Category: spirituality

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Father Angelico: The Saint of Ash Wednesday

This past Wednesday my family and I participated in Ash Wednesday service and for some reason we left the church on an unusually high note. On our way to my son’s basketball practice, we were all very chatty and full of ideas. I have a feeling that this is going to be a very special Lenten season. Possibly even an artistic one. Could it be the blessing of Father Angelico?

Father Angelico, The Saint for Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent — a season of quiet return, of repentance, of remembering who we are. And there is no better companion for this threshold than Blessed John of Fiesole, known to the world as Fra Angelico.

Born around 1395 near Florence, Fra Angelico entered the Dominican Order and lived a life of prayer, humility, and artistic devotion. He didn’t preach with words — he preached with light.

His frescoes, especially those in the convent of San Marco, were painted not for fame but for the contemplation of his fellow friars. He believed that beauty could heal, that color could carry truth, and that holiness could be quiet.

How He Became a Saint

Fra Angelico was beatified in 1982 by Pope John Paul II, who called him the “painter of God.” Though not canonized as a full saint, his beatification recognized the sanctity of his life and the spiritual power of his art. His feast day is celebrated on February 18, making him a natural guide into Lent.

Patronage

Fra Angelico is the patron of Catholic artists — but more deeply, he is a patron of:

  • those who preach through beauty
  • those who live quietly and faithfully
  • those who seek God in color, form, and silence

He reminds us that holiness is not always loud. Sometimes, it is painted in layers. Sometimes, it is offered in stillness.

A Devotional for Father Angelico:

God of quiet beginnings, As I receive the ashes today, let me remember the beauty of repentance. Teach me to return not with fear, but with hope. Let Father Angelico’s quiet light guide me. Not to perform, but to be present. Not to shame, but to truth. Not to noise, but to You.

Since he is the patron saint of artists, he will be on my ofrenda this season in honor of his beautiful memory.

If you have a favorite saint, I would love for you to share it with me. Or you can write about it here on the site.

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Saint Josephine Bakhita: Patron Saint of Those Who Have Been Sex Trafficked

Saint Josephine Bakhita stands as a quiet but powerful witness to survival, dignity, and hope. She is the patron saint of people who have been trafficked, abused, and exploited—especially those subjected to slavery and sexual violence. Her life reminds us that sanctity can rise even from the deepest suffering, and that no human being is ever beyond redemption or worth.

From Enslavement to Freedom

Josephine Bakhita was born around 1869 in Darfur, Sudan. As a young child, she was kidnapped by slave traders, torn from her family, and sold multiple times. During her captivity, Bakhita endured brutal physical abuse, psychological trauma, and repeated violations of her body and dignity—experiences that closely mirror what many survivors of sex trafficking face today.

Her captors gave her the name Bakhita, meaning “the fortunate one,” a cruel irony given the horrors she endured. Over time, she was forced to forget her birth name and even her native language, a devastating loss of identity that is common among trafficked victims.

St. Josephine Bakhita for kids

Encountering God in the Midst of Trauma

Eventually, Bakhita was brought to Italy, where slavery was no longer legal. For the first time, she encountered kindness without violence and authority without abuse. It was there that she learned about Christianity and came to understand God not as another master, but as a loving presence who had been with her even in her suffering.

Bakhita later said that if she met her captors again, she would kneel and kiss their hands—not because what they did was acceptable, but because, through her suffering, she came to know God. This radical forgiveness does not erase injustice; rather, it reveals a profound spiritual freedom that no chains could destroy.

Why She Is the Patron Saint of Trafficking Survivors

Saint Josephine Bakhita is the patron saint of victims of human trafficking because she lived their reality. Her sainthood does not romanticize suffering; it validates it. She represents:

Survivors who have been silenced

Bodies treated as commodities

Lives fractured by exploitation

The long, painful journey toward healing

Her life tells survivors: You are not defined by what was done to you. Your dignity is intact. Your story is not over.

