WHAT DRIVES YOUR LIFE?

Ok, so I’ve decided blogging isn’t as “easy” as I thought it would be. It’s not a hard thing to do necessarily (since I LOVE writing soooooo much) lol, but it can be a bit time consumingL. This is why I’m finding it hard to continue on writing on a weekly basis. However, all of that is about to change!

  I may have “taken off” for a month due to my negligence, (and too much work) buuuuuuuut I’m BACK and ready to get this back in gear! I’m focused and on my A-GAME…bigger & better than beforeJ. So with that being said, let’s work into Chapter 3: “What Drives Your Life”

            You’re not allowed to say nothing either! SOMETHING gets you up in the morning ready to start your day. Maybe its money, obligations or just wanting to better yourself as an individual, but there is SOMETHING that drives you! Everyone’s life is driven by something. In this chapter, the book discusses 5 main factors that could be affecting (or what you believe to be “motivating”) you right now in not maximizing your full potential. There are HUNDREDS of circumstances, values, and emotions that can drive your life but these are the most common:

1.      Guilt: you allow the past to control and determine your future

2.      Resentment/Anger: instead of forgiving someone/situation which may have hurt you, you hold onto things and it doesn’t allow you to move on. Remember: your past is the past & NOTHING will change it. For your own sake, learn from it & let
 it go.

3.      Fear: regardless of the cause with your fear you’ll miss out on great opportunities and keep you from becoming what God intends for you to be

4.      Materialism: this is based on the misconception that having more will make you “happy”, but this notion of thinking is UNTRUE, because “things” only provide a temporary happiness

5.      Need for Approval: you allow the “expectations of others” control your life, but one key to failure is trying to please everyone

Do any of these 5 factors jump out to you? Is there a reason why you’re not moving FORWARD in your life? I know for me, I would have to say that fear really stood out and was a big reason (still can be) why I don’t always move in the direction (God’s plan for me). I know this may come has a shock for some of you (insert gasp here) but it’s true…I CAN BE FEARFUL (SOMETIMES). However, as I continue to grow each and every day in my relationship with God I’ve come to realize that fear is the opposite of FAITH, (and that’s something I have A LOOOOOOOOT ofJ). So how can I be “fearful” and still have faith? Truth be told…YOU CAN’T. I’ve had to let my FAITH overcome my fears in life. By letting go of the small things holding me back, and TRUSTING GOD completely & wholeheartedly I’ve LET GOD do some pretty amazing things in my life! I do have thoughts and goals placed inside of me that I want (and will accomplish) but if it’s not in alignment with what God has in store for me, then it’s not HIS purpose in my life.

If something isn’t “meant to be” then that only means God is bringing something (or someone) BETTER in your lifeJ. That’s it. I try not to question HIM about it, lol but it’s not easy, especially if you had your heart set on something. I always felt as though I needed to have my life “figured out” before I could move ahead towards my goals in life, but that definitely isn’t the case. All you need is FAITH, not even a lot of faith. A step forward in the right direction, faith in yourself & of course GOD will allow you to move mountains!

Nothing matters more than knowing God’s purpose for your life. Without purpose, life is meaningless with no directions or reason. Know your purpose gives meaning to your life, and God created us to have MEANING! Don't wait until everything is just right to start living your dream...it will never be "perfect". There will always be challenges, obstacles & less than perfect conditions. Get started now with God's plan for your life. Each step you take, you will grow stronger, more skilled, more self-confident & more successful. So let me ask you: what are you going to do with ALL the gifts, talents, opportunities, energy, relationships and resources God gave you?!

"YOU ARE NOT AN ACCIDENT"...

