Overcoming Obstacles - Be Inspired! Magazine by Be Inspired!

Rokita Rochelle Overcoming Pain

Shekina Moore Style Bistro

Margie Baldcock Financial Freedom

Nichelle Wall SHE Monday Meditations

Be Inspired! was officially launched on February 14, 2009 and Incorporated on January 14, 2012: â&#x20AC;&#x153;The vision of Be Inspired! is to reach millions of women around the world with a message of hope and inspiration founded on the Gospel of Jesus Christ.â&#x20AC;? Be Inspired! offers Inspiration through articles, the magazine, daily devotionals , Ladies Empowerment Events and so much more! The Mission of Be Inspired! is to embody the words written in Titus 2:3-5 Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.

Years ago I had a dream that represented me speaking to a large number of women with the assistance of other people. I remember sitting around and realizing that many of the people that I had come in contact with had powerful ministries on them. I was blessed with the vision of Be Inspired! back in 2008 and have been blown away at all that God has done through this organization. I am so honored to have you as reader for the Be Inspired! Magazine. your support is the reason that we are able to continue with the vision for Be Inspired! I pray that this issue blesses you beyond measure and that it is a tool to help strengthen your walk with God. For more information please visit www. BeInspired247.org. I look forward to connecting with you! xoxoxo, Erica Latrice

Want to have some daily inspiration? Don’t just dream about reaching goals and making a difference. Visit the Be Inspired! Website for your daily dose of inspiration. Be Inspired! TV. Offers motivational messages and encouragement. Ladies Empowerment is Be Inspired!’s very own online networking community to help you connect with inspiring people around the world. The Be Inspired! Café features a series of interviews from authors and speakers with inspiring messages. Be Transformed daily devotionals will jumpstart your day with motivation.

To Get Started visit www.beinspired247.org.

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It was May 2011 when a pain like no other hit me several times. This pain left me bruised physically, emotionally and mentally. Though life had dealt me some blows prior to this incident, this one hit me harder than anything that I had ever experienced. I did NOT think that I could get up from this blow. However, the power that I gained through something that initially was meant to weaken and strip me of my faith in God is far more important than the obstacle that brought me there! There is extreme power in overcoming something that was meant to weaken you. You must not let the pain of your past or present hold you hostage. You have to accept it, address it, forgive and through healing let go, so that you can overcome and move on! When the unthinkable occurs and you canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t explain it you may feel like you have failed yourself. When nothing is adding up you may even feel embarrassed and find yourself continuing to ask, why has this happened to me? No matter what has caused the pain it is an obstacle that has presented itself somewhere within your path causing a delay in obtaining your goals. I can remember everything from that painful night. My first thought after all of the chaos was a question; I repeatedly asked God â&#x20AC;&#x153;What does this mean?â&#x20AC;? I soon learned that my obstacle was not the blows that I received. It was not the loss of feeling in the left side of my face. It was not even the loss of love or trust. You see all those things are to be expected. My real obstacle was finding the strength to get up from it and forgive. Did you catch that? The obstacle that I faced and even r the obstacle that you are currently facing is specifically meant to awaken your inner strength and teach you a deeper lesson! ->

Now the healing process will not be easy to go through. We live in a world that expects people to bounce back like rubber and never play the victim. It is considered weak and negative. You must come to terms with what has happened. You need to acknowledge all of the emotions. If not you will remain disconnected, cold and angry. I tell you this because I consider myself to be a strong woman. Prior to this incident I would not have ever thought that I would be caught playing the victim role. After all, the Word says God made you the head and not the tail, and He gave you a sound mind. However, as you deal with the pain of certain obstacles you may feel like the tail and your thoughts might not be so sound. Just know that it is okay, accept it! Yes I said accept it feel weak, feel vulnerable, and feel confused. It is normal. You don’t have to push those feelings away. It will just cause unwanted stress. Not to mention these feelings are the beginning of your healing!

