"Lights, Camera, Action!"

February 17, 2016

"Lights, Camera, Action!"

1. Light;  something that makes things visible or affords illumination.  2. an illuminating agent or source, as the sun, a lamp or a beacon.  3. the radiance or illumination from a particular source, as a candle or the sun.  4. a particular light or illumination in which an object seen takes on a certain appearance, a device for or meas of igniting as a spark, flame or match.  5. spiritual illumination or awareness, mental insight, understanding, to be awakened.

Have you ever gone to see a play and when you first get in the auditorium you see the stage and up on the stage is this huge curtain that's closed and wondered what is going on behind the curtain?  I have, when I'm sitting in the audience I'm thinking to myself what is going on back behind the curtain?  I know that there must be a stage crew, camera man, someone in the sound booth, a director, the actors, etc.  There's a lot of work that's put into making a great production and understandably so.  We arrive with the anticipation and expectation of a great show.  We know that we've paid good money and look forward to the actors coming out onto the stage to wow us.  We assume that everyone is rested, and have taken their jobs seriously enough to have studied and know their lines. The bottom line is we want to be entertained.

What about life?  How do we approach our own lives?  Do we wake up daily with the expectation and in anticipation of having a great day?  Do we put forth our best efforts in our lives to live the best life we can?  Do we study to show ourselves approved?  Do we learn all their is to learn about our bodies, minds and souls to make sure we operate at maximum capacity with energy, and vitality in order to perform at optimal levels?

Our life is a stage and we must awaken every day and approach our lives as if we are on stage and people have paid good money to see a great show.  The caveat is we must believe, think and know that we are the audience of our own stage production called life.  We must be prepared behind the scenes of our lives so that when the curtain opens we know that what we've done behind the scenes has prepared us for center stage when life says, "Lights, Camera, Action!"  Are you ready to give your life and yourself your best production?  

And, when the final curtain closes on our lives are we going to hear the sounds of the audience of our friends, families, co-workers and complete strangers give us a standing ovation and say bravo, bravo, bravo?  Will they say encore, well done thy good and faithful servant?

Love Always,

La La Lolita Lovely

"You don't drown by falling in water, you
drown by staying in it!"
~Zig Ziglar

"Others are quick to point out what you should be, but
you're the only person who can decide what you will be."
~Dave Steward

"Unlock Tomorrow, Today!"
~Lolita Jackson

February 9, 2016

Acres of Diamonds!

I read a book a couple of days ago called "Acres of Diamonds."  The book was originally a speech by Dr. Russell Conwell who first delivered the speech to motivate and inspire his troops at their ten year reunion and afterwards was asked to deliver the same speech thousands of times to people in cities throughout the country.  Russell Conwell was the first president of Temple University, a baptist minister and a captain during the civil war.

There's many lessons that can be extracted from Dr. Conwell's speech.  I am inspired mostly with the premise of the books commentary that lets us know that we must first explore our own backyards for  wealth, money and opportunities in life before we go out to seek and search the world for what we could have right in the palms of our hands!  Dr. Conwell's speech tells of many stories of people who give up what they have in their hands in search of wealth and opportunity elsewhere.  One of the scenarios tells the story of a man that owned a farm and by all accounts was fairly successful, "wealthy and contended" with his comforts only to hear that diamonds were being discovered.  The farmer sold his farm to go in search of diamonds until he found himself broke, distraught, tired and confused so much so that he threw himself into the ocean.  The man who bought the farm from the man found "Acres of Diamonds" on the farm!

Dr. Conwell dismisses the notion that money is the root of all evil and reminds us that it's the "love of money" that's the root of all evil and that one must have money and wealth to further the cause of philanthropy while allowing ourselves to live comfortably. We're encouraged to have businesses and know our customers to better serve them and know that it's not criminal to make a profit off of our earnings in business. Dr. Conwell let's us know that we should be vigilant, steadfast and we must apply ourselves completely to the tasks at hand while earning our keep without having things handed to us and if we fail or fall down in the process it's not the end of the world in fact falling down is actually failing forward and like Les Brown says, "if you fall down, land on your back because if you can look up then you can get up!"  Dr. Conwell spoke of a man that gambled in business and lost but he didn't give up, he kept trying different ideas and endeavors until he had only 62 cents left and he turned 62 cents into 40 million dollars!

Reading "Acres of Diamonds" has me looking in my own backyard asking the question of myself, "Lolita, what do you have in your hand that can net you "Acres of Diamonds?" As I look around I see and know how blessed I am to have been given the gift of creativity!  I'm constantly and consistently coming up with one idea after another that I know can net me "Acres of Diamonds!"

  It reminds me of a passage in the bible when God spoke to Moses and asked him "What does he have in his hand?"  I believe there comes a time when we all get to the "Red Sea" of life and we look out and things look insurmountable, so wide that we can't get around it, so tall that we can't climb over it, but God has given us a way, a staff.  We must throw our staff into the sea and watch it part.
 
