In Part 1 of this series, Know Your Truth: Think, Speak, Live , we discussed how living out our truth takes courage, it is a process, and that we need to be careful to not get stuck in the process. In today’s article we are discussing how to step up in courage to get the think/know and speak part of knowing your truth moving.  Trust me!  Putting these things into practice will get your heart pumping with excitement (even if it is a bit scary)!

“It takes courage to speak our truth. Speaking our truth allows what is deep inside of us to come out – our hopes, dreams, desires, beliefs, who we are. Many of us let life’s not so fun circumstances run amuck, which swallows up our truth eventually leaving us lost and depressed. Oh my, how I know that all too well. There comes a point in time, though, when enough is enough.” ~ Speak Your Truth & Soar!

It does take courage to speak our truth!

Sometimes it even takes courage, a ton of courage, to admit our truth in thought much less speak it. And sometimes it takes a ton of courage to think our truth, to speak our truth, AND then to LIVE our truth.

Think, speak, live!

Whatever your circumstances you CAN rise above it! It starts with your thoughts. What are you thinking? Are you stuck in the negative spiraling journey into defeat and failure? If so, it’s time to do something about it.

It’s time to have an honest moment with yourself. Get quiet, no distractions … no TV, no music, phone, people, etc. Go for a walk, go to your favorite spot in the house, or wherever you need to go to hear the honesty in your spirit about you. All you have to do is to listen without judgement. Let it bubble up and just hold it in a safe place in your heart.

From your thoughts allow your speech to affirm what you are holding in your heart. Declare your truth … yes! … out loud! C’mon say it right now! Even better, go to the mirror, look yourself square in the eye and declare your truth, out loud! Say it again, but this time say it like you really mean it with conviction! How does that feel? Don’t judge what you feel just acknowledge it and move on saying it again and again. At this point you may want to journal whatever comes up.

Continue to hold your truth in that safe place in your heart, continue saying it out loud to yourself, and continue journalling about it. At some point when you are ready begin sharing your truth with safe people. Be selective especially early on with whom you speak your truth to because this is a delicate time. As you grow more confident you can shout it from the roof tops.  Actually, for that matter, you may be ready from the git go to shout it from the roof tops. If that is you? Then go girlfriend!!

Are you excited, scared, depressed, still feeling numbed out?  Do you feel something bubbling up inside that makes you feel like you know but you know?  I love hearing from you so please do share whether in the comment section or shooting me an email!!

We think/know our truth, we speak our truth, and now it’s time to put it all into action. Many people get stuck here when it comes to living out our truth, our authenticity.

Stay tuned for Part 3 of Knowing Your Truth: Think, Speak, Live as we dive into the nuts and bolts of living out our truth.

Photo credits:  Intuitive Development

“It takes courage to speak our truth. Speaking our truth allows what is deep inside of us to come out – our hopes, dreams, desires, beliefs, who we are. Many of us let life’s not so fun circumstances run amuck, which swallows up our truth eventually leaving us lost and depressed. Oh my, how I know that all too well. There comes a point in time, though, when enough is enough.” ~ Speak Your Truth & Soar, TWWC article 2009

Talk about resonating! This excerpt from Speak Your Truth & Soar grabbed my heart today because in recent months I have found myself in that exact spot of being in not so fun circumstances running amuck in my life.  The result?  You got it!  Feeling lost and depressed and might I add fragile.

Last month I wrote about my being on that crazy merry-go-round kind of life knowing that the only way to get off would mean making some tough decisions.  Enough became enough when finally, I stepped up into courage and made some changes and now I am in the process of adjusting to what that means, and it is good.  You will be seeing the results of this in the next few coming weeks!

Discovering and living out our truth is a process.  Over the next while I will be posting about this because discovering is not enough!  We have to do something with what we discover!  And then we have to be careful to not get stuck in the process or we will never truly shine … or put another way, we will never fully bloom into who we were created to be.

Do you know your truth?

Do you speak your truth?

Do you live your truth?

If this brief article is causing something deep within you to stir, take heart!  This is a very good thing because you are in the right place at the right time.

Stay tuned for more on Knowing Your Truth: Think, Speak, Live.