Are you ready to heal? Healing is bitter sweet. Bitter because you have to feel what you are trying to avoid and sweet because it brings you back to your complete happy sound self! With that being said I want to give you advice that will aid in healing and overcoming your obstacles!

It works for any type of obstacle Revisit your relationship with God The quicker you let go of wondering why and how and accept what has happened, the sooner you can go within yourself to find your “place of worship. Be vulnerable in front of God as you cultivate your relationship with Him. Be prepared to not understand where He begins to lead you and what He shows you. You’ll find resolve in trusting that the closer you get to Him the less pain you will feel.

Let loved ones love you Now do yourself and those who really care for you a favor. Don’t stay in isolation. If you time to yourself, it’s completely understandable! However disappearing from the world, your daily activities, and those who really love you isn’t good for you. Being around positive people and letting them love on you increases happy feelings naturally and it keeps you mentally balanced!

Forgive “it” and forgive you Open your heart and mind to the ideal that maybe there are two victims. Shocking right? The truth is that you are not the only one that needs help. It is possible that the person who hurt you is silently hurting as well. Not an easy thought but it is essential to moving on. Forgiving you means don’t beat yourself up over what you believe to be your role in the situation. Remember there is a lesson to be learned.

What I have shared is how I overcame physical. However, the obstacle was finding my strength and the love to forgive. No matter what type of obstacle you are trying to overcome the first thing you need to do is accept that it has happened. Acceptance doesn’t say that you’re happy about it and that you are okay with it; however it calms your emotions. With your emotions being still you can think logically. Next grounding yourself in a deeper relationship with God is essential because through him you will find guidance that will ultimately get you back on track with working towards your goals! The places He may begin to lead you could be church, therapy, or back into the line of fire to resolve or bury the obstacle. You will be lead to a point where you will have to address it, process it, talk it through. This process allows you to logically take account of how things led up to the obstacle how you will move forward from it!

How does it make you stronger? Obstacles come in many forms creating different depths of pain, confusion or feelings of defeat. How would you know how strong you were unless you are forced to stand tall and face the unthinkable? Whether you have been abused as a child, battered by a companion, emotionally weakened, financially set back in a major way none of it will put a smile on your face. I get it and I have experienced some of it and can truthfully tell you that if you decide to look at the obstacle with the question “what lesson is this teaching me”, you will survive it! Not only will you survive it you will become a better person. No matter what spectrum you are in life every now and again something is going to hit you, something is going to knock you down and the reason is to soulfully test the essence of your being and to make you stronger. The obstacle will not define you it will give you the ability to find yourself and apply it to your life for the better!

So often we get obsessed with trying to preach my six year old daughter taught me a valuable lesson that I

people to death… we lecture our children over and

want to share with you. If you have children you know how

over, we write books, we update statuses , we share

frustrating it can be to clean up their rooms only to walk in

books, we share statuses… we go on and on and on

the next day and it look like a full blown tornado has touched

in an attempt to drive the desired point home to

down overnight.

whoever we believe needs to get it. But this six year old reminded me that some of the most valuable

Well here comes the lesson… I finally decided to have my daughter clean up the mess without my help. She gathered the clothes that had been pulled out and thrown everywhere and started folding them. Holding a shirt, this little girl walked up to me and said “Look Mommy, I know how to fold. First

lessons don’t necessarily come from what we tell others but rather what we show them! Take a moment and think about it.. If you were to become the lesson that you are trying to teach do you realize how impactful you would be!

you fold the sleeves, then you make a rectangle and then you fold into a square.” I sat their astonished because I

In the same way, let your light shine before

never TAUGHT her how to do this. When I asked how she

others, that they may see your good deeds and

learned how to fold clothes she said “I WATCHED YOU”.

glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16

This week I want to discuss insecurities. This is something that none of us like to admit we have and often hide them from others. Our insecurities can become a mentally prison holding us back from everything we are meant to be. Our insecurities blind us to the people trying to help us, our purpose opportunities,

because of Him, our Father. Our insecurities

This week explore your insecurities, write them down, and determine how they have hindered God's plans for your life. Make a choice to realign yourself with God and keep your eyes focused on Him. If you are not ready to do this alone, get an accountability partner. This is someone you know has your best interest in mind and does not have a problem being truthful and honesty. This week's scripture is:

can become another trick Satan uses to take

Matthew 6:25-34 (ESV)

and most importantly God. I believe our insecurities come from thinking we are living by our own power. That is actually far from the truth. We live, move, and have our very being

our focus off God. When God is no longer our focus, we begin to sabotage, rebel, abandon, and overcompensate in our lives. With all of that going on, how is there any room for God?

25 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ď&#x192;

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

This week I want to discuss the intent we have when helping others. As Christians we are taught to help others, but not to look into our intentions behind the helping. Many of us do it out of obligation and not because we want to. We need to be aware of why we are doing things. If it is for recognition, to be critical, or to be in a position of power, then you are doing it for the wrong reason. This week examine the reasons why you serve or help others. Ask yourself: what is my reason for helping, do I have the other person's best interest in mind, am I giving a 100%, and are they willing to receive the help. The scripture is: Philipians 2:1-8 1 Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion

What are Meditation Mondays? Start your week off Meditating on the Word of God. Read these weekly devotionals

2 then make my joy complete by being likeminded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!

Romans 14: 10-13 10 You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. 11 It is written: “ ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’ ” 12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. 13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.

Today, I want to discuss living your life with your guard up. Most people believe being a guarded person is allowing them to protect themselves from bad people, which is true. What they fail to realize is the are also guarding themselves from the good people and God. When this occurs, our perspective is I most defend myself at all time. This mindset can lead to an emotionally unfulfilling life. People may be around you, but because them getting close to you takes you so far out of your comfort zone you only let people get so close. When we look at life this way, most of our relationships are superficial (only dealing with surface level situations). This week take the time start healing your heart from past wounds. Also, learn to get past the discomfort of taking your guard down and truly live life. The scripture is: Hebrews 3:7-19 ESV 7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, 9 where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years. 10 Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; they have not known my ways.’ 11 As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’”

12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. 15 As it is said, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.” 16 For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses? 17 And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19 So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief. It is another beautiful day and opportunity to realize how great God is. Last week we discussed how living a guarded life prevents you from living the type of life God wants for us. This week I want to look at the influence we have on those around us. We live in a society that has an "all about me" mentality. People disregard other people's feelings and choose to be selfish. This creates an extremely individualistic society. We are relational beings and everything we do has an effect on someone else. We must ask ourselves are we living a conscientious life or just going through the motions of everyday life. If we have chosen to wake up and declare ourselves Christians, then we have an obligation/responsibility to influence the world. We should strive to be a living example of God on Earth. We are the visual representation of Him.

This week take a good look at what your actions are saying about God. Determine if your concept of God is matching up with the way you live your life. Realize that you are an influence to the world around you. It's your choice what type of influence you have. The scripture is: Matthew 5:13-16 (ESV) 13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. 14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Morgan has been doing pageants for 8 years. In 2008 she was Miss Preteen North Carolina International and in 2011 she was crowned Miss Teen North Carolina International where she then went on to compete at nationals for Miss Teen International against girls all across the country. She is currently Miss Teen Virginia All-Star United States. The International and All-Star United States pageant systems are platform based which she really enjoys. This pageant system allows participants to choose a non-profit organization to work with throughout the year and even after their reign is over as queen. Morganâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s platform is "I Have The Answer Let's Find A Cure for Cancer!" She works with Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society. This cause is close to her because her mom had cancer and ever since that time she has wanted to help make a difference and raise awareness for others that are affected or may be affected by cancer in their lifetime. Along with working with the American Cancer Society she is involved with other non -profit organizations such as Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Autism Awareness and many others. She plans on attending college and continuing with the volunteer work she has begun.