Our staffs can come in many forms starting with the form of faith. We must first have faith enough to believe that we are equipped and worthy to have acres of diamonds in the palms of our hands that comes in the forms of ideas and thoughts that can generate the very thing we need to part our "Red Sea" in life!  Then we must act with a sense of urgency and modesty!

So my friends, how about it?  Let's throw out our staffs into our "Red Seas" and discover our "Acres of Diamonds" right in our own backyards!


Take Care Beloveds,

Love Always,

La La Lolita Lovely!


"You cannot make it as a wondering generality.
You must become a meaningful specific."
~Zig Ziglar

"There are seldom, if ever, any hopeless situations,
but there are many people who lose hope in the face
of some situations."
~Zig Ziglar



  

"Footprints In The Sand!"

January 1, 2016

"Footprints In The Sand........."

One night I had a dream.  I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.  Across the sky flashed scenes from my life, for each scene I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, one belonging to me, and the other to the Lord.

When the last scene of my life flashed before me, I looked back at the footprints in the sand, I noticed that many times along the path of my life there was only one set of footprints.  I also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in my life.  

This really bothered me and I questioned the Lord about it; "Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way.  But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life there is only one set of footprints.  I don't understand why when I need you most you would leave me?"

The Lord replied; "My precious Lolita, I Love You and would never leave you. Lolita my dear, during your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then Lolita that I carried you!"

by Mary Stevenson

Revised by Lolita Jackson

Sometimes life will happen and we must accept life on life's terms. In doing so, we may find that we're alone and we may also be feeling lonely.  It's during those times in our lives that we can rest assured in knowing that God is carrying us to the other side of the troubling times that hath so easily beset us.  I'm learning to take advantage of the times that I may be alone and in that time and space I'm finding out that I'm better equipped to hear what God is saying to me.  God's word says; "My sheep know my voice and the voice of a stranger they will not follow!"  The only way we can truly know if it's our heavenly father or not is to make allowances for the solitude.  In that space we will find wisdom for direction, peace for turmoil, and tranquility for endurance!

In Solidarity,

LaLa Lolita Lovely

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.  The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly.... who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while Daring Greatly!"

~Theodore Roosevelt

"Wake Up!"

August 19, 2015

I heard part of this song last night while watching a television show and some of the lyrics resonated with my soul.......  I found it on You Tube and I've been playing it continually ever since!  I want to share the lyrics to this song.  Tell me if you can relate?

"Wake Up!"

~by NF

You spend your life in a dream that you can't escape

Cause you live your life in a coma, you're never awake

If you'd open your eyes then maybe you'd see what's at stake

You're sleeping, you're sleeping

You make a lot of money and you live in a mansion

And pretty much got everything that you could ever imagine

But you feel like even though you got everything in the world

You got nothing, so what you do then is you start going backwards

You runnin' in a direction and you lookin' for something that isn't real

And all you know is that you just gotta have it

What you're doin is sleepin'

And thinking that you're awake and you're not

And the problem is that you don't know what you're after

So you put everything that you have into what you do

Hoping that one day maybe you don't have to feel like you're empty

But as you get older a lot of weight on your shoulders is getting heavy

Then you look back and you start to regret things

You only get one life and every time you lookin' at yours

You feel like everything you have is a waste!

And the problem and the reason you could never fill a hole in your life

Is because you were never AWAKE!

You spend your life in a dream that you can't escape

Cause you live your life in a coma, you're never AWAKE!

Wake Up, Wake Up, Wake Up, Wake Up!

Wake Up, Wake Up, Wake Up, Wake Up!

You wake up in the morning

But you feel like you never got up and go to work

And you feelin' like you ain't got a purpose

And you tryna get motivated but everything you do turns into a mess!

Like you ain't nothing but worthless.........

And, yo, you look around a lot of these other people you lookin' at

To you, you describe as perfect so you point a finger at God and tell him to do his job

And fix ya' life up cause nothin' is workin!

And you will try to hide and make it seem like it's nothin;

But really you feel like everything is crashin' around you

And you develop a problem in trustin; in other people

Which later became an issue that will mentally pound you!

You only get one life

But every time you lookin' at yours you feel like you ever see are mistakes

And the problem and the reason you could never move forward in life

Is because you were never AWAKE!

WAKE UP! 

You spend your life in a dream that you can't escape

Cause you live your life in a coma, you're never AWAKE!

Wake Up, Wake Up, Wake Up, Wake Up!

Wake Up, Wake Up, Wake Up, Wake Up!

Lyrics By:

~NF

"For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice

is known by multitude of words......"  (KJV)

"As a dream comes when there are many cares, so the speech of a fool

when there are many words!"  (NIV)

Love Alwayzz,

Lolita Lovely

"I Hope You Dance........Yes, I Am Dancing!!"

July 27, 2015

"I Hope You Dance! / Yes, I Am Dancing!"

