Tag: Struggles

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Peace Within the Storm

March 9, 2020 jcladyluv

“I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” ~Philippians 4:11-12

The bible verses above touches on a brief point mentioned in the message this past Sunday that really hit home with me given the struggles that I’ve been dealing with lately. It made me really look at things from another angle and realize that I spend far too much mental and emotional energy on being stressed and worried about things that I simply cannot control. Now recently I’ve symbolically thrown my hands up in surrender and have just come to grips knowing that I’ve done everything humanly possible for me to do and I had to leave the rest of the miracle work that I am going to need up to God because he’s the only one that can do the impossible.

After that realization I felt a sense of peace come over me and a friend of mine had asked me how I was not balled in a fetal position somewhere. I simply said because I put in the hands of the only one who can handle any and everything and I just have to let it go. Of course that doesn’t mean that I have forgotten that I have this huge issue that I’m dealing with that eventually has to be handled in one way or another. It just means that I realize I can only control the things that I can do physically myself and I can’t perform miracles so continuing to dwell in it only brings about more stress.

When the pastor this Sunday had made a statement regarding being content in life no matter where life takes you and not letting the ups and downs of life ever have control over how you feel and how you go about living your life. In many ways it tied in with the peace I felt of letting go. I hadn’t even realized, or come to terms with the fact that that was what I was doing until he made that point. Too many times we let whatever is going on around us control what goes on inside of us and that can lead a person to a point where they never truly feel any peace. Let’s be honest here, life throws obstacles at us on a consistent and steady basis and the chances of a world with absolutely no chaos is unlikely to happen in this lifetime.

The thing is figuring out what will be your source of strength to get through those chaotic times without losing your inner peace and joy along the way. Whatever your source of strength to find a way to deal with life’s curveballs, just make sure you aren’t afraid to draw on that source whenever you need to so that you don’t get so caught up in trying to figure out how you’re going to fix everything that you lose sight of the joy of what you already have right in front of you. For me I have started to read more of the bible and doing devotionals as well as leaning on a friend who motivates me spiritually as well as creatively. I am content where I am because even if everything falls apart I am still here to put it all back together again. Until next time… #BeContent #BeinFaith #BeatPeace

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

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Finally, I will be releasing the first ebook in a 4 part series before the end of this month specifically to inspire and motivate writers who struggle with self-sabotage and I’ll provide more information on that by the next post. If you would like to contribute to my self-publishing efforts this year here is where you can make a donation to the dream https://www.gofundme.com/f/book-project-for-write-2-be-media

From a Different Perspective

February 24, 2020 jcladyluv

I have been working on my spiritual growth for the last few years now, trying to get more rooted in relying on God’s word and not worrying about things that I have no control over. This journey has not been an easy one, particularly because it is my innate instinct that when things go wrong I worry and panic relentlessly, almost bringing about additional health issues that are caused by the stress of worrying. One of the main things that I truly agonize about is what I am going to leave behind in this world as my legacy (aside from my daughter of course) because I just want to do good for other people. The problem is that I have been going through so many of my own struggles recently and I still haven’t gotten back on track and it’s so frustrating. It bothers me that I am still not in the position that I need to be in to be able to help other people.

Then I gained a new perspective on the struggles that I am going through and it clicked with a message my pastor has been preaching on lately. The gist of the message is that the struggles we sometimes go through are oftentimes God’s way of working on what needs to be fixed or repaired within us in order to get us ready to be used for the purpose that he has for us. Whatever I am going through is going to prepare me and strengthen me for the next level that God is getting ready for me to walk into. There is so much that I want to do in this world, not just for my child and the children I know but for other people’s children, for people less fortunate, for people in need of help that get overlooked so often.

I want to take some of the struggles that I’ve had over the last couple of years and help others with those same struggles but I have to first finish preparing myself to do that. So in seeing these struggles in a new light, as preparation, it makes me take a look specifically at the lessons to be gained from them and what each issue has to teach me. I don’t believe that God would allow me to go through anything that I can’t handle and armed with his guidance and his word I will get through these struggles and I will get myself into a firm position so that I can fulfill the purpose that I am here for which is helping others using my creative gifts. What lessons have your past struggles been able to teach you? Until next time… #BeOpen #BePrepared #BeinFaith

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

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Patience Through the Struggle

February 16, 2018 jcladyluv

Patience Through the Struggle

Lets talk about patience! I remember sitting in church a few Sundays ago listening to my Pastor talk about having hope as we go through life. He talked about how suffering doesn’t always necessarily mean a negative experience, but simply just an experience. Then he said something that really struck a chord with me. He said too often we get impatient and we tend to walk away before the experience is through and before God has a chance to bring us through to the other side of it.

