You Cannot Find Peace in a Place That You Do Not Trust." -Melissa Rivers
Because life requires a lot from us, we have to maintain a fresh face and a deep desire to fight our way through our storms.
Remember
1. You’re more than able to handle what you’re going through.
2. There’s no defeat in life, there’s only course corrections, readjustments and new beginnings
3. The end of one chapter is a fresh, new beginning to the next. You have the right to create the next chapter as you see fit.
4. God always sends a helper. Dont shut people out.
PeaceMode,
Melissa
Why is it that people always advise you to live in the present moment?
Sometimes our present situations are scary. If you’ve ever experienced a true crisis, you probably wanted to think about anything other than those circumstances.
What about those seasons in life that seem to never have an expiration date, like the time when I finalized a divorce and was diagnosed with cancer within a two week time period and lost my job while going through treatments. All three of those challenges were my present moment and that sh*t was horrible. I wanted to think about anything other than my reality.
I know we can’t completely check out of life when we experience hard times but I do believe we have to narrow our vision and focus on getting through the storm to actually progress through it.
The thing that kept me focused on rising above divorce and fighting cancer was a simple Bible verse. Luke 1:45 “Blessed is she who believes that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished.” From God’s word I know that he’s promised long life, good health and a sound mind. In order to take hold of those blessings I had to narrow my vision, limit my conversations and focus my mind on being well physically, mentally and emotionally
Almost two years later and I can appreciate my experiences, learn from them and move on.
Hmm, if it wasn’t for my divorce I would have never fallen in love with myself and discovered my unique flavor of love. Now a days if I’m not working out or trying a new vegetarian or vegan dish, I’m spending time with people who truly love me or I’m participating in activities and events that serve a higher purpose than myself.
I don’t know what crisis or challenge you may be navigating through right now but my advice to you is acknowledge your current situation and get ready to kick, claw and fight your way into a new reality. Sometimes the peaceful have to fight too.💖
PeaceMode,
Melissa
Imagine lying comfortably on your bed gazing up at the ceiling. Picture little thought bubbles floating in the air above you and each bubble is filled with a short phrase or descriptive word. One bubble says loyal, the next says smart and the next one says dependable. The next bubble you see says lazy, followed by hopeless and disgusting. It’s amazing how the messages in the bubbles changed but your position didn’t. You’re still the same loyal, smart and reliable person who’s relaxing on the bed. The only thing that changed was your mind. You allowed your thoughts to go off course and disrupt your peace.
You have the power to choose your thoughts. You can decide which thought bubbles fit your life.
Our thoughts are the means in which we communicate to ourself. Its our self-talk.
What are you saying to yourself?
Do your thoughts empower you or do they make you feel weak? Does your self-talk make you feel strong or does it make you feel incapable?
Positive self affirmations are an excellent tool to help you manage the way that you speak to yourself. Practice reciting the following three affirmations to help you get started.
1. I am wonderfully created.
2. I am here to fulfill a unique purpose.
3. I purposely demonstrate love to others.
Now ceate your own affirmations and watch how amazing you feel after reciting them.
PeaceMode,
Melissa
Dear Lord,
Thank you for restoring those things that were once lost. I appreciate your willingness to restore them better than they previously were. Its been said that time heals all wounds but I’m a firm believer that you make things right in your time and then you redeem the time that was lost. You are amazing. Always watching over us and guiding us through life. I pray to trust you more. I pray for a better understanding of your love for us. I thank you for blessing us according to your love and I am thankful that in you all is well.
In Jesus Name,
Melissa
Welcome October!
It’s a new month with new opportunities and new blessings. This is your weekly reminder that God is still in control and working everything out for your good. There’s no need to be fearful, fretful or bothered. It will be fine.
October is Breast Cancer Awareness month! As a survivor, I say “Thank you Jesus!”, as an advocate I say, “Please Schedule Your Mammogram!” As a fighter, I say “Exercise, Eat Right, Get Rest and Do Not Stress!”
Please tune in tomorrow for step 6 of Positioned For Peace. We have three more steps to cover as we breakdown the necessary requirements to be an effective Peacemaker. october-3-2016
Peace In Action,
Melissa
Proverbs 24:6 After all, with the right strategy you can wage war,
and with many advisers there is victory.
Surrounding yourself with good people is one of many ways to create peace in your life. When you choose like-minded friends and companions you’re empowering yourself with the gift of “More”! More creativity, more spirituality, more support, more love and more possibilities are just a few of the benefits. There is power in unity but you have to be connected with the right people. As the word says, with the right strategy you can wage war and with many advisers there is victory.
