Life – Page 6 – The Coffey Break

Twenty-Nine

So, yesterday I had a mini-melty. Life is funny. About six months ago, I made a mental note that I had 6 months until my 29th birthday. I failed to continue to add an additional month as time progressed. So essentially, I’ve been walking around thinking to myself that I have 6 months until my 29th birthday. Right up until yesterday, when it actually hit me.

I don’t have six months. I’m right right inside of one month. And I’ve spent the last 24hrs. trying to figure out how I feel about that. On the one hand, it will be a blessing to see another year. On the other hand, 29 is a totally loaded year for me.

To say the least, I spent the earlier part of my twenties assuming that I would be married by 28, so my vision of the time period was built around my future family (even if that was just me and my husband) in a very abstract way. See the theme here?

So there’s this whole idea that people don’t plan to fail, it’s that they fail to plan, and I guess my retort for that is where does God fit into all that?

See in theory, yes, I could have had a plan. A freaking air tight, knock their socks off kind of plan, professionally, personally, spiritually and so on. But, there’s still the reality of God’s good and perfect plan. A plan that may not add up to the timeline you or I have preset. So I ask, how does it all work? lol

I’d love for this to be a post that was the reflection of some incredible breakthrough, but the truth is that I’m literally going along for God’s ride at this point, and if nothing else, I can honestly say that that has been the most beneficial change in mindset I’ve had up until now.

That’s not to say that I don’t still have a vision of what a happy life looks like or that I haven’t set goals for myself. It’s just that it’s exhausting trying to figure out the answers to questions that maybe aren’t meant to be answered yet.

Picture your season of whatever it is you’re waiting for as a college course. You go to class two times a week. You receive a lecture, projects, etc. from the professor and then midway or at the end of the semester you have exams.

The only thing that matters more than showing up for the exam, is the preparation that goes into, right? If you never read the syllabus, never went to class, never exchanged ideas with fellow classmates, showing up for the exam would almost be a waste of time –short of luck and favor, and trust me, I’ve been the beneficiary of both on many occasions haha

Nonetheless, that concept of the course is the root behind my overall outlook these days. The professor does not consult with the students about the syllabus prior to putting it together. They just do it, and if they decide to make a change to the curriculum there’s a high probability that once again the class will be informed of the change and expected to abide accordingly.

People always say be careful what you ask for, and I think it’s for good reason. What if you got that awesome opportunity, or met that once in a lifetime person prematurely? It creates a bit of a pipe dream, but there might be something to be said about trusting that everything is working together for the good of God’s timing, even if the reality of it may frecken’ suck.

That job, significant other, breakthrough, or whatever, may be the equivalent of the professor standing up in front of everyone the second week of class to announce that you all would be taking the final exam that day. (God forbid. GOD FAHBID! *northeastern mom accent haha)

Anyway, the trigger behind this was my melty, but this post has been brewing for quite sometime. I just wasn’t really ready to talk about it, openly haha The best is yet to come. If you can relate, I’m sending my love your way! Hang in there!

Peace, Love & Sunshine ~Chels

Residue, 2015 Refelction

Hey guys!

HAPPY 2016!!

What a year 2015 was…

I could on forever, but honestly, I just don’t have the words yet. It’s interesting, the concept of the new year. As much as I try to fight it, it’s as if there’s this assumed sense of a grand closing of a chapter and doors flying open to a new beginning. If there’s anything the last three years have taught me, it’s that seasons are not necessarily determined by the confines of a year. So, I think it’s safest to say that I’ll be floating for a while -not aimlessly, it’s just that I’ve finally come to a place where I’m willing to yield my next steps, no matter how big or small, to wherever God’s calling me.

The guest pastor at my church, Hope City, shared a pretty awesome reference with us last week and it has stayed with me over these last few days:

Don’t carry the residue of where you’ve been into your new season. – @degroves

He then went on to explain about how in biblical times being told to take off your shoes by a superior was a sign that a promotion was coming, and how God told Moses to take off his shoes before calling him into his purpose.

I love that analogy because I would dare to say that we’re not always aware of the residue we’re tracking around. Some residue may be more obvious, like a really bad relationship or destructive behaviors. Others may be more subtle, like a bad attitude or emotional baggage that we just can’t seem to shake. Regardless of whatever our residue is, the simple truth is that we’re all carrying something, and that’s why I love that he offered such a literal description of God bringing us into a new season.

I’ve seen a ton of posts talking about leaving negative energy, people and so on behind as we approached the new year, and I think it’s especially important to do a climate check and scan, well, everything.

