In a culture that asks us to perform, conform, and constantly prove our worth, it’s easy to lose track of what we’re actually living for.

This reflection explores the quiet ways worship becomes misplaced — and offers a gentle and liberating return to what grounds us. This post is a meditation on faith, belonging, and how we possess the courage to live from alignment rather than for approval.

Hope isn’t naïve optimism — it’s spiritual discernment. It’s knowing what you can carry and that you cannot carry what belongs to God.

In a world full of collective anxiety and global grief, this reflection explores how hope keeps singing and residing inside us, why it matters, and how to tend to it until morning breaks.

Fear will always try to rise, but so can you— even in difficult times.

On Day 7 of Wake Pray Slay, we explore how even the smallest flame within us can pierce the longest night. The world can feel heavy, chaotic, and fearful, but your light is stronger than you think.

This post is a heartfelt guide for anyone seeking peace, purpose, and personal empowerment during turbulent times.

The Phoenix doesn’t rise because the fire never happened. It rises because it refuses to stay defined by the ashes. Today we say:

I am done rehearsing the hurt.
I am done carrying what isn’t mine.
I am done shrinking under the weight of someone else’s actions.

And I choose to rise.

Not because they deserve it —
but because I do.

This reflection reframes “work” as sacred purpose. We look at how intention, creativity, service, and good energy become catalysts for impact.

If you’ve ever felt torn between hustle culture and spiritual alignment, this post can help you reconnect to the deeper meaning of your contribution — and step into who you’re becoming through it.

Let’s take a deeper dive to see how our daily efforts become part of our spiritual practice, how aligned work transforms us from the inside out, and why the energy we bring to the world is true ministry.

“I don’t look like what I’ve been through” is both my testimony and my superpower—and in this piece, I unpack the spiritual, emotional, and identity-centered work that helped me reclaim my voice, return to myself, and rise with softness and strength.

This post also opens the door to a transformational series inspired by Wake Pray Slay—a journey of faith, mindset, and practical self-leadership that’s designed to be meaningful year-round, yet holds a special depth during Advent season when we slow down, tune in, recalibrate, and align.

Created for readers, leaders, and communities, this series meets at the intersection of spirituality, emotional resilience, and purpose-driven personal growth. Whether you read along during Advent or any season of renewal, these reflections guide you toward living with clarity, intention, and a radiance that comes from within.

Mean girls don’t just disappear after high school — they grow up, and often so does their meanness. But here’s the truth: their cruelty is never a reflection of your worth. It’s a mirror of their own insecurities, envy, and unhealed wounds.

From gatekeepers to chronic competitors, their behavior is about what they can’t access within themselves — not about you.

And for those of us navigating these dynamics, the message is simple: keep shining, keep growing, and keep being your authentic, radiant self.

Love yourself enough to let their shadow simply roll right off your light.

Mean girls don’t magically disappear after high school — they grow up, and sometimes so does their cruelty. If you’ve ever felt blindsided, dismissed, or undermined by a woman you admired, liked or trusted, you know the sting is real.

But here’s the truth: even in the midst of that behavior, there are women who lift you, celebrate you, and show up with genuine kindness. You’re not alone. You are seen. And real sisterhood — the kind that heals and holds — is still possible.

Unfortunately, mean girls don’t disappear after high school. They grow up, they gain titles, platforms, and influence — and all too often, their meanness grows alongside them. It’s not about age; it’s an energy, misguided and misdirected, often hidden behind confidence, competence, or even spirituality.

Mean girls can show up in workplaces, friendships, community spaces, families, and yes… even in church. Gossip becomes gatekeeping. Performative support becomes suspicious silence. And the cliques… well, they persist.

If you’ve ever felt the sting of a grown woman’s cruelty, or realized you might be carrying a bit of that energy yourself, this series is for you. It’s about understanding, healing, and choosing a better way — for yourself and for those around you.

There are moments in life when someone mirrors back to you who you used to be — and suddenly, everything inside you wakes up.

I had dinner with a soul sister recently, someone who knew me during a season when my calling was loud and my dreams were bold. As we talked, something sacred stirred in me: a reminder of the purpose I once held so close it felt like breath.

The truth?
Some dreams don’t die.
They simply wait.

And I’m beginning to believe that today — right now — is the due date for the dreams I once delayed.

Some wisdom doesn’t come from books — it comes from front porches, lived experience, and the kind of love that holds generations together.

Sitting with my Granny is like sitting with time itself. Her stories carry history, faith, resilience, and a quiet kind of brilliance that only comes from a life fully lived. In her words, I hear the roots of our family tree — steady, unshakeable, and drenched in grace.

This conversation isn’t just an interview.
It’s an inheritance.

Come sit on the porch with us. There’s something here your spirit might need.

Because truly—nothing reveals unresolved wounds like gathering with the very people who helped create them.

Think about it: On a day when we are supposed to be counting our blessings and showering each other with love and affections, we are known to be fighting, arguing, and behaving like stone fools. Will we ever evolve beyond this?

My Grandaddy, my Mom’s Dad, used to always say, "Give people their flowers while they're living."

He was a passionate preacher and hard-working patriarch who did not take no mess. He lived by strong spiritual truths and convictions and he held up the plumb line for others as well.   Before I tell you about the flowers scenario, I want to make sure you know that my Grandaddy was gangster… 

Not every battle deserves your energy. Not every comment deserves your response. Not every storm requires you to step outside.

Staying above the fray is not avoidance — it’s emotional leadership. It’s choosing peace over pettiness, clarity over chaos, and alignment over reactions that drain your spirit.

You were not built for the mud. You were built for the mountaintop.

Rise above. Your peace depends on it.

I try to live my life shaped by these four agreements, and while I don’t always nail them, I keep trying.

That’s the real growth process: showing up again, learning again, choosing again.

What I’ve learned, though, is that before I could hold onto these healthier agreements, I had to break a few unhealthy ones first.

Watch yourself at home.
Not in a judgmental way — just observe.
Are you gentle? Irritable? Restful? Always on?
Are you nourishing your spirit… or continuously draining it?

Because the person you are in your own space, that’s the real one who deserves to lead your life.