Tag: Faith

The Path of Change

“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.”

― Jon Krakauer

        Don’t be afraid of change because it is so easy to become complacent and comfortable in our lives. We may be miserable but something holds us back from getting up and making change happen. Whether it be a fear of the unknown or of failure. But at some point, you must wake up and realize that life isn’t about feeling safe, secure and comfortable all the time. Sometimes you have to push yourself beyond your comfort zone and take a leap of faith to truly learn what it means to fly. So, today stop making excuses for your unhappy circumstances and take your first step down the untrodden path of change.

Stay True to Who You Are

“Life is funny. Things change, people change, but you will always be you, so stay true to yourself and never sacrifice who you are for anyone.”

― Zayn Malik

    One of the most important lessons you must learn is to never compromise who you are for anyone – including for a job, a significant other, a family member, or a friend. It is so hard to stay true to yourself when you have outside influences and voices trying to change you and criticizing you when you try to say no. But it is at these times when you are facing immense pressure to behave in a certain manner that you must find the strength and courage to not give in and to not sacrifice who you are. Stand tall in your convictions and always listen to your inner voice.

Be Comfortable with the Company You Keep

“The person in life that you will always be with the most, is yourself. Because even when you are with others, you are still with yourself, too! When you wake up in the morning, you are with yourself, laying in bed at night you are with yourself, walking down the street in the sunlight you are with yourself.What kind of person do you want to walk down the street with? What kind of person do you want to wake up in the morning with? What kind of person do you want to see at the end of the day before you fall asleep? Because that person is yourself, and it’s your responsibility to be that person you want to be with. I know I want to spend my life with a person who knows how to let things go, who’s not full of hate, who’s able to smile and be carefree. So that’s who I have to be.”

– C. JoyBell C

       It is true that the person you will spend time with the most is yourself. So, you better love the company you keep. You must contemplate the type of person you would like to wake up to. Who do you want to spend time with? And then you must strive to be your highest self at all times. Check the pettiness, jealousy, hatred and self-loathing at the door. Embrace compassion, learn to forgive and let go – be a free spirit.  And become someone you would be honored to walk hand in hand with through this journey we call life.

Moving Forward

“Even though you may want to move forward in your life, you may have one foot on the brakes. In order to be free, we must learn how to let go. Release the hurt. Release the fear. Refuse to entertain your old pain. The energy it takes to hang onto the past is holding you back from a new life. What is it you would let go of today?”

― Mary Manin Morrissey

         We often find ourselves saying it’s time to move on, that we’re ready to move forward toward something better. But yet we find ourselves stuck time and time again. Why? Maybe we’re asking the wrong questions. Maybe the right question is, “what is tethering us to our current situation…what is preventing us from leaping with both feet?” When you can answer these questions, you can begin to break free of the chains binding you to the past. In order to truly move forward, you must first release the pain and regrets of yesterday to make room for the rewards of tomorrow.

We Must Carry On

“If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream.”

― Martin Luther King Jr.

         In a world filled with such hatred and intolerance, it is hard to believe in better days to come. With nothing but darkness enveloping a nation that has turned against those it is sworn to protect, it is hard to fathom the Sun will ever shine again. When man has turned against fellow man, it is hard to believe that one day our brothers will no longer have to fear when they walk out the door they will not come home that night. When all hope and faith has been leeched from our weary souls, we must stop and remember those who have come before us. Our brothers and sisters who gave up their lives to advocate for tolerance, justice and equality-the very same struggle we are facing yet again today. And it is on their shoulders that we must stand and say, “I still have a dream” and we will not go quietly into the night.

Play On

“Laugh, even when you feel too sick or too worn out or tired.
Smile, even when you’re trying not to cry and the tears are blurring your vision.
Sing, even when people stare at you and tell you your voice is crappy.
Trust, even when your heart begs you not to.
Twirl, even when your mind makes no sense of what you see.
Frolick, even when you are made fun of. Kiss, even when others are watching. Sleep, even when you’re afraid of what the dreams might bring.
Run, even when it feels like you can’t run any more.
And, always, remember, even when the memories pinch your heart. Because the pain of all your experience is what makes you the person you are now. And without your experience—you are an empty page, a blank notebook, a missing lyric. What makes you brave is your willingness to live through your terrible life and hold your head up high the next day. So don’t live life in fear. Because you are stronger now, after all the crap has happened, than you ever were back before it started.”

By Alysha Speer

        No matter what you’re going through in life, you always have to play on. Even when things are going horribly wrong, you can’t stop – you have to push through. Even when there is no hope, you have to carry on. No matter what storms life brings your way, you must continue to sing your song. For this is what it means to live and not simply exist.

Spread Your Wings

“I have come to accept the feeling of not knowing where I am going. And I have trained myself to love it. Because it is only when we are suspended in mid-air with no landing in sight, that we force our wings to unravel and alas begin our flight. And as we fly, we still may not know where we are going to. But the miracle is in the unfolding of the wings. You may not know where you’re going, but you know that so long as you spread your wings, the winds will carry you.”

― C. JoyBell C.

         Life isn’t about having all the right answers or having a roadmap to follow with turn-by-turn instructions. It’s meant to be a journey of discovery. One where you are meant to blindly choose a door and open it not knowing what lies on the other side. You can analyze a decision backwards and forwards but at some point you must take a leap of faith. Trust in yourself, spread your wings and let the winds take you where they may.

Follow Your Own Path

“I believe in going with the flow. I don’t believe in fighting against the flow. You ride on your river and you go with the tides and the flow. But it has to be your river, not someone else’s. Everyone has their own river, and you don’t need to swim, float, sail on their’s, but you need to be in your own river and you need to go with it. And I don’t believe in fighting the wind. You go and you fly with your wind. Let everyone else catch their own gusts of wind and let them fly with their own gusts of wind, and you go and you fly with yours.”

― C. JoyBell C.

        Each of us has our own path that we must walk alone. No two paths are the same. What’s right for you may be wrong for someone else. But it is important that you listen to your own inner voice, your own inner compass to steer you towards the trail that was meant for you to blaze. You have to block out the voices of the naysayers and those who will lead you astray. Because when it comes down to it, every person you encounter will likely have an opinion on how you should live your life. But in the end, the only voice that matters is yours. So make it count.

Your Future has Yet to be Written

“A bad beginning does not keep you from a good ending.”

― Matshona Dhliwayo

          You know the old adage that when it rains it pours. It often feels like things are doomed before they really start. But it is at these times you have to remind yourself that although you cannot change what has already been written, you can change what has yet to come….at any moment in time you have the power to decide this IS NOT how your story will end.

Out of the Darkness

“A ship doesn’t sink because it is in the ocean in the midst of a storm. It only sinks when the hull is breached, and the ocean gets inside it.”

― Arthur Jackson Jr., Out of the Darkness

        The storms we encounter throughout life do not in and of themselves destroy us.  It is when we allow the rains and heavy winds to seep inside our very soul that our spirits take a beating.  Never forget that we may not be able to choose what storms we face in life, but we do control whether we allow ourselves to succumb to the darkness.