From Cocoon to Butterfly

Greetings RAWC Stars! I am so excited to be back with you all as I know I’ve been away for far too long! I’ve been doing a lot of re-prioritizing, spring cleaning (as you know from my previous blog) and just redesigning and redefining my life according to God’s will and plan. On the cover of my first published book “Content…Right Where I Am” (www.joyturner.net) is a beautiful blue monarch butterfly that symbolizes a place of contentment and satisfaction in my life. My desire is to emerge as one of the brightest, most beautiful “butterflies” EVER and that is also my desire for the readers of my book. However, in order to do that, I realized that I still have a few layers to shed of my “cocoon”. Sure, I’ve shed some of the major “layers” and I’ve made huge progress in a lot of areas in my life but after doing some inner reflecting just this year I found that I still have some residue from my old “cocoon” that I need to shed before I can emerge fully as one of God’s “butterfly” best! One of the things that I realize is that as we start dissolving the “layers” of our cocoon, the process can become quite uncomfortable. When we begin cleaning up our surroundings (literally) the task at hand can appear to be quite overwhelming and if you are like me, you may even find a way to somehow procrastinate to avoid completing the task. All this does is prolongs the whole experience and doesn’t improve our situation one bit. Trust me, I KNOW! (smile) When we start making changes in our physical bodies like eating properly, detoxing from junk and exercising, our bodies often respond with resistance and we find ourselves with nagging little headaches, irritability and sore muscles until our bodies conform to our healthy transitions. It gets a little rough and I’ll be the first to admit that I have succumbed to a french fry or two because my head screamed “Woman are you crazy, cutting out carbs on me like that”! LOL It’s not always easy but the one thing I have never done is give up. I may sit out of the race from time to time but I have committed myself to running this race no matter how long it takes to get to the finish line because I ultimately desire to fly high like those big beautiful monarch butterflies that soar in the spring time! But just like any dream or goal that we have, it requires work. My first plan of action is to “shed this cocoon” and lose the layers!


Losing the Layers

• Bad Habits – smoking, unhealthy eating, lack of exercise, over indulging, excessive behavior, lack of rest, gossip, backbiting, lying, envy, jealousy, cheating, manipulating, etc
• Dead Weight – physical weight (excess fat) or proverbial “weight” (unhealthy relationships, abusive relationships, negative friends and associates)
• Clutter – mental and/or physical
• Negative Thinking – as a man thinketh, so is he (Proverbs 23:7)
• Negative Speaking – life and death are in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21)


These are just a few things that we should monitor from time to time to make sure that we are headed on a productive path. Don’t ever feel bad when you discover something that needs to be changed or a layer that needs to be shed. In fact, rejoice!! Because it is when we DON’T see in ourselves what hinders our progress, that we become trapped in our cocoons. Many people leave this earth without having experienced all the fullness of life that God intended. Will you run your race and never reach the finished line? Will you walk through life and live on purpose with great expectations or will you simply meander through life struggling with issues of the past, present and future? Take inventory of your thoughts, your patterns, your life and see what needs to be changed. Let’s lose the layers RAWC stars and emerge into greatness in God!!!

Today’s inspirational scripture reading comes from Romans 12:2 (NKJV) and it reads “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

“Change your mindset, change your life” is actually the title of the tour that will kick off featuring my friend and “butterfly sister” Erica Goodridge! She and several other dynamic women will speak at this life changing event that will kick off in Hunt Valley, MD on June 13, 2009. The tour is also scheduled to stop in a city near YOU! (including Detroit, Chicago, Orlando, LA and Charlotte) I am really looking forward to the event and have already purposed it in my heart to be there to support and to receive a blessing! For more information on the tour or my fabulous friend Erica and her organization, Moral Treasures LLC, please visit her on the web at www.changeyourmindset.net

Joy & Blessings!

Spring Cleaning

Greetings RAWC Stars! Happy Monday to each of you AND Happy May!! This is the time of year when many of us embark upon the ritual of “spring cleaning”! I myself have gone into "purification mode” as I prepare to clean up, clean out, de-clutter, organize and prepare for the new season upon us. As we enter into May we are also quickly approaching Mother’s Day (this coming Sunday!) and what better time to refresh, revamp and realign our homes and living spaces in honor of our wonderful mothers and mother figures who constantly reminded us to clean our rooms!! LOL Now this year is a bit different for me personally because at this time last year, I had much less “space” to clean, occupying an apartment with my youngest brother and son. This year, as I’ve moved back into the family home, although familiar and comfortable it appears that now there is more responsibility in cleaning this space that I now share with my other younger brother and son. I must admit that when I lived here as a youth with my parents, the house was much more organized and the rooms appeared so much more spacious and orderly but now as an adult and mother myself, it appears that the rooms have “shrunk” and I have more stuff now than ever before!!! Geesh!!! So what I realize is that in order for me to maintain a certain level of contentment, I MUST be sure that I maintain my living space just as much as I maintain my blogs, my book calendar and any other thing that pertains to career and job. It is quite a balance but what I find is that “spring cleaning” is not only about what is before me in the natural. Of course I will take this opportunity to put away all the sweaters and boots and make sure all of the seasonal items are packed away accordingly but this year, “spring cleaning” has taken on a different meaning. As I “de-clutter” my home, I also want to focus on de-cluttering my mind and my thoughts. As I rid my home of any junk, I also want to make sure that I’m not carrying the “junk” around in my mind and spirit. When I say “junk” I actually mean harboring such things as bitterness, unforgiveness, jealousy, bad attitudes and even bad habits. I must admit that I am a “Clutter Queen” and I realize that the bad habits that I’ve carried with me this long, have made my task even more complicated than what it really could have been had I taken the steps to maintain my living space on a consistent basis. Instead I’ve let magazines, papers and mail pile up out of control and instead of getting rid of things I will probably never use, wear or read again, I have allowed them to accumulate and mix in with the newer things. One thing that God definitely has impressed upon my heart recently is that I must become a better steward over the things He has already blessed me with. Being content in addition to being satisfied also means being grateful and appreciative not just with our words but with our actions. So this week as I humbly embark upon my “spring cleaning” marathon, I invite you all to join me as we prepare for newness of life! Cleansing and purging is absolutely necessary in order to prepare for the new seasons of life that will spring forth as we uncover lost items that are now found, as we uncover hidden emotions and issues of life that haven’t yet been fully dealt with. This concept is how I’ve been able to motivate myself into taking upon what could otherwise be a daunting and unpleasant task. I must admit that I consider myself to be more creative than domestic but I am willing (and with the strength of the Lord!) to make an effort to improve. I’ve got my Mr. Clean, Clorox, Pledge, Mop N Glo, PineSol, Lysol disinfectant spray, rags, bucket, mop, cloths… Let’s do it!!! But not just cleaning on the outside but from the inside out! Matthew 23:27 reads “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.” So….. Are we ready? As we clean and start throwing old things away and I leave you with the following scripture of encouragement!

Isaiah 42:9
Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.






Joy & Blessings!