Kicking off those old shoes and leaving behind any residue that doesn’t compliment God’s calling requires a whole other level of faith.

As hard as it might be, I just want to encourage you guys, and myself, to keep your eyes on Him and trust the path He has us on.

Have a great night you guys!

Peace, Love & Sunshine ~Chels

The 5 Love Languages

Hey guys!

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of witnessing a really special exchange. Two of my closest friends happen to be a married couple, and the topic of love languages came up. They proceeded to have a really interesting dialogue going back and forth about their love languages, and more importantly how it plays a role in their relationship. As a single person, it was really fascinating, and one heck of a reminder of how incredibly important communication is. They’ve been together forever, and they still took the time to thoughtfully discuss their sentiments on expressing themselves through their love language and receiving it -even though they’ve known their love languages for quite some time.

Speaking of time, here’s the irony. I was sitting at home one night with one of my roommates and closest friends, and the topic of love languages came up. She didn’t know hers, so I suggested she take the quiz. To my surprise, her love language was words of affirmation. I couldn’t believe it. I had incorrectly assumed all this time that it would have been quality of time; which means I had haphazardly been neglecting a part of her makeup I didn’t even know to be sensitive to. Now get this, I was telling my parents the story and at that moment it occurred to me that I didn’t know theirs either! They both had the same as my roomate, words of affirmation. It was mind blowing.

See the thing about love languages is that whatever love language(s) we have, ties directly into what makes us feel most loved. I know that may sound redundant, but it really is that simple. So whether it’s a family member, co-worker, partner or friend I make it a priority to know their love language (*birthday sign, communication style, motivation style, DISC profile… hahaha jk but seriously) because not being in tune with someone can potentially create unnecessary challenges when we’re operating relationships without a true understanding of how to thoughtfully connect with the people around us.

Below you’ll find the link to The 5 Love Language Quiz. And just FYI, I’m a quality of time, acts of service hybrid. So if we’re kickin it, you better be ready to roll your sleeves up haha Hence Mia’s Closet, and my awesome friends and family who have so graciously supported the vision every step of the way.

Find out your love language and share this post with your friends and family. It’ll knock you off your feet to learn this about yourself and those around you. Enjoy!

Peace, Love & Sunshine ~Chels

http://www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/

Let’s connect!

Instagram & Twitter: @thecoffeybreak

About Me: I’m a writer, content creator, futurist and founder of the nonprofit, Mia’s Closet. I love God, and honestly believe that everybody’s just doing the best they can with what they’ve got. Trust the process. The best is yet to come!

Oh! And I have an online store! Haha check us out here: www. TheCoffeyShop.co

Coffey Break Chat: Protecting Your Peace

Hey guys!

In this week’s Coffey Break Chat, I’m discussing a concept I live, eat and breathe by: Protecting Your Peace.

We’re constantly confronted with situations and circumstances that have the potential threaten our inner peace, and I’ve come to a place where I feel like all I can do at the end of the day is set the tone, and be as best prepared as possible to confront those situations.

Join me as I share tips on how to protect your peace. Enjoy!

Peace, Love & Sunshine ~Chelsea

Let’s connect?

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thecoffeybreak
Instagram: http://instagram.com/thecoffeybreak

They thought they could bury us…

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They Tried To Bury Us. They Didn’t Know We Were Seeds… This week in the news was a tough one. It’s almost as if time has elapsed and the distinctions between the race based horror stories from generations past seem to be blurring… Outrage is a funny thing. I can literally feel my heartbreaking, and then things pick back up, and if I’m not careful, life carries on and that pain that should have been a fire to fuel that momentum is lost –until the next big blow. I don’t want to become desensitized. Hate crimes are not okay, child abuse is not okay, being addicted to social media is not okay, being consumed by work is not okay, colorism is not okay, popular entertainment content is junk food, at best, and despite all the bad, I love that I’ve been having some variation of these conversations more and more often for over a year now. There was a shift in this generation. We recognize the need for change, and I love seeing how friends and countless people I don’t even know are taking a hands on approach to being heard, redefining norms and setting a new standard. There’s something special about what’s happening with us. We’re entrepreneurs, we’re social activists, we use social media as a driving force to spread ideas and let people know about stories the media feels are unimportant and irrelevant, we connect with our communities, and most importantly, we know and believe that our efforts are exactly what naysayers were hoping we’d be too distracted to act on… They Tried To Bury Us. They Didn’t Know We Were Seeds. It’s a beautiful thing, for real.