Share in the comment section below if there is a stirring and/or what it means for you.

You ARE a beautiful phenomenal woman! Step into and embrace ALL of who you are … because YOU are woman!!

What does this video stir inside of you? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.

You ARE a beautiful phenomenal woman! Step into and embrace ALL of who you are … because YOU are woman!!

What does this video stir inside of you?  Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.

I want to thank Chaplain Donna from Empowered Peace for sharing this video on Twitter today.

Shileen & Georgie

I was way out of my comfort zone.  To so many it was no big deal, but to me?  It was a very big deal.  Leading up to what I considered the big event, I consoled myself by telling myself that I would not die from it … that is, the part that created the most fear in me.

I knew that the trip was crucial in my journey but I did not know why.  I was venturing out to do something new … on my own … totally alone!  The last time I did anything like this alone was 27 plus years ago.  Yeah!  Along time ago!!  My traveling legs were a little wobbly to say the least.

Authenticity is speaking.  We all have things that cause us to want to withdraw into our safety zones … to play it safe and then we rationalize it with all kinds of crazy ideas that can really sound convincing.  But if you and I check our inner guidance system (IGS … cute!) and have a moment of truth with ourselves, we will know that it is fear holding us back.

I could not allow fear to hold me back from traveling across country to LA to meet the woman who taught me about my inner guidance system and how to read it, care for it, and nurture it.  I could not allow fear to hold me back from learning about the most beautiful company that has crossed my path to date.

God ordained this trip.  I knew that.  And if I said no I would be saying no to God and I knew that that would put a real kink in my journey.

First of all, let me just say that the trip … the airport and flying part … WAS NO BIG DEAL! Ha!  I now know I can fly anywhere alone and I will be ok.  Yay!

Secondly, oh my goodness!!  Georgie Holbrook and I got to meet for the very first time and it was so awesome.  She is my personal Emotional Wellness Coach of about seven years. It was so much fun and such a blessing for us to spend time together.  She and I have a lot of work to do professionally and we are both excited to see how it all unfolds.

And third … let me set up like this …

Saturday I received a text message from my spiritual director telling me that he believed that God would speak to me that day.  I could feel it to be true as my inner guidance system was on overdrive!  The day was chalked full of fabulous speakers and oh so much information about a beautiful liquid collagen product called Jusuru.

It was the very end of the night when they were wrapping things up after a great awards ceremony.  I don’t remember who was speaking or what was being said but in an instant I heard God’s still small voice.  “There are people in your circle of influence and who will be in your circle of influence that will need what’s inside this bottle in order for them to experience a miracle.  You are the person to make that delivery.”

My immediate response:  And there it is.  There is the message my spiritual director was referring to and one my own inner guidance system was expecting.

Oh but what a responsibility!  I don’t know how it will all play out … I just know that I am to be a vessel in which Jusuru is shared.  It won’t be for everyone, but it will be the miracle some are waiting for.

Is it for you?  I haven’t a clue and I will not pretend to know either.  My job is simply to present.  The rest, my dear reader, is up to you.  I just ask that you check in with your inner guidance system on this one!  It could be one of those God things for you that you won’t want to pass by.

What a fabulous trip I had!  Honoring your inner guidance system, which I believe God uses to guide us, can take us outside of our safety zones … our little box.  Sometimes we have to step up and out in courage that will take us to the next step or level in our journeys leading to higher heights!  =)

Have you checked in with your inner guidance system lately?  Where might it be leading you?  Would you like to know?  Maybe you do know but you need a little encouraging support.  Do you need some help?  I’m just an email and a phone call away!

Liquid collagen for healthy joints & skin!

Spring is finally here.  That alone is enough to make my spirit jump with joy.  This is, no doubt, a gorgeous time of the year as nature comes alive with new birth.

With spring comes spring-cleaning.  We all seem to naturally want to clean things out, freshen things up, and make our homes sparkle after a long winter, at least to

some degree.  Making things beautiful inside and out, we want our homes to be fresh and new just like outside in nature.

Spring is a time to come alive.  To come alive is exhilarating … especially if you have not been in that state for a while whether from a long hard winter in nature or from life’s hard knocks.

