What Are You Afraid Of?...

Have you watched the local news lately? If you haven't, don't feel bad... I don't make a habit out of watching the news either. And here's why: When I watch the news, I watch to be informed....to be made aware of important things (good or bad) that are happening around me. However, what I find is that I'm not being made aware of what's going on...I'm being made afraid of what's going on. Case and point: I was listening to a preview of the nightly news on the radio that ended with "More cause for alarm, Tonight at 11." I'm thinking to myself "Why in the hell would I want to be alarmed?...Why would anybody want to be alarmed?" I started thinking about how much the news is designed to scare us. Why would the government want to scare us?..

Sit back... let me take you on a trip...

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."~2 Timothy 1:7

What does this scripture tell us about fear? 1)It's a spirit and 2)It doesn't come from God. This is interesting because most of us don't regularly think of fear as a spirit, but it is. If fear is a spirit that doesn't come from God, where does it come from? There's only one obvious answer, Satan. I would venture to say that fear is the most powerful weapon Satan has. If he can scare you...he can paralyze you. If he can paralyze you, he can stop you from achieving professional goals and destroy your personal relationships without you even realizing it.

See, that's what makes fear such a powerful weapon. The spirit of fear can be, literally, put on you without you even realizing it and before you know it... you're paralyzed. Case and point:

Ever since 9/11, all we hear about is terrorism, terrorist threats, and causes for alarm. The government tells us everyday...via media... how terrorists want to take our freedoms away from us. Homeland Security even issues a "terror threat level" daily to let us know how afraid of being attacked by terrorists we should be for the day. (you can find it here) The thought of terrorism is frightening for a lot of us...we love/value the freedoms we have in this country. The thought that there are people who want to take that away from us bone chilling. It's so scary to us, that we will do anything to keep that from happening....even if it means giving up some of our rights to our own federal government. YES...I said it.

Here's my point:

The government has us so terrified of terrorism, that we have allowed them to put things like "Homeland Security" in place. We have given them the authority to listen to our calls, search our property without just cause, and even profile certain races. YES WE HAVE! Why? Because we have been convinced that we need to give these rights up so that the government can protect us. They know that they can't just take your rights from you, so they scare you into giving them up freely. That's what fear will do to you! The Holocaust, Jim Crow Laws, the new immigration law in Arizona..... All of these things were ALLOWED to happen because somebody scared somebody into it. Pay attention, people.

But I digress....

As Christians, we should not fall victim to the power for fear. Our faith should be in God. Fear and faith cannot coexist. You're either afraid, or you have faith. The Bible tells us NOT to operate in fear...

"Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7) and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."~Phillippians 4:6-7

So, while the world says "Be afraid!" God says "Pray and I'll give you peace."

The point I'm trying to make with this whole post is that fear is a spirit. It get's on you through your eyes and your ears. Be careful what you expose yourself to. If it makes you afraid, pray. Don't allow the fear to paralyze you. God wants you to have a full life...life abundantly. You can't have that if you are allowing yourself to be held captive by your own fear. Don't be afraid be convinced!...because you are already covered!

That's my word and I'm out. Be Blessed :))

In case yall forgot...

We used to GET IT!!!! LoL ...I'm just sayin... :))

I KNOW u didn't just call me a...

This is one of the Tea Party signs on Capitol Hill today. In case you can't tell, the word on the sign is "RENEGER". Now maybe I'm trippin... Lord knows sometimes I do... but just say the word out loud....

Doesn't it sound a LOT like.....

I'm just sayn...

I am not my hair...

I never knew so many people cared about what I did/do to my hair, until I recently made the decision to cut my hair and go natural. You would have thought I said I was going to have a sex change or something by the way people were reacting. I got a lot of "Are you SURE? and "Why do you want to do this to yourself?" and even the occasional "Are you depressed or something?" LoL. I'm like.. Calm down people. It's just hair. It grows back. The conclusion that I came to is that most of these people were afraid. They were either afraid of what I would look like, afraid of how other people would react to this change, or afraid that the change is brought on by some emotional breakdown. And while I appreciate their concern, I've come to a point in my life where I'm not operating out of my own fear. And if I ain't operating out of my OWN fear, I fa sho ain't operating out of anyone else's. You feel me?

So against popular opinion, I did what my heart was telling me to do, for me. It's an amazing feeling. It turned out cute... but even if it hadn't, I still would have been satisfied because it was never about the appearance of it. It's more about me taking control over the things in my life that I can control and making a choice ...a conscious decision to be happy in those areas no matter what anyone has to say about it. I never knew that it would be such a problem for people. I never knew that it would invoke such emotion on the part of people I love. I never knew that MY decision to cut MY hair and begin the journey to locs would call into question my emotional stability, my sexuality, and even my faith...in some cases.

You see what fear will do to you? Fear will make you take someone you KNOW very well and begin to question the very things that you have always known to be their character just because they alter their physical appearance a little. It saddens me that so many people I love and trust chose fear, 1st. Don't get me wrong... the important people were supportive from the start. The important people know that no matter what I do to my hair, the things that they have come to know and love about Mikki, will always stay in tact. And the changes I make to my outer appearance are merely a reflection of the growth and maturation happening on the inside and more importantly... they know that Mikki is still essentially, Mikki.

Don't let other people's fear stop you from doing what's in your heart. Be happy being you, because at the end of the day, only you can make YOU happy.

That's my word.... and I'm out. Be blessed :))

I know ure tired...

I know ure tired. When I look into ur eyes I see a million battles fought and won. Ur hands display track marks that give testament to the amount u've given over the years. How u've unselfishly given of ureself time and time again, expecting nothing in return. The arms that so firmly hold us all together now begging to let go. The feet that walk us through our most tedious journeys are unwilling to go on. But can we blame them? Haven't they carried our weight long enough? I want to beg u to stay ...stay and fight. But when I look into ur eyes... I know ure tired. So I'll put the selfish part of me to the side. I'll pack it up, seal it, and forget where I put it for a while. I'll put my big girl pants on and graciously let u go. Because when I look into ure eyes... I know ure tired. I'll look into those eyes and promise I'll be just fine. I'll promise to achieve all things I said I would and more. And then I'll do it. I'll graciously... peacefully... let u go, because after all u've given me over the years, the least I can do is give u that. It's the most costly gift I've given, but I'll freely give from my heart, because in my heart... I know ure tired...