In tears right now because I am experiencing a moment of God working in real time. While in the middle of writing this post—while in Walmart trying to buy things for the snow and freezing temps headed my way—thinking about “often, easier said than done,” I received a phone call from a client to schedule an appointment. Here I am trying to figure things out and God is already working things out.
The message—When God says He’s got you and to be still, He means He’s got you! Be still!! ♥️
Now, I’m in here crying… Let me hurry up and leave.
I normally start my Sundays with a “Hello Sunday” post but this one was too good to wait. This one has me smiling from ear to ear. If I were to title it differently, the title would be “Free Will vs Completely Allowing God To Lead.” Here’s what I shared in a “Wednesday Writings” post that fell on January 19, 2022 (copying and sharing in its entirety):
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!
So I went and checked my journal entry to see what I was referring to that I wouldn’t leave alone. Well, it was a post I had made on my Shaun’s Daily Inspiration Facebook page—I had recently created the page a few weeks earlier (December 31, 2021). God had instructed me to do one thing with the post and then to leave it alone. Instead, I kept going back manipulating things. Y’all, He specifically told me to leave it alone so that I would know the outcome was all Him. Well, as you can see from what I wrote three years ago, I couldn’t leave things alone.
Fast forward to today…
Baby, that free will I was referring to is gone! Now, when God says jump, I say “How high.” I don’t move without His guidance. Y’all, it took me a long time to get here and I never want to go back to the way things were. Now, don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with having autonomy. I’m all for it! However, when God specifically directs me to do something or release a situation to Him, I do it. I do it without hesitation because I know He knows and sees things I don’t. Believe me, I have bumped my head too many times trying to do things on my own because I didn’t think He was capable of properly handling them—in other words, things working out the way I wanted them to.
So, yes, I’m smiling from ear to ear because He is in control. Y’all, I never thought I’d get to this point because releasing control has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. Whew! If you only knew. However, the peace and freedom I’ve gained since letting go is indescribable. Whatever comes, comes. Whatever goes, goes. Knowing that God is the one controlling everything lets me know that I will always come out stronger, better, and on top. Yes, I can’t help but smile.
Well, that’s all I have for now. Thank you for following my journey. Here’s another picture from 30 years ago. It’s from the same day as the last picture I shared. This is me with some cute astronaut who had flown into Eglin. They would leave patches and autographed pictures to hang on our display wall. Y’all, he was such a cutie. I just had to take a picture with his picture. Lol.
Just like I keep all kinds of memorabilia, I also screenshot inspirational quotes and captions to refer to when I need a little encouragement. In continuing with the theme, “Dream BIG,” here’s a message I saved from Joel Osteen. As you can see, it’s from 2016.
Smile…
“You cannot out-dream God. God thinks big.”
Isn’t it wonderful to know God has so much more in store for us than we’ve ever imagined?! Y’all, God is so good.
I have been going through my videos on TikTok and saving what I can. I had no idea I made so many videos. In my mind, I had only made about 10 over the past few years (I hate being on camera) when in reality, I’ve actually made close to 50. Who knew?!😁 I am glad I had TikTok to document things I didn’t feel comfortable with sharing on Instagram or Facebook—too many familiar and judgmental faces on those platforms.
I documented my time with my mom at the hospital. I also documented moments before she had the seizure that sent her to the ICU for the final time. In the video, I was all chipper talking about my upcoming 50th birthday. I had no idea that an hour or so later, I would never speak to her again. Another was a video I had decided not to share because I hated how I looked. I had left it in Drafts and ended up sharing it a few days after my mom passed. I was so worried about the way I looked, not knowing my momma would die so soon. I knew she was dying, but I just knew she had at least a couple of more weeks to live. The video I made was about God instructing me to stop focusing on everything I needed to do at home and to focus on being there with her. Well, I never shared that video until after she was gone. The way I looked no longer mattered at that moment. My momma was gone. Life…
Well, I said all of that to say, I made a lot of meaningful videos. So many documented memories I can’t afford to lose. I’m so grateful I am able to save what I can.
Since it’s Self-Love Saturday, I have decided to share two videos I made. The first one aligns with today’s theme of dreaming big (March 2023), and the other is one I made after the election (November 2024).
Think BIGGER. Dream BIGGER. And yes, I was still in bed. That’s what I loved about TikTok. I could be my authentic self and no one cared.
Message: We are going to be alright. As I have been saying lately, we were chosen for this moment. God’s got us!
I have more Self-Love Saturday videos I might share over time. I still can’t believe I had so many. They were rarely planned. Anyhoo… Be sure to love on yourself and do something extra special today. You deserve the extra attention.♥️
A few years ago, I made a video documenting a moment when I dreamed BIG and the dream came true. Here’s what I wrote when I shared the TikTok video on Instagram/Facebook.
Facebook Memory: January 18, 2022
“Manifest it! Wrote it down on 09/29/2014. On 10/24/2014 it happened. Y’all, it really doesn’t take long for God to work. He’s quite amazing!☺️
Never stop dreaming!”
And here’s a Facebook story I shared last year (January 18, 2024)—
The original quote “BIG Dream, BIG Faith” was shared on January 18, 2022 with the caption— “Do not let the size of a mustard seed fool you. Although tiny in size, it’s big, bold, and strong; and it carries a faith and confidence that can move mountains. Big dreams require big faith, which can be as small as a mustard seed.”
As I shared last year, you are already living in your dreams. Please be careful not to miss the beautiful moments in front of you because this isn’t the dream you envisioned. Enjoy every minute of now. Believe me, so many treasures can be found in this present moment. In time, you will see what you envisioned.♥️
It’s Shaun’s World 
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