How Do You Define Success?

Success is defined many different ways to many different people. For some, it's financial. For others, it's family. And for others still, it may be health or all of the above. It's important to understand success and define what it is to you.

For me, I became successful when I finally allowed Jesus to control my life. I'm not as wealthy or as healthy as I want to be. But I consider myself successful. My life has changed. I'm no longer depressed or suicidal. That's success. I'm finally a good mom to my son and a good wife to my husband. I'm no longer in abusive relationships, friendships or otherwise. That's success to me. I am finally content with who I am in Christ. I'm prosperous in my soul. That is success to me.

I've defined success for myself. It helps me have joy even in uncertain times.

Credit: A Fool's Tomb

It's easy to look at the recent boost in unemployment and become fearful. Jobs are being lost by the dozens on a daily basis. Spending is down because income is down because spending is down. Do you see the cycle?

Just the other day, I spoke with a financial planner, one of my online friends. He was sharing with me that he is making twice as much money now that the economy is bad because now people want some sound financial advice. So, what is the advice he gave me? Buy the stock cheap but make sure it's financially stable companies. But, if Circuit City can go out of business after 60 years, and if Mervyn's can close, and if Sears/Kmart are on their way into bankruptcy yet again, what in the world is a sure thing?

I listened to him for a bit over thirty minutes. Afterwards, I made one decision for my family. Tomorrow isn't promised. All I have is today. I refuse to worry about what may never come. Therefore, I save what I think I need to save for us to survive, and I don't worry so much over what the financial forecasters say. I choose to reflect back to what my grandmother used to say. "Credit is a fool's tomb. If you can't buy it cash, then wait on it. Anything worth having is worth waiting for." I know I've been a fool and so a fool is whipped with many stripes. I'm taking my stripes right now by living moment to moment. However, even a fool can learn wisdom, which for me is that I don't ever want any more credit cards or loan notes, home notes, car notes. I believe I can wait until I put my money up. I'd rather struggle now saving than struggle later trying to keep something out of foreclosure or repossession.

So, what are your thoughts?

PPP Has Won an Award

I'm so delighted about the new award my little humble spot online has won. We're dedicated to winning many more and becoming one of your favorite stops online.

Three Things I Must Do Before Death

I may be alone in this, but there are certain things I want to happen before I die, stuff I feel like I have to do before I die, else will I feel like I never lived my life.

1. Walk on the beach with my husband, children and a dog. Isn't that the American dream? (Oh, I have to have children first. My son is now a grown man. YAY and BOO HOO!)
2. Go dancing at an upscale restaurant with my husband, both of us decked out like we're on our way to a formal or something.
3. Stay at a $1000 a night hotel for two nights and eat $500 meals both days... not that it's important, but heck, I REALLY want to know the difference between a $25 steak and a $500 one. Don't you?

Okay, now is your turn. What do you want to do before kicking the rusty old bucket?

Joy is More Important than Happiness

Some people think joy and happiness are one and the same. I submit to you they are two different things altogether. In fact, I wouldn't even call them cousins.

One speaks to a state of mind and consciousness. The other speaks to daily occurences and events. One speaks to the heart of a person. The other speaks to the thoughts of a person. One is lasting. One is fleeting. One is pivotal to growth and change. The other is not, rather not in the same way.

Joy speaks to the soul of a person and deals with their state of mind and consciousness. Joy is lasting. It's not shaped by the circumstances of life, therefore it is an immutable part of life. With joy, you don't mind growing and changing. It doesn't matter much what comes. You're okay with being you.

Happiness is more exciting, but also unstable. Happiness changes according to the happenings of life. While happiness does not lead to joy, joy always leads to some measure of happiness. And while a person is happy, no lasting changes are made in their thought processes. But, if a person is full of joy, daily their thought processes shift to allow room for other things and new information.

I choose to be joyful, and for that, I'm very happy!

Okay, Okay ~ Now We Have a Winner

Okay, with the help of two wonderful Joyces, I finally got a file I actually love. I'm a stickler about colors and placement. So, this worked for me. Thanks Joyce Scarbrough and Joyce Anthony, as well as Heather Neff.

Victorious Thinking ~ Barack and Michelle Obama

A day after the history inauguration of a partially black president, I'm thinking about where change begins. I know it doesn't begin with a speech. I know it doesn't begin in some congressional meeting, or what have you. In fact, I'm inclined to believe change has to begin with our minds. Romans 12 tells us to renew our mind. That means to make it new again, or restore it to a place before corruption.

What kind of corruption? The corruption of harmful thinking. It comes from hard times and heartaches. It comes from living long enough for pessimism to set in. It comes naturally, and easily. The answer is to learn how to think victoriously everyday, and that without regard to your surroundings or circumstances.

I'm proud that we have a black president, though I didn't personally vote for him. He is a symbol of hope, no doubt. Now, we have to cover him in prayer so that he will make decisions becoming a man of honor and one who will go down in history as the best decision this country ever made or the worst mistake it ever made. That's our public duty. It's at least, my duty.

Personally, I'm looking at him and wondering if one of my children could be next. Isn't that a beautiful feeling? I'm looking at Michelle Obama and thanking God for an open door of opportunity for my sons and daughters, those present and those to come. Looking at the first family, I see the power of victorious thinking. How about you?

