Changing The Lens; 2020 Vision by Latoya “Monique” Barely

You will never win if you never begin~Helen Rowland

Written by: Latoya "Monique" Barely

So here we are at the start of new year and of course social media is flooded with New Year’s quotes and much inspiration. To some it seems that everyone is literally on 💯 to begin achieving their new year resolutions be it to lose weight, to save money, to buy a home, to travel the world, to find or to be found by a mate, to step out on faith, to start a new career or business, to finish school, or to reach what ever goal they have determined in their mind to achieve.
Those people seem to be full of pep, positivity, and prosperity! They seem to have it all together and are thriving in every area of their lives, right? Those kind of people seem to have it easy and everything always goes their way! I mean look at their social media; they have perfect family photos, the best quotes, their gym pics seem to show substantial progress, perfect posture and poses, they have no marks or blemishes and the perfect lighting in photos, they always say the right thing and at the right time with no grammatical or spelling errors, they have a lot of followers and tons of likes each time they post no matter what they post...they are always on a new adventure or vacation.....seems like the good life at it’s best right?
And then you have the minority or so it seems (there’s that word again). Those are the ones that are tired of making new year resolutions because they never followed through with the ones made years prior, they are still worn and torn from the challenges of 2019. They have allowed disappointment and unbelief to become their crutches to get them through 2020 without new wounds. Some are full of anger, resentment and fear due to the unexpected storms that came and washed away the hope and happiness that once filled their hearts. They scroll through social media frequently, and the more they scroll the more depressed their lives appear to be in comparison. Those dreams that they were once so excited to bring to fruition become dreams deferred leaving their hearts sick and their souls dry. By the time they are done, they are in a sunken place and further away from the path of their true destiny.
While reading, I’m sure you can identify with one group more than the other. You are either the optimist that is full of pep ready to conquer 2020; or you are the broken that is full of despair dreading what is to come and ready for it to come and go. Today having been through many valley lows myself, I would like to take the time to encourage those in the latter. Those that have buried their dreams under disappointment, brokenness and despair. I speak to those who struggle to believe that they have what it takes to step out on faith and to achieve the seemingly impossible. My friend, you do not have to stay in the sunken place! I’ve come to expose two common lies that you’ve accepted as truths and to free you to be all that God has created you to be!
Lie #1 "I am the only one."
The truth is you are not the minority, everyone has had seasons in their lives that took them for a loop. 1 Peter 4:12 says, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you”.
It’s all too easy to fall into the comparison trap and to think someone else’s life is the standard to reach for; not fully understanding what they had to go through to get to where they are. Everything is not as it seems to be! No one has the “perfect” life and truth be told a lot of pictures are photo shopped or it took many clicks to find just the right one! Many posts were edited multiple times before making it on social media, and those that appear to be successful experienced some valley lows on their way to the mountain top.
Lie #2 "they have what it takes, and I don’t."
The truth is the only thing that separates you from them is that they started! Yes, that is the only difference friend! I want to encourage you to remember that you are God’s masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10) and you were fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14).....on purpose and in purpose (Genesis 1:26)!Seriously, no matter the circumstances that brought you into this world, God knew you before you were formed in your mother’s womb (Jeremiah 1:5)! How reassuring is that! He thought of you and He chose you! Not only that but He called you by name (Isaiah 43:1) and when He created you He said “It is good” (Genesis 1:31). God has already equipped you with all you need for life and Godliness (2 Peter 1:3) which means you are fully equipped to start that business, to lose the weight, to revamp your entire life, to make every dream come to fruition. Don’t allow the disappointment of your last season to prevent you from reaping the harvest of your new season! Put your hands to the plow of life and get busy.
Are you questioning where to start and when to begin? Well my friend it is quite simple...start NOW!!!! There is no time like the present to get started or to restart! Yes I said RE-START. There are dreams and gifts that have been laying dormant due to fear, doubt and disappointment. It’s not too late to awaken them. God is the breath of life and can breathe into dead things and bring them back to life! For those of you who haven’t yet started...start when you first get the burden down deep in your SHA-NAH-NAH!
A few reminders of what NOT to do:
  1. Do NOT hesitate or procrastinate. Hesitation creates stagnation and procrastination prevents activation.
  2. Do NOT wait until your life is “together”. Truth is it will never be completely “together”. The day that the work is finished will be the day you take your last breath, until then you’re always a work in progress.
  3. Do NOT wait until “the perfect moment”. Truth is there will never be a perfect moment, the best time is the ordained time when God speaks to you. It’s also important to understand that once God speaks that ordained window is open. This means the word He’s given you last week, last month, last year is still waiting to be fulfilled! This is the time!
  4. Do NOT wait until you are completely sure and confident. There will always be some doubt, there will always be some fear, there will always be more going out than coming in. Conquer doubt by trusting God and following the steps He has ordered for your life (2 Timothy 2:15). Use fear to fuel your faith and use your faith to build your future.
Like NIKE just do it! Everything great was birthed through adversity! This my friend means you were built for this! Now, go forth and make 2020 a year of completion!!
LaToya M. Barley

3 comments

  • Very good….so proud of you!

    Aunt Deb
  • I am “BUILT , for this “ ! love it sis , 2020 is def MY year of FUFILLMENT & COMPLETION ! my vision is so clear !

    LaShay Domonique
  • Thank you for the encouragement Monique. Time to destroy the enemy’s lies with the truth of Christ. Blessings to you and the creator of this site.

    Shanetra

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