A Saint for Our Time

Human trafficking is not a problem of the past—it is a global crisis happening in plain sight. Bakhita’s story urges us not to look away. She challenges us to listen to survivors, to support organizations that protect the vulnerable, and to confront systems that allow exploitation to thrive.

Her holiness was not forged in comfort, but in endurance, compassion, and love. In a world that often reduces trafficked persons to statistics, Saint Bakhita restores the human face.

A Prayerful Call to Action

Honoring Saint Josephine Bakhita means more than remembering her story. It means committing ourselves to justice, mercy, and solidarity with those who are still trapped in cycles of exploitation. Whether through advocacy, education, prayer, or direct service, each of us can play a role in ending trafficking and supporting survivors.

Saint Josephine Bakhita, patron saint of those who have been trafficked, pray for us—and especially for all who are still waiting to be free.

Room 21 A Film on Human Trafficking
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Healing Through Art: A Journey of Spiritual Growth

Image by the author Chiara Luz via Generative AI

Sometimes there is a heaviness that we feel in our lives. It may be there for various reasons. It can get difficult to manage in the cold months and when the weather is grey. I was talking to a family member about the healing power of art today and what makes it so powerful. Art doesn’t ask you to talk. It doesn’t judge and when you are in the process of creation—you are free.

I’ve moved into the realm of spiritual art, and as fascinating as it is, it can also feel heavy. Its purpose is healing, yet I realize now that I needed more healing myself before diving into this journey. I’m in a better place these days, more grounded, and more prepared to receive the remarkable gift of communion with the other side.

When I feature saints here on Chiara Atoyebi Media, it’s intentional. Through every challenge and hardship in my life, a saint has walked with me. Even my daughter Calais — whom I imagine praying for me day and night — brings me a deep sense of calm. I share with my readers the same things I lean on in my own life. I may not be as direct as many people, but this is my story. I mention my other site, my life’s work, and my nonprofit because they are part of that story. The House of Maryam is something I had to grow into, and I suspect I’ll always be reaching for the wisdom and compassion I hope it reflects.

In my daily life, people don’t often associate me with struggle, but I have my challenges. Parenting, especially, stretches every part of my soul — particularly when guiding children through a new family dynamic. I think I handle it well, yet when I talk about opportunity, housing, stability, education, creativity, all of it matters. This is life. We only get one, and it should be beautiful.

One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned is that the beauty I’ve poured into others becomes medicine when I finally give it to myself. That realization felt like a holy ordinance. I never imagined I could offer that kind of love to myself or that joy could be something I truly experienced. For the first time in my life, I listen to love songs. The first was “Overjoyed” by Stevie Wonder, then “Lovely Day” by Bill Withers, and the list keeps growing. I spent a lifetime listening to breakup music. If I have any advice, it’s this: you are what you listen to. If you fill your ears with fighting and making up, you’ll live in that cycle.

In the months ahead, my goal — along with the other writers on this site — is to offer simple, useful information that helps you build a beautiful life right where you are. I believe that when we’re faithful in small things and truly grateful, we rise. I already feel lighter and more elevated simply by having this space to communicate and share with you.

This month is National Hobby Month, and it’s the perfect time to reconnect with something you love. What’s life without a little joy that belongs only to you? If you have a hobby you adore, I’d love to hear about it. I’m always open to trying something new. Who knows — I may even join you from afar

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Preserving Gullah Geechee Culture Amid Climate Change

A Fourth of July celebration. St. Helena Island, South Carolina. (1939) Image in the Public Domain

Along the sun-soaked shores, tidal creeks, and marshlands of the southeastern United States, a remarkable culture continues to thrive. Rooted in African traditions and shaped by centuries of resilience, Gullah Geechee culture connects the United States to the broader African diaspora through language, food, music, spirituality, and a deep relationship with the land.