"I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my spokesman to the world."~Jeremiah 1:5

This is technically week 3, but unfortunately I’m only on Chapter 2 of the book still =/…soooo I’m going to try my BEST to get up to speed and write on Chapter 3 later on this weekJ. I apologize as I KNOW you’ve been HIGHLY anticipating my amazing words to help “inspire” you hahaha, but I have to admit this past week has been a MIND BLOWING boggling week, (God’s been WORKING on me) and I mean that in the BEST way possibleJ! God is sooooooooooooo good ALL THE TIME! READY? SET…LET’S GOOOOOOO:

Chapter Two: YOU ARE NOT AN ACCIDENT (despite what your mom & dad might tell you sometimes, hahaha) start THINKING otherwise! Your birth was no MISTAKE; your parents may not have planned you, but God DIDJ! Long before you were conceived by your parents, you were conceived in the mind of God. He thought of you first, and it is NOT by “coincidence” that you are BREATHING this very moment!

It’s crazy when you think about it…I mean, to KNOW that we were so carefully thought of before we were even born! NOTHING IN LIFE HAPPENS “BY ACCIDENT” please remember that as we continue on our “journey” togetherJ. God didn’t create “mistakes” or coincidences for that matter, and EVERYTHING…I mean every possible thing (whether good or bad) has happened because God’s allowed it. It may not be an easy concept for you to grasp, but I will tell you that once you can start understanding and knowing this to be TRUE in your heart life will start to become a little more “clearer” for you to understandJ. We’ll continue to discuss this particular subject as our journey continues…now back to YOU, ME & US not being an “accident”.

He (God) deliberately chose your race, color of your skin, your hair and every other feature on your body. God also determined the natural talents you would posses and the “uniqueness” of your personality. GOD MADE YOU FOR A REASON! God left no details out, and HE planned it all for HIS purpose (not yours). Regardless of the circumstances of your birth, or who your parents are; God had a PLAN in CREATING YOUJ. He KNEW those 2 people (aka your parents, lol) and placed them together to CREATE YOU…we’re not by accident! Even though many of us children are “unplanned” by our parents, we were NEVER unplanned by GOD.

I remember the time my mom told me I was the “accident” childL. You see, I have a younger sister (16 to be exact) and she was technically “planned”. My mom and step-dad (SN: I call him DAD because he did RAISE meJ) well, they KNEW they wanted to have a child and VIOLA my beautiful little rugrat was born! HOWEVER, me: ILEANA ELISE RODRIGUEZ…I was an “accident”! I couldn’t believe what I was hearing when my mother told me this! My coming into the world (according to my momma) wasn’t supposed to happen. Hahaha! I laugh now because OBVIOUSLY I was “supposed” to happen & God had already planned on me being bornJ! The story goes a little something like this: my mom & biological father were in the process of getting a divorce, but before it became “official” my mother found out she was pregnant with meJ. Soooo, they decided (like most people do) to stick it out for their child. After getting over the shock (I believe it took a few months, hahaha) my mother eventually became ESTATIC & started to get really EXCITED.

While she was pregnant with me she used to write me letters, starting them out: “To my beautiful little Ileana…” buuuuuuuuuuut guess what: my mom didn’t know that she was having a girl (not officially anyways). My parents wanted to be surprised and chose not find out the sex of the baby. I make this point though, because internally she KNEW I was going to be a girl. Even though I was “officially” NOT planned out, GOD still had a purpose for me being in my mother & father’s life. Granted, a year later they still divorced buuuut we’ll save that part of the story for another day, lol. God NEVER does anything accidently, and HE never makes mistakes…HE has a REASON for EVERTHING he creates!

So WHY did God do all of this? Creating us I mean, and creating a universe? It’s quite simple actually: because GOD IS LOVEJ. This kind of love can be difficult to grasp, but it’s COMPLETELY TRUE! We were born (created) as a special object of God’s love! God made us so he could LOVE us…love is the ESSENCE of God’s character. Technically, God didn’t “need” to create us, it’s not like he was lonely or anything, but HE wanted to make us so that HE could EXPRESS HIS love for usJ!