It made me think about my level of patience (which admittedly I have very little of) and had me questioning myself how many times have I walked away from something because it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be, or should be. How many times have I just thrown in the towel because I got told no and felt the sting of rejection was just too much to deal with. How many times did I give up on something I dreamt of because I was just too frustrated to tough it out.

Then it made me realize that I am in this place I’m in right now, behind on my goals and my dreams, stuck running in circles, because I didn’t stick it out and I didn’t let God finish doing his part. I guess you could say I ran out of hope, either in myself or in the purpose that God had for me. It’s almost as if I was right there, right at the goal line, just several feet away from my destination and then I would chicken out and later I would have to start over again.

Fear has always been my Achilles heel and it’s the biggest flaw that I have. Now while I know that nothing is really worth going after without a healthy dose of fear, I have been reacting to the fears that I have rather than remaining hopeful and just pushing past those fears. I had lost hope in the reality that God would never allow me to experience something that didn’t serve a greater purpose. I had lost my patience in the fact that he would never leave me and will always bring me through whatever challenges I meet along the way.

So no matter what experiences you are currently going through on your journey, remain hopeful. Don’t lose sight of the fact that God is never going to leave you and you just have to be patient so that he can bring you through to the other side.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

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Picking the Battles That Matter

January 27, 2014 jcladyluv

Ever had that question in the back of your mind of why when all you are doing is trying to follow through with your purpose, make your dreams a reality, is that it seems every curveball you can possibly think of is thrown at you. It almost seems like right when you are about to reach the peak of your journey up the mountain that an avalanche of obstacles falls right in your path.

It’s almost enough to make you want to stop and rethink the journey and whether or not it is the one that you are truly supposed to be on. You second guess yourself a lot when the challenges seem to be so daunting and never-ending. However, when you look at some of the most successful people in life and go examine the journey that they took to get where they are, it would appear that the one’s with the most difficult challenges on the road to their destiny were the ones who achieved the biggest rewards for their efforts.

I admit that I get thrown off course a lot of the times by the enormity of my struggles and also by people that surround me that don’t always seem to be for me. Oddly enough these aren’t even people in my inner circle, they are people who just always seem to have something to say against what it is I’m trying to do and I let it get to me. Sometimes it makes the struggles feel even more insurmountable because no one seems to understand my vision or what I’m really all about.

I was watching something yesterday and it reminded me that not everyone is going to like me, not everyone is going to understand me or what it is I’m trying to do, but that is because it is not for everyone to understand. I keep getting lured off track trying to somehow prove that I am worthy, that I am important, that what I’m trying to do is important and that it matters. It is said that the enemy (those that are against you) always fights us the hardest when we are the closest to our victories.

As it pertains to my struggles, Joel Osteen once said in his messages that you cannot expect ordinary problems if you are an extraordinary person, a history maker, so to speak. I definitely know that I am not an ordinary person and that I intend to be a history maker so I suppose that means I better get ready for some even more challenging battles ahead.

In life, when you are trying to accomplish so much, there just simply isn’t any time to waste energy on things or people that just don’t matter. That’s not to say that we should be unfeeling or cold towards people in general. It’s just that when you know what you’re purpose is you have to know which battles to choose before wasting energy on the battles that don’t matter.

If the people you are surrounding yourself with aren’t for you and aren’t going to help you along your journey then that’s a battle that you need to let go of. So start letting go of unnecessary baggage today because you’re journey.

Jimmetta Carpenter

My Write 2 Be is…

CEO/Writer/Editor

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There is No Comparison To Be Made

August 6, 2012 jcladyluv

So I have begun CampNaNoWriMo as of last Wednesday and I was right that it would help me get focused again on my novel. I haven’t necessarily written the amount of words I should have written by this point but I have gotten back into the story and my mind has started swirling ideas around regarding the outcome of my character.

My words are coming along much better then I thought they would but I do still have that feeling every once and a while of wishing that I could write like…well any of the writers who crank out more than three or four novels in a year. That list would contain some of my favorites like Joyce Carol Oates and James Patterson and Eric Jerome Dickey and Zane.

