Confident

I had an interesting conversation in which a rather bold individual told me that I, Shanta Crichlow, am a “lion playing nice”. I am eating like a vegetarian when in truth I am carnivorous. I was not offended at all by the statement, but was intrigued by the thought. This was not the first time that I was told that I am not who I appear to be – but not in a good way. I appear to be strong, sure, and straightforward, but in my dealings with people, I was overly nice, self-doubting, and had no confidence in me. The reality of these deductions bewildered me. It was true. I am parading around life as if I am a toothless lioness when in fact I have some ferocious fangs. And, my deeply subconscious reasoning behind this charade is unfounded. My logic has no legs to stand on because it simply is not true. Let me explain.

Good Weekend

A Good Weekend indeed. This Easter season, I indulged myself in the truth of what Jesus Christ did for us during that fateful time in history that we commemorate today. In the past, I would think about the crucifixion, perhaps I would watch Passion of the Christ – whatever it took to become mindful of the occasion and not be desensitized to it. On Easter Sunday mornings, I would dress really pretty and cheer because, yay, He has risen. Yay, He is alive.

This year, I find myself contemplating more the time in-between the Christ’s death and His resurrection. The thought was brought on by the second verse of the song “Forever” by Kari Jobe. It says, “The Son of God was slain in darkness. A battle in the grave, the war on death was waged”. Wow. So what really happened during that dark time – the time in between when Jesus Christ was murdered and the moment He lived again?

Beauty in Preparation

The most amazing thing happened this week. I delivered one of the best talks of my career thus far. What made it so remarkable in my eyes was the preparation that I put in before hand. For a couple of weeks I rehearsed and re-rehearsed my speech committing it to memory – bible verses and all. By no means was my talk perfect, but the victory was in the delivery. I literally felt as though I had moved out of God’s way and given Him free reign to work.

Do The Work

I wish I could say I had the same faith during my financial trail as the woman in a story that my sister once told me.  The woman stepped out on faith in pursuit of her dream career. Like other testimonies I have heard, the result of her faith was not immediate reward. She instead fell on trying times. She was out of work for almost two years, but she kept believing and trusting God and now she is fulfilling her destiny, doing well financially and her trial brought her closer to the Lord.

I went through a financial trial where I was out of work for nearly one year. I expected God to use my many gifts and talents to make room for me (Proverbs 18:16). But that didn’t happen. (You are welcome to read the full story here). I have been trough a number of trials in my lifetime. And, although I face each with the same God, my response to each challenge and the way that I handle it is not the same, unfortunately. In this trial I was frustrated and felt betrayed. I was like the Psalmist in Psalm 73, “When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.” (Verses 21 & 22)

The True Test of My Faith – The Starting Point

Photo By: Khayla Williams

My sister told me the testimony of a woman who stepped out on faith in pursuit of her dream career. Like others testimonies I have heard, the result of the woman’s faith was not immediate reward. She instead fell on trying times. She was out of work for almost two years, but she kept believing and trusting God and now she is fulfilling her destiny and doing well financially.

Where Did it all Go Wrong…And Now What?

Photo By: Khayla Williams; Model: Taylor Jones

 
I made the decision to accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior when I was in middle school. I loved Jesus, going to church, reading my bible and giving. When I got to college in 2001, I started attending a mega church. I thought it was the best thing that could ever happen to me. This church was very different from the church I grew up in. The pastor challenged my thinking and view of life and God and success. After three years of consistently being under the influence of this pastor’s teachings, my faith was derailed by messages of hope. Yes, hope. Let me explain.

The Promise is in the Presence

I got a good message out of church today that I though I might share. I cannot remember every point made by the preacher, but I did get the lesson that was intended for me.