The Gullah Geechee people are descendants of enslaved Africans brought to the Sea Islands and coastal mainland of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. Isolated by geography but strengthened by community, they preserved customs, stories, and a Creole language that survived slavery, segregation, and generations of displacement. Today, that legacy faces a new and urgent threat: climate change and land loss.

Recent news coverage has highlighted rising seas and intensifying storms threatening Gullah Geechee communities. But these headlines point to a deeper truth that this is not only an environmental crisis, but a cultural one. What is at stake is a living heritage that deserves recognition and protection on a global scale, including consideration for UNESCO World Heritage status.

Voices from the Community: Why Gullah Geechee Matters

For the Gullah Geechee people, preservation is personal. It lives in the voices of elders, artists, and community leaders who carry traditions passed down for generations.

“I have a passion to sing these songs.”
— Minnie “Gracie” Gadson, elder and singer

Her words reflect the importance of Gullah spirituals — songs that hold history, faith, and survival in their melodies.

“If we don’t know who we are, we’re lost.”
— Emory Campbell, community leader and translator of the New Testament into Gullah

At public meetings and planning forums, advocates often remind us that there is no price tag on cultural heritage. As many have said plainly: without the land, the culture dies. For the Gullah Geechee, land is not just property — it is memory, identity, and continuity.

Why UNESCO World Heritage Status Matters

UNESCO World Heritage recognition would place Gullah Geechee culture alongside some of the world’s most valued cultural landscapes — from the rice terraces of the Philippines to the ancient city of Timbuktu. More importantly, it would provide global acknowledgment, protection, and resources for preservation.

Here’s why that recognition matters:

1. A Living Cultural Landscape

Gullah Geechee culture is not frozen in the past. It lives on through sweetgrass basket weaving, spirituals, storytelling, farming practices, and the Gullah language itself. These traditions are inseparable from the coastal landscapes where they developed — landscapes now threatened by sea-level rise, erosion, and development.

2. Preserving History and Identity

For centuries, Gullah Geechee communities have maintained distinct traditions despite systemic barriers. UNESCO recognition would help ensure these cultural expressions are protected, celebrated, and passed down, not only regionally, but globally.

3. Protecting Sacred Sites and Homelands

World Heritage status often brings international conservation support. This could strengthen local efforts to protect burial grounds, historic neighborhoods, and community gathering spaces that are central to Gullah Geechee history and identity.

The Threat Is Real And Urgent

Climate change is no longer a distant threat in the Lowcountry. Rising seas, stronger storms, and saltwater intrusion are already damaging homes, infrastructure, and ancestral lands. As shorelines disappear, so do the places where culture is practiced, remembered, and taught.

Preserving Gullah Geechee culture means more than protecting artifacts or archives. It means keeping people rooted to their land, ensuring future generations can speak the language, sing the songs, and walk the same beaches their ancestors once did.

Want to Learn More?

Here are three places to explore Gullah Geechee history and preservation efforts:

  • Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor
    The official portal for programs, oral histories, and cultural events stretching from North Carolina to Florida.
  • Gullah Geechee Culture Initiative
    A community-driven organization sharing insights into preservation efforts, particularly on Sapelo Island.
  • Penn Center (St. Helena Island, SC)
    One of the oldest institutions dedicated to Gullah Geechee education, culture, and heritage preservation.

A Global Heritage Worth Protecting

Gullah Geechee culture is a testament to resilience, creativity, and survival against extraordinary odds. Recognizing it through UNESCO World Heritage status is not simply an honor — it is a statement of values. It affirms that the stories, traditions, and knowledge of the Gullah Geechee people are not only central to American history, but vital to the heritage of all humanity.

Protecting this culture today ensures that future generations will still hear the spirituals, speak the language, weave the baskets, and remain rooted in the land that has sustained Gullah Geechee communities for centuries.

