Prayer Changes Things.

So a weird thing just happened to me. I say weird because I really don't know how I feel about it. I was knee-deep in a prayer. I haven't had a core-shaking prayer in such a long time. In my prayer, I asked for the strength to pull through life and make it into what I know it can be.



God had blessed me in so many ways and there is no reason for me not to be able to achieve my wildest dreams. No reason, but myself. I believe there's a grey, misty massive grey cloud of fear over my head and the sad part is, I don't even know what I am afraid of.


I'm not one of those people afraid to succeed. In fact, that's what I welcome. But I block myself. I ground myself and surround myself with things that weigh me down. At times I feel like I'm carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders. I've fallen in & out of depression & I intend to beat it. In fact..that's what my prayer summed up to.

I was praying aloud. I ended up standing, closing my eyes, tilting my head back & fists balled up. I was in a moment. It felt as if I was performing a poem. When that dawned on me, I broke my prayer and got my pen & pad. There was a split second where I felt guilty for stunting my prayer because it sounded like a good poem that I wanted to write down.

When it came down to it, I didn't even remember a significant enough amount to make sense of anything & I couldn't even get back in the groove to complete my prayer. Two fails for the price of one. Hmph! But I needed a jumpstart to the more poetic writer side of myself because she's been silenced for a while.

Prayer really does change things & sometimes those things aren't even what you're asking about at the time. God knows us so well, He's able to give us the things we need before we can even anticipate or even know that we even want those things.



Even Ghandi said, "If you don't ask, you don't get." What I am going to be asking for.?The strength to go through the bad with grace. And the power to live my purpose. I was put here for a reason & the cool thing about life is--we get to spend our lives finding out what that purpose is. That's beautiful. I don't want to crumble at the thought of being able to live an amazing life. I'm gonna live...fully.

Amen.

Day One-It All Starts With God

"Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious, free life" The Message- Romans 8:6

I thought about how I have been living my life currently, in a bubble where only things directly related to me mattered. I closed out so much of the things in my life because I didn't feel lie dealing with them. In order to take charge of my life, I need to not focus so much on self. Being selfish does nothing for self help.


The crazy thing is, the first chapter explains how this isn't even a self help book. It is not about finding the right career, achieving your dreams or planning your life…the book preaches. I can completely understand that. What I am looking for is to take charge of my life and live the purpose that I was put here for. You can choose so many parts and aspects to your life, but you cannot choose your purpose. God's designed purpose in all our lives and it's up to us to develop and nurture a relationship with Him in order to gain that purpose.


Day one, I am told to think about my purpose and know that it's not about me; it's much bigger than myself. There is something that I find comforting about the book--it gives me a question to consider after every chapter. Today's question was: In spite of [everything] around me, how can I remind myself that life is really about living for God, not myself?


It's one thing to say that I believe in God. But it's quite another to say that I actually worship. Growing up, I was always taught Christianity and it's what I base my beliefs on. However, once I was on my own, I would go to church here and there, I might even spout of a popular verse or two--but I was never a true worshipper through and through. I never really created that relationship with God that I needed to. I guess this is really my chance to. I have to remind myself that I am living for God. For real this time.


How can I do this everyday? Praying. I can thank the Lord for waking me up, I can say small prayers and thank you's throughout the day to show my gratitude for life. It's funny because one year ago, I got a tattoo on my right wrist that says Faith. It was a physical reminder that everyday, I need to not only have faith in God, but remember my faith--my God. Even though I see that tattoo everyday, sometimes I forget. I need not forget, anymore.

A Life With Purpose

In 40 days, my life will be transformed. Today, I am making a committment to having a Purpose Driven Life. I was given The Purpose Driven life almost three years ago by a friend of mine that I was in a show with. I didn't commit to it back then and over these years, I let it collect dust on my bookshelf. I was looking at it the other day, thinking, I wonder if I gave this book a chance, would I be able to transform the direction of my life?

From the outside looking in, people would think that my life isn't that out of order. I'm living in the city I dreamed of as a kid, I am writing for a living and I'm young. However, I know my own ambition and what goes on with me when no one is watching and I know that my life isn't in the best place it could be right now. I have absolutely no reason to complain about life, because I can fix it myself. This is my first attempt at REAL self help.

Raise your glasses. Here's to Danielle Lacole Young, taking 40 life changing days to discover the purpose of her life! Cheers!