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There are times when I sit down, and I never know what I am going to write about. I don’t always know what to say, so I truly rely on the strong feeling that comes to me on the inside. There are times when it is simply difficult to move forward in life. Sometimes it just feels like we’re stuck right where we are and there is no way at all to escape our problems, our grief, our strife, and our various forms of stress. It is during these depressing times when we feel like giving up the most.

Have you ever felt like everything you do just turns out wrong or that it’s just not enough? Have you ever felt that you’ve been in a situation so long, you’ll never get out? How about this…have you ever been disappointed because things just haven’t turned out the way you thought they would? Is the road to accomplishing your goals too long and too slow? Are you tired?

These are normal thoughts and feelings most of us have felt. Life can be difficult, and the strong feeling that I have right now is that someone feels like there is no hope for the situation they’re in. Perhaps you’ve tried, and you’ve tired, and you’ve tried to move forward, but nothing seems to be working. Perhaps you’re depressed or discouraged.

Understand this right now…a better day IS coming. Don’t you dare give up! No matter how long, tough, and tiresome the journey is…YOU will experience a better day IF you keep moving forward.

I remember sitting in a chair crying and wishing that my darkest days would pass. I wanted to give up. It took many days and hours of prayer, perseverance, faith, and hard-work to keep moving forward until I started to see the light of a better day. Don’t surrender to your struggles, but rather learn from them and know that they’re only temporary. Despite how hard and depressing times are…there is always a way to see the light in the midst of darkness. Always! Keep doing positive things, and you will see that it all does matter in the end!

These past few months have really proven to me how one of the most sacred factors in life is disappearing more and more each day. I’m talking about respect. I don’t know how you may have been raised, but it was a rule in my upbringing to show respect for other people. It is something that sticks with me to this day. It is not to say that I am perfect, but it’s to say that I try very hard to value the existence of the people I encounter as I would hope they would do the same for me. It all goes back to the golden rule of, “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.”

Unfortunately, I have recently encountered people who seemingly have no regard for how other people feel. There is an “I am better than you” mentality polluting their minds, and I am unable to relate to these kinds of rather pathetic personalities.

In my opinion, regardless of who you are, what position you hold in society, what you have, and what you don’t have—you’re still a human being, and you have no right to treat anyone like some piece of trash on the side of life. I have witnessed this these past few months, and I am not the kind of person that can just stay silent in the midst of wrongness. I know that we do not live in a perfect world, and it is only wishful thinking to believe that everyone is going to change into really nice and great people. That won’t happen, but it doesn’t stop me from wondering what makes people place themselves on such high and mighty thrones, when really…they’re treading upon the same ground as everyone else?

When you place yourself on a high and mighty throne, you have to remember that in this position, you are more capable of falling…and when you fall, you will land harder than everyone else. You should never climb a mountain just to look down on everyone else. You climb the mountain of life so that you will be better able to help others up that mountain.

One of the main problems with our world is a selfish spirit that only thinks of itself and looks down on everyone else. This selfish spirit refuses to respect others and only aides in the destruction of the world. It’s sad to become a part of this destruction. We all should strive every single day to help each other, to encourage each other, and to inspire each other to become the very best we can be.

What do you think?

The following was sent to me in an email, so please keep in mind that this is NOT something I wrote but something that was sent to me.

“Subject: Obituary printed in the London Times…..absolutely BRILLIANT!

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend,Common Sense, who has been with us for many years.
No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.
He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:

- Knowing when to come in out of the rain;
- Why the early bird gets the worm;
- Life isn’t always fair;
- and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don’t spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place.
Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense took a beating when you couldn’t defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and by his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers;
I Know My Rights, I Want It Now, Someone Else Is To Blame, I’m A Victim

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.”

So what do you think about this? Don’t be afraid to be honest, and don’t worry…I’ll offer my opinion along the way also.