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Devotional Prayer to Saint Juan Diego for Hope and Unity

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Understanding the Feast of Immaculate Conception

By Chiara Luz

AI Generated Image by the Author for The Feast of Immaculate Conception 2025

“Celebrating the Feast of the Immaculate Conception — a serene tribute to Mary, adorned with Turkish-inspired elegance and timeless grace.”

While many of my Marian histories, crafts, and news will be featured my website, The House of Maryam, I wanted to share the meaning of today’s feast to all. I like to shape my posts similarly to how you would find them at a Marian Basilica–filled with images, miracles and devotions.

Today is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, celebrated on December 8, and honors the belief that Mary was conceived without original sin — a truth at the heart of Catholic faith. Declared a Holy Day of Obligation, it calls the faithful to pause and reflect during Advent, attending Mass in gratitude for God’s plan of salvation. Under this title, Mary is the Patroness of the United States, making this day especially meaningful for American Catholics. Though not a public holiday, its spiritual significance shines brightly, inviting us to embrace purity, grace, and hope.

This is my personal artwork and St. Francis altar. I will have images of Mary in my Woo Commerce shop for purchase this week.

All around the world, many people see Our Lady as the mother they never had or as an inspiration for living a good life. For anyone feeling uncertain, I encourage reaching out to her—like a mother with unwavering love and no judgment, her love can truly transform the heart. The journey itself is deeply personal, and that part is yours alone.

Peace be with you and your family.

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A Poem: Stewards of The Shift, A Daily Invocation

By Chiara Luz Atoyebi


“An Invocation for Balance, Courage, and Love in Leadership”


We are living in a provisional stage. The ground is shifting, the veil is lifted, and the call is clear: leadership must be reimagined—not as domination, but as stewardship. The cross we carry is not defeat. It is the crown of responsibility, humility, and love.


This is my invocation, my prayer, my offering:
May those in power bow to the work of right balance and visionary stewardship.
May they be endowed with courage when action is required,
and with humility when it is time to listen, support, or stand down.
May leaders who have sworn the oath of right action
become teachers of a new standard of life.
May those who struggle to see, see clearly,
and grant themselves grace for the deceptions they once believed.
May forgiveness take root in every heart.
May men and women alike recognize one another as brethren
in the fight for equanimity and humanity’s rightful standing.
May false notions of correctness collapse before truth.
May abundance be revealed as the true inheritance of all.
Let love be the standard bearer, not fear, not scarcity, not pride.
For God’s spirit is love, not endless pain.
And when suffering is endured in God,
it is not suffering at all, but glory—
a strengthening, a calling fulfilled.
The cross is your crown.
The burden is the blessing.
The trial is the testimony.
The stewardship is the light.

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My New Painting

This painting is for sale as a print. But its original is multi-layered and not for sale.

It is entitled “Sporasmic.” That’s the future of our world. You don’t need a machine to go there. You can just open your mind and go.

That’s the awesomeness of our universe.  I am humbled to be part of it.

How do you feel about the universe?

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Dust It Off

Daily writing prompt
What’s your favorite thing about yourself?
View all responses

My favorite thing about myself is that I can stick and move and it’s natural. I am resilient. I have something innate that doesn’t totally deplete my hope and faith in the fact that I will recover from tragedies and traumas. As long as I wake up each day, I have another chance to get it right. I can live my purpose. My joy is similar to what I read about when I read about the martyrs and saints. I lament and then I somehow see a silver lining. There’s always a silver lining, you just have to find it.

As a youth, I took it for granted. As an adult, I am grateful to have it. But I have also learned not everyone does. The area where I am growing is within the understanding that even if someone is not skipping down the street and smiling all the time, it doesn’t make them necessarily problematic. It makes them human.