I’ve created a short list of tips that will help you to build a tribe filled with friends who are necessary for your journey through life:
Let’s face it, life is not meant to be lived alone! There is success, peace and power in numbers!
The picture above was taking at the Carolinas Breast House in Charlotte, NC back in December of 2015. When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I knew that I had to connect with people who understood how I felt and those who were just as determined to live and beat the disease as I was. Pictured are just a few of the people that I have had the privilege of connecting with along my journey.
There is strength in numbers.
After you’ve finished reading the blog post, check out today’s podcast. I interview a dear friend of mine, Rashida Gittens. Rashida is a domestic abuse survivor and she credits her faith and her support system for helping her to find and realize her self-worth.
I invite you to take a listen as two friends hold a candid conversation about the power of being connected to the right people.
Find Peace and Be Well!
Melissa
I WISH FOR YOU the happiest Thanksgiving Day that your heart can hold. I pray your day be filled with love, joy and gratitude for those you love and have responsibility over. I hope that you will laugh a little louder, smile a little bigger and love a lot deeper. May your troubles be few and your victories countless. I pray that you are filled to the measure with unspeakable joy.
This year I found the joy that I searched for, for so long. It’s awful that it took divorce and cancer to get me straight but it worked! No longer do I devalue myself or discredit my worth. I’ve completed some pretty deep soul searching and I found out that I am a pretty awesome lady and above that, I’m a survivor!
So this year, I am grateful that I still get to be mommy to my beautiful daughter and auntie to my six nephews. I’m thankful that my two brothers can still call and bug me about nothing. I’m thankful that I can call my mama anytime that I want to and listen to her talk about whatever is on her mind. I’m glad that I can still receive the occasional text message from my grandma and answer when my aunt calls me by the nickname “Luc” (short for Lucy). It’s an awesome feeling to understand that all of this could have worked out differently for me, but I’m still here! I’m still living and I still have the ability to answer when my name is called! But most of all, I’m thankful that Jesus Christ saw fit to intercede on my behalf and heal my body of a disease that has claimed far too many lives.
With all this thankfulness and gratitude, I reach back to the next woman who may be feeling discontent about life and confused by current situations. Whatever you may be experiencing right now is only a bump in the road. There is peace and fulfillment on the other side of hurt and fear.
Don’t lose hope and let me know if I can help.
Peace and Wellness,
SuGa
Luke 8:10 NKJV – And He said, “To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that
‘Seeing they may not see, And hearing they may not understand.
On Tuesday, October 20, 2015, The American Cancer Society changed its breast cancer screening guidelines to begin screening woman on an annual basis at age 45 instead of age 40. Their website states that these guidelines were put in place to detect breast cancer early and when treatment can be most effective (www.cancer.org).
I’ve read the statistics of breast cancer diagnosis by age and I agree that in the past most new cases of breast cancer have occurred in older women. There has been an increase in women being diagnosed at an earlier age.
My concern is that this new guideline doesn’t take into account the thousands of women who are under the age of 45 that are diagnosed yearly with these ugly disease. Marketers dress breast cancer awareness swag in pink to make it appear more appealing, but there is nothing pretty about this disease.
I was inducted into the “Hall of Pink” in April of this year. In my case there wasn’t a sign or a symptom, there was simply a suggestion and yes that suggestion came straight from God. I was 39, recently divorced and trying to establish a new sense of normalcy for my life. As I went about my normal, daily activities, God spoke clearly to me and said; “Melissa, go get a mammogram.” I didn’t hesitate and because of my act of trust, the cancer was found very early and it has been removed. I now try to live each day more aware of the power that is available to me when I trust God and believe that his words for my life are true.
So that is my story but for many others it doesn’t happen that way. Many women and men walk around with no symptoms of breast cancer, although the disease may already be attacking their body. African-American women under the age of 45 are more likely to get the disease and die from it than any other female ethnic group.
With as much fundraising and research taking place because of this disease, I don’t understand why the screening guidelines would move in a direction opposite of the increasing number of women who need to be screened. It would seem that more would be done to catch it early with the hope of eventually eliminating it. Delay the screening means delaying diagnosis.
As a society, we have to become our own advocates. It’s vital that we eat healthy, exercise and take an active part in managing our health care needs. I highly recommend the book, The Cancer Prevention Diet by Michio Kushi.
Be well and stay in peace!
