If you know me and my story, you know that I’ve accomplished a lot. From landing my dream job turned beautiful nightmare in the music industry to taking a leap of faith into my purpose to start Embrace Her Legacy to becoming an author, motivational speaker, spiritual teacher, host of the Embrace Her Legacy podcast and creator of all our personal development programs You might know that I’ve been featured in ESSENCE, Latina, Heart & Soul and others. Not to mention, I have a powerful network of supporters that include influencers, leaders, executives and key tastemakers…one of these supporters have been my best friend Irene.
I wanted to tell you Irene’s story because I would not be who I am without her.
Irene grew up in the projects of East New York, Brooklyn. The both of us like to have fun so when we met in our teen years it was nothing for us to have a few drinks, but Irene would take it overboard sometimes and get out of control. I would ask her why she partied so hard, smoked so much weed and drank so much. She let me know that she grew up in that environment. Her entire family drank and alcoholism ran ramped in her family. As a matter of fact, she shared that one of her most earliest memories was of her father being passed out drunk with her in the park. He fell asleep on the bench and left her there but a friendly stranger walked her home. Luckily as she was walking home. Irene’s brother and mother were on their way to the park to look for her. She told me that her father’s binges on alcohol like this were common in her childhood as she would have to go looking for him at local liquor stores but she knew that he loved her. A few years ago her father was delivered from alcoholism so we can praise God for that one.
But as a result of her father’s alcoholism, being from the projects and having a mother that never made her feel good enough out of her own insecurities, Irene always carried shame but you could never tell. She always wore the hottest clothes, had the latest Jordan’s and wore the biggest smile. All of our friends envied her. Until one day while were in the 11th grade, Irene had a failed suicide attempt. She was carrying so much pain and didn’t want to deal with it anymore. I asked her why she did it and she said that she always felt lonely and misunderstood – she was crying for help.
But she got her act together as a friend told her in the hospital room that God had her here for a reason and her life had purpose. She never heard that before so she never forgot it. We ended up going to college together but those feelings of shame and low self-worth followed her so she did anything to find meaning, approval and validation. She would drink, smoke, party and boy did she have a thing for guys. It was nothing for her to have guys fall in love with her left and right, she found validation out of all the guys she dated and slept with, it gave her a sense of power.
We both graduated and went our own ways after college but those feelings of shame kept following Irene. She had this amazing job but she was still looking for meaning and validation – the drinking had gotten worse, she tried to make more money to heal her wounds of shame and never feeling good enough, the addiction to weed had excelled and she was even arrested for it!
She still wasn’t fulfilled. She never ever felt that she was good enough because of being from the projects and she carried shame from the regretful decisions of her past. She had a dream to start her own business but she feared being ridiculed by her family, failure and the cost she would have to pay to live her dreams. But we encouraged each other to finally pursue our dreams of becoming entrepreneurs and we did! She found this new relationship and faith in God that inspired me! She even stopped smoking and the drinking reduced dramatically!
But Irene had to go back home in order to save money and build her dream business, being back in that environment fueled old feelings. Not to mention, building her business was harder than she thought. She had saved almost $30,000 to start her business/live on but after 2 years, all the money was gone. She tried to make her business prosper but she was met with failure after failure and rejection after rejection. Then the relationship that she was in for over 9 years ended with a unforeseen betrayal to her heart. The pain was unbearable, she had lost it all in pursuit of her dreams. She had lost her money, her comfort, her man and her business wasn’t doing what she needed it do. She thought she was doing the right thing because she knew in her heart this business was something God put in her heart to do. But she didn’t think that she would lose it all in the process.
So she went back to that 17 year old girl and those familiar demons of not feeling good enough, feeling alone, feeling rejected were screaming in her mind. She wanted out again, she was tired of the pain, she was tired of the disappointment, she was tired of the financial hardships,she was tired of not having anyone understand her, she was tired of trying. So last year, she went for the pills and started to pop them in her mouth. But this time, something made her throw them back up. While balling in tears in fetal position on her bathroom floor, she let everything out.
