Today was such an amazing day for me. Today was the day I was surrounded by some of my closest friends as we tried on dresses for my wedding at David's Bridal. My husband and I decided that a wedding was necessary because our union with God and each other is worth celebrating.So today, I truly was overwhelmed by emotions as I tried on my first wedding dress. This was a very sentimental occasion because unlike so many of my friends I never got to experience prom or graduating from high school and sharing memories with my senior class because I had my oldest daughter at 16 and became a mother and college student all in the same year after she was born. Instead of memories of high school my memories where of Krystian’s first tooth, first time crawling and every other milestone in her little life I cherish to this day.
The picture below is of me trying not to cry. I was surrounded by people I love, I’’m marrying the man I love, and that dress was a symbol. You know how they say before you die your flashes before your eyes? When I put on this dress and saw myself it was like all of my memories of all the toxic relationships, the relationships that I was in outside of God’s will, and even the ones that helped me to grow flashed through my head and I couldn’t help but be grateful and humbled because I knew God was preparing me for this very moment. I couldn’t help but to tell my Father thank you. Trying on wedding dresses today was symbolic of a new beginning. A new beginning of a new life as one with someone else, but also a new beginning with the same God who never left me when I felt alone. The wedding dress made me realize just how important weddings are. It’s a union.Just as the reference of the church being the bride of Christ; it reveals the same importance when two become husband and wife. When that veil was placed on my head I knew that was symbolic of my covering from the rest of the world and me given security under my husbands protection. When I put on that white/ ivory dress over my head all of the anxiety I previously had over wondering if I would be a good wife, fear of being hurt by my husband, and the stress of planning a wedding on a frugal budget disappeared. I truly felt like God is giving me a new beginning with two main characters in the story instead of one and I became extremely emotional. Im looking for ward to this new journey, but even more important I just thank God for the growth to be appreciative, humbled, and prepared for it. xoxo, Krystale Jane’l
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So many people speak the words, I love you", but fail to truly understand love is a verb. It requires action. 1 Corinthians gives us a clear definition of what Love is.
When I truly gave my life to Christ the one thing I prayed to God was for Him to give me a heart to understand love; love the way God defines love not how the world defines it. I wanted more than anything to share the very same power that i felt when God saved me from cutting my wrist with everyone around me. The first scripture God took me to was, Ephesians 6:12, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." This scripture helped me to realize that it isn't the person it is the spirit that lives within them that causes them to act. Learning this lesson was the foundation for me to forgive those who hurt me. Truly understanding God's love allowed me to also understand that very same love that forgave me daily despite my sin, wakes me up, keeps me and my loved ones in good health, and provides for me even when i sin every day, is the same love I was created to give. Godly love isn't easy nor am I perfect. Love means forgiveness. Love means also not just looking at the person's actions, but also attempting to understand why they may have acted the way they do. Love requires empathy. Why? Because God loves us enough to forgive us daily. Forgiving those who hurt you is hard. Godly love also means putting human emotions aside to think with Christ like attributes. Just recently, while planning my wedding there was an incident that happened with someone in my wedding. I was extremely upset...in fact that's an understatement...I was livid, pissed off, mad as h@ll; you get my drift. I asked others that I trusted for advice before I prayed to God. God's answer was totally different from what my loved ones advice was and even what my own heart was saying. I literally cried real tears trying to explain to God why i couldn't do what He required me to do. It was against everything in me. It was against me in the flesh, but was EXACTLY what the Spirit me required me to do. My flesh said, "You are not a punk and you are not going to allow anyone to get over on you." The Spirit said, "You talk about love and leading with love so act the part. I'm telling you to do this and move forward." It was probably one of the hardest decisions Ive ever had to make, but I know that if you sow good seeds no matter what they are; you will reap a beautiful harvest. Love doesn't mean being stupid. I have people I love but I keep them at a distance because I know that their energy is just not whatI need around me. It's people you love but you also know God requires you to separate yourself from them in order to fulfill a purpose. Love isn't easy. When you say you love someone be prepared to handle the responsibility. xoxo, Krystale Jane'l A few days ago the black community was in an uproar over the death of C.J. Smith, a 17 year old boy who was shot and killed by North Little Rock Police when the driver of the vehicle was pulled over during a traffic stop.The black community was in total disbelief and fear that the racist police brutality that plagued so many other cities in America had found a new home in the small city of North Little Rock, AR
As the community prepared to rally and make Black Lives Matter signs and shirts, as black politicians prepared to be the voice of a city angered by the senseless slaughter of an African American teen, as the citizens prepared to march and probably had Al Sharpton or the NAACP on standby; the North Little Rock Police Department released the dash cam video footage of the incident. It didn’t take long for the community to realize what we thought was police brutality was an act of Deadly Use Of Force as the police officer fired shots to protect his own life. C.J. Smith struggled with the officer, was carrying a gun, and attempted to fire the a shot at the officer. Anyone can see this wasn’t a case of a racist sociopath hiding behind a badge.This was simply a case of a scared youth who made the fatal mistake of not thinking rationally, and a police officer who probably never dreamed in a million years a traffic stop would leave a young teenage boy dead from a bullet from his own gun. We grew silent. C.J. Smith became one of the things we knew happened but refuse to address and swept under the rug like mental illness, child molesters in the family, and and a few other areas we choose to ignore within our community. Black Lives Matter. Black Lives Will Always Matter, but if the only time we come together in agreement and unity is for violence and police brutality there is a bigger problem. Black Businesses Matter. Why do we find it so easy to come together when it’s time to protest but can’t find the coins to support our own businesses for economic empowerment? What about black children Matter? What happened to It takes a village? Where was the village when 3 teenage boys were out driving with marijuana in the car on a Sunday? I’m by no means justifying a child being killed ,but I think it’s time for us as a community to stop sweeping and start cleaning out what’s under the rug. Sometimes uncomfortable conversations have to be had so we can grow. This just my opinion. Act In Love, Walk In Faith, & Express Without Fear xoxo, Krystale Jane’l This is just an update of my life as I juggle family, a job, business, and adapting to being a mother again after 17 years.