I was invited by a non-profit organization to participate in a program at a church. In the beginning, I didn’t know anything about this church. I pictured it to be like all of the others I’ve attended—rather large, somewhat crowded, but rather friendly at the same time. I rode with someone there, and as we approached large churches—I was for sure that we had reached our destination. However, we simply passed by those large churches and continued our journey down a somewhat mysterious path.

It didn’t make any difference though. I had a wonderful ride down a long road listening to the driver of the car speak encouraging words. However, what made this trip interesting was the sudden turn down an unknown road that led to a very small church sitting silently on the side of a narrow street. This, of course, was not what I had pictured it to be. Surprisingly, it was better, and this is why:

This very small church sat peacefully in a place where it could easily go unnoticed. There was nothing about it that suggested a “LOOK AT ME!!!” type of environment. It was a humble, very simple, little church that was able to capture my heart from the second I saw it.

As we proceeded to enter the church, we were greeted with a kindness that is very rare in our world. They greeted us with not only outstretched hands for a handshake, but outstretched arms for a hug. They had never seen us before, but they welcomed us like they had known us for years. It was as if we were their family, and they were welcoming us home. They had prepared a lot of food for us and sat with us to eat. During the program, they were there to listen to our life stories, to laugh with us, to cry with us, to pray with us, and to share their own life experiences with us. They did this without casting judgment. They welcomed us with a sincere love for us.

Because of the outstanding love they showed, that little church felt like the biggest church I had ever been in before. Love has the ability to expand further than any of us can ever imagine. Love is powerful, but it has to be chosen. You have to choose to show love to others, and when you do…you will find that love has the ability to make the most powerful, most positive, most life changing impact in our world.

You also have to choose to accept love. Sometimes it’s not easy to trust others, but love does exist—and it can and will change your life. You may feel like you’re just a simple person that people just don’t notice that much. This little church was just a simple church on the outside, but on the inside it was gloriously filled with love which made it stand out. What are you like on the inside?

Love goes a long way. It’s not to say that it’s always easy to show love and that people will always accept the love we offer. That would only happen in a perfect world, and we don’t live in a perfect world…BUT, this little church…surrounded by bigger churches, placed in a world that may not always accept its love and its views, rather silent and meek, somewhat easy to pass by if you’re not really looking…dared to show love to people they didn’t even know. Despite all of the odds that may stand against them, they opened their doors with a welcoming spirit of love. They took a chance.

I will always remember this little church, because the love that they shared is now embedded in my mind, my heart, and my soul.

No matter what the size of the church is, it’s what happens on the inside of that church that matters the most. It’s the same with us as human beings. Who are we on the inside? There will come a time when that question must be answered.

(A special thank you to God’s Little Haven, Inc. and The Village Church for your kindness and love. And to Lyn (the driver of the car and the founder of God’s Little Haven, Inc.): Thank you for your encouraging words and your inspiration. It means more than you know!)

This post is about an issue that I have experienced personally on my journey to accomplishing my goals, and it’s something I continue to see others experience every single day.

I have always been a big fan of dreaming your biggest dream, going for it, and making it come true. Oftentimes, our biggest mistakes are not made in setting our goals but in crossing the bridge to get there. As with any destination, you can’t just snap your fingers and be there. There is a whole journey involved, and sometimes it’s that journey that people fear the most.

When you set your goals, you have to be prepared to cross a bridge in order to get there. I remember a conversation I had with a struggling writer. Now, writers usually have to have another way to support themselves until their writing succeeds. That is life. In this conversation he told me that he was against getting a job at a local store because it did not fit his creativity. He said that if he could not be a writer, he didn’t want to be anything at all.

First let me say this: I have been here before, and that’s why I am able to say that if you’re not careful with this type of mentality…you will actually end up hurting yourself more than helping yourself. Working in a different area does not mean you’ll be in that area forever. Most of the time, all that it means is that you’re going to have to support yourself while accomplishing your goals. In other words, it’s like crossing a bridge to get from point A to point B. If you’re afraid of the hard work of crossing the bridge, you’re setting yourself up for more hardship than what is necessary.

