The Revitilization of my Life--Day 8

Today, I decided that I would not work by body out, but rather my mind. I got the Birmingham News and begin to read it. Once i finished I logged into the Washington Post and begin to read it. By the end of the day, my goal is to have read at least 5 of the major newspapers.

I figured that if I was going to revitalize my body, I had to include my mind along with it. So now, not only will writing be a part of my revitalization, but reading will be as well.


We have to do things that we have never done before in order to achieve what we have never achieved. There is no way you can keep doing the same thing and expect different results. There is a place in life that I don't want to be and that's in a place of complacency. I don't ever want to juts settle because settling to me is the same as giving up. God created the world "so big" for a reason. I believe that reason is so that we would have a variety of things to do so that we would not be complacent. All it takes it for us to just try to do something that we have never done before and if you don't like it, move on to the next mission.

I think if we all pulled together and started helping each other achieve different goals we would be a happier nation. Selfishness has never made a positive impact on anything that I know of, but giving has! This day and age everyone has the mentality that time is money and that a person time is worth a certain dollar value. God never put a dollar value on his time because if he did, we all would be some broke people as much as we call on him. All he asked is for us to tithe and that's not for him, it's to maintain the church facility so that we will have a place to worship...he is always looking out for us!

Some times we have to take the dollar sign off of our time and just give it to whoever needs it so that they can make it to the next level in their career or even their life. Think about this for a second, I take the time to write this blog everyday. I am not getting paid a dime for this, but I do it because I hope that someone will read this, get inspired and try to take their life to the next level. Now, you can't put a price on that because you can't put a price on someones life. If my words will cause people to change their lives and I never receive a penny for it, you best believe that the results from changing someones life is well worth more than any dollar figure you can come up with...God never put a dollar amount on his time, neither will I.

The Revitilization of my Life Day 7

Today, I am back on the grind. I took a little time away from revitalizing because I have been planning for a wedding and to be honest, it's just hard to keep your routine sometimes. Especially when you don't have the same schedule everyday. It's hard but it's necessary and if you can get pass the hump of adversities, you will be ok. This morning, I awoke and I had this quote on my mind: "Just because a present isn't wrapped doesn't mean that it's not a gift." When these ideas pop up in my head, I have to share them with others in hope that it will impact there lives as it does mine.

When I starting analyzing my own quote I started to get some ideas of what it really meant. It's not about how something is presented to you, but more so be grateful that you have what ever it is that is being presented. Sometimes we get wrapped up into presentation. It's not always how it looks, but what it can do. We have to start paying attention to what type of impact certain things have on our lives instead of how it looked when we got it. And sometimes we overlook our blessings because they are not wrapped in pretty paper and have a nice bow on top of it. God never said once in the good book that he wrote for us that all blessing would come in the form of a present wrapped up and pretty. So the next time you are looking for a blessing or something in your life to change, don't expect it to look all glamorous because you are a blessing from God for others...but do you always look glamorous 24/7?

The Revitilization of my Life--Day 6

Today begins the weekend and that means that I have another to rest my body before I put back on the workout plan. I was thinking to myself when I awoke, “what am I going to do today to revitalize my life? Then it hit me.

I remembered the beginning of my relationship with my fiancé (just for the record I really love saying the word because it’s so close to wife!...just excited, that’s all) and that she expressed to me that I never told her that she was pretty or beautiful. When I sat back and thought about, she was right. Every now and then I would tell her that she looked nice, but I never expressed to her how beautiful she was to me. At that moment, I begin to think to myself, I need to tell her how beautiful she is more often because I really do think that she is a beautiful young lady. Then I begin thinking, “I thought women wanted us to focus on the inner beauty and not the outer booty?” I was under the assumption that women wanted us to focus more on how they feel and how they need to be treated versus how they look, at least that’s what they express when they see a guy staring at a woman because of her body.