A large shift in my life came after I had children. I felt like I lived in a way that crossed all t’s and dotted all i’s and a large amount of adversity kept stealing my joy. It took me a moment, but I finally learned that there are things I can’t control. It may not even be personal. When I lost the stability of family, that thrust me into a next level of consciousness. It’s like the book of Job,” what I feared the most came upon me.” Forget what I truly felt inside. But the irrational fear of a great many things came upon me. What I discovered is that on the other side of fear, rejection and failure, is actually liberating. It is the living breathing serenity prayer. It is the strength to live unabashedly, and the knowing that when storms come, somehow, you’ll get through them.

When I was going through emotional changes in high school my parents used to always tell me that Marvin Winans line, “Ain’t no need to worry what tomorrow is going to bring. It’ll be all over in the morning.”

So, I’m proud that even if I am buying one tomato, one package of bread, one pound of fish, one pair of shoes at a time–I’m glad I can. I just try to make the best out of every situation and be glad doing it. Protect your peace. Prepare new paths. Stay on purpose.

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What Happens When You Surrender Everything?

Last year was interesting. It was also intense to say the least—but will go down in history so far as one of my favorites.

Here is what I mean. I’d like to think I know a lot, but last year I often felt clueless. For example? knowledge and a general “knowing” comes to me naturally, but it can be more like a fuzzy math than a concrete science. As spontaneous as I try to be, I still plan to jump with my parachute on. This past year I took risks that typically grown adults with responsibilities don’t take. The doing of this thing has proven to be more powerful, challenging, and rewarding than setting an intention and dreaming about it. The gift of space and time is invaluable. I’ve gained a healthy respect for the risk takers of our world.

“Untitled” by La Luz, 2025. Acrylic on Wood

I struggled for a bit, that’s just the truth. But when I began to surrender this false sense of control and ego, did I notice my mind begin to settle and knowledge began to come to me. I even began to recall forgotten memories that I had buried deep within me. Admittedly this is a new development.

Surrendering is not anything I’ve mastered to date, but is the most profound experience I have had so far. From the beginning of 2024 to now, I feel as if I have been reborn. I feel like I’m at the beginning of a great many things. Life seems to begin now.

I chuckle to myself because I am reminded of the phrase, “the more you know, the more you don’t know” and I am humbled. Ironically, I thought I had reached the truest form of myself and I’ve come to understand that I’m simply in better position to obtain that ideal.

So much has changed. Even my artwork. The air of discipline and the desire to go beyond remaining a dilettante forever has been solidified within me. My spiritual gifts now take center stage instead of looming in the back. I hope to teach some people how to help themselves in that regard. Knowledge of self brings about an infectious serenity that extends outward to those lucky enough to bask in that life. Last year I discovered that I like all the things I was told not too, and have become quite good at a few of them. Honestly, I love this energy. It feels liberating and truly where I belong. But again, this is only the beginning of “something.” Life looks different when you are eager to learn.

My advice for anyone this year is to surrender. Surrender your plans. Surrender your ideas and travel down the rabbit hole and see where it leads. Take a bet on yourself, there is no way you can lose.

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It All Lies Within You: Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Expression And The Power To Re-Write Your American Story

Written by La Luz

All of my endeavors have been in the realm of publishing. Within the realm of media you have the ability to touch upon many topics. I began my first newspaper while living in Ft. Riley, KS. I was in the fifth grade, and we all sat at a four-top table with me at the head giving out the writing assignments. I remember calling one of my friends on the phone over the weekend to see if they would bring their pages in on Monday so we could staple the newspaper together. She told me that she may not be able to because she only had pens at home. Maybe we only could use pencil. I’m not sure, but that’s a memory that still speaks to me.

It was all so simple then. When you wanted to get something started, you just did it. In fourth grade, I used to love the Babysitter’s Club series and decided I wanted to start my own. So, I made the flyer. My mom made copies, and I put them in my small neighborhood on the military base. I babysat two times. I was actually a bit nervous so it didn’t last long, but I liked getting paid. I liked knowing that I could start something and just go do it.