Using writing as a quick example: Just because you get a job somewhere else does not mean you’ll never be a writer. It does not mean you’re not creative. The truth is, you’ll need a way to support yourself, your responsibilities, and even your writing until you can reach the success of your goals. It doesn’t mean to give up on your goals. It means…support them.

Accomplishing goals is hard work period! You may have to work in a different area before you can work in your talent. You may have to start off small before you can get to that BIG dream of yours. Some people have to go back to school. The point is, you have to start somewhere…and you’ll have to cross some sort of bridge to get to where you’re going. Bridges are difficult to cross, and they’re absolutely frustrating and uncomfortable. However, they are necessary in preparing you for what’s on the other side. If you fear your bridge or if you’re too prideful to cross your bridge, you will find yourself experiencing further delay.

Dream your biggest dream for your life. Hold on to it! Never lose hope…but be prepared to cross other important bridges in your life that will help your dream to come true. You don’t know who you’ll meet along the way that will help you. You don’t know all the important lessons you’ll learn in the most unlikely places from the most unlikely people if you don’t cross the bridge to your destination. Your dream will remain a dream if you don’t dare to wake up and put effort towards accomplishing your goals. Remember, bridges are temporary. They’re only meant to help you get from point A to point B, but you’ll never get to point B by turning your back on the bridge that leads to it.

I don’t know what your bridge is, but I certainly wish you the best!

I was working with a group of people, and our task was to make budget at that time so that everyone could get their bonus. Now, let me be honest about how I felt at first. The bonus did not seem to be a lot of money; therefore, I really wasn’t motivated to obtain it in the beginning. Then, one of the people in the group started to explain to me how the bonus would help them. Suddenly, I began to hear several stories of how this bonus would help the lives of others. So I said to myself, “Self, you’re going to have to think about the lives of these other people who have expressed a need for this bonus.” I then became motivated to get the bonus.

During this time, there were two other group members that I tried to motivate since I noticed that they had no interest in obtaining the bonus. They made all kinds of excuses that really boiled down to a selfish “me, me, me” mentality. What saddened me is that they made no effort to think outside of themselves so that they could be able to help someone else. We did get the bonus, but it was because of the effort put forth by the individuals who dared to care.

I don’t want to write this without saying that sometimes I am guilty of only thinking of myself also, and I have to sit down and re-evaluate my thought process so that I can help other people. I don’t ever want to become that person who is trapped within themselves because it is really a sad and unfortunate way to be.

There are way too many people in our world who have the “me” mentality that freezes their mind in the “me” zone only to create a cold-hearted personality. Usually, it also creates a very judgmental personality as well. Reality is, the world operates off of team work. Everything we do or don’t do either directly or indirectly affects someone else. How often do we forget this? How often do we forget that there are other people in the world besides ourselves—even though we can see them, how often do we really take the time to care?

And here’s another question…

How many of us are willing to let go of petty grudges long enough to do something for someone else? I am talking about simple matters that don’t really weigh much in the grand scheme of life. They are those irritating, but “forgivable” matters that you really should move on from. Should we really allow these matters to keep us from helping someone else in their time of need?

What do you think?

Good question!

Passion’s Chariot, LLC is a brand new venture that is designed for the specific purpose of spreading inspiration. It is of course in its beginning stages, but it is something that has a high potential for growth over the next few years. It is a concept that has been years in the making and is very much dedicated to being a light of hope in the midst of darkness. It is an inspirational effort for our community, our nation, and our world. As we grow, we hope to learn many lessons, and we hope to be able to use our knowledge, our creativity, and our desire to make a difference to have a positive impact in our world.

To learn more about Passion’s Chariot, LLC you may visit: http://www.passions-chariot.com and if you’d like to, be sure to follow Passion’s Chariot on Twitter and Facebook. The links are at the bottom of the website.

Thank you,

T.S. Wilkins

True story.