I was so worried about my friend but little did I know that she made a decision on that bathroom floor to fight for her destiny. She told me that she realized that she had a Savior who took all the shame and hurt from her and that even though she had experienced trial after trial that she would get up and fight. No devil in hell was going to steal her destiny,
Irene woke up the next day a warrior in God’s army, fighting for her destiny. She decided that she would take full control of the story she wanted to tell. She would be the one to break generational curses of alcoholism, poverty, broken marriages and start generational blessings, a legacy of prosperity, faith, wholeness, happy families, and doing what God had created us to. She lives by this mantra “one monkey won’t stop my show.” She changed her story from a victim to a victor. She knew the story she wanted to tell her grandchildren one day and giving into the lies from her past, the shame or the opposition she faced would no longer be her story.
I looked at Irene in the mirror this morning proud, as my name is Maria Irene Melendez. See I can act like I got it all together, you see my accomplishments but you don’t know my story. We can be fooled in this age of social media to compare ourselves to one another, thinking that everyone else has it all together while we’re suffering behind closed doors. But I am living proof that you are not alone and no matter how bright someone’s smile is or pretty their pictures are, you never know how they are suffering. It’s by the grace of God that I am here today.
Although I had accomplished so much in my life, I was still that broken little 4 year old girl who’s father left her at the park for any stranger to kidnap. I never dealt with my wounds and I masked my insecurities in accomplishments, a career and relationships, looking for meaning until I was stripped of it all and that’s when I learned that before I am anything else, I am a child of God. I never needed anything to approve me because God had already accepted, approved, redeemed, restored and breathed His spirit into me.
So I leave you with this. What story do you want to tell? See we’re taught not to be transparent not realizing that the very thing you struggle with privately, those messes that we all deal with, God can turn into a message – a message of hope and inspiration or to tell someone else “I’ve been there before.”
When you are faced with life’s challenges – the wounds that will come in the form of failures, betrayals, hurts, setbacks, delays – you choose how you will respond by choosing what story you want to tell at the end of your life. Do you want your story to be the one of the woman who was paralyzed by fear so you never stepped out on that dream or you do want to tell the story of the woman who looked her giants in the face and made it happen? Do you want to be the woman who constantly needs the approval of others or do you want to be the woman who knew her worth and never allowed anyone to steal her joy? Do you want your story to be the one who jumped from bed to bed looking for love or do you want to be the woman was so secure in God’s love that her swag brought all the right type of dudes to her? Do you want your story to be that you never wrote that song, wrote that book, starred in that movie, developed that app, performed that surgery, won that case, built that business because it got hard and you gave up? Or do you want to be the one who slayed her goals? Do you want to be the woman who was too afraid to share her story or do you want to be the woman who boldly shares her testimony?
Don’t let your past hold your future hostage. You are not your mistakes, you are not your circumstances, you are not your family drama, you are not the addictions, you are not the depression, you are not those lying thoughts telling you that you’re not good enough!
I don’t know one person who couldn’t use more money. Money is the reason why we get out of bed in the morning and report to jobs we don’t like, deal with co-workers we can’t stand and remain in this cycle until something better comes along.
If I were to give you $1 million, would you take it? Of course you would and so would I! But what I’ve noticed (and we’ve seen this happen before), is that someone can get $1 million today and end up filing bankruptcy next year. We’ve seen this happen to lottery winners, celebrities who shot to fame and anyone in between who didn’t have the character needed to maintain and grow the wealth that was given to them.
That’s because prosperity doesn’t begin in your bank account. It doesn’t begin when your outside circumstances change. Prosperity begins on the inside. Prosperity begins when you start to change your thinking from a poverty-based mindset.
What do I mean by a “poverty based” mindset?
See it doesn’t matter how much money you make or what new job you get, if you still have a poverty based mindset then you’ll never have enough money. What we tend to do when we need more money is think of ways to get a job that pays us more or start changing the pricing strategy of our businesses – which is common sense. However, what difference does it make if you still think thoughts that are rooted in fear, lack and insecurity?
Some of us are waiting for someone to give us something – whether it’s an opportunity, a promotion, a check, a new job or a scholarship. When we don’t get it, we go blaming other people for the lack of our upward mobility. The iconic motivational speaker, Jim Rohn, has this quote “Don’t wish things were easier, wish that you were better.”
Unfortunately, life is not fair and economic disparity runs ramped all over the world. To make matters even worse, we’re not being taught skills to achieve wealth. We’re taught to work harder, study harder and get a good job that will pay you good money. However, there are millions of people who bust their tails off working hard every day and are still riding the poverty line.
Many of us are carrying thousands upon thousands of dollars in student loan debt and millennials account for 40% of the unemployment rate in this country! What’s wrong with picture?
