Nia Allen - Lord I Love You - Official Lyric Video

I was on TikTok yesterday and this song showed up on my FYP. I have these moments sometimes where as soon as I hear a song I love it. This was one of those songs that just moved me immediately.

It's the first time I've heard of her and her Ministry. I'm super excited for Nia and what God has in store for her.

Happy New Year!!!!! 🎆

    

December Blog Post Challenge

    Prior to a post that I made on October 1, 2025, I had not posted on my blog since August 28, 2024. Once I realized that, it was at that point, in November, that I said I needed to do something. In December I decided that I was going to try to post on my blog everyday for the month of December, not only because I had not posted in a while but also to celebrate 17 years of blogging.

    Today is December 31 and I have only missed December 5th and December 6th. And I get it. The 5th and the 6th are hard days for me. Without me knowing it, my body and my mind shut down. I picked back up on December 7th and simply kept going.

    I've been sharing videos that I posted on YouTube several years ago, sharing content, that I've created in Canva, and writing about my experiences. One of my favorite pieces has been talking about my healing and navigating grief since my father passed in the Spring. That post was hard to write. After reading it several times, I really loved how it made me feel, serene and peaceful.

    The plan going forward is to make sure that I'm posting at least a couple of times a month about life experiences and reposting older blogs. 

    If you have read at least one blog this month, I'm grateful that you took out you time to do so.

    Check out where you can connect with me and purchase my books.

    Be Well

    Arlinda    

Wellness Webinar 1.5 | Dreams and Visions

This webinar discusses creating vision boards to help you to discover the best version of yourself. And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. Habakkuk 2:2 KJV

Take Charge ~ Do What You Were Born To Do

Originally posted on March 24, 2020. Updated December 29, 2025

    This time that we have right now will really have you reflecting on some stuff. Am I operating in the purpose that I was brought to the earth for? Am I using my gifts? Am I doing all that I can for the people that I love and my community. 

    Am I pouring into others or allowing my bucket to be full just for myself? As a matter of fact How Full Is Your Bucket? is an excellent book to read in the next week or two.  The flip side is that if you don't have others pouring into your bucket then your bucket is empty and you are depleted. You can't pour from an empty bucket. There's nothing there. 

    There are several things that we can do as 2025 winds down.

1. Clear the clutter. ~ We can't think clearly with a whole bunch of stuff that we are trying to hold on to. Trust me, I know. I spent the evening in my closet. Honestly, I don't need to shop for a long time for anything and I really don't need another black piece of clothing.
2. Make that vision board now. You don't have to wait til next month. It can be a board, a journal or digital. ~ We have time to do it. If you made one, is it visible for you to see daily? Your vision is only as good as you can see it. If it's hidden you can't see it. Do you know where you're going to. Do you like the things that life is showing you?
3. Journal - Reflect on your childhood and answer these questions, "What did I want to be when I was little?" "Did that manifest?" "Why not?" "Now what?" "Am I doing what I was born to do?"

    Take time to do some self work. Someone is waiting for your gift. Do what you were born to do. Your dream is out there. Go get it. 

Serene Sundays: The Last Sunday of 2025

     Today, be serene. Unbothered. Just as you are. As the final Sunday of 2025 settles in, I'm choosing stillness over striving and presence over pressure. This moment doesn't require a performance or a plan—only permission to arrive exactly where you are. The year has carried its share of lessons, losses, laughter, and long pauses. And today, there's no need to sort them or summarize them. There is only room to breathe.

     Serene Sundays have become my gentle reminder that rest is not a reward; it's a rhythm. It's the quiet confidence of knowing you don't have to fix yourself to be worthy of peace. You are everything you need to be in this moment—unfinished, becoming, whole. Let the noise soften. Let the timelines fade. What remains is your breath, your body, your heart—steady and sufficient.

