Welcome to Motivational Mondays!
First things first, what are Motivational Mondays?
Just like it sounds, to motivate, to empower, and to encourage you on the first day of a fresh week. I don't know about you but Mondays can be a drag for me, so sometimes words of encouragement and positivity are helpful to start my day off right.
Motivational Monday's topic is: Lesions on Lessons on Lessons
Hey everyone, so first and foremost, I wanted to point out that we are on week 51 of blog posts and I am just so thankful to see it and to be here. Today is August 2nd, 2021, and within 2 weeks and three days will be A Golden Dreams 1st Annual Birthday. Woohoo!
I am so excited y'all, it has been truly a blessing and with blessings come lessons. Today’s post will be about the lessons I’ve learned within the year since starting AGD.
Let’s Get To It!
This year has been a huge monumental experience in my life, this is something that I will never forget. Getting personal with you guys and stepping outside my comfort zone is something that I don't do enough. Within the first year of AGD being public and active, I’ve learned a multitude of lessons. I can’t list all of them out but the ones that have had the greatest impact on my life are Setting Clear Boundaries, Trusting & Having Faith in God, Overcoming Fear & Anxiety One Step At A Time, and Leaping Out My Comfort Zone.
1. Setting Clear Boundaries
And when you find a friend, don’t outwear your welcome; show up at all hours and he’ll soon get fed up.
Proverbs 25:17
One thing that I struggled with, in the past and even sometimes now, is setting clear boundaries, this goes for friends, family, work, and even with myself. I have such a good heart and want to help anybody and everyone, that I sometimes lose myself in projects, errands, and tasks that are for other people. Learning the hard way, I've recognized that balance is my friend and I must start saying “NO!” to Protect My Peace At All Cost, and to not stretch myself too thin. There are only 24 hours in a day, and I still need time for myself, to rest and to do what makes me happy in the process.
Throughout this year, it has been a little easier to say “NO!” simply because, well, let’s face it, we are in a pandemic. With this new variant going around I’m staying out of the way and only going out if I absolutely have to. If I thought regular boundaries were hard enough, Covid boundaries are becoming a beast to have to implement to others, especially if their Covid boundaries are completely different than mine. Which is not a problem. I will respect theirs because I want them to respect mine. I have to become my own advocate and tell friends and family like, “Look, that’s cool for you but I can’t go, I don’t feel comfortable.” Sorry, not sorry! If that hurts your feelings then so be it, at the end of the day I’m going to do what's best for me, because I guarantee others will do what's best for them. PeriodT!!!
Another thing as well, when you're implementing your boundaries Covid or not, stand firm in them. Who cares what others think especially if they disagree. Be bold in your advocacy. Be bold in your Boundaries. Get it! Got it! Good! Next!
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ…. But let each one test his own work… For each will have to bear his own load.
Galatians 6:2-5
Do You Have Clear Boundaries?
2. Trusting & Having Faith In God
Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Throughout this experience of starting AGD, I trusted God that he would step in and give me the right words to say to you all. I was so nervous that I would say the wrong thing, or mislead people because I misunderstood a verse or bible passage. Y'all, that's my worst fear is to mislead. God had to and is still working on me with that fear. But before I post a blog post I make sure that God is pleased. I make sure and say in my head okay I think that’s good Lord, what do you think? I let it marinate in my mind for a bit as I read it over and over again to see if it needs a little more Golden Nuggets of wisdom from Heaven’s Gates.
When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
Psalm 56:3
I trusted God wholeheartedly when I tested positive for Covid at the beginning of January of this year. I was paralyzed with fear and I began praying and Activating My Faith that if it was in His will that he could heal me, my friends, and family that also contracted this virus as well. If intercession was a person, it would have been me praying on behalf of myself and others. To God be the Glory, I survived and so did my friend and family friends that had it too. God's grace and mercy were over us all for a month and a week. Yes, I was out of work for a whole month and a week. I Thank God that I made it out because I know that others did not. After having Covid- 19, I developed severe Covid anxiety, like regular anxiety isn’t crippling enough, now I have to worry about Covid anxiety!
Delight yourself in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him, and he will act.
