In my man Joe’s [a Tyler Perry character] voice, “Don’t do it!” No matter how tempting, NEVER settle for less than God’s absolute BEST. Word of advice, “potentially” best ain’t it!
You are worth God’s absolute BEST.
Never settle for less than God’s best…for YOU! Not what others consider the best for you.
Next week I am going to attempt to post all new content. No Facebook memories. Now…I said attempt. Not going to make any promises. Smile
Hope you have a fabulous Self-Love Saturday. Remember to do something nice for yourself. You deserve it!♥️
Can’t you hear Luther Vandross singing, “Little miracles happen everyday”? He goes on to say, “What is a miracle? Love is a miracle…” Yes, love is a miracle. It surrounds us daily. It’s one of God’s greatest miracles and it’s available to all. Receive it!♥️ ~Shaun
Shared last year – February 16, 2023
I really need to start back drawing. Been slacking. I guess it’s another thing I need to be more intentional about.
I used to believe doing something nice for myself was self love. I would buy myself something nice, treat myself to a fabulous meal, get a massage, or spend the day doing either everything I wanted to do or nothing at all. That was my definition of self love. Now… Now, it’s more about protecting my peace and my holistic wellbeing with my spiritual and mental wellness being most important.
Here are a few things I have finally learned and implemented:
– Saying “no” to things I don’t want to do, and without feeling guilty (yeah…it used to weigh on me), is self love. “No” is a complete sentence. No explanation needed.
– Protecting my space (physically and mentally) is self love. I am so mindful of who and/or what I allow into my space. Discernment has been key.
– Receiving good things without feeling like I don’t deserve them is self love. Yes, I deserve good things. I deserve God’s best. I mean, I am His child! Smile
– Being nurtured instead of always being the nurturer is self love. Listen, once you have been on the receiving side you can’t imagine settling for anything less.
– Putting myself and my needs first is self love. I believe this has allowed me to love even deeper. It has definitely strengthened my relationship with God.
It took me forever to get here (decades). And now that I am finally here I have no intentions of going back to life as it was. I love it here. Smiling
Guess you could say this is life beyond Year50.
I pray you have found true self love. Believe me, it’s beautiful and so peaceful.♥️
Gifts are nice and ALWAYS appreciated. However, it’s so important to recognize nothing can replace the gift of your presence. Whether physically or virtually, your presence is priceless. You ARE the gift!
Even though we are gifts to others, let’s remember to appreciate our gifts. Those who God placed in our lives to love and support us. They are priceless. Getting emotional as I think about my gifts. We must hold them dearly.
Side note: You will not be everyone’s gift, nor them yours. Learned this a lot over the past few years.I used to consider everyone a gift. They may have been for someone, but they were not for me. Yeah…took me forever to get this through my head. Listen, treasure your true gifts (don’t be fooled by the fake—the ones who pretend to love on you while intentionally draining you) and let the others go.
This is all for now. Didn’t mean to end on a sour note, but we really have to be careful. As I said before, I am learning. Anyhoo… Wishing you a lovely day and beautiful weekend! One of my gifts (my daughter) is coming home to visit! Can’t wait to love on her!!♥️
Today’s Facebook memory basically falls in line with the pruning I experienced several months ago, and the decluttering I wrote about before the new year. When we really start growing—especially mentally, emotionally and spiritually—we begin to discover we have to let a few things go (sometimes people). We have to let go of things that trigger and/or hinder our growth or progression.