We have to change our relationship with money and our thinking towards money. When you constantly approach money from a place of fear or that you won’t ever have enough – you have a lack based mentality and you will attract such into your life. What I’ve learned is not to put my trust in money but to put my trust in God who will not only supply all of my needs but who expects me to be a steward over the money He gives me. The more you hold tight onto your money like you’ll never get more, the more you’ll attract lack into your life. Start to think of money as a tool, one that there is more than enough to go around. You are to manage your money and not let it manage you.
When I changed my thinking from my employment as my source of income to God as my source, I can now think with abundance because I have an unlimited source. The money or income in my life is no longer limited to what I can work for but to what God can do. Now that doesn’t mean that you’re supposed to be undisciplined with your finances. Anything taken to the extreme is error so don’t expect to run up your credit cards and then expect God to send you a $10,000 check next week. If He were to keep doing that then you wouldn’t learn the lesson of disciplining your spending.
If you’re in a season of lack in your life, don’t get comfortable there either. Just because you fell on hard times, does not mean that these circumstances will be your destiny. Many of us get comfortable in lack and pray little prayers asking God to just get us through the month. You’re passing through a season as we all go through financial hardships but you have to make a decision of how you will choose to respond to this adversity. Like my pastor, Dr. AR Bernard put it, “Adversity is a chance for opportunity.” This adversity may be a chance for you to learn, grow and experience success and achievement. You might be asking God for a new job but what if He gave you an idea that you can turn into a multi-million dollar business? Make up your mind that you will not get comfortable with lack in your life and that you’re going to come out of it.
Then, change the way you approach earning money. You don’t get paid for your time but for your value to the marketplace. Instead of focusing on getting more money, focus on becoming THE BEST at whatever it is that you do. Hone in on what your gifts, talents and abilities are and think of ways that you can translate that into income opportunities. If you focus on using your gifts as a problem solver then you are well on your way to economic success. How can you solve that companies, client’s, woman’s problem? How can you make their lives easier with your gifts, talents and abilities? How can you add more value to that company or client? Now you’re thinking prosperity because it’s not about what you can get but what you can give and in return, you will receive.
I talk about this more in depth in my How to Negotiate Like a Boss course in our Embrace Her Legacy University which you can totally download now and have access to, along with my other courses on the keys to accomplishing your goals, developing a positive mindset, overcoming fear and developing your faith. In the How to Negotiate Like a Boss class, you’ll learn:
You will learn to identify your skills, assets and abilities to leverage your ask
You will learn how to kill it in every meeting and walk away with what you want
If you’re a new to your industry, I will show you specific newbie strategies to get your foot in the game
Learn how to make sure you have satisfied clients
Discover your value to the marketplace
Learn strategies to gain repeat clients
I will show you how to identify the person who can help you in all negotiations
Learn how to find out what to charge
Learn how to get the number you want
Gain the confidence to charge what you deserve…even if it means walking away
That’s another poverty based thinking – we feel like we never have enough money to invest in ourselves so we rather spend money on immediate pleasures that will never leave us permanently fulfilled. I’ve made this super affordable so that we no longer have excuses…$12 per month. Will you take advantage?
You can build wealth, it just begins in your mind.
It’s a new season on the calendar and we can finally start getting rid of our coats, boots and scarves in exchange for jackets, pastel colors and those new shoes that you’ve been waiting to debut.
Winter can be exhausting and most of us are ready for the weather shift. In New York City, we just got hit with a major snowstorm last week which left us shoveling for a few days. Not to mention, the temperature dropped to frigid so going outside is something that you only did only if you needed to.
That’s what winter is mostly about. We’re indoors a lot. We spend most of our days working or going to school and back home. On a Friday night, you’d rather be home sipping on some hot chocolate or a good glass of Malbec than to endure the freezing wind slapping your face. When you do go outside, the trees look barren, the grass is dried up, everything seems to lack life and there is no sign at all that in a few weeks, those trees will be blooming and colorful flowers will be sprouting.
Although nothing appears to be happening in winter, there’s so much happening that the blind eye cannot see. I like to consider the “winters” in our lives as the seasons where we are sowing, working viciously towards our goals but we don’t see anything really happening. That’s because winter is about preservation, you don’t harvest or bear fruit in winter as there isn’t much production going on. You experience opposition, difficulty and delay. Things in your life look dead and you might be faced with some “impossible” situations. It’s in our own “winters” where God preserves you and your destiny. As you work towards your destiny, He sheds you of the things in your life that will not be fruitful in the next season in your life.