Below is a facebook status update from my girlfriend that I would like for you to ponder …

Spring has come to Pennsylvania. As I was clearing away dead leaves and debris in my flowerbeds, I was reminded that now is a prefect time to do the same within ourselves. ~ BI

No matter what emotional state you might find yourself in and for whatever reason, how can this beautiful season of spring, spring you forward into a higher exhilarated state of being alive?

As you become still and ponder my girlfriend’s thought, what debris in your own life do you need to clear away?  There is fresh soil under the dead leaves and debris.  What might you find after you have cleared it out?  How alive might it make you feel once it is all gone?  What’s the first step you need to take towards making it happen?

Spring is a time to come alive … Go for it!!!

Take heart!  God is doing something new!!

In my last article, Do You Value Yourself?, I wrote about how the hardships of life can take it’s toll on our self-value.  But, Isaiah 43:1 tells us that we belong to God and He knows our names.  God’s love and value for us is like no other and it is this knowledge that carries us through the rough points in our lives.

Today I am writing about those rough points.  Times are rough for so many right now here in our country and certainly in other parts of the world with Haiti in the forefront.  May the Lord be with them providing miracles of provisions, healings, and salvation both physically and spiritually, and much comfort.

I don’t know what you’re struggling with today, but I encourage you to stop wrestling with the issue in the sense of wanting things to go back to the way they used to be.  Don’t we do that?  I know that I will find myself in that position from time to time.

We say things like if only this didn’t happen or that didn’t happen.  If we could just get things back to the way they used to be then life would be easy.  We will even make a plan on how to get it there, but does it really ever work out?  No.  Why? …

… Because life is forever changing.  Change is a good thing.  The quicker we wrap ourselves around the change that we are in the middle of the better off we will be, along with those around us and our situation.

“This is what the LORD says— he who made a way through the sea, 
a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.See, I am doing a new thing! 
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? 
I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.

The wild animals honor me, 
the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.”

~Isaiah 43:16-21

Take heart!  God is doing something new!!

Whatever your situation is, embrace it!  Instead of dwelling in the past, look up and out!  God is doing something new in your life!  He is making a way for you in your desert.  He is making provisions for you, His chosen, so that you can proclaim His praise!

Glory be to God!

The opinion you have of yourself is what matters most!

I don’t like to be misunderstood. I suppose there aren’t too many people who do but some are better at letting it go than others.

How do you react when you are misunderstood, when someone forms an ongoing opinion about you based on their misinterpretation of you? We have a choice in how we react to such things.

Admittedly, there are times when someone’s opinion bother’s me especially when I’m being misunderstood. When that happens I typically have to process the situation in order to move beyond it, however, I refuse to linger there and get stuck in it.

When we linger and get stuck in the upset of someone’s negative or wrong opinion about ourselves only hurts us by steeling our joy and taking our focus away from the things that do bring us joy and the things that are most important to us. We then give that person power over us and we fall into the victim role. Oh boy! I hate that! When I become aware that that’s what I’m doing, I move out fast! I refuse to be a victim and you should too!

I do understand, though, that when it’s someone close to you such opinions can be very hurtful and the processing can either take longer or can even be ongoing because the issue may be something that has to be dealt with often. That is not always easy but more often than not the situation will resolve itself one of two ways.

1. Eventually the person misunderstanding you will finally see the light about you. Big relief!

2. There may come a point in time when you have to move on if it causes too much friction. In this case my thinking is … “go where you’re celebrated not tolerated”.

Again, that is for the extreme situation. For those situations not so extreme, another option is to simply ignore it. Does it really matter what other people think? No!

“Ultimately, what others think about you doesn’t really count as much as what you think about yourself.  It doesn’t matter who they are – spouses, children, parents, siblings, friends, well wishers, colleagues, critics, detractors, enemies and any other categories of people you might be able to come up with.  What they think about you does not matter as much as what you think about yourself.
If you are living your life to impress and please others, you are still a foolish slave who is in need of emancipation.” ~~ by Pastor WD Favour in “Human Opinion Is Plastic Part 3″

There is freedom in living in our joy and that includes letting go of other people’s opinions about ourselves and it also includes surrounding ourselves with people who celebrate us rather than tolerate us.