And, we have a winner

Okay, so my designer took everyone's suggestions into consideration - those I got privately and publicly. And, here's what we both could safely agree upon. I give you my newest book cover for Justified: Escape Webs of Sin

Updated Version of Justified

Okay, so what about this one compared to the one below?

New Cover for Future Book ~ Need Feedback

So, what do you think of this cover for Justified: Escape from the Web of Sin? I'm still a bit speechless. I need your valuable feedback.

What is a Mother?

This Sunday, my mind is on what it really means to be a mother. Needless to say, it's much more than actually having children. Nearly any woman of child-bearing age can do that. Then, there are mothers who've never birthed a child. So, what does it mean?

A mother is someone who nourishes and trains. She uses all the knowledge and wisdom she's acquired in her own life and relays it to her children so that they are prepared for life in every stage. She makes sure her children know they are loved, unconditionally. She knows when she needs to be a disciplinarian, a teacher, or a friend. She's willing to sacrifice her own desires for the needs and desires of her children. She knows when to hang on and fight and when to let go and trust. She makes many mistakes, but she's never afraid or too prideful to apologize and make things right. Ultimately, she leads her children by example, living an honorable life before them. In the end, she leaves them equipped for what they'll have to endure without her.

Does this describe you? I'd love to hear from you.

Unedited Excerpt from "The Snare of a Strange Woman"

I'm very proud of the book, The Snare of a Strange Woman. Please, enjoy this brief excerpt.

"An outside woman is just that. She’s not in the home to see a man’s flaws and harp on them. She’s not there to nurse a sick husband and sick children. She’s not there to worry about utilities being disconnected or car notes falling months behind. She is new, like a fresh breath when leaving a smoke-filled bar. While the wife is working, she’s there to hear whatever he says. While the wife is home tending to chores, she’s with him tending to his insecurities. And men can sometimes be the most insecure of beings. He’s just not comfortable asking if his belly is too big, or if his male part is too small. Still, those thoughts cross his mind, and more frequently the older he gets. The wife won’t take note of that, partly because she’s so busy taking note of everything else concerning her husband. Oh, but that outsider will sense his fears in seconds and pounce for the opportunity to soothe them."

The Snare of a Strange Woman

I've never been happier to announce something in my life. I have a lot of books, and hence a lot of covers, but this one is by far my fave. It was the perfect fit for the content of the book. Now, I can't wait to hold the book, The Snare of a Strange Woman, in my hands.

A Wonderful Announcement

I'm so happy today. I now have five books in print, thank God. I'm going over the proof to the fifth, but so far so good after being 100 pages in. As of this moment, these books are now available to the public:

~ The Rape of Innocence: Taking Captivity Captive
~ Becoming: My Personal Memoirs
~ Poetic Infinity: Passion and Promise
~ Truth and Intimacy: A Couple's Journal
~ Raw Redemption

I just finished writing my fifteenth book, The Snare of a Strange Woman, and am currently making plans for it's electronic release during the spring. I'm going to go back and re-write my very first book and give it a national release around the end of 2009. More announcements follow. Stay tuned!

Give Voice to Your Dreams

Dreams are those delightful things that keep people hoping and wishing and believing. They are the ultimate motivators. They're not always big. Some of them may seem simple to others, but regardless of size they are powerful.

I was blessed with the gift of writing, though not always well. Through my writing and through my preaching, I am able to give voice to my dreams. What are your gifts? Use them to give voice to your dreams. Don't stop believing, wishing, hoping and dreaming. Keep them alive and you will have a pleasant life, and a place of refuge from the harsh realities of this world.

Your Prosperity is in Your Passion

In this new year, I know that some are finding it terribly difficult to balance the excitement of something new with the hardships of something old like the debt that is eating this country alive. However, I believe that better things are on the horizon for us.

Just recently, one of my friends started her own sitter business. Already, she's making (net income) something like $6,000 a month. That's a whole lot of cheese if you consider the fact that she was on welfare just four months ago. She loves older people, babies and animals. She's hospitable. She can cook and actually loves to clean (God bless her). She doesn't have any degrees. She isn't the best speaker in the world. There is nothing fancy about her. Yet, she was able to tap into her passion and make it work for her. She told me last week that she's having to turn business away. Imagine that!

Anyway, I want to encourage those of you having financial difficulties to tap into your passion and make that work for you. You never know where your prosperity lies.

New Year, New Dimensions

There are things I compromised about last year that I'm not willing to compromise about this year, namely the ministry God has entrusted to me. Over the past couple of days, I've took a real inventory of my life. I've honestly assessed the good and the bad and the private.

I believe that new years bring about new dimensions. What worked last year won't work this year. For that matter, it isn't just years, but days. With each passing day, we need to resolve to do better and be better. The Bible says that God's mercies are new every morning. So this year, I'm determined not to live by the turning of a calendar year to get better, but to improve each day. I'm determined to use the new mercies of God daily to build myself up on my most holy faith, walk a walk that is spotless before people, and to give God glory even in my own pain.

This year is a new year for new dimensions. In this dimension, it is all about what sacrifices you're willing to make on a daily basis to draw closer to God.