That was then, this is now. Now I ask myself, “why is it that women need a co-signer on their beauty when God already so-signed for it?” A woman shouldn't need for a man to justify how she looks by telling her that she looks good. She should already know this. There is no need to want this from a man. I know that there are a lot of women who are probably saying, “well, a man should tell his lady/wife that she is beautiful every now and then.” And the women who are thinking this are absolutely right, but there is another side to this. A man should tell his spouse this, but his spouse shouldn't want or need for this to happen for them to feel good about themselves. A man telling his woman that she is beauty is a perk, not a necessity. Let’s not get it twisted and women please don’t take this the wrong way. I am not in any way saying that it’s OK for a man to not tell his woman that she is beautiful at all…I’m not saying that. What I am saying is that, him telling her is not something that she should need in order to feel good about how she feel as a woman. She should feel good about who she is on her own. If she expects to be the wife one day or if she is already a wife, she needs to know that she is bold and beautiful and no one needs to tell her in order for her to really know it because her beauty has already been signed by her father, the almighty God.

So, I am going to tell my fiancé that she is beautiful, not because she needs it to feel good about herself but because it’s true and because I want to!

“A co-signer is needed when the signer is not strong enough to carry what is being signed for…A co-signer is never needed when it’s already been signed”-K.J Swint

The Revitilization of my Life--Day 5

Today was another off day. You have to let your body get rest in order to keep working hard at trying to make it better. My morning run allows me to think and come up with things to write about and without my run, my mind takes a while to get going. But I think I found a topic to speak about today.

Yesterday, when I awoke to do my usual workout, I said that I would take a break and give my body some time to rest. I got up at my usual time and I had about three hours before I had to get ready for work. I sat down at my computer to write about my revitalization and once i got started, I got started. I started working on my blog and the I started working on other projects as well. It was almost unreal. I had plenty of energy and my focus was on. I got more work done in two hours than I usually get done in a day. I sat back and started thinking , "why do I have all this energy?" Then it hit me, it all came from working out. I had pushed my body to a limit that it hadn't been pushed to in a long time and once i let it rest, it rebooted and begin to work at full capacity...just like the battery in your cell phone. After you leave it on the charger all night it's ready to work for you all day and maybe the next depending on how you use it that day.

We have to work hard and then take a break so that we can keep working hard at whatever we do. You can take this same concept and apply it to your relationship/marriage. You work hard and making things right:paying bills on time, cutting back going out to save money, not going out with the fellas the one time she wants to go out. Then when it's time to rest, you gain the rewards of it: you have money in the bank to buy whatever you have been wanting to buy, your credit score has improved drastically, you can hang out with the fellas anytime you want now because she sees that she is number one in your life!

If you really put hard work in, you will get good rewards when it's time to rest. If you think that I am lieing, then just prove me wrong and work hard at something for a week and then rest and see what the reward will feel like. Once you do it for a week, then try it for a month and then tell me what you feel like when you rest.

"Resting is a natural part of life, if it wasn't then why do you get so sleepy after a days work. If it's a natural part of life, then you should let nature take it's course and just sit down and rest sometimes...in the words of my great grandmother...SOT down somewhere and rest your bones!"....gotta love the old folk, I know I do....Love you granny and thanks for making me the GREAT man that I am!

The Revitilization of my Life--Day 4

Today is a rest day so I didn't workout, but that doesn't mean that I am not going to do anything to revitalize my life. I must admit, my body is aching but I have to keep going until this aching stops.

Yesterday me and my fiance went to take engagement pictures. It was hot; we were sweaty, but we were happy. As we were taking these pictures I started thinking about the future. I was thinking, "we are happy now because this is fresh, but will we be happy like this five years from now?" Then as we were posing for a shot and the photographer said, "don't worry about the pose, these are your pictures, you do what you want to do." This statement really hit me. This was the answer to the question I had about keeping the happiness fresh years later. In order to keep things fresh you have to do what you want to do and not what others want you to do. It's good to get advice (from positive people) from others, but you still have to make that advice your own.