Today we have so much red tape. We are discouraged before we start. I think because we are thinking in the “middling” space. See, big dreams need lots of people. Small dreams can become big dreams, but they need fewer people to start.

In the middle you often get tripped up and therein lies the problem. You also have people with bigger voices coming to take the food from the small fish, but as a highly intuitive empath, I am here to let you know—that time has come to a halt.

No longer will you, your ideas, and your freedom of expression will become engulfed by people that will use your vulnerabilities against you, especially for profit. There is a shift in the atmosphere.

James 3:3, in the English Standard Bible, talks about the “bit in the horse’s mouth used to steer him.” To me, I read that as the power of spirit being able to use an individual to do a good work. This same spirit calling a people who believe on faith, in humanity, and the goodness of their fellow man and woman to speak a truth that will continue to balance the scales. This is a powerful thing. It is also a truth that speaks to how David was able to overtake Goliath. See, freedom of speech is a slippery slope but it also has its confines, or it should. Unmitigated freedom of speech, that operates outside of the civility for which it was intended—is incendiary and dangerous. Yet, with the “bit” in our mouths and the roots of truth as our foundation—then the truth becomes the power. True is Power because like a math equation it largely follows a pattern. If you go forward and contextualize truth as unemotional facts, they become easier to work with and then bring forth new emotions.

Free speech should to some degree should stop at actions. If harmful actions follow words, then we have work to do when it comes to educating the public how to discern and respond to information.

With or without permission, the choice and the ability to rewrite your story and to exist in a world where you feel validated and seen comes from the bottom up. Not the top down. Freedom was bestowed on you at birth but the noise of the world will force you to fumble.

At the end of the day it should be family first. Safety first and honoring the divine call that resides over the lives of us all. My work with The House of Maryam is a passion. It is an inter religious endeavor that centers peace, resource management, and sacred living practices that will actually save lots of families and individuals. Peaceful religious freedom and expression is not only a must, it is needed. The Maryam is seen in many ways throughout many traditions but the mother figure as a whole is constant. Yet even that constant is nuanced. This isn’t about being kissy-face and pinching cheeks this is a matriarchal call. To be a matriarch is not about money, she is the stability of the family. She is the lighthouse and standard bearer of the generation. When the matriarch passes she becomes the ancestor we call upon.

Matriarchs and patriarchs are the leaders of our world and they grow into position. We need a nation of individuals that ok with cultivating wisdom and becoming those people who are able to give wise counsel. Therefore we need our minds, our choices and our voices to be free. Let the voice of reason and truth be the unifier. Let common sense and empowerment be the unifier—not solely your pain. Trouble doesn’t last always but your progeny and your legacy will.

You may not be strong enough to do this today. But you will grow into it. You will respect every aspect of your life because your imprint will be on it. To me, that’s how you rewrite the story. You rewrite it together, throwing out the old wine and braking down the old vessel and making room for the new.

I dream of a New America. Where someone is not constantly telling me what to do. Where even if I am wrong, I can die knowing that I have the tools to think for myself. I have the wisdom to know that I can better myself or someone can lead me to that notion. But I will no longer sit in the passenger seat of my own life.

Peace be with you.

Don’t forget to subscribe and share. Thanks for reading. Very much appreciated. Please share your thoughts. It’s better not to write in a vacuum. You matter to me.

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On Day One: The First Day After I Got Married

Daily writing prompt
Tell us about your first day at something — school, work, as a parent, etc.
View all responses

I remember the first time I got married, and the very exciting yet awkward day after. Although there hasn’t been a second time yet, I like to think of the first time. Before I’d gotten married I thought that there was something major that happened in order to get there. Basically, you can say “I do,” and head on out to Chick-fil-A if you wanted to. It’s really that simple, you just need to complete the paperwork. Although my mother and stepfather had been married for 20 years, I had no inside track on the mechanics of a relationship. In fact, their marriage was sadly ending, as mine was beginning. Fortunately, they remain good friends.

