THE POWER OF DECISIONS

"Know that it’s your decisions, and not your conditions, that determine your destiny".

I would like you to stop for a moment and think about the meaning of this quote. Allow it to soak into your system. Use it to begin picking apart those things in your life you are not comfortable with and peel back to reveal the very core. If you do that you will find it at its very base is a decision. But backed by our decisions are our belief in or lack of belief in ourselves.

One of my most loved quotes is "thoughts are things and powerful things" Napoleon Hill.  Why? Because as the bible puts it, "as a man thinketh so is he". The things we attract into our lives begin with thoughts but are manifested by the decisions that we make. It's our faith and confidence in God and ourselves that is the ingredient which pushes us to action. In other words, think it, believe it, decided upon it, take massive action.

To move to the next level in our lives calls for 1st a deep hunger for what we want to accomplish 2. A confidence and believe that we can do it, 3. Making a do or die decision that this is exactly what we want. 4. Taking the audacious crazy faith step to accomplishing that goal.

My deepest desire is to not only write, but begin speaking as well. Massive action needed.

Fly fly fly!!!!!!!You were made to fly.

One Love
Danni

LITTLE LESSONS FROM ABOVE

Get inspired. God got your back. According to my BFF, "He's dope like that".

I am going through one of the biggest tests of my faith. But God reminded me today that He got my back.

I had a conversation with a sister friend of mine today and as we spoke about various people in the bible who endured intense tests or persecution, something jumped out at us. It was so profound, I just had to share. Do you really believe that God has placed within you a desire and a dream  and that He needs you to focus on Him as He leads you to your destiny? As we spoke about the story of Daniel, she said to me "even in captivity, Daniel was made a ruler". Can you imagine, the captive ruling the people who held Him captive? What a mighty God we serve. Then it dawned on me, not only did Daniel rule while in captivity, but Joseph was prime minister of Egypt while in captivity.

Emancipation:

What ever is holding you captive, remember you were created to become a leader, a ruler. But on your way to your destiny you have to go through those tests that are geared towards building your character and strengthening your determination. The quicker you learn the lesson, the quicker the test is removed. Learn quickly, build quickly, grow quickly. Getting through these periods are painful but important. My best friend said to me "you will know the magnitude of the lesson by the magnitude of the test". How do we learn? Well spend time focusing on knowing the being who placed within you a Divinely ordained purpose. Spend time praying.

One Love
Danni

THOSE UNBEARABLE CHALLENGES!!!!!!!

I have always liked the theme songs of various Disney animated movies. The theme song for the Disney movie Moana which features "girl strength" is worth listening to.

The song talks about the challenges of stepping out of your comfort zone, challenging yourself and the fear of the unknown. How many times have we found ourselves afraid to step out and prove to ourselves (not anyone else) that we can do what we have always dreamed of doing? I believe many of us hold ourselves back because of our fear and the challenges that comes along with the pursuit of our dream.

I remember listening to Steve Harvey tell the story of how he lived out of his car earlier in his career and even lost his family, in pursuit of his dream. So many show what they have accomplished, most people do not talk about the challenges that accompany the road to success. Not just the sleepless nights or the time spent working hard; but the loss of income, doing odd jobs performing menial tasks that hardly meets your financial needs. In the movie the pursuit of happiness the main character lost his home and his marriage. Motivational speaker Les Brown talks about the time he had to sleep in his office because he had no where to live. Though these are very extreme situations understand that anything in life that you stand up for, no matter what it is, be prepared to be challenged, to be frowned upon, to lose a lot in your quest for greatness. Be prepared to lose your closest friends or at the very least, have them voice their opinions on how wrong you are.

Stand for what you know is true, stand for what you know is right, stand for what you believe in. You will be happy that you did.

Never stop believing, you were made to fly.

One Love

Danni

MY BIGGEST ENEMIES

When the voices of fear and doubt begin creeping in just remember you were made to fly.

The silent times have a way of bringing to the surface our darkest deepest fears. What I fear more than anything in this life is giving up. I hate the idea of me giving up what I believe I was created to do. My art, my craft, my God given purpose.

