Finding Purpose in Seasons - Pay Attention

I am meeting today with one of the Models from "The Model in You - Beauty in Diversity" project. Her life's journey is taking her down another path and things are happening in her life just the way they were intended to. With her move, she will not be able to participate in our project but this project is more than modeling; it's about diversity and I am also finding that it's about making lasting connections with people and influencing lives. I believe influencing lives in a positive way is one of the greatest gifts we can give to each other and especially those who were strangers to us prior to our encounter.

Maday is special and it didn't take me long to figure that out; I didn't mean in that way. She has a very special personality that lights up a room and brings energy to everyone around her. She is going back to the West Coast and aside from being jealous (I lived there for 5 years) I am glad we had her for a season.

Sometimes life's journey's take us places we never expected to go or back to places we've already been because our work was not done or we needed to go pick up an "experience" or two and go back and finish our work. We may not completely understand it while we are going through it but it does get revealed if we "paying attention".

For a season, I am glad I got a chance to meet Maday and I wish her all the best as she continues her journey on another coast. While her departure may seem earlier then its season, she accomplished her reason for being with us. I challenged her to spend time, once she gets settled on her new coast, understanding her purpose here as she puts the pieces into context. We talked a lot about "paying attention" and really knowing why things happened and using those lessons and growth opportunities to move forward. Sometimes we think things happen because of our own doing, actions or "in actions" and sometimes that is true. Other times it's because we served our purpose and it's time to move on. I realize not everyone will be able to understand this message and I would have blown past it a couple of years ago myself; what a difference a day, or in my case, two years makes.

Pastor Carrington of Friendship Baptist Church in Yorba Linda California preached about this one day while I was attending service and while I heard the message, I didn't fully understand the significance of it's meaning on my life. Probably because I heard him but wasn't really "paying attention" or wasn't ready. Work with me on this... We feed babies milk versus steak because their little bodies/systems are still developing and aren't ready for it. I was not completely ready for the message when it was preached to me almost 14 years ago but it was significant enough to stay with me all these years.

Also, sometimes we are given things in pieces, pieces small enough for us to handle. In my discussion with Maday I was talking about my experience in meeting Alexia. I told her that I thought I was running up to my hotel room to grab my camera to take pictures of "lobby lights". That's what I had in mind but God had a different plan. His plan for me was to meet Alexia and connect her with a mentor; MISSION ACCOMPLISHED by the way. The prideful part of me actually though I had something to do with this connection but I realized today that I was an instrument in bringing Alexia and her mentor together. I would love to get "the rest of the story" from Alexia and her mentor as they get to know each other and start working on her future but maybe it's not for me to know. My purpose may have been just to connect these two; only God knows and time will tell. I say all of this to say that we need to spend more time "paying attention" and be careful about who we give credit to as we all are just instruments.

Enjoy these picture but please "pay attention"!!! because this post isn't about the pictures. I just added them to get your attention. I'll be Blogging you!!!