make me smile, the blessings God has bestowed upon me, and how excited I am about things to come.

Let me remind you today to be grateful. I don’t write these posts as an expert or someone who has it all together, but only because I have before or am experiencing some of the things I write about. My experiences are not always unique to me despite the fact that at times I think they are. Someone else could need the very thing I write about. So if this is for you, be grateful for what you do have. Be grateful for the doors that have been closed to protect you. Be grateful for the people that make you smile as big as these two people above make me. Tomorrow is not promised, but at this moment, in this instant, be grateful. 

Stay Charmed,

CC

As promised, here is a scripture that we all would love to abide by, but at times struggle with. Proverbs 3:5-6, trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct our paths. If you are like me, there are some areas in your life that you have no idea what God has up His sleeves regarding them. And if you are anything like me, you often want to jump ahead of God because He is just not moving fast enough. He is saying no in areas of our lives where we won’t settle for anything less than yes. I challenge you to fully trust that God is in control. I don’t understand why some things happen, why some things don’t work out other than the fact that God has a different plan than the one we had in mind. If we align our will to His, we will be in a better position to walk in the life He has laid out for us. At this time in my life, I am faced with many decisions. I don’t know how everything will work out, but I do know that everything will be made beautiful in His time. That excites me!

I encourage you to let go of the need to be in control, to understand everything. I look back over my life and maybe now I have a better understanding of why things unfolded the way they did, but while I was living through them I had not a clue. But those situations have helped build my faith. I don’t have to know everything to have peace about what will transpire. I know who is in control, and more importantly, I know that He only wants what’s best for me. After all, He will not withhold any good thing from me and you. So be encouraged. If you are going through a rough time, use it as a time to thank God for the outcome. It will be the best thing for you.

Stay Charmed,

CC

Last week in my JWC department meeting, we were taught a lesson in self-defense. How to protect ourselves if ever under attack. This got me to thinking….everyday we have thousands upon thousands of thoughts. What do we use as protection against negative, ungodly thoughts? How do we shield ourselves against the thoughts that keep us bound in fear, anxiety, and worry? Thoughts of can’t, won’t, and not good enough?

Over the next couple of days I will share some scriptures that are my “go to” verses. We are to hide the Word in our hearts so that when the enemy attacks us we don’t have to dig deep to be reminded of what God says about us. Believe it or not, God has a word for every situation. Isn’t He awesome! He does not want His children to be misguided, confused, or chained to mediocrity. He wants us to be the best, and unfortunately, our thoughts can keep us from being just that. Join me as I share scriptures that have helped me overcome those unwanted thoughts.

So let’s start with self. We can be our own worst enemy. Psalm 139:14 says, “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works, and that my soul knoweth right well.” God made us in His image. He made us exactly the person He wanted us to be. Everything we need to be great we are already equipped with or able to obtain. Go be great!

Stay Charmed,

CC

Protect yourself from negative thoughts. Stay charmed….