The unwise words of wisdom. It is those that we love who stand to benefit the most from our decisions. But those that we love are usually  the most antagonistic towards our goals and capabilities. Please understand that it's not coming from a place of hate, but a desire to not see us get disappointed. Maybe it's best to lovingly surprise them.

When your fear collides with your most cherished dream, stand and fight for what you believe in. It takes hard work, resilience and a desire to be the best. Make a conscious effort to make today better than yesterday. If we approach life with a growth mindset, to do better today than we did yesterday. Nothing will prevent us from reaching the peak of success.

You were made to fly.

One Love
Danni

WHEN MISS MOTIVATION...MISS MOTIVATION

Normally I am the one encouraging others to stay strong and positive, to hang in there, to keep on fighting and striving in your persuit for greatness.

Today as I listened to both my kids make various noises and trust me its from one extreme to the next, I cannot help but say that nothing and no one prepares you for the challenges of parenting. Trying to live my purpose which includes raising my kids right (my lifes work), I am just overwhelmed. I have my own hopes, dreams and aspirations, I have to meet the needs of my husband and my children and what I want to do now is bury my head in the sand.

The challenges of life can be so overwhelming they seem to hold us hostage. And you know what, it is ok to admit, like I am admitting now, that you are overwhelmed. I would love to get practical advise from those who have gone through challenging times, how they were able to get through. I especially would love to hear from parents on how they were able to balance it all.

Until then, I am holding on to my faith " I can do all things, through Christ who gives me strength" Holding on to my sanity.

One Love
Danni

NEVER STOP DREAMING

The moment you stop dreaming, the moment you stop striving, the moment you stop believing, a big part of you have died.

When I was a little girl, I decided I was going to turn my yard into a park. It was inspired by a picture of a park in my favorite "Sweet Pickles" book. I gathered all my little 6 year old friends and took them to my house. That wasn't hard, my school was next door. I presented my plan to them and was very confident that we could in deed pull it off. Whenever I begin doubting myself my dad reminds me that I was once a little girl with a big dream.

Don't just dream, you should dream big dreams, ridiculous dreams, dreams that stretch you. If everyone thinks you're crazy, then you're probably on the right path. Remember the big things in life were created by ordinary people like you and me. So never be afraid to step out of your confort zone, and make your dream happen.

You were made to Fly

One Love
Danni

NO RUSH NEEDED

Have you ever heard the story of the tortoise and the hare? One day the hare decided to tease the tortoise for being slow. The tortoise then challenged the hare to a race. The hare thinking this was a sure win accepted the challenge. The day came and they started off. As expected the hare was leading the race until nearing the finish line he decided to rest and soon fell asleep. After sleeping for hours, he hurridly jumped up and raced to the finish line, only to realise that the tortoise had gotten to the finish line before him and therefore won the race.

Many morals can be learned from this story, but I'll focus on the most obvious ones.

1. No rush needed. It's a good idea to pace ourselves when working towards accomplishing our goals. It doesn't mean that we don't set high goals or have great expectations. Always remember slow and steady wins the race. As I have said before, micro goals are your best friend. This works great with exercising. It's best to not start going hard or with maximum intensity. Work on winning the small steps or goals that will lead to accomplishing the bigger goal.

2. Dont be sleeping on your dream. Nothing can be accomplished unless we decide to work at it. Keep on trying, dreaming, believing but most importantly, continue working at bringing those dreams and desires to reality. Consistency is key. Doesn't matter how long it may take you to accomplish that goal, keep working at it.

3. Never compare yourself. I believe that everyone has a purpose or calling. No two people are alike. It's never a good idea to spend time belittling others or ourselves. Just be your best self, bring your "A" game and find fulfillment in your blessings.

Sometimes being still or being patient allows us to see clearly the path we need to be on. Slow and steady wins the race. No rush, be patient. You will get there safely and at the right time. For slow and Steady wins the race.

Thanks to Kaity my little princess for introducing me to this Esop' s fable.

You were made to fly

One Love
Danni