Life is all about seasons as there is a time for everything. Life has it’s ebb and flow. There are seasons where you sow, seasons where you harvest, seasons where you endure storms, seasons where you don’t see much changing, seasons of transition, seasons of victory, seasons of abundance, seasons of scarcity, seasons of happiness, and seasons of loss.
But here’s the beautiful thing about seasons. They always change! No one remains in a “winter” forever!
You know what your winter can do if you allow it to? It can steal you faith to believe that anything in your life can change. You can allow what you see or what you’ve been through to steal your joy or your hope for any change. Winter can steal your expectancy of any good thing happening to you.
It’s the first day of Spring but if you look outside your window, I’m sure that those trees still look barren. You might even still have snow on the ground like I do in New York City but that doesn’t change the fact that the season has shifted even if it doesn’t look like it.
Well what if there’s a shift happening for you? What if everything that you’ve been working towards, praying for and believing for (even if it looks dead, barren or impossible), God is about to deliver into your hands? I know it may be darn near impossible to believe it but what if He’s sending you a message through me that you’ve just entered into a new season.
Stop being afraid and start to believe that you will see the expression of God’s excellence to work on your behalf.
If winter is about preservation, then what is Spring about?
Glad you asked! Spring allows you to transition from barrenness, lack of production to a season of fruitfulness, flourishing and development. During your spring, you will see the fruits of the seeds that you’ve sowed blossom; the fruits of your patience, perseverance, faith and tenacity. You go from a famine to a land of abundance, expansion, prosperity and peace.
Do you want this? Then you’ve got to start believing and start preparing. The last thing that you want is to have spring show up in your life, God ready to make breakthroughs happen for you and you’re not ready. That’s the key about your winter is that you have to use it to prepare for your spring. If you want to become a conqueror then you are going to have to conquer something. You won’t know what you’re made of if you didn’t have to fight for something.
There are things that I’ve learned on my journey and my own loooonnnng winter that have only prepared me for the new season of victory in my life which is the very reason why I created the Embrace Her Legacy University.
How are you getting ready for your new season? If your ideal job emailed you tomorrow, would you be ready to negotiate for your desired salary? If the husband you’ve been believing for walked into your life on Friday, would you be a confident, secure, whole woman ready to embark upon a new journey with him or would you still be holding onto unforgiveness or low self-worth because of your past? If someone wanted to invest into your business idea, would you at least know what your business would be or how much money you need to start? Do you currently have the mindset of a winner or are you still thinking like a victim? What if someone wanted to pay off your debt for you, would you know exactly how much debt you owe?
This is why my current courses of Embrace Her Legacy University include:
How to Negotiate Like a Boss
The 7 Major Keys of Accomplishing Your Goals
How to Have Unwavering Faith to Defeat Your Giants
Mastering Your Thought Life – How to Master Positive, Faith-Filled Thinking
Learn to Discover Who You Are – A Class on Confidence, Self-Worth & The Power of Your Story
Embrace Her Legacy University is an inspirational, educational, chic and empowering online learning center designed to motivate and educate fabulous and faith-filled millennial women to grow in personal development, the application of faith, birth dreams and achieve your God-given destiny!
Our courses are specifically designed to transform millennial women to become who you’ve been called to be and we’ll use that as the foundation to teach you how to accomplish your professional and personal goals and realize your life’s assignment.
I’m here to help you stay ready so you don’t have to worry about getting ready.
Did you know know that along with access to the courses, you’ll also get complete access to my private Facebook group where you are also going to get to tons of support, motivation and accountability? We’ll have challenges and shoutouts giving you a chance to track your growth and share your accomplishments and promote your endeavors.
We’re also offering discounted goals coaching and wife coaching, financial coaching and leadership coaching will be special additions that I’m adding within the upcoming weeks with HIGHLY esteemed women from these industries so you’re not only gaining access to me but access to my personal tribe of leading, professional women who are going to be offering coaching sessions to stimulate your growth too.
Will you be joining us? It’s SUPER affordable because I wanted everyone to gain access to the course and the Facebook community. I know that sometimes we want to invest into our growth but it can be expensive. So you can join Embrace Her Legacy University for only $12 a month!