If there was no God, we would ALL be considered to be “accidents”, the result of some astronomical random chance in the universe. Life would have no meaning or purpose,  BUT there IS a GOD who made YOU made you for a reason and your life DOES have profound meaning! What are some areas that you find hard to “accept” about you? Remember, we ARE NOT an accident and EVERYTHING up until this point of our lives has happened for a reasonJ. The BEST is yet to come and we’ll continue to grow & figure things out on our journey together…

OVERCOMING FEAR...

I decided to write a “recap” of what I’ve learned from week 1, chapter 1: “It All Starts with God”, because let’s be real here: I’M GOING THROUGH GOD’S “PURPOSE” & trying to figure out life just the way you are tooJ! We’re doing this “together” remember, just because I’m writing the blog doesn’t make me an “exception” to the rule. So here goes:

A VALUABLE LESSON I’ve learned this past week is that: I AM HUMAN, and I DO make mistakes. I may not like to admit it, but I’m not always right, lol! I say this because it’s good to admit your faults. Admitting when you’re wrong & what you’re afraid of in life is an IMPORTANT step in being able to move forward in life. How can I expect God to show me HIS purpose when I’m not willing to admit to myself my fears and my own faults?

I did come through a BREAKTHROUGH today, with the help of one of my best friends and through prayer (God’s help too), I was able to openly admit my “greatest fear” in life…I’ll give you a “hint”: it has to do with me + men + relationships= A HUGE FEAR OF MINE! Now, to openly admit that in a blog makes me feel like I’m standing in front of an full packed auditorium giving my amazing “life inspiring speech” butt booty nakedL. Hahahaha! Trust me, for those that know me…this is me revealing myself one layer at a time. It should take you at least a year (if not a few months) for me to actually “admit” something to that extent. That’s not the “root” of my greatest fear, but due to the root the cause & effect if you will, is a “fear” in relationships not friendships…that’s completely different I’m talking about an actual relationship with the opposite sex, hahaha.

Ok, so now that I’ve OPENLY admitted that to myself (and to the “blog world” aka whoever reads this) …it’s OBVIOUS that I need to work on that part of my fear. Is that a part of God’s ultimate purpose for me? I’m not sure, maybe it is. However, how can God fully work on me & move into my life when I’m “afraid” to let go of certain things & always find myself running? By admitting our fear (however many we may have), we are FREEING ourselves from BONDAGE! Which allows God to work “freely in your life” allowing HIM to MOLD us and take us to that NEXT LEVEL of TRANSFORMATION so that HE can better our lives for us! Do you see how it is really ALL ABOUT GOD? Are you willing to change? Are you even ready to change? Can you openly admit (you don’t have to tell me, lol) your FEAR and allow God to work through you so that HE can help you GROW. These are very important steps that we need to take, and TRUST ME they’re not easy. Truthfully though, as cliché as it sounds: NO ONE SAID IT WOULD BE EASY, BUT IN THE END IT WILL BE WORTH ITJ.

If you're WILLING to CHANGE & not pray away every "bad" situation, God will REFINE you...then you WILL pass a test & STEP INTO a NEW LEVEL of your DESTINY ♥

"IT ALL STARTS WITH GOD"

So, today is the dayJ! Chapter 1, week 1 and can I say I’m EXCITED to start this journey! It’s only the 2^nd week in January and already soooooo many AMAZING things have happened! Not only for myself, but for others around me, and as we grow into our “purpose” doors are going to be opening from every angle! However, in order to really understand our PURPOSE and what God has in store for us…I’m going to need you to DISCONNECT from the WORLD and be “open minded” think OUTSIDE of the box instead of trapping yourself in. ARE YOU READY? ARE YOU READY TO SUPER SIZE YOUR LIFE?!

                Ok, so first things first: IT’S NOT ABOUT YOUJ. Lol. I’m sorry, but you’re going to have to let go of your EGO here and out that aside…I’ll repeat it one more time just in case: IT’S NOT ABOUT YOOOUUU!!! Nope, the PURPOSE of YOUR LIFE is far greater that your own personal experience or even your happiness. IF you want to know WHY you were placed on this earth, you must begin with GOD. You were born by HIS purpose & for HIS purpose. Think about that a little bit, what are your natural talents?