The 21 day challenge is simple. All that you will need is a journal to get started. For the 21 day challenge you will commit to choosing a Bible Verse each day that you will memorize concerning overcoming obstacles. You will also keep a journal of how that verse applies to your life. Not sure where to start? A simple way to choose verses is to choose by the month and day out of proverbs. For example for March 12th you would read Proverbs 3:12. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s It! Are you ready to take the challenge? xoxoxo Be Inspired!

Model: Madison Ford Clothing By: 1Eighty Apparel Photographer: Erica Latrice

Model: Chelley Sutton Clothing By: 1Eighty Apparel Photographer: Erica Latrice

Models: : Madison and Hailey Ford Clothing By: 1Eighty Apparel Photographer: Erica Latrice

Model: : Jewel Harris Photographer: Alisa Saxanoff

Model: : Chelley Sutton Photographer: Alisa Saxanoff

Models: : Hailey and Madison Ford Photographer: Alisa Saxanoff

Model : Erica Latrice Photographer: Alisa Saxanoff

Model: Hailey Ford Photographer: Alisa Saxanoff

I am very blessed to share this message with you today. Galatians 6:9 reminds us to not grow weary in well doing for in due season we shall reap if we don’t give up. If you have a dream, if God has given you a vision, don’t give up! Even if everyone is not behind it or believes in it keep fighting! On February 14, 2009 I sat glued to my computer focused and excited about sharing Be Inspired! with the world. I still had gotten no sleep finishing up what had been months of pulling a vision out of my mind into reality. Instead of receiving chocolates and roses that valentine’s day my husband bought me a wireless router! For my birthday, months before the official Be Inspired! launch instead of clothes and jewelry he gave me a laptop. I didn’t want all of the romance junk, I wanted something that could further my passion:-) I sent out letters to friends that I believed were gifted and could contribute to the Be Inspired! site. The very first response that I received was a “Thanks, but No thanks!” lol . I am grateful now that I did not let that deter me, though I had been very tempted to quit. So there I was spending hours and hours in front of the computer building the first Be Inspired! website. Not knowing what would come of it but thrilled at what God was allowing to take place in my life. I can still remember calling my close friend and my mom to say “Look! Its up!!!” and calling back 10 minutes later “wait , I added something else now look!” lol. I am still amazed at how far this vision has come and grateful believing that God has even more in store!

TEEN FASHION ACADEMY PHOTO WINNER

Thalia Brown

TEEN FASHION ACADEMY PHOTO WINNER

Alesha Wright

ABOUT TEEN FASHION ACADEMY Valentina Wilson’s Teen Fashion Academy strives to instill poise and self-esteem in girls ages 13-19. Valentina Wilson is a personal stylist, TV personality and author with extensive public speaking/emceeing and public relations experience. The Academy promotes confidence and self-love in teenaged girls. According to Wilson, “It’s about tapping into your talents and believing that you are beautiful, just the way God made you!” The Academy offers fun learning experiences and character-building exercises. The teens, who are of all races and socio-economic backgrounds, learn skills that include etiquette, age-appropriate skin and hair care, and basic print and runway modeling. A variety of instructors with backgrounds in cosmetics/cosmetology, beauty pageants, women’s ministries, fashion and fitness help to make the Academy a well-balanced program. The Academy was founded in the summer of 2013, with 17 teen fashionistas and three junior fashionistas. The girls took part in a month-long camp, free of charge, which culminated in a sold-out style show. More than 200 people attended the evening of entertainment which featured music, food and door prizes. We offer a variety of services, including: summer and fall academies, trunk shows, style shows, fashion boot camps, makeovers and personal styling. The girls participate in community service projects and fundraisers – but most of all, they learn to embrace their personal style. Visit Online at www.ValentinaWilson.com

Financial Freedom begins with a single powerful decision. You have to decide to stop trading your precious time for money. As our culture generally encourages us to trade our time for money, it can be a mental stretch to decide that it makes sense to remove our time from the equation. The reality is that our time is very limited. We can only work a certain number of hours every week and generally jobs will only pay you what the role is worth – not what YOU are worth. In addition, relying upon just a job or one income stream from a business is very risky.

