This Year I Didn't Miss Christmas!

This Christmas was drastically different from any other Christmas I've experienced. Leading up to the holiday, I was pretty sad and uncomfortable with not being able to go Philadelphia to spend the holidays with my family. So, to counteract my feelings, I finally gave in to the constant nudge to serve. I was led to pour myself into Atlanta's Homeless, those who relatively speaking have nothing. Almost instantly, my eyes were opened to the REAL meaning of Christmas.

Two Friday's before Christmas, God laid it on my spirit to collect and deliver 100 Bibles to the homeless. As followers of Christ, we are urged not to forget about "the Least, the Last and the Lost." We are encouraged to help our brothers and sisters, especially those who are unable to help us in return. So when I received my assignment, I was excited and eager. I started putting the word out that Sunday and less than 10 days later, 160 Bibles were donated. Even in the midst of my zeal, I was a bit nervous about how the Bibles would be received by the Homeless. But I soon realized that just as I trusted God with my ability to collect the Bibles, I could trust Him with preparing the hearts and the spirits of the homeless.

With the help of several people, we arranged to deliver the Bibles at four locations between Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Every day prior to, we prayed for God to have His way in the outcome of the assignment. On Christmas Eve, I was accompanied by Derek Williams of Back to the Streets Ministries, and my friend Odia and her four year old son Jaelani. We handed out 80 Bibles between Atlanta's Gateway Homeless Shelter and the public park in the center of Georgia State's Campus. I was so glad to share the joy of experiencing all the reactions of the men and women who received Bibles. It was utterly amazing for us to see how there were several other individuals who were there before us, giving food, hot cocoa, clothing, shoes etc., but when we extended our hands to give the Bibles, a huge smile lit up their faces as they exclaimed, "now this is what I needed." There was one guy who asked me to turn to Psalm 16 and read it. He began smiling and nodding his head as I read:

"Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust. O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee; But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight...

A woman practically chased me down to ask for a Bible and told everyone around what she had just gotten. My heart felt compassion for the older gentlemen who asked with great hope for a Bible with large print. He said he hadn't been able to read his Bible because the print was too small. I went back to my car to search through the boxes of donated Bibles, and found a King James Version Holy Bible with Giant Print. He was so happy!

Christmas Day was entirely different. I arrived at a battered women's shelter at 8:30AM to assist in cooking breakfast for the 13 women who live there. The hardest part was not asking them the stories behind how they got there. Just by looking into their eyes, it was obvious that the layers were too many to unravel in one sitting. And of course that's not what I was there for. I was there to make their Christmas special. And that's exactly what we did. A few of the ladies came up to us afterward in tears of gratitude. They expressed how much our being there meant to them. In that moment it didn't matter what they'd gone through to get there. We were just elated to be a benefactor in their rebuilding process.

My last stop was Turner Field for 40th Annual Christmas Drive for Hosea Feed the Hungry. I was absolutely blown away by the magnitude of the operation. There was a large truck filled with toys to disperse to the children, a section designated for the distribution of clothes, coats and shoes, and then there were food stations galore. Hosea Feed the Hungry was equipped to bring an all around Merry Christmas to thousands of Atlanta's Homeless. Derek and I were allowed the opportunity to set up in the prayer room to hand out the remainder of what turned out to be 186 Bibles. I stood in awe at all the people rotating in and out and the smiles that the volunteers wore. The volunteers were so numerous. To think all those people gave up a portion of their Christmas to spend serving the lesser fortunate. It was so beautiful! At one point I glanced up and saw Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton serving food in one of the lines.

For the first time, I truly grasped the significant difference between volunteering and serving. Truthfully, I never gave much thought to there being a distinction. But this Christmas I learned that when a person volunteers, they offer to perform a service voluntarily. Which means, it's an act that's normally self-directed. On the other hand, serving is an act of obedience. When a person acts selflessly in the service of others, that act is born of and directed by God. Simply put, you don't have a choice in the latter. When you're called, you'd better obey.

I can honestly say 'This Year I Didn't Miss Christmas'!

Perfect Time to Kick Those Old Habits

For many, Fall represents new beginnings. As the leaves on trees are changing colors, so should we. This is the perfect time to KICK your negative habits and form successful habits with positive rewards. After all, your habits determine your quality of life.