Maybe that purpose is to dance, sing or write. Maybe you’re purpose is to become a pilot, firefighter or boxer but whatever that purpose is: IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU! I know this is a hard concept to grasp, it took me a little while to realize that as well, but when I think about it…it’s soooooo true. You could reach all of your personal goals, become a huge success (according to the “world”) and still miss the purpose for which God CREATED you!

                You were made by God and for God, and until you understand that, life isn’t really going to make much sense. You’re always going to feel “empty” inside and “searching” for that ONE thing to satisfy your desire to live life to the fullest. You see, God is the source of your life and to discover your purpose you should turn to God’s word (aka the bible) and not the world’s wisdom. Trust me; I know this for a FACT…

                I was saved at the age of 16 living in Puerto Rico and fell “off track” from my relationship with God, from about 17yrs until I turned 25? I laugh thinking about it now, but it’s true. I eventually became “agnostic” because I knew there was a “higher being”. I sure didn’t come from a monkey and the earth didn’t form from some asteroid that blew up. However, I still turned my back on GodL. Even though deep within I “KNEW” HE existed, I fell into that worldly wisdom.

 It wasn’t until a few years ago, going through the process of a hard break-up that I felt completely EMPTY for the first time. Things that I used to do didn’t really satisfy me because it only made me happy for a “moment”. I was LONGING & YEARNING for eternal HAPPINESS…I wanted to grasp onto such happiness that it wouldn’t ever let me go, and the best part is: I HAVEJ. A lot of us are BLOCKING what God has for us because we’re trying to LIVE for ourselves. Through God, and because of HIM I’m “too happy” for people now, lol. I was able to let go of MYSELF, my needs and wants and let HIM into heart. The “old” me DIED to self because the NEW me lives through Christ…remember: IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU.

NEW BEGINNINGS...

NEWNESS is all around us! This is a NEW DAY; we’ve started a NEW YEAR, NEW WEEK, NEW MONTH and a NEW DECADEJ! Amazing isn’t it…when you really sit down to think about it all the NEW BEGINNINGS that happen each & everyday. I’ve decided to start my “newness” & NEW BEGINNING by creating a blog. I’ve NEVER written one before, and have always wanted to get into it. I couldn’t find my “focus” since I act like I have ADD and LOVE soooo many things! Then it dawned on me (actually, God spoke it into my heart) but I decided to blog about The Purpose Driven Life and my life experiences through the next 40 weeksJ.

I always knew that when starting my blog I wanted to use it to help others, help be a “messenger” from the Lord and reach people in some way. I want to use this blog, not only for myself but for others and show how God has impacted & affected my life (at least that’s what I’m hoping to do).  By reading the book, each chapter on a weekly basis (40 chapters a week, instead of daily) I’ll blog about my “life” experiences and how God moves through my life (including my family & friends). I’ve owned the book for a few years now, and have started to read it and then put it back down. It’s actually a great book, but I’ve haven’t “dedicated” myself to reading it all the way through.

We are here on earth for a PURPOSE, HIS PURPOSE to be exact and whether or not you're a believer in Christ, and/or if you have your “issues” with religion...we are ALL here for a PURPOSE. I’m not here trying to “convert” anyone, that’s God’s responsibility (however, I will pray for you, lol)…I’m only here to share my journey for the next 40 weeks. If it makes an impact on your life then GREATJ and if it doesn’t then I’m hoping my quirkiness and silliness with make you laugh for the next few weeks to come. Are you tired of you're "same everyday lifestyle"? Then follow me on this new exciting journey! I’m a REAL person that battles with “REAL ISSUES” on a daily basis (we all do, whether we’re Christian or not) but the ONE THING I do know is: we were all placed on this earth for a REASON and I’m praying that through the next 40 weeks we can figure out that purpose togetherJ…