I am a person that is wired for optimism. I am always hopeful and full of belief that someone or somewhere out there, things will look up for us all. I write these things, while existing in some challenging times in my own life–but I still believe in the promises of goodness. I believe them even more today when I see the miracle of compassion that has been transforming on the inside of me.

Photo by Bu00f9i Huy on Pexels.com

The first time I got married it was at a bed and breakfast in Baltimore County. It was a small wedding, and the wedding package included a honeymoon suite with a ginormous hot tub. This was a shotgun wedding from the standpoint of me being three months pregnant. But, we knew at the time we wanted to get married. By the time we got to that room after saying “I do” something strange happened. I felt like I was looking at my husband for the first time, and I also felt like I had married someone else’s husband. The latter is a feeling I never was able to shake. Now that I am fully invested in healing work, spiritual education, and the practical and sacred spiritual life of women and families–I understand these thoughts often have legitimacy. Also, for the sake of this conversation, we should understand that some ties are spiritual, not necessarily physical. However, the day after my wedding I was expecting to do something. I felt like I should be doing something, when what I needed to be was still. I never quite shook that feeling either. I believe that comes from lack of understanding of womanhood, and a practical understanding of the spiritual nature of the male and female relationship.

I have often said that, the ministry of mom is very different than the ministry of wife. Unfortunately, they don’t often mesh well at the same time. This is often why relationships end in divorce during those stressful toddler years. A person can’t serve two masters. This is even sometimes why a second marriage may prove more successful than the first, because the stressors may not be there. However, I know that within some communities, there is still lots of work that needs to be done when it comes to positively building relationships not built on dogma or trauma. My love mantra for anyone is, be with whoever is the best fit for you. Whoever gives you the peace you desire, whoever makes you feel seen and accepted, whoever feels like they are for you and not against you–make your allegiance to that person. Cultivate a safe haven of happiness for yourself. Don’t suffer in silence.

In 2019, I actually stopped gossiping and denounced Babylon. For me, that simply meant living by truth, not by a lie. When I stopped gossiping, just about everyone I knew fell off. I never said, “I don’t gossip” I just stopped or changed the subject. Additionally the ringing of my phone also stopped. No one close to me took that proclamation seriously, and that’s okay. It was a hard right turn onto a path that would ultimately pave the way for my life’s purpose. Here I am today, five years later, still on my journey. As a woman who also considers herself to be a divine feminine, not in the sense of popular culture, but as one close to the will of my Creator. For me, divinity works from the inside to the outside. When I am called to shift an environment, or embody the spirit of the Proverbs 31 woman, while still being who I am in the world, that comes from spiritual discipline. Life is going to life, and it has taken a long time to become the steady boat on rocky waters.

The work within me is not over. It will never be over until I take my last breath. I know at any moment, I can be a mess, but I bounce back very quickly. See, I have come a long way from needing validation like I did on day one of my wedding night. I wanted to be a perfect wife out the gate and that desire caused me to often fall short of that goal. We can’t make smart decisions and choices in desperation.

Someone recently said to me, “never let anyone take away your shine.” I pass that on to you. We are designed to be the light of the world and therefore we need to make our main love a vertical love first. When that love is addressed, you will have what you need to face the day. With that understanding, you won’t feel a desire to be anything other than joy, peace, love and sometimes enraged if it comes to that. But, you will sure bounce back as long as you are connected to the Light and maintaining that shine. Looking back on the innocence of my first day of my marriage it makes me smile. It was a moment of firsts that can’t be replicated and I look on it fondly. I was 100% open, innocent, and believing. Through out the tough times, I like to reach back for that hopeful woman and continue to bring the beauty of her heart forward. You should try that too.

If you would like a nice mediation music to bring peace to your day, here is one to help heal those memories and wounds.

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To Be Strong And of Good Courage, The Most Admirable Trait of Them All

Written By: La Luz

What is something others do that sparks your admiration?