Ideally, you want to develop a plan that allows you to develop multiple streams of income- from investments as well as your career or business. The easiest option is to do what most millionaires do – they simply set aside at least 10-20% of their income in quality investments that they can control and understand. Millionaires do not necessarily earn big money, but what sets them apart from other people is that they INVEST first, then spend what’s left. If you will simply do this single strategy then you can be financially free in as little as 5-7 years, in most cases, with no other change to how you’re living today.

But if you’ve made the decision to be free and you want to fast-track your success, pulverizing all obstacles along the way, then here is an additional 4-step process that will set you free in as little as 1-3 years:

Decide WHY you must be rich The first step in turning struggle and strain into effortless ease is to create a compelling vision of your life (and the money you need to live it) that has you jumping out of bed every morning, hungry to create. Your WHY will need to be big enough to get you to overcome the inevitable fears that you will face along the way.

Identify and eliminate sabotaging beliefs once and for all If you are not happy with the amount of money you are making (or keeping) then it’s very probable you carry sabotaging beliefs, either consciously or more likely subconsciously. An example is: “I don’t have the skills, training or experience to make money and I’m scared if I try something different I will fail anyway.” A big challenge for most people in our culture is cultivating a willingness to fail. Failure is just a redirection mechanism – it’s nothing personal – and becoming self-made success requires an average of 3.8 failures. There is gold in the mistakes and failures and they are a vital component of creating an inspired destiny.

Create an inspiring life plan that is in accordance with your highest values It is invaluable to create a detailed life plan of what you choose to BE, DO and HAVE across all of the seven main areas of life (finances, spiritual, vocation, intellectual, family, social, health). You can download a FREE worksheet with video instructions on how to do this from the Resources section of my website: www.MotherLodeManifesto.com.

Program your subconscious to effortlessly attract wealth Once you have established your top values and key goals then you need to set the intention to create what you desire. It is important that you set goals that you believe you can attain and are willing to accept. If you will maintain this clear intention then your WHY will be strong enough to overcome all the inevitable fears and challenges that the journey will deliver along the way.

Time and financial abundance (and not scarcity), is our natural birthright and it’s only cultural programming that has warped our innate understanding of fundamental this Universal Law. Becoming financially free starts with a desire and then a decision, backed up by a written financial plan and massive action. If you would like all the tools you need to develop your own written financial plan, download them FREE at www.MotherLodeManifesto.com

Well guys, I did it again! A friend offered to leave a gift for me in her mailbox because she would be out of town. Let me tell you, excited does not even begin to describe how I felt about this gift. It is something that I have been wanting for quite some time. I looked up the directions and headed out to her house since I had never been there before. While traveling, I started to second guess whether or not I had misread where I was going. The GPS had not been able to locate the street so at this point I was relying solely on the old school written down directions. The further I went , the more unfamiliar my surroundings became. Finally I just decided to turn around. I was in a bit of a rush and just knew that I would never find the location. Can you relate to that? The moment that things become unfamiliar you automatically assume that you are doing something wrong. The natural instinct at this point is to quit just like I did. When I returned home and looked up the directions yet again, I was literally one street away from my turn!! I could not believe that I wasted gas going just far enough to not get what I set out to get. I am urging you today to not do that! God did not bring you this far to leave you. Just because the territory starts to get

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9

unfamiliar it does not mean that you are going in the wrong direction. In fact, it could be a clear sign that you are getting closer to your destination.

Fight the temptation to give up. Do not turn around! You may be turning around and quitting when you are only moments from where God is taking you. This is the season to move forward so donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t turn around!