My mother was given a tomato plant, and upon receiving it she said, “You know, I’m not good at taking care of plants. Every time I try to they just die. Still, I’ll take this plant anyway. I’ll try to make it grow.” So, she took it and discovered that she didn’t have all of the necessities to take care of this plant. Fortunately, the neighbors did and gladly gave my mother the tools she needed to get the plant to growing. So, everything was set up and it seemed like nothing could go wrong. My mother faithfully watered the tomato plant and kept an eye on its progress. The sad thing was that it didn’t seem to be progressing at all. She waited, and waited, and waited, and this tomato plant wasn’t producing anything at all. Then she started receiving phone calls from other people who also were given a tomato plant at the same time she was given hers. They boasted about how their tomato plant had already produced tomatoes, and they had already eaten them. My mother wondered why her tomato plant was so far behind. What was happening? Did she do something wrong? Why was everyone’s tomato plant doing well except for hers? She never gave up on her tomato plant, and one day my father asked her to come outside. She did, and he told her to look at her tomato plant. Suddenly, this plant was in the process of producing a beautiful tomato.

Have you ever been given a gift or perhaps a task to accomplish? Have you ever examined your life and said to yourself, “But I’ve failed so many times. Everything I do just turns out wrong?” Does it seem like your life just isn’t progressing…like you’re the last one, and everyone else is doing great? Can you somewhat relate to the story above?

My mother knew that taking care of that tomato plant would not be easy for her judging from past experiences; however, she wasn’t afraid to accept the challenge. She didn’t have all of the ‘perfect’ necessities to get the plant to growing at first, so she had to ask for help from the neighbors. Now, let’s pause and discuss this part first. Any time you have a goal to accomplish, you have to be prepared for the obstacles ahead. Regardless of what has happened in the past, your focus should be on the present and how to become better in the future. To accomplish your goals, you may just have to ask for help. Do not miss your opportunities because you are too prideful or fearful to ask for help. Everyone needs help in some way at some point in time.

When you are trying to accomplish positive things in your life, you will notice that a lot of negativity will also surround you. Do not get caught in the trap of comparing yourself to other people. Everything happens at different times and stages for different people. That’s the way life is. Do not surround yourself with negative people who keep you from seeing the positive things in life. What you should be hearing are words of encouragement that will inspire you to keep doing the right things in life, and what you should be doing is progressively working towards your goals. Do not be afraid to filter out the negativity, because if you don’t…it will only bring you down.

Do not confuse helpful advice with words of negativity. Helpful advice may sometimes get on your nerves, but it is actually meant to help you progress. It may come in the form of, “You really need to get a job so that you will be able to better support yourself and your responsibilities until you can get to where you really want to be.” Or even, “You really need to go back to school so that you will be better prepared for what the future has to offer.” Getting a job may certainly be a hard task to accomplish in this day in time, there’s no argument about that…however, the suggestion itself may be one that is true even though it is hard. Negative words are words that want you to stay in the ‘not so great’ situation you’re in. Negative words do not encourage you to move forward. They either encourage you to stay in the negativity you’re in or they encourage you to go backwards.

Learn to be determined and learn to be patient. Just because your goals are not working out when you want them to doesn’t mean they never will. You have to continue to water your goals with faith and place them in the sunlight of hope. This may prove to be hard work, but it’s better than not accomplishing something wonderful.

Do not give up on your goals. Many of the successful people that we watch and read about today faced long, hard roads of rejection and failure before they ever accomplished anything. Failure teaches you the importance of succeeding. There are so many lessons to learn from failure itself, but you have to be willing to learn from them, and to get back up, and try again. You may have to try again several upon several times before you succeed, but don’t ever allow your soul to rest itself upon the disappointing cement of failure. Let it rest in the soft and beautiful open field of goals accomplished.

Keep watering your goals with faith, and keep them in the sunlight of hope. One day your faith, courage, and determination will produce something beautiful.