We live in a world where the bullies run anti-bullying campaigns, people with unchecked mental health are preaching health and wellness, and the unhealed are navigating folks through healing journeys. That’s just the beginning.

These ironic themes that pepper our existence have gone on for quite some time. We have allowed it to perpetuate while residing in a sleep state they keep calling “awakened.” In actuality it can be semantics to some degree. If you are operating against your interests to some degree, your lids are still a little low. It’s time to rise and see.

The Real Hero

The hero is always the person strong enough, brave enough, and bad enough to stand up and tell the Truth. The truth has a ring to it and it garners the respect of the people.

It’s hard to come to grips with the truth because for so long not only do we not acknowledge what we are seeing, feeling and experiencing—we actively work against our betterment and then complain about it. In my opinion, it’s better to have someone say, “hey, I don’t really like you, but I want you to be safe.” Instead of, “of course I have no problem with you. You’re amazing and you are welcome anytime!” While doing everything in their power to harm me or covertly erect barriers to my true success.

This is the gaslighting hidden behind the “gas face.” Don’t get me wrong towing the line has its advantages. You get to live largely without static. But, the moment you answer the call of truth get ready for some pushback. Most of us have no idea that we live in a state of quasi-mediocrity at times. It’s because we preach that Christ was once a benevolent meditating shaman-esque archetype, who now resides in heaven, and is patting the heads of all the goody-two shoes down here on Earth. That’s not true. That’s the sugar laden milk we feed the little kids to get them excited about something they don’t understand fully. You don’t chastise the church, call people out, and tell people who are struggling to “rise and be healed.” You don’t really beat up benevolent people who live on the outskirts of society quietly restoring the sight of blind people and raising dead people up. That guy would be considered a one man non-profit if he needed the cash. (Apparently a rich man, paid for his proper burial after he died. But as we know, he was already gone. Still a nice gesture though.)When someone like that is in your midst you go and see about the person who is disrupting the status quo, and getting the lame off the streets. Especially when, to some degree, someone feels their abject poverty serves a purpose.

I talk about Christ a lot because the more you know Him, the more you begin to believe in the unbelievable. As a self-crowned theologian, I like to compare his early church wisdom teachings, that rattled the cage of every double-minded individual of his time, to the calm and loving genie he is often reduced to today. I like old Jesus better. The more you think you know, you realize you know nothing. That’s a good thing.

See, if you don’t tell the truth about the most courageous person who suffered intolerable cruelty and humiliation for sticking to his guns—you’ll never understand the suffering in your own life. Regardless of whatever marketing campaign or social media influencer mantra that we are force fed—every person living is subjected to suffering. Everyone. No person alive, due to money, status, ethnicity is able to escape suffering because death meets us all. It is one of the reasons I am a student of eschatology,because it’s best to get comfortable with that fact. It also allows you to have compassion for your fellow man.

To know God is to suffer with Him.”

At times, while we are speaking a truth to power, we are then harmed and temporarily dismantled. Yet somehow we become more refined, and even more beautiful and courageous, through our trials. This is the hope of our calling.

The Courageous

I admire the courageous. The ones that can walk away from a tough situation that erodes their self respect. I also admire the steadfast and unmovable. The ones that are willing to be martyred for a cause. The ones that resist the goading and temptation of the enemy and cause the unrighteous to flee.

Sometimes standing is stronger than running and silence is more powerful than words.

My question today is, what truth do you stand on in this moment ? What principles are you willing to fall on your sword for even if it means losing those closest to you?

Take a moment before you answer:

Do you love what you see when you look yourself in the eyes? Are you able to live with your choices and the truth of who you are? If so, then you win the gift of perfect peace and more.

If not, the challenge for you is to keep pushing. Keep digging. Keep being honest until you are fearless. On the other side of your fearlessness is faith and after that—your real life.

Peace be with you. -La Luz