     As this year closes, I'm honoring what unfolded without rushing to define what comes next. Growth didn't always look loud or linear, but it was real. Healing didn't always announce itself, but it showed up. And even in the waiting, something sacred was happening. Sometimes the bravest thing we do is stop pushing and trust that who we are today is enough for today.

     So on this last Sunday of 2025, I choose serenity. I choose to be unbothered by what didn't happen and grateful for what did. I choose to meet myself with kindness and step forward without urgency. If you needed a sign to rest, this is it. You are enough. You are just fine. And this moment—right here—is worthy of your peace.

Fred Hammond & RFC - Just to Be Close to You

Just to be close to You.

Just to be close to You.

Just to be close to You.

Is my desire.

The Fight To Find Myself

    It was late August of this year when social media had a lot of posts about this pastor being let go of a church in Florida. I had no idea who Pastor Joel Tudman was. What I discovered was that so many people were upset about him being let go.  Many were wondering what happened. Why did he get let go from the church that he was invited to lead?

    I began to research because I think that's what some people do instinctively. Did he do something wrong? What happened? I couldn't find anything so I started following Pastor Tudman on social media, actually I followed him on Instagram on August 30th. I started reading. more about him.

    I saw that at some point he was a part of Bishop T.D. Jakes' church in Texas and that he was a powerful speaker. Sometime later, I followed his newly launched church, Believer's City on Instagram. One Tuesday I logged on to their Bible Study and I began to take notes and think that maybe this was something that I needed. In October Believer's City had their first service and I was ready with my notebook to take notes so that I could study through them later.

    I have a couple of takeaways from the experience of discovering believer City Church. 

1. I had not heard of Pastor Tudman until he was let go from his previous church. 
2. Prior to watching one of his services I had a conversation with another pastor. They were sharing with me that I would know the voice that I was being called to. (In order to know a voice, you have to be able to hear it right?)

     In October of last year, I had a really bad ear infection that led me to being admitted to ICU for about 2 weeks, with an overall hospital stay of little over a month. One particular Sunday I'm listening to Pastor Tudman and as I'm taking my notes, I feel this cool breeze in the ear that had been infected. Tears immediately began to fall. I had been through so much and I didn't feel like I had a place to cry out until this service.

    In that moment I knew that I needed to read his book, to log on for Bible Study and Sunday Service and to be connected to Believer's City Church. 

    Within the past year I've been healing from an acute illness, my son is playing his freshman year of college basketball after an injury, I lost my father in the Spring and honestly my identity has shifted. Possibly for me this whole experience led me to Pastor Tudman's book for the fight to find myself because I've been searching and it has been a difficult landscape to navigate. I'm grateful for Pastor Tudman, for Believer's City Church and I'm grateful for his book The Fight To Find Yourself - Moving From Uncertain to Unstoppable because right when I needed a prophetic voice, Pastor Tudman was let go to build a new thing.

    

Merry Christmas 🎄

Grief & Gratitude At Christmas

    This Christmas will be the first Christmas without my dad.
It's been hard to navigate the thought of holidays and being the first without him. The first Father's Day, the first Thanksgiving, the first Easter and the many birthdays that we have celebrated without him. It's been a lot of firsts.

    At the same time I'm grateful, grateful for the time that I had on Earth with him. Grateful for the lessons that were learned from him. Grateful for so many incredible memories. Today has been a day of solitude for me and I've been going through my thoughts and just thinking about how much I miss him even if I don't verbalize it a lot.

    Tomorrow I will hold space for moments to think about the fact that I won't see him, I won't hear his voice and I won't get to have talks about Christmas with him. Yet in my heart I know that his spirit lives on in our family.

    If you are experiencing grief this holiday season know that you are not alone. Also know that God loves you and he's there to comfort and strengthen you during this time.

🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 This year, I've learned that grief and gratitude sit at the same table. That joy can shimmer even through tears. That some days will be heavy… and others, gently beautiful. And this Christmas will be both.