I was going to write about something else, but then…this came to mind. I was working on this situation that had all of the formalities of not going anywhere at all. For a long time, all I heard regarding this matter was complaint after complaint after complaint. I tried to offer hope and encouragement in order to create a better viewpoint for this situation. I oftentimes suggested giving it time—things would change for the better. The situation would not always be a negative one. Still, complaint after complaint rolled in one right after another. However, sure enough…with prayer, strategy, and hard work, this situation began to turn around. The light of hope could be seen. Positive things began to happen. The situation was looking good, so you would think that the people who did all of the complaining would be joyous and relieved, right? Let me just answer that for you…WRONG! Today I heard the words, “this is not a good situation.” After all of the positive things that were happening, it still wasn’t enough to make people happy. No situation will ever be perfect, and that leaves the door open for people to constantly complain. That’s what happened. After walking through several positive doors, there were people who could still only see the closed ones.

Reality is you cannot please everyone. No matter what you do, no matter who you are…you cannot make everyone happy. There are people in this world that will go from one complaint to the next without hesitation. This may cause you to want to give up. You may say to yourself, “What’s the use?” It may frustrate you to keep hearing one negative thing right after another. You may even dreadfully begin to give into the complaints of others.

You keep doing the positive things you were created to do! You will not always be able to please people, but that doesn’t mean to let them hold you back from doing things that will better yourself and possibly the world. When people around you can only see the closed doors, YOU focus on the opened ones! You keep your heart set on the positive things you have accomplished and you will accomplish! You keep moving forward!

Do not hold contempt in your heart for those you are unable to please. It will not do you any good. It will cause you to focus on the wrong thing and will create hatred in your heart. Hatred is a burden that destroys everything it comes in contact with. It is not worth your time. No, it’s not easy to be kind to them always, but don’t let them consume your mind and heart with their negativity! It is better for you to put forth a kind effort than to drop to their level of negativity.

Do not try to accomplish your goals for the sole purpose of pleasing other people. Yes, we all may want to say…Look, I did it when you thought I couldn’t! Sure, prove them wrong but don’t let that be the ONLY reason for your success, because people will continue to think whatever they want to think. Succeed because it is in you to succeed. Succeed because you should want something better for yourself, and succeed so that you can have a positive impact in the lives of others.

Focus on the positive things in life! Don’t let the negative things destroy you!

Okay, I already know that talking to yourself is seen as a rather odd thing to do, but what about the moments when you really need a pep talk and there is no one around to give you one? Have you ever experienced a moment where the only cheerleader you have seems to be yourself?

These last few days have taught me the value of talking to myself. No, I don’t always physically move my lips (sometimes I do), but I mentally give myself a pep talk. I do this because the last person I need to give up on me is myself. When you give up on yourself, you will undoubtedly travel down a long road of depression and heartache. There are moments that I have to pause and say, “You can do this. You will succeed. You are important. You will make it!” Sometimes life wants you to believe that a hard task is impossible. Sometimes life wants you to believe that you will not make it. There are people who may try to convince you that you’re not smart enough or good enough. All kinds of negative things may come your way.

When you begin to believe the negativity, you will begin to fail. You will encounter many negative situations and personalities, but hope and faith have to remain in you enough to continue on. You have to be able to say to yourself, “Self, you were created to do positive things, and regardless of all of the negative things that are happening to you and around you, you are someone important and you will succeed.” You have to have courage.

Personally, I first and foremost depend on my faith. I like to say little prayers throughout the day, and of course I do not count this as talking to myself. But I do also give myself pep talks throughout the day so that I will make an effort to remind myself that life is not all negative. It’s not all sad and pitiful. There is beauty in life, but it is up to us to open our eyes and see it. It is obvious that life is hard. It is obvious that there are personalities out there that are hard to handle. It is obvious that terrible situations occur. But we cannot allow the negativity of life to convince us that there is nothing positive to see and to believe.

This very moment is your moment to realize how important you are to our world. This is your moment to be grateful for the beauty in life. This is your moment to inspire someone else.

Best wishes to you!