I keep thinking to myself I wish I could do whatever it is that they do to produce the amount of work that they produce. Then I remind myself that I have to stop comparing myself to other writers because I am not them, but rather the best version of myself that I can be. I do that a lot you know. Think that so many other people have it better than I do and have so much more than I do or that they seem to be able to be so much better at writing or succeeding in general than I am.

I try not to compare having the old saying in the back of my mind that the grass is not always greener on the other side, but it’s hard when you see others who just look like they have it all, like they have all the answers to the questions that I keep asking. But just like other people don’t know my story and my struggles, I do not know theirs either. I don’t know what they had to go through to get where they are and what they have to continue going through now that they’ve gotten where I seemingly would like to be.

It is a slow process but I am learning to take stock in what I have and what I can do because the truth is that there is no comparison to be made here. I am me, not anybody else and what I have is for me to have or for me to struggle with. I have to keep in mind that I shouldn’t wish for anyone else’s journey. These struggles and this journey of mine is what was meant for me to travel and I am going to take stock in every bump in the road along the way until I get to the destination that was meant for me.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

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Oh the Obstacles We Duck and Dodge While Investing In Our Future

June 6, 2012 jcladyluv

“If you make the investment up front, the return will come back later.”

~Bishop T.D. Jakes

As writers we go through many obstacles, if we’re lucky, before ever really hitting our stride in our career (and I say our, because I am speaking my future successes into existence even though it is not quite a reality yet). We go through tons of rejection, writer’s block, having doubters and negativity with anyone who doesn’t see the vision, and often times we are our own and biggest obstacle that stands in the way.

I was just talking to Ms. L. earlier and saying that I really wish that my journey to this success that I know I am destined for could be going a lot smoother and with a few less obstacles to stumble over. But then I quickly took that back because I remembered something I heard while listening to Bishop T.D. Jakes talk about living your life on purpose. He talked about making investments in your future, in your purpose, and how sometimes our mistakes and our struggles are our investments.

They are what make our successes all the more worthwhile. He said that sometimes “what you think is working against you is actually working for you” and that “it is the digression that causes the progression”. I suppose that is what is meant when people say what doesn’t kill you will only make you stronger (although it never feels like that when you’re going through whatever it is you’re going through). Our struggles are in many ways our fuel and motivation to keep going and to keep dodging those obstacles as they come.

Bishop T.D. Jakes also said that when it comes to making investments into your future “you can never reap of a dividend where you don’t make an investment—you sow first and reap later; you can’t sow and reap at the same time.” I suppose that I have to be a little more patient as I make my investments and have a little bit more faith that everything will work out the way that it should.

I can’t honestly say that all of the obstacles along my journey have not had their purpose. It may not have felt like it at that particular point in time, but looking back on them now, they all, in so many ways, served their purpose. I think that all of the struggles that we go through are simply just preparation for when our success comes to fruition. Then we’ll be able to say to anyone who has something to throw at us to bring it on because there won’t be anything that they have to hit us with that we can’t handle.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

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Where Credit Is Due

December 20, 2011 jcladyluv

“Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.”

~Mahatma Gandhi

I am reminded every morning when I go to the gym to workout that I am a lot stronger than I think I am. Each day when I do something else that I never thought that I could do or that I said that I would never even try, it reminds me that I sometimes don’t give myself enough credit. A lot of us tend to do that in general during the course of our everyday lives. We get it in our heads that we are only as good as the limits that we set for ourselves, not realizing that we often set the bar too low and don’t give ourselves nearly as much credit as we deserve.

If we think about it, each time we reach an obstacle and find ourselves saying that we can’t handle anything else, not only do we surpass that obstacle but it builds us up stronger for the one that is sure to come after that. They say that which doesn’t kill you can only make you stronger, and while sometimes I find myself wanting to throw a certain finger up at whoever started that phrase, I find it to be very true. My struggles have not only made me stronger but made me more ambitious and determined. I feel that with each road block I face during the course of my journey I am made to be hungrier and more driven to reach my destination.

Someone at the gym told me that I have been coming to the gym lately with a new drive and as if I was on a mission for the year 2012. I am on a mission. I plan on setting that bar increasingly higher for myself and raising my own expectations right along with it. I am strong enough to achieve anything I desire despite the struggles I have to face along the way. I am going to stop counting myself out before I even make it to the starting line and start giving myself the credit that I deserve. Until tomorrow…Ask yourself if you are giving yourself enough credit?

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

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