Say what???? That’s probably less money than you spent on food today.
Welcome to Embrace Her Legacy’s official online classroom and learning center…Embrace Her Legacy University!!!!
Embrace Her Legacy University is an inspirational, educational, chic and empowering online learning center designed to motivate and educate fabulous and faith-filled millennial women to grow in personal development, the application of faith, birth dreams and achieve your God-given destiny!
Our course are specifically designed to transform millennial women to become who you’ve been called to be and we’ll use that as the foundation to teach you how to accomplish your professional and personal goals and realize your life’s assignment.
Our current courses include:
How to Negotiate Like a Boss
The 7 Major Keys of Accomplishing Your Goals
How to Have Unwavering Faith to Defeat Your Giants
Mastering Your Thought Life – How to Master Positive, Faith-Filled Thinking
Learn to Discover Who You Are – A Class on Confidence, Self-Worth & The Power of Your Story
Here’s a outline of what you will learn in each class:
How to Negotiate Like a Boss
You will learn to identify your skills, assets and abilities to leverage your ask
You will learn how to kill it in every meeting and walk away with what you want
If you’re a new to your industry, I will show you specific newbie strategies to get your foot in the game
Learn how to make sure you have satisfied clients
Discover your value to the marketplace
Learn strategies to gain repeat clients
I will show you how to identify the person who can help you in all negotiations
Learn how to find out what to charge
Learn how to get the number you want
Gain the confidence to charge what you deserve…even if it means walking away
The 7 Major Keys of Accomplishing Your Goals
Have clarity! You will know what success means to you, you’ll know what you really want.
I’ll teach you how to create your personal success plan
You’ll be able to clearly define your legacy
You’ll learn how to discover and realize your life’s assignment
You’ll learn to avoid several common goal-setting mistakes
I’ll teach you the power of writing your dreams and goals
You’ll know the difference between your dreams and your goals
I’ll teach you how to make your goal SMART
You will identify and set your top 10 goals
I will teach you how to create an action plan for each goal
You’ll learn how to manage your time effectively in order to work on your goals
Learn how to deal with people who don’t support your goals
I’m going to teach you how to identify obstacles and needed support
Identify hidden resources that you have access to help you
Identify new methods to help you overcome obstacles
Create a schedule to help you work on your goals daily
How to Have Unwavering Faith to Defeat Your Giants
How to gain faith by understanding God’s character
Learn how to stop doubting
I will teach you how to develop a faith-filled, Word based mindset
I will show you how to gain the courage to defeat your giants
You’ll learn how to get through challenging seasons
Learn how to recognize and pass tests of faith
I will show you how to exercise the power in your words to change your situation
Learn how to command your blessings
Learn how to use the Word of God to encourage your faith
I will show you how to pray powerful, faith-filled prayers
Learn how to overcome fear, doubt and negative thinking
Mastering Your Thought Life – How to Master Positive, Faith-Filled Thinking
Learn how to overcome self-limiting beliefs
Understand the power of your thoughts
I’m going to teach you how to use your thoughts to attract what you want
Learn how to control your thoughts of fear, worry, doubt and other negative emotions
I’m going to show you how to change your expectations
Learn how to start managing your emotions
I’m going to teach you how to enhance the quality of your thinking
Learn how your past can keep your future hostage
How distractions like social media can have a negative effect on your thinking
Learn to Discover Who You Are – A Class on Confidence, Self-Worth & The Power of Your Story
You will learn how to discover who you are
Learn how to distinguish who you are from what you do
Identify any idols in your life
You will learn to see yourself the way God sees you
Learn the dangers of seeking your meaning, approval or identity in: accomplishments, relationships, money, status, social media following, your body etc.
I’m going to teach you how to have a positive outlook of your past
Learn how to overcome insecurity
You will understand the difference between your self-worth and your self-confidence
Strategies to overcome low self-worth
The power of your story and how it reveals the essence of who you are
Discover the root of your lack of self-confidence
Methods to transform how you value yourself
Learn how to embrace the power in your story
You will learn how to see yourself as woman who is whole
I’m going to teach you how to start loving all of you
Identify why and how fear, guilt, shame influence your worth
Identify any masks you’ve worn
I’m going to teach you how to identify your core-values
The difference between internal fear and external fear and how fear is connected to low self-worth
I’m going to teach you how to be comfortable in your skin
Additional Features to Embrace Her Legacy University:
Did you know know that along with access to the courses. You’ll also get complete access to our closed, private Facebook group?