From experience, I know this is not easy thing to do. I still struggle with it. I believe it’s difficult because some things have been with us for years if not our entire lives (certain mindsets, behaviors, and beliefs). Believe me, it takes a lot of discernment and a good relationship with God to know what to let go of and what to hold on to because if we are not careful, we could toss what we need and hold on to what we don’t. Yes, discernment is very important. Also, being still so we can clearly hear God’s voice is utmost important. I know…sounds like a brutal task, doesn’t it? But it’s not. Smile…
Listen, God will never steer us wrong or leave us without. If we accidentally let go of things (opportunities, relationships, etc.) we should have held on to, we will receive them again. Believe me, whatever is meant to stay in our lives, will stay. It’s called God’s mercy, grace, and favor. For those who know, know there’s nothing like it! Amen
Okay… I’m done rambling. Just know that in the end everything always works out because God’s got us!♥️
Here’s today’s memory.
Facebook Memory: January 13, 2022
Walking away from things that no longer serve us is often difficult and sometimes painful, yet it is so necessary for growth. I pray God gives you the strength to walk away from things that no longer serve you so that you are able to move forward freely.
It’s not easy but necessary. And don’t worry about making the wrong decision. God won’t let us fail. What’s meant to be will be.
Sending blessings and love your way. Have a wonderful weekend!♥️
Social media has been excited for weeks now for this day—12/31/23 (123123)—to come so I thought I would mention it. (Smiling). Life is interesting and people are even more interesting. Gotta love them both.
Anyhoo…
Today is the last day of 2023. I pray whatever you were hoping for happened, or somewhat happened. Below is what I wrote last year in my final blog for 2022. I will say my 2023 turned out as I had somewhat hoped it would have because I stayed true to how I approached it, with humbleness and gratitude. I did not ask for much nor expected much, and was grateful for every blessing God sent my way. Here is what I wrote last year.
Y’all, 2022 was one eventful year! I’m so grateful God was with me every step of the way. So grateful for His guidance, grace and unconditional love.
Each year, instead of a setting a New Year’s resolution, I set a theme for the year. This year’s theme for 2022 was “Unapologetically Me.” I loved and lived up to it. I didn’t set it for others to see, or even notice. It was personal. It was for me to feel and embrace, and I did. Let’s just say it’s how I needed to end this decade of my 40s. Smiling
This coming year I’m entering a new decade of life, my 50s, and want to do things a little differently. Nothing bold. Nothing deep. The energy I’m taking into 2023 is humbleness and gratitude. It’s the energy I would like to have as I usher in the next half of my life. Gotta leave the negative energy on this side of my century. Smiling. Honestly, I’m looking forward to turning 50. God is good.
Okay.. so here is the ultra-condensed, yet very significant version of my accomplishments in 2022:
• I conquered a few fears. • I found myself again. • I released control.
I just wanted to add, releasing control was probably the most rewarding. This year, so many things happened that were beyond my control. I had no choice but to give in and go with the flow. Then, there were the things I could control. Well, I found out they weren’t worth the headache or heartache, so I let them go. Y’all, I never knew releasing control could be so freeing. This is a whole-nother level of freedom I never knew existed and I’m loving it!
As I mentioned earlier, I am focusing on humbleness and gratitude in 2023. Not expecting much. Not asking for much. Just grateful for what I already have. If God decides to bless me with more, I will be just as grateful.
As I enter 2024, I plan to remain humble and grateful for everything I already have and anything extra God decides to throw in. The amount of peace I have experienced by doing so has been immeasurable so why change it!
Next year, my goal is to continue practicing what I recently began doing a few days ago which is to stop fighting against (worrying about) things that unexpectedly pop up in my life, and to go with the flow. To allow God to navigate through the craziness while I rest in Him. To have my listening ears open and be prepared to move when He says move and relax when He says relax. To stay at peace despite the chaos and confusion happening around me. To continue loving the way I love as well as embrace the love surrounding me. To build a stronger relationship/bond with God. To stay under His covering and protection. When I tell you God’s protection is everything! Whew!! You better try it! Lastly, to take care of Shaun. Yes, to take care of me. To love and protect myself just as much as I do others. To put myself first so that I my cup remains full while I pour into others.
Well, that’s that. Praying you have a wonderful New Year’s Eve. Talk to you later.
Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy. It does not boast. It is not proud.1 Corinthians 13:4
Took me a while to figure this out and actually name the source of my pain. So glad I did.
When I reshared the post, I added–
Love does not hurt. Embrace it. Bask in it. Give love and be loved.
Also on December 27th (2014), I reshared God’s Fruit (Facebook page) post–
Let’s make today about love. I would say everyday, but one day at a time is a good start.
Yes, let’s be intentional about spreading love.
I will start…
I love you, unconditionally!♥️
Shaun
Updated to add…
As someone once said, unconditional love is not unconditional tolerance. Please know the difference. You can love someone unconditionally from afar. You do not have to tolerate the disrespect, hate, and/or harm. Please don’t! Also, don’t let your heart grow cold. A cold heart stops you from receiving and giving unconditional love.
Below is a post I wrote last year about my Facebook memory from the year before (December 23, 2021). Guess I have been sharing my memories for a while now—smile. So, since the memory has already been shared, I will use the same quote (too good not to reshare) and piggyback off of what I shared yesterday about rebirth.
The rebirth…
The rebirth will require us to leave things behind. Things that have held us back and/or been haunting us for years, even decades. It’s time to release them so that we can move forward in our purpose.
When I started my journey on this side of 50, I had to release quite a few things (people too, some released themselves). At first, it didn’t feel good. Honestly, it felt like I was losing part of myself including my identity. If you have read any of my monthly “celebratory” blogs (one is coming tomorrow!), you know I went through a spiritual, emotional, and mental pruning phase. Baby, when I tell you it did not feel good! Had me grieving for real. But it helped me see what had to go and what needed to stay. Everything that is still with me today was meant to stay. Now, I still have some decluttering to do but it’s nothing like the pruning. Whew!
Tomorrow, I will be 50 1/2 (smile) and will share another celebratory update about my first six months on this side of 50 (woohoo!). So stay tuned…
You had to leave it/them behind in order to move forward. Couldn’t progress without doing so, and cannot continue to progress by holding on to the guilt. Release the guilt and move forward.
Here is last year’s blog which contains Facebook memories from last year and the year before—December 23, 2022 & December 23, 2021. Enjoy!
Rest is good for the soul. Get some! (Speaking to myself also.☺️)
By the way, I did put up my Christmas tree, played Christmas music and watched Christmas movies most of the day. It changed everyone’s mood. My babies have always fed off of my energy. It’s no different now that they are adults. I still have to set the tone for my little family despite what I may be feeling. I love seeing them smile.
I pray you have a wonderful day. Remember to love on someone today, and allow yourself to be loved on. There is no greater gift than love. Give it. Receive it. I love you!♥️
Y’all, we are only two weeks away from the glorious 2024! Yes, I am referring to it as glorious because 6/24 is my birthday month as well as my 51st birthday. How cool is that! Looking forward to every wonderful thing God has planned for me. It’s going to be a great year!
Here’s a caption from one of last year’s Facebook memories along with the Hello Sunday post I shared with it.
Facebook Memory: December 18, 2022
Only 2 weeks left in 2022!🎉
Whatever happened or didn’t happen this year, was meant to be. If you’re human like me, I know you celebrated your wins, even the small ones. But your losses, disappointments and setbacks… How did you cope – or attempt to cope – when things didn’t quite go as planned?
Me– I leaned on God a little more. I’m so grateful for His love, mercy and grace.♥️
There is nothing comparable to God’s love, mercy, and grace. He’s so amazing.
Y’all, self-love is everything, but God’s love will always, always, always reign supreme. I just love the way He loves me. If you do not already have a strong relationship with God, I suggest you build one. There is absolutely nothing like it—nothing like it! I cannot stress it enough, I am truly blessed.
Praying you have a peacefully, blessed week. Whatever goals you set for 2023 can still happen! Don’t let the countdown to the new year stop you from achieving as much as you can. You got this!
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