My husband and I are working on an apparel line that I am super excited about, but I was also working on the last book in my series. That has come to an abrupt halt. While in my prayer time pouring myself out to God he revealed to me I needed to focus on my novella. This was an unexpected answer because just like so many times before I thought I was on the right course and doing EXACTLY what God wanted me to do. Let this be a lesson you can be following the will of God and on the right path but sometimes God wants you to take the road that you weren’t expecting to turn on. This novella is a women’s fiction novel that came to my heart a year ago that I thought I would write after I completed The Undercover Life Of A Diva series and finished my autobiography, but once again God shows me he is ultimately in control when I think I got this. Stay tuned I’ll be giving you all a sneak preview in a few days. Good night, luvs. xoxo, Krystale Jane’l When my husband and I first got together and decided we were going to build a future together we decided to make a vision board. This was almost 2 years ago.My 16 Year old daughter, my husband, and I sat down and individually wrote down 5 goals we wanted to accomplish and we each shared what we could do to achieve them. We then prayed over the lists and placed them in our family Bible. We eventually forgot about the lists until recently. While I was looking for something the pieces of paper fell out and much to my surprise almost everything we listed already happened! This was such a reminder of how far we had become, but it was also reassurance that God answers prayers. Ive kept a journal for years so this was no surprise to me, but for them it was truly amazing. So on New Year’s Eve my husband and I created another list (the one you see below) and this time we exchanged lists and agreed to pray over each other’s list instead of praying over both of them together. I can’t wait to reread our lists 6 months or a year from now and see how God has moved in our lives! Xoxo, Krystale Jane’l Its the beginning of 2018. We all make resolutions we break, goals we set and attempt to keep, and healthier habits we hope to implement to improve ourselves. Ladies, here is a list of my top 10 things we need to leave in 2017.
6 . Fake body enhancements I don’t see anything wrong with improving yourself but these unrealistic and overly exaggerated fake posteriors look ridiculous. Fat transfer is a better alternative than walking around looking like a freak science experiment. The Sarah Baartman look is overrated. 5.The Crabs In A Barrel Mentality & “Hating” On Each Other. Ladies it’s time to leave jealousy in 2017. 2018 should be the year of Girl Power not tearing each other down. Instead of being envious and jealous of one another let’s build each other up. We could be such a dynamic force if we supported one another. 4. Lace Fronts with the Thick Baby Hair I don’t see anything wrong with rocking a lace front as a protective style, but let’s be honest the wigs with the super thick baby hair glued down on your face looks horrendous. Let’s be honest the only person who can pull that off and be over the age of 5 is Chilli from TLC I don’t care how cute you or your wig is. 3. Putting Everyone Else Before Yourself Women are naturally nurturers. Focus more on yourself this year. It is okay to say no or even be a little selfish. This year take more time out for yourself and doing things you want to do. 2. Spending More Time on Social Media Than Doing Something Positive or Constructive To Better Yourself Social Media is entertaining. It’s a great way to network without leaving the house. Social Media is also a distraction. I’m guilty of spending a little bit too much time on social media myself. Instead of posting for likes, or being on someone else’s page why not spend that time doing something to better yourself? Working out, meditation,working on a goal, or doing something for your business. I personally think we spend way too much time trying to get validation from likes, being in other people’s business, or just wasting valuable time on social media. If you applied every minute you spent on Snap Chat, Instagram, or Facebook doing nothing to actually doing something constructive where would you be right now? 1.Toxic Relationships & Negative People It’s a New Year and new beginnings. I cannot stress enough the importance of letting go of negativity. SiSTARS, this is your year to let go of fear, doubt, and replace negativity with 2 important Ps: Positivity and Productivity. Dare to think outside the box and dream bigger than you ever have before. In order to do that you have got to let go of relationships that are harmful distractions and people who have nothing but negative things to say. I am a living witness of what God can do in your life if you let some things and situations go and dare to think outside the box. 2018 I declare it over my life and yours: Dream bigger than you ever imagined. God will see To it that it’s done. This year I’m expanding myself as a brand. My publishing company,’my books, this blog, and now another leap of faith. My husband and I are starting my our own T-shirt line. All of these are things I never dreamed I would be doing a few years ago,but by God’s grace and stepping out in obedience and faith it has become possible. Your goals and dreams are easier to obtain when you allow negative vibes to be replaced with positive vibes. This is the year to Work Hard. Hustle Hard. Pray Harder and watch God manifest something amazing in your life! xoxo, Krystale Jane’l |
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