You’re also going to get to join my personal Facebook group for tons of support, motivation and accountability. We’ll have weekly challenges and shoutouts giving you a chance to track your growth and share and promote your accomplishments.
I will be sharing special messages of motivation and inspiration in our Facebook group as well as different resources to help you grow in your personal development, faith and accomplishing goals like our personal mission statement worksheet, core values assessment, and the Embrace Her Legacy Library which are books that have helped me grow in personal development and faith.
AND you’ll get discounted access to private Goal Coaching + Soul Enriching sessions with me.
Why Embrace Her Legacy University?
I’m not in the business of just helping your cross some tasks off your list.
Nope. I’m going to help you prosper your soul and I’m going to use that as the foundation to show you how to prosper in every other area in your life. As your “goals girlfriend”, I’m going to keep it real and raw when it comes to helping you grow as a woman and achieve your goals. I’m a believer so I’m going to be using Biblical and ancient principles to help you first focus on your character, heal your wounded soul and then we’ll get to work on your goals.
Embrace Her Legacy University is going to help you build your character, grow in your faith and birth your dreams. I am going to show you to apply what you’ve learned to realize your divine destiny. Too many of us want to focus on getting but I’ll show you how to focus on who you are becoming.
There is no amount of success, money, followers, relationships or accomplishments that can leave you permanently secure – only God can do that. So we’ll be focusing on pursuing a healed soul, forgetting former pain and using that as the foundation to achieve your destiny!
Embrace Her Legacy University focuses on self-improvement, personal development, faith building and achieving your goals in order to realize a purpose-driven legacy. I’m a fabulous and faith-filled, millennial women with tons of personality so I know your struggles girl! I teach from experience and have almost 10 years of business and personal development experience under my belt, I want you to learn from my pain so I will share stories of my journey with you too to inspire and motivate you. Trust me when I say I know the amount of tenacity, perseverance and faith it takes to do what God has called you to do.
You can try it risk free too. If you don’t like what you see, you can request a full refund within 30 days of joining. I’ve made this super affordable option for all my ladies on a budget as you gain access to all this splendor for only $12 a month! That’s less than what you probably spent on Caramel Macchiato’s this week 😉
You gain lifetime access to each course too. I know that courses can be overwhelming so you can start one or few, take a break, go back and finish. Each course is a video course coupled with a worksheet to help you apply what you’ve learned.
Are you ready to embrace your legacy, finally becoming the woman who want to become and achieving the dreams of your heart?
What if I told you that this week you were going to receive the miracle that you’ve been hoping to see, would you believe me?
Picture it. You get a call that your student loan debt has been suddenly forgiven. Your book your dream client for your business. You receive a check in the mail for $8,000 out of the blue. You get offered your dream job. Someone decides to give you their luxury condominium. You get offered a 6-figure book deal. Your sales for your business skyrocket over night because a celebrity randomly gave you a shout out on social media. Your marriage gets restored and your husband is a new man. The promise that God gave you about getting married this year suddenly seems plausible when the man of your dreams walks in your life. You finally get promoted to be the head of your department at work with double your current salary.
I know what you’re probably thinking. “That’s not happening to me Maria.”
But what if you’re wrong and it’s that type of thinking that is blocking your blessings.
I’ve actually had TWO of the the things listed happen to me and if someone would have told me that it was coming, I would have never ever believed them because my circumstances told me differently which is why you can’t trust what you see. Your life can change overnight and God can do more for you in the next 24 hours than you could see done in a lifetime.
Back in 2008, I was on the cusp of college graduation with no job in sight. I was interning at Warner Music Group/Atlantic Records without any pay and I was fired from my part-time at a bartending school a few months earlier so my savings were running thin.
One afternoon, while coincidently working on my resume at the office, an employee walked up to me wanting to know what I was doing. I told him that I was working on my resume because graduation was about a month away and I needed a job as there were no job offers in sight at the label. He asked me if I wanted to see what he did in the Radio Promotion department as I interned in the Marketing department. I agreed.
It was an entirely different world for me as this department included lifestyle marketing, club promotions, and promoting our songs with radio personnel like the countries hottest DJ’s and program directors. I was in the “prim and proper” world of marketing, these guys were the guys who were on the grounds getting the music directly to the consumer.