Think this doesn’t impact your finances?  …Think again!

A habit is something you do so often, it becomes easy. This list may help you identify your negative habits:

·         Not tracking expenses

·         Not saving first

·         Tapping into Savings

·         Ditching a list when Grocery Shopping

·         Buying Groceries that aren’t on your list

·         Eating out

·         Paying bills late

·         Impulse buying

·         Procrastinating

·         Ending your day without reading information on how to improve your finances

Changing old habits is not an easy task. However, the longer you practice new habits, the harder it will be to revert back to old ones.

Fortunately, you don’t need complicated strategies to create new habits. Follow these steps and you’re on your way:

1.       Clearly identify your unproductive habits

2.      Define your new successful habits

3.      Write down 3 immediate action steps to put them in practice

Conservative Returns Making a Come Back

According to “Financial Realities: Changing Time frames,” a recent study conducted by Northwestern Mutual, Americans have shifted their views on money. For the first time in 10 years we appreciate Conservative Returns.

This implies that in large part, we’ve abandoned dumping huge sums of money into speculative investments in hopes of vastly reducing the accumulation period. Unfortunately this shift came at the expense of millions suffering tremendous losses

and having to widen their time frames to reach Retirement.

A hefty majority feel “the most attractive financial products are conservative, yet flexible.” In the past, people shied away from anything conservative because, to them it meant merely socking money away to preserve principal. When, actually if done right, investing conservatively can have many fruitful advantages.

Although one may be able to stomach the volatility of more aggressive investing, it’s important to have at least a small percentage of your capital diversified into a conservative leg. And, in case you need a point of reference to lend credibility to true diversification, recent years’ devastating market fluctuations provide a very realistic outcome for not taking such an approach.

Refer to previous blog ‘The Critical Ingredient to Perfect Decision Making.’

The Critical Ingredient to Perfect Decision Making

Making your own financial decisions, doesn’t mean making them on your own. Many people have qualms about seeking professional guidance. And, as a result they adopt the ‘do it yourself-ism.’ 

As I stated in a previous blog, ‘A Thirsty Mind Should Be Fed’, I’m an avid proponent of educating yourself on relevant financial topics.  However, taking ALL matters into your own hands leads to haphazardly building a solid plan.

The single reason why it’s so critical to enlist a financial professional to guide you through this process is because of natural human behavioral tendencies. In short, we need someone to steer us through our own emotional reactions to things like market fluctuations. Sure you have an abundance of financial information available to you. The problem is not with accessing the information. The problem is knowing how and when to act on the information.  

The best athletes in the world don’t train themselves, and the best physicians in the world don’t treat themselves. Why should you tackle financial planning by YOURself? It makes perfect sense to call someone with expertise in this arena. After all, you do deserve it, don’t you?

A Thirsty Mind Should Be Fed

Naturally our minds thirst for simple ways to improve finances. Like with anything else you desire to learn, you read or study it, Right? Well, becoming financially savvy should be no different.

On this journey you have two options: 1.) Take another person’s word for it
   or 2.) Heighten your awareness by learning the basics

Granted, the process of achieving financial freedom may seem daunting. So, it’s probably easier to just let someone else handle it. But if you choose this option, you’re also choosing to relinquish expressive control. Now, by going with the latter option, you increase the probability of making informed decisions.

There are several websites and books dedicated to teaching women the keys to financial success. (See examples below). Through these and similar resources, you can explore tried and true ways of building a resilient financial house. Word of Caution: Be prepared to apply what you’ve learned. Otherwise, you’ll continue to get the same results.

The following resources will help quench your thirst:

Great Links…

http://www.msmoney.com/home.htm

http://www.barbarastanny.com/index.html

http://www.myinspirationlounge.com/get-money-savvy-iconsmenu-196.html


Powerful Books…

Secrets of Six Figure Women by Barbara Stanny

The Power of Focus by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen & Les Hewitt

It’s Not About the Money: Unlock Your Money Type to Achieve Spiritual and Financial Abundance by Brent Kessel

This Article is featured @ http://fridaygirltv.com/blog/2010/09/01/money-a-thristy-mind-must-be-fed/