Whitnee's journey with Christ

It was New Years Eve and my family and I were excited to attend the Charlotte Hornets vs. Brooklyn Nets game in Charlotte. We were so excited that we left the food I prepared for the weekend along with my sense of direction. It wasn’t until I saw the sign that said 14 miles to Buccees that I realized I was headed to Myrtle Beach instead of Charlotte. The funny thing is we never leave home without making sure we have loaded everything up even if it means turning around before we get out of subdivision, praying, and setting the destination on the GPS.

Driving through Darlington we stopped to get something to eat. The GPS said it would take 2 hours and 2 minutes to get to the Spectrum Center which would give us about 30 minutes give or take to find a park and stand in the long lines in the front of the building. Feeling a little defeated, I hid my shame and just proceeded to the route. I have to admit I was a little impatient at first but then when we got in front of the Darlington Raceway I started to feel a bit relaxed. To say I have gone to Darlington but never saw their raceway, I was excited. And so were the boys!

We traveled through Hartsville, Pageland, and some other small towns and finally we saw the sign that stated now entering North Carolina. The GPS said I could save about 14 minutes by taking a “short cut”; I hadn’t realized until it was too late that the “short cut” meant I had to go through 4 or 5 different tolls. I always try and avoid tolls because those fees can creep up on you and if you don’t pay attention your license can get suspended and I was not trying to feel that headache.

At this point I was just so ready to get to Charlotte that I bit the bullet and kept the course. Finally we made it to Albermale, NC and traffic was horrible. HORRIBLE YOU HEAR ME! We kept on trailing full speed ahead and 6:38 we made it to the Spectrum Center. Not a park in site we went up and down the aisles, drove around in circles, almost hit a car trying to fit in, and all other kind of mess. We made it, paid for parking, and fortunately found out the left side of the building didn’t have anyone waiting so we got in and got to our seats without a hitch. Just to find some folks sitting in our seats, it was all good though, we made it work.

The game was intense. LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier were doing their thing on the Charlotte Hornets and then our favorite Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant held it down for the Nets. Nets for the win then the game was over. Jamika had told me about the outdoor venue that Levine Center for Arts was having and although it was a 15 minute walk I was happy to see what they had to offer. This was the first year we hadn’t been at home or in church for the New Year so I wanted to try something new and why not have this new experience to help ring in the New Year.

Let’s just say after the wrong right turn, getting left behind due these short legs and getting frightened once I saw the train coming (not wanting to get that separated), almost getting hit by a dude who clearly saw me and my kids crossing the front of the Marriott and getting pissed because he had no remorse at all, getting lost again, and then stranded with a dead cell phone…I just knew this was not the way I wanted to bring in my new year.

Then Emmanuel said something that really made me think about having to work harder on training my brain to calm down, relax, and not be so easy to say the heck with it. At this time it was approaching 1130pm. The fireworks were soon to start and the big red ball would be dropping in 30 minutes but we were cold, aggravated, and I know I was ready to get to the hotel. Emmanuel said, “man 2023 is going to be bad just like 2022. Look at everything that happened today and we still don’t know where the car is.”

I had to tell Emmanuel that the whole year would not be ruined because of the experiences we had today. Normally I would have said bad experiences but I had to think just because it didn’t go as planned didn’t mean it was a bad experience. Yes I may have taken the wrong interstate and got to Darlington before I realized I was going in the wrong direction but we made it to our destination right on time. Yes we may have had to walk a long way, almost got hit by the car, and realized it was harder to follow GPS on foot than in a car but we were together, no one was in danger, and we were okay. I realized that he was just feeding off of my energy. No I may not have said the exact things he said but my facial expressions showed that I was aggravated and just wanted the night to be over.

How many of you have a bad day and say your whole week, month, and year are messed up? How many times do we give up on things because it is going the way we want them to go? Or how often do we syke ourselves out because of the way we think?

I’ve been guilty several times and obviously it was feeding off onto my boys.

The Bible tells us in Romans 12:2, And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

I know several persons always sit down and write down New Years Resolutions and when we get off course those resolutions go out the window. We preach and teach when we fall down, get back up again but the way we think can be very toxic. We look at the positive side of things after we have exhausted all other options but that is so taxing on our mental.

Reflecting on the chain of events that took place on New Years Eve I realized that the way I think sometimes causes me to get stuck and dwelling on my mistakes cause me to get bogged down into things I cannot change verses focusing on the strictly positives. It is so easy for me to see the positives and help encourage other people to think positively but being the over thinker I am, I realize I have been selling myself short and I notice the improvements I need to make within myself.

The lesson out of todays message is to realize that one bad decision, one bad day, one bad experience DOES NOT have to ruin your progress, stop you from achieving your goals, or doom you for your life. We have to do frequent mental health assessments to ensure we are processing things naturally but in a healthy manner. Thus the reason the featured scripture of the day talks about the renewal of the mind.

Not only are we in a brand new year, this is a brand new day!

As a reminder from yesterdays motivation we must stop wasting time and making excuses. Stop procrastinating and do what you have your mind set to do. Stop focusing on what you can’t do or what you don’t have and thank God for what you do have and what you can achieve. Another tidbit from yesterday that I sent out via text is to make better habits, thinking in a more positive manner, adopt better eating habits, love on yourself, and most importantly put God first in everything you do. Continue to praise Him in all that you go through (the ups and down, the highs and the lows, the deaths and the births, the losses and the gains, the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly).

Women of Prayer posted a prayer challenge for January 2nd and I would like to share it with you:

Today is the day that I forget the past and I look forward to what lies ahead (Philippians 3:13). Today I start afresh with new opportunities in front of me. I declare old things to pass away and behold new things to come to pass (2 Corinthians 5:17). I declare this year is my year of joy. This is my year of accomplishment. This is my year of greatness. This is my year of success in Jesus name. AMEN.

What could you add to the above declaration for you and/or your family? How could you personalize this to speak life over yourselves and those persons in your community.

God has kept us and He is going to keep on keeping us. We have work to do and we cannot stop until we make it to our destination and final resting place. God has given us all a task and a purpose. Walk in it. Live it. Dwell in it. Embrace it. Adopt it. Believe it. Be it.

Let’s challenge ourselves this year not to accept the spirit of defeat. Let’s challenge ourselves to be as resilient as children and not hold onto all the baggage that held us captive in 2022. Let’s strive to get closer to God and deepen our desire for Him and His word. It’s no time like the present! We declare we will not stay stuck but we will grow in faith, in thought, and in love for God, ourselves, and others.