I felt like I didn’t fit in but the employee, Mike, insisted I stick around and learn about the department. I agreed. That afternoon, he asked me if I would be interested in interning in that department a few days out of the week. Knowing that I needed the experience, I agreed.
The next day, I nervously went to the 26th floor of 1290 Ave of the Americas which was our office building. While Mike showed me the ropes of all things radio promotion, I felt overwhelmed but I kept pushing.
And then he goes on to say.
“I hope you know I’m training you to take my place. Do you want my job?”
I answered with my “what-you-talking-about-Willis” tone. “What do you mean take your job?”
“I’m going back to school and my bosses want you to take my place. Do you want it?” You darn straight I’ll take the job!!!!!!
A day later, I walked into his bosses offices and they told me my salary, benefits and even agreed to wait until I graduated the next month for me to officially be on payroll! There was no interview, no hassle…the job was handed to me.
That was in April. I graduated from Hofstra University on May 18th, 2008 and I reported to my first official day of work on May 19th.
I have another one for you. It was December 2011 and we had just come back from a Thanksgiving holiday break at work. It was a Monday. I had a nasty attitude because by this point I hated my dream job and wanted to move on. Although I had saved aggressively throughout the years, I still felt like I needed more of a cushion to make a move.
While sitting at my office desk, I get a call on my office phone from a number that I don’t know. Normally I would answer, but this time I refused thinking it was another unsolicited call from an aspiring rapper wanting a record deal. The person leaves a voicemail. I listen a few minutes later. It’s a representative from the financial aid department of Hofstra University who lets me know that my alma matter owed me money. They were calling to confirm my address to send the check.
I’m thinking it’s maybe like $60 or $70 at most. So I wasn’t expecting much. I speak the representative and she lets me know something about receiving $8,000 worth of refunds from financial aid!
Dumbfounded I asked, “Are you sure? So I’m getting a check of $8,000 this week?” She replies, “Yes, ma’am.” Within a week, the check was in my mailbox. That was just the cushion I would use the next few months when I decided to resign and focus full time on Embrace Her Legacy.
These are just two stories of miracles that I’ve experienced in the last few years. I’ve actually had several more surprise checks along the way too. I think I’m a magnet for those!
Why did I tell you this?
Because in both situations, there was NO indication of any change happening. I was worried and frustrated with my circumstances when God already had my answers on the way.
This might be you. You may have no sign or wonder telling you that something in your life is about to change. You might be going day in and day out wondering if God even hears your cry, but this is a sign that He does.
Do you know what sets the atmosphere for a miracle? Expectation.
Nevertheless, when you’ve been rejected, hurt or you’ve failed time and time again, getting your expectation up can seem like a set up for disappointment. But that’s exactly what your adversary wants. He wants to keep you looking at your past, your pain, your frustration so that he can steal the opportunities of your future. I say this with all compassion, but get over it.
Your best is yet to come and you must believe that. In order to receive what’s yours, you have to let go of what was and embrace a new beginning.
Maybe you started the year off strong working towards your goals and because you experienced failure, you fell off. Maybe you thought that this is the year you were going to get married but you kissed a few frogs and now you’re thinking it’s never going to happen. Maybe you thought you were going to get that promotion and you didn’t. You took the bar exam and you failed. Maybe you’ve been trying to get a new job but to no avail. Maybe you’re about to graduate school and you don’t see a job in sight. Maybe you have an “impossible” financial need.
This is your chance to begin again. This is your chance to believe again. This is your chance to believe that something miraculous is going to happen to you. This is your chance to believe that you’re entering a new season of victory. This is your chance to get your hopes up and believe that God loves you enough to not only show up, but to show up and show out on your behalf.
Miracles happen every day. A lot of us don’t talk about it because we fear being ridiculed. Most people don’t know about the miracles in my life because I know that most won’t believe me or understand but I chose to share these two accounts with you on how God supernaturally moved on my behalf. I didn’t tell you that my job was trying to be blocked by other female colleagues at the label who wanted me to remain an intern for their department. But God!!!!!
So even if you’re experiencing opposition, I believe God wants you to know that something greater is coming. This is your time to see a season of victory, just change what you’re expecting.
Can you believe for a 7-day or a 24-hour miracle? What if this is the month where everything changes?
