Tag: goals

Life

Wednesday Writings

Shaun Bradford

At this very moment, my daughter and I should be preparing to leave for France. We were scheduled for a noon departure from New Orleans arriving in Paris tomorrow morning, January 27 – my daughter’s 27th birthday.

In September, my daughter casually mentioned that she wanted to spend her 27th birthday in Paris. Well, as a mom who absolutely LOVES birthdays, I started planning. Long story short, we were booked and ready to go then Omicron happened. Although we are both vaxed and boosted, a couple of weeks ago we decided to postpone our trip because we didn’t want to be either denied going (a positive diagnosis seemed almost inevitable) or one or both of us stuck and quarantined in Paris because of a positive diagnosis. It was just too risky, especially since my son wasn’t going (he didn’t want to miss a few days of school.. he’s so responsible – Lol).

I wish I could say we are really disappointed about not going, but honestly, I can’t. The truth is neither of us wanted to leave my son behind and he didn’t want to be left behind. So I guess you can say it all worked out for the best. When we go later this year, he will be going with us. And my daughter, she’s not missing a thing. After canceling our mother-daughter trip, she planned a solo trip to another destination. At the end of the day, I know everything worked out the way it was meant to be.

À Bientôt Paris!

Shaun

Life

Wednesday Writings

Shaun Bradford

Obedience. The definition of obedience is – an act or instance of obeying (following the command or guidance of).

As many of you know, I have been on this journey of completely allowing God to lead; to follow his guidance without wavering. Well.. just imagine how that’s going. Sigh

So, there is this little thing called free will, which is the ability to act at one’s discretion. Well, I’m finding free will isn’t always my friend. During this journey, free will has popped up numerous times and continues to pop up whenever – 1) I don’t believe God is moving fast enough or He’s moving way too fast; 2) I believe things are going in the wrong direction; or 3) whenever I flat out don’t want to follow His instruction. Y’all, sometimes free will is a pain and often delays blessings. Ugh!

Last night I was given specific instructions to leave a certain matter alone, to allow God to work so that I could see His glory. Y’all know I love watching God work! Well, that didn’t happen. I kept picking at it. Checking to see if progress was being made. Kind of like putting a bandage on a wound and removing it every couple of hours to see if it’s healing. Uhh.. It won’t if you don’t leave it alone. So, this morning I couldn’t help myself. I couldn’t leave things alone. I went in and started manipulating things. I was like, “God, I’m just gonna do this one little thing then give it back to You.” And that’s exactly what I did. And guess what, I feel like I have failed another challenge. Not in a shameful way, but in a way that has me regretting my decision. However, at the same time, I still have the desire to do better. I just have to know how things will turn out if I allow God to lead.

Okay.. y’all, I just had another “Aha” moment. Imagine going into a lab, starting an experiment and when the experiment isn’t moving along fast enough, you decide to manipulate the process. Guess what?! You just altered the outcome. You will never know what could’ve been had you left it alone.

Slowly but surely, I’m learning. If I am going to allow God to lead, I must be obedient. Period.

Thanks for reading! Hope you have a lovely Wednesday!

Shaun

Life

Hello Sunday

Shaun Bradford

Today’s blog is a song by William Murphy, Praise is What I Do.

Praise is What I Do
by William Murphy
Courtesy of Musixmatch

Come on, song goes like this

Praise is what I do
When I wanna be close to You
I lift my hands in praise (oh, oh, come on)
Praise is who I am (let’s declare it church)
I will praise Him while I can
I’ll bless You at all times (I vow)

I vow to praise You (when you gon’ praise Him church?)
Through the good and the bad
I’ll praise You (whether happy or sad)
Whether happy or sad (I will)
I’ll praise You (thank you Jesus)
In all that I go through (yeah)
Because praise is what I do
‘Cause I owe it all to You

Praise is what I do (even when I’m going through)
Even when I’m going through (say, I finally learned church)
I’ve learned to worship You (yeah, yeah)
(And I declare)
No my circumstance (doesn’t even stand a chance)
Doesn’t even stand a chance (’cause my praise)
My praise outweighs the bad (so I vow to praise)

I vow to praise You (I need somebody to wave your hands and declare)
Through the good and the bad (I will)
I’ll praise You (doesn’t matter how I feel)
Whether happy or sad (I will)
I’ll praise You (in all that I go through)
In all that I go through
Because praise is what I do (I owe)
‘Cause I owe it all to You

This section was omitted from the online lyrics but is included in the song.
[Now I just need someone to open your mouth and give Him a crazy praise.
Somebody send the praise to the nation.
Somebody send the praise to Africa.
Somebody send the praise to China.]

Praise is what I do (open up your mouth church)
(It’s what I do)
It’s what I do
(Yes, church open up your mouth and somebody clap those hands and declare)

Praise is what I do
(It’s what I do)
It’s what I do
(Somebody [send] the praise to Germany)
(Somebody [send] the praise to France)

Praise is what I do (it’s what I do, yeah)
(It’s what I do, it’s what I do)
(It’s what I do)
It’s what I do
(Somebody [send a] praise to [Bankhead])
(Somebody [send a] praise to [Buckhead], yeah)
Praise is what I do
(Yeah)

Source: Musixmatch Songwriter: William Murphy III Praise Is What I Do lyrics © Lilly Mack Music, M3m Music

Be Blessed

Shaun

Life

Wednesday Writings

Shaun Bradford

Found this quote in a journal entry. Not sure of the context but it must have stood out for me to write it down.

Suddenly is an accumulation of events that happened while you were waiting.

Pastor Joel Osteen

Over the past week or so, I have found lists of goals in random places – journal entries, saved notes, and scribbled on pieces of paper. Every time I find one, I am always amazed at how many goals I have actually achieved without ever revisiting the lists. Honestly, I am not sure how things happen without me actively pursuing them, but somehow they do. Which leads me back to Pastor Osteen’s quote. Suddenly really isn’t something that happens randomly, but an accumulation of events that were set in motion once written down.

Yesterday, I found another list and added updates. Then I made a new list. Can’t wait to revisit it in the future!

Y’all, I hope this all made sense. I really need to stop writing so early in the morning. Especially when I am half asleep. Ugh! I’m on day 137 of continuous blogging and it is also Wednesday, so I had to write. (Smile)

Enjoy your day!

Shaun