-Psalm 37:4-5
Overcoming Fear & Anxiety One Step At A Time
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
1 John 4: 18
The coronavirus pandemic has heightened my fear and anxiety one thousand percent since the pandemic started. It was to the point where even being around other people was causing me to have anxiety attacks. I was cutting my eyes👀hard at anyone who sneezed or coughed in the general area of where I was. My anxiety was so bad that I felt as if I had covid even though all the facts would state I didn’t.
Anxiety in a man's heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.
Proverb 12:25
My fear and anxiety, however, didn’t just begin when Covid started. It has been something that I have been struggling with for years now, probably since I was a teenager, and because I am an overthinker and an over-analyzer it doesn’t help. I will literally think about something, over-analyze the situation, and then cause myself to panic even more.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
John 14:27
It took me some time before I realized that what was spiking my anxiety and fear were the things that I could not control, and the things that I did not have the answers to. It was not until I started A Golden Dream, during the midst of the pandemic, that I began to find the answers that I was seeking. It was through my Connection Through Prayer, Seeking His Face, and Reading My Manual that I began to truly find clarity and peace. God offers a peace that surpasses all, and I do mean ALL, understanding! The world could be coming down, and the sky would be falling but I will be at peace and will not be fearful because I decided to take shelter in the Lord.
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
1 Peter 5:6-7
I had to humble myself and let God show me and have his way in me. Seeking God’s Face is literally being in His face all the time. Just recently I could feel my anxiety building up and this new variant and even this new disease that has surfaced called Monkeypox, has left me feeling hopeless that things won’t get any better. But then, I had to hit myself back with some Holy Clap Backs and remind myself that God is in control. God’s vantage point is not our vantage point, and with that being said I had to control what I could. I decided to stop everything, and keep myself hidden away from others. I even took off work to escape in my prayer closet. Sometimes God doesn’t move until you take the first step. Don’t ask God to set it up so you can move, sometimes God commands you to move so he can Set It Up when you get there! When you have faith in the Lord, you move differently! The worst thing that you could do is think that you can handle everything on your own. God has a plan for your life and the only way that you can execute what he has for you is by placing your burdens in his hand and letting go of the anxieties because they are not benefiting you anyway.
Leaping Out My Comfort Zone
Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it—the Lord is his name: Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.
Jeremiah 33:2-3
One thing that I have learned is that as time is evolving so am I. I am not the same person with the same interest as I was in the past. For a while, I was stuck doing the same things over and over again. This stunted my growth. I allowed my fear and my anxiety over the uncertainty and the unknown to put a limit on my capabilities. I grew comfortable with what I was used to and it was crippling, unknowingly to me. Throughout this whole coronavirus pandemic as well as with starting this blog I have come to realize that life is short and it is precious. So many of us miss out on so many eye-opening experiences because we let fear get in the way.
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Joshua 1:9
I decided early this year that I was not going to continue to live that way. I was going to get out and try new hobbies, become more adventurous, look into new interests, and do things that I have never done before. This was one of the reasons I decided to take a trip with my best friend to the Great Smoky Mountains. I did so many new and exciting things while I was there like climb 5,342 feet up the side of Wayah Bald, visit a rushing waterfall at Dry Falls, and go fishing for the first time at Pines Recreational Center. All of these things were things that old Sherronda would have never done because it seemed too out of her reach. All of these things put my faith and my trust to the test because it meant that I had to lean and depend on God. Climbing to the top of Wayah Bald was exhilarating but it was also terrifying because the roads were narrow and the turns were steep, and when we got to the top I was fearful because we were so high up. Adventuring to the mountains was a true Revelation for me because it made me see that I had Smoky Rocky Faith, instead of doing like I should have been doing by leaning on God.
If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
Psalm 91: 9-12
My best friend taught me how to fish, something that I had never done. In fact, I didn’t even realize that I had an interest in it. Now fishing is a new hobby of mine, it is so peaceful and relaxing even though I am impatiently, patiently waiting for the fish to bite. I encourage you to try new things and see if you can find any new hobbies or interests that inspire you. Leap out of your comfort zone because staying in it is crippling you and stunting your growth. Sometimes there is a revelation in trying something new.
**I hope everyone has a safe and blessed week and I will see you all on Saturday for our Weekly Topic Saturdays**
~Just Breathe...A Golden Dream~
Amen.