Milk & Honey

We’re all looking for a place where we belong and can thrive. You can even call it your promised land or the land flowing with milk and honey. I believe mine is California, but yours may be Florida or Texas. Either way, I have always kept one sermon in the forefront of my mind in regards to this place we dream of. One preacher stated that if we’re to have a land flowing with milk and honey, we have to be willing to work for it. We must be willing to milk the cows and not be afraid to get stung by the bees. That message has resounded in my spirit for the last month due to finally moving to Los Angeles.

Before arriving, I made sure I had a full time job to feel more secure with such a huge move. Little did I know that the job required me to work on weekends and my off days were in the middle of the week. Keep in mind that I hadn’t worked a weekend job since 2008! So it was very disheartening to give up my Saturday to explore and socialize, as well as my Sunday to worship at church. It didn’t help much that I began to dislike my job. My coworkers were extremely sweet and helpful, but I didn’t feel like I belonged. I also didn’t feel like I was being of much service in my particular position. It simply wasn’t my niche.

While I was almost miserable being in my promised land and not in a good job, I had to remember that it was all apart of God’s plan. It’s not enough to show up, effort has to be put forth as well. I put in applications like a mad woman! I wasn’t getting this far only to be stopped at the door. No, I was sucker punching the bouncer and running for dear life into my door because it was wide open. There were literally so many opportunities and I had 5 interviews in less than a month’s time. I was just waiting for that one that stuck out to me the most.

Most people think that if you have to fight for what’s yours, it may not be for you. I say because it is mine, I’m fighting to ensure I get it and keep it. The applications, interviews, emails, calls, networking, and prayers were all a part of my fight. And I wasn’t backing down! Then it happened. I got that call and it was finally my turn to get a better job. And it happened when I had reached my breaking point. My goal in life has always been to have a meaningful job that allows me to help others. It’s specifically why I chose mental health and why I chose such a big city with a large homeless population. I was being strategic about my life.

I try my best to stay positive and also transparent because I’m a true believer that testimonies can push you forward. Of course, I didn’t disclose this in the process because there would be some naysayers wanting me to believe my leap of faith was in vain. Nope! When you see the obstacles that others have gone through, you ask yourself if you’re strong enough to push through. Hopefully that answer is yes. We don’t allow ourselves the benefit of the doubt simply because we doubt. But if we could only believe and work for our future, we would start seeing progress. That’s what I had to do instead of waiting for a miracle to drop in my lap. The miracle was working hard and God allowing me certain opportunities because my faith pleased Him. What milk and honey are you willing to work hard for?