Allow me to introduce myself! ( I always wanted to say that) Some of you may know me or the version of me I want you to see! In today’s message ,I wanted to go deeper to what’s beneath the surface. We all have a tendency to share the highlights of our lives but we omit the low points. I am here to challenge this! So let me see if I can make this clearer and practical for you.
"My name is Patrice Moore Louis. I have been married for 3 years and counting. I have my 2 degrees in Psychology, working on the third. I have spent the last 6 years working on my field within diverse populations. My hubby is a police officer after working in probation Heyyyy bae!!!! We are living happily ever after with our beloved dog, Dutch! Our life is just perfect! Annnnnnnd CUT!!!! My eyes are rolling while I write this. See all of that sounds great and super impressive. What about all of the not- so- sexy experiences that I had to go through to get there or here where I am today. It would sound a little different."
"My name is Patrice, some call me Trish and others know me as Trice. I can always tell where people know me from based on which nickname you call me. I attended BCU where I managed to lose my focus. Because of this, I was placed on academic probation with a 1.6 GPA. This was below the requirement that was mandatory to participate in any extracurricular activities or organizations. This was a major red flag that I needed to focus all o had on school. I worked hard like no other to change this around. Eventually I did! My boyfriend turned husband and I dated for several years through college, we broke up at some point and got back together and experienced various arguments. Out of college, we both moved back home and in with our parents and struggled to find jobs. We both had big dreams but did not possess the resources it took to execute them. That’s just a cute way to say we were broke! We found jobs and begin the 9-5. The harder we worked the more we saved. We moved in together or as some would say shacked up! My husband proposed years later during a time that I was battling so much at work. I thought for sure I was going to be fired. Later we got married. Expensive is the word that comes to mind! But later the baby didn’t come in a baby carriage. At least not as we had hoped or expected .We experienced a miscarriage, a pain that I would not wish on anyone....and are still waiting on our baby blessing! Add being out of work , several family loses and absolute stress to the mix of that and you get REALITY! But all of the good mixed with the bad was all apart of the plan for me, him and us."
It is my hope that in writing this that we can all be brave enough to share our real stories with one another. I was reading a devotion the other day that talked about God and how he blesses us. It said that God doesn’t bless who we pretend to be. He blesses who we truly are. This includes our high and low moments. Pretending or flexing like you have it ,when you don’t, is not helping anyone and that includes you. I’m not saying tell all your business to each and every person you met but share it with those you feel that need to know. All you have been through has not been in vain! We shouldn’t have to suffer in silence when the truth sets you free. There you have it!! I took my mask off. Will you?
Continue to discover, accept, and chase your purpose. God bless you! Yes, YOU!
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