Stepping into vulnerability in your close relationships is beautiful, but can come at a cost when:

Dynamics Change

Sometimes when people are hurting they will weaponize what you shared with them in an attempt to cut you. You most likely won’t see it coming. I’ve had this happen to me repeatedly, however, I seek to not take it personally :

“Also do not take to heart everything people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you. For many times, also, your own heart has known that even you have cursed others.” Ecclesiastes 7: 21-22

As I meditated on that verse, it helped me to overlook the commentary jabs, quickly forgive, and even step into laughter.

We cannot:

Control

how people label us, however, we are free to choose our response.

I could easily go back to loved ones and challenge them to assess themselves, but I refuse (done it many times before – in most cases). I am owning my:

FREE-DUMB

I’ve been delivered from so much non-sense that would’ve kept me on a life-long cycle of being on edge to hurtful event to repair or sweep under the rug attempts – that it is not worth it. I have been freed from the dumb that I was allowing.

I rejoiced in this truth and then not even 24 hours after, crossed paths with a man at a local playground named:

Lirim

I asked him what it meant and he told me it’s origin is Albanian, meaning:

Liberation or Freedom

He proudly told me his name was on his hat. He was wearing an emerald hat with a flying eagle emblem resting on the word freedom in giant gold letters!

I was deeply moved by God’s creative way of focusing me on what he knows about me.

God is always speaking! It’s like God was confirming that I was:

Living in the opposite

of what I was labeled as!

Then get this, throughout the day, I was loved on by my 3 children as they freely lived their life in our safe space known as, The Billionaire Bubble. Here we learn and play according to our unique giftings, tapping into our God given wealth of creativity!

To keep us focused and safe, I have guardrails and clear expectations in place to make room for:

Full Individual Expression

For me, Mama Lo, I own my agency. I get to decide who is in close proximity based on how they treat me in person or talk to me. I’m done being steam rolled by those that demean, belittle, emotionally manipulate, and send “flying monkeys” to override my boundaries and deliver messages. I communicate my expectations and I’m supposed to abandon them for more foolishness? To be clear, emotional abuse. No, thank you.

In protecting myself and those under my mantle of protection – I feel more calm and less on edge. I get to play into my purpose without nervously picking up my phone wondering,

Oh gosh! Who is this?!?

and to see some triggering wild group chat where I’m being snapped off on by family. Then being guilt tripped by relationship status to return. If I dropped the text screenshots, those that know them would be like:

No Way! Not Them!

Family may say of me -> ” She is so sensitive!” and to that I say – “…why are you trippin’ about my distance then?… toughen up!”. I decided to become unresponsive since they refused to engage with me like they would if they were trying to impress someone in the “real world”. Those I wanted to legacy build with kept throwing bricks my way and I thought we were on the same team, so frustrating.

Perhaps, I’ll circle back after executing my own vision.

In prioritizing my wellbeing and that of my children, I feel God’s presence more and more. I can see the abundance of choices coming my way – right on the horizon!

Without even knowing it, my daughter solidified the message God was sending my way by running around in the kitchen with only her undies on shouting:

Finally, I’m Free!

For ‘where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom’ (2 Corinthians 3:17).”

I didn’t care that she refused to put on jammies! I was just glad to be in her company unchained from the opinions of wo(man). Plus, those giving them are often in their own dungeon.

I am hopeful that one day, they will grab a hold of their own key and join me on the other side!

Here, in my liberation, I can use my voice and fully express without whispering out of fear of retaliation. Oh, the elation!

Spirit Break Out,