Remember, it is your own opinion about yourself that matters most!

As I sit at my desk on this beautiful day my heart ponders where I am in this moment feeling very alive to where I was years back feeling dead and depressed.  More than that I find myself pondering what I experienced these last couple of weeks.  I sit in amazement because it really all started when I began to care for and love myself.

I had no idea what brought me joy so I began to explore the world around me in little baby steps.  Never underestimate those tiny gestures like buying yourself a flower, allowing yourself a little time to read for pleasure and/or work on a hobby, sneaking a few minutes away at your favorite cafe, a bubble bath, exercising, etc. … while all at the same time being aware in the moment relishing the time and appreciating yourself.

As I did those things I learned about myself, I tapped into myself, and began to explore bigger things like the Internet.  And, I dared to believe that I could make a difference some how online.  It wasn’t always easy because sometimes my own fear would want to stop me but I persevered as I wanted more in my life and I knew that I was destined for greater things.

Twitter came along as did facebook.  My world continued to open up.  The next thing I knew I started The Wonder Woman Challenge.  And in the middle of all of that (and less than a year ago) I connected with a pastor from Nigeria who quickly became my pastor, my mentor, and my friend.  And just so you understand he actually lives in Nigeria and I’m in the US.  Pretty crazy!

Our hearts resonated and we began to work on projects together.  One thing lead to another and just this past August WD Favour took his first trip off the continent of Africa and visited all of us here in Pittsburgh laying a strong foundation for further work to impact the world.  And here is the kicker!  I’m a part of this world impacting work as are my best girlfriends!!

How can this be??  You could say it’s the law of attraction or the law of agreement and you wouldn’t be wrong.  But it’s my personal belief that the bond we share goes way beyond the natural laws of this world and into the spiritual realm that only God Himself could orchestrate.  Words cannot express the awesomeness of this experience and even what’s to come in the very near future.

Let me take this back around.  When I was dead I had to start some place to lead me out of that position of being a depressed victim.  I had no idea where those initial baby steps would lead me.  I’m sure that if someone had told me that a few years later I would be working with a pastor from Nigeria impacting the world I would have said that they were crazy.  Now that I’m here, I can’t tell you how excited and alive I feel.  I know but I know that greater and bigger things lie ahead of us and I just can’t wait for it to all unfold.

As WD, my pastor and mentor told me long ago and reminded me just a couple of weeks ago … I’ve been waiting my entire life for this experience.  He is so right.  I was created for such a time as this.  It’s a thrill to be alive!

Do you know what you were created for?  Are you ready to come alive in a way that you’ve never experienced before? All you have to do is take the next step that’s right in front of you.  Do you know what that next step is?

For WD’s latest post concerning the impact of his trip click here:  http://wdfavour.com/the-pain-of-parting

When was the last time you felt excited about your life in a way that you knew but you knew you were tapping into something deep within you?  When was the last time you felt alive in this way … I mean really alive?  Maybe you are currently experiencing this kind of excitement.  Maybe you are like so many women I talk with who long for this kind of experience but for various reasons feel it’s impossible to achieve. Or maybe you are somewhere in between.  Where ever you are allow me to encourage you to either hop on the journey or to keep going.

There was a time in my life when I felt dead.  Just getting up in the morning was a big accomplishment.  The thought of any excitement much less an excitement that moved me in a deep way looked and felt like something impossible for me to achieve, yet, in an honest moment with myself I admitted that it was something that I longed for.  However, it really did feel impossible but I had to start somewhere.

In my opinion it all starts with taking care of yourself.  That’s exactly where it started for me.  It sounds crazy but when I began a journey of self-care that’s when my world began to open up.  Why?  Because in order to understand what self-care meant for me I had to begin a journey of self-discovery.  I am still on that journey today and always will be as my journey continues to lead me to incredibly exciting places.

So how did I go from feeling dead to doing 15-minute self-care activities like reading, writing, bubble baths, hanging out at favorite cafes, etc. to now impacting lives around the world along with working side by side with a pastor from Nigeria?  My life has become so rich … yours can too!

I ask you again, when was the last time you felt alive?

Stay tuned for part 2 of “Coming Alive”.