    ~by Lee Ann Womack

"I hope you never lose your sense of wonder,

You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger,

May you never take one single breath for granted,

GOD forbid love ever leave you empty handed,

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean,

Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens,

Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance,

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance,

I Hope You Dance.......... I Hope You Dance

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance,

Never settle for the path of least resistance

Livin' might mean takin' chances but they're worth takin'

Lovin' might be a mistake but it's worth makin'

Don't let some hell bent heart leave you bitter,

When you come close to sellin' out reconsider,

Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance,

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance.

I Hope You Dance........I Hope You Dance

Time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us along,

Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder where those years have gone?

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean,

Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens,

Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance,

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

I HOPE YOU DANCE!!!

~Lyrics to the song "I Hope You Dance by: Lee Ann Womack!!"

Loving You More Than Forever,

And Forever More I'll Always Love You!

~by Lolita Jackson

"I pay attention to my inner callings,

and apply my own uniqueness to everything

I undertake!

~Wisdom of the TAO

"R.O.A.R.!!"

July 8, 2015

I heard this song earlier tonight and the lyrics pierced my soul!  Enjoy........!

"R.O.A.R.!"

by Katy Perry

I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath

Scared to rock the boat and make a mess

So I sat quietly, agree politely

I guess that I forgot I had a CHOICE! 

I let you push me past the breaking point

I stood for nothing, so I fell for everything!

You held me down, but I got up (Hey!)

Already brushing off the dust

You hear my voice, you hear that sound

Like thunder gonna shake the ground

You held me down, but I got up (Hey!)

Get ready 'cause I've had enough

I see it all, I see it now

I got the "Eye Of The Tiger, Fighter, Dancing The Fire"

'Cause I am a Champion, and You're Gonna Hear Me ROAR!

LOUDER, LOUDER Than A LION

'Cause I AM A CHAMPION & You're Gonna Hear Me ROAR!

Now I'm floating like a Butterfly

Stinging like a bee, I earned my stripes

I went from zero, to MY OWN HERO!

You held me down, but I Got UP!

Already Brushing Off The Dust!

You Hear My Voice?  You Hear That Sound?

Like Thunder Gonna Shake The Ground!

I GOT THE EYE OF THE TIGER 

A FIGHTER, DANCING THROUGH THE FIRE

'CAUSE I AM A CHAMPION!

&

YOU'RE GONNA HEAR ME ROAR

OH Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh!!!

 By Katy Perry

"What am I willing to sacrifice to become what I want to become?"

"Your present circumstances don't determine where you go; they merely determine where you start!" 

~Nido Qubein

"Excellence is attained when you care more than others think is wise; risk more than others think is safe; dream more than others think is practical; expect more than others think is possible!"

~Jim Gentil

Love Always,

La La Lolita Lovely

"To Dream or Not To Dream?"

July 7, 2015

"To Dream or Not To Dream?"

Dreams:  1. a succession of images, thoughts or emotions passing through the mind during sleep.  
2.  a particular sequence of such images, thoughts, or feelings; an involuntary vision occurring to a person when awake.  3. daydream or reverie; an aspiration, goal, aim, a wild or vain fancy.  4. something unreal or striking beauty, charm, or excellence, to conceive of something in a very remote way, to imagine as possible, fancy, conceive; to form in the imagination.

Dreamer:  1. a person who has bold or highly speculative ideas or plans; visionary.


     How old are you?  Should that matter if you're a dreamer?  When should a person abandon their dreams?  When is dreaming unrealistic, a mere fantasy of the imagination?  Should age be a factor when determining whether your dreams are obtainable or not?

I believe the questions are valid and definitely worth entertaining when it comes to having dreams and aspirations in your life.  A person would definitely have to be realistic as to whether their dreams are just a mere fantasy, or if they can become an attainable goal that can be reached with aim and focus.

If there is a burning desire in your spirit that keeps you awake at night and your soul won't rest until you grease your squeaky wheels, then I say that you have to go for it and it's not too late!

Don't let the F.alse, E.xpectations, that A.ppear R.eal (F.E.A.R.) get in your way and keep you stuck.

Live your life to the fullest and go for your dreams.  What ever it is that you aspire to do and be, you can do it!  Let the bold, highly speculative ideas of your imagination lift you above mediocrity.  Be a person of excellence.  If your mind can conceive it, you can achieve it!  All things are possible to them that believe!

You are a Visionary!  You see things that others don't see.  God has put greatness inside of you!  Today is your day!


Take Care,

Love Always,

La La Lolita Lovely

"Never test the depth of the river with both feet!"

~Warren Buffett

"The point of living is to believe the best is yet to come."

~Peter Ustinov

"Live life fully while you're here. Experience everything. Take care of yourself and your friends. Have fun, be crazy, be weird. Go out and screw up! You're going to anyway, so you might as well enjoy the process. Take the opportunity to learn from your mistakes; find the cause of your problem and eliminate it. Don't try to be perfect; just be an excellent example of being human!

~TONY ROBBINS