No one can carry your marriage but you and your spouse. No one can tell you how to live your marriage but you and your spouse because no one knows you or your spouse like the both of you. Upon doing all of this thinking I stopped for a minute and cleared my head. Then I began to think, instead of worrying about how to keep if fresh, I should just do what it takes and this worry will be no more. And that's just what I did. I grabbed my fiance gave her a kiss to let her know that I am happy. She didn't know why I was kissing her but I knew and I vowed right then and there that I was going to put in the work to make this day just as exciting for us five years from now. Now it gets interesting. After having a lovely evening, an argument or should I say a disagreement occurred. It got a little heated for a minute, but then I thought about the lovely photo shoot we had and I also thought about the vow that I made to myself and God. So I went to her and started loving on her and kissing her and asked her, "are you still mad at me?" She wanted to be, but she couldn't because I was giving her pure love despite the disagreement that we had. She smiled gave me a kiss and just looked at me with this weird look. I know what she was thinking. She was thinking how can he be this way when we are suppose to be mad at each other. What she didn't know was that I refuse to let the anger out weigh the love that we have for each other...I REFUSE

The Revitilization of my Life--Day 3

Today was better than yesterday and that is good. When I started my run, my mind was blank and that's not usual, but as I got half way through my route, I started thinking. What got my thoughts flowing was me seeing trash on the street in the neighborhood that I run in. The area is beautiful and clean and when I saw the trash, I really started thinking.

Sometimes we are always worried or should I say pay attention to the trash that everyone else has in front of their yard. What we should be concerned with is the trash that's not just in our yard, but in our home. And if your wondering what type of trash I am referring to, don't think to hard because TRASH is TRASH, whether verbal or physical it's all GARBAGE. And not only should we pay attention to our own trash but if our neighbor is having trouble picking up their trash, try and help them out by picking it up for them. You never know what might happen if you help someone that you see needs a little help. There are a lot of problems that we can solve together sometimes, if we would just put in a little effort. This is what has been baffling me for years now: Why are we so eager to help people that don't need help and turn our nose up at people that do need our help. Don't just help the people that look like you, talk like you, act like you, hang around the same places you hang around. Help someone that doesn't look like you and don't hang around the places that you hang around. It's all about helping someone up the ladder when they are trying to climb and helping them down when they are trying to get out.

This is why I take the time to write things like this and my novels. To help ALL that need it at the time. I think that God gave me a gift with words and I try to use it to my fullest. Whether through poetry or blog...I write to inspire and encourage first, the entertaining part is the latter part of my writing.

Again, I received a post from a college friend of mine telling me to keep doing what I do and to keep being true to myself. But this friend also wrote in their post "a wedding is only one day, a merely few hours, but a marriage is a lifetime." This statement is exactly how I feel. That's why I am paying attention to the trash around my house, making sure that I don't leave any. And also paying attention to the treasure that I have...my fiance!....thanks DP!

"Love that is given is a present
Love that is made is a pleasure
But Love that is received is a lifetime"-K.J Swint

The Revitilization of my Life--Day 2

Again, today was just as hard as yesterday, but the difference was today, I finished my route without stopping. Yesterday I wanted to stop as soon as I started and half way through, I did stop. It is not easy, but is all worth it.

As I was running today, I started thinking about my discussion of Day 1. I was thinking about the many adversities that stop us from doing what we need to do to keep ourselves healthy and happy. When I ran yesterday, I was wearing a pair of sneakers that were torn at the toe and when I run in them they make my knee hurt. So, today I decided to run in another pair of sneakers that the sole of them were torn. The run felt much better, but it was still a little uncomfortable. Then it hit me, these are the very things that stop us from beginning our journey to revitalizing our lives. There is always an excuse to why we can't get something done and sometimes our excuses are valid. For example, the shoes that I was running in were not fit to run in so I could have easily said that I will start running when I get a new pair because they hurt my knee when I run. All of this is true and its valid, but sometimes we have to break away from what feels good and do what hurts. I would rather do something to hurt myself that will make me better than to do something that feels good that will make me worst. I will continue to run in my worn out shoes until I can afford to get me another pair (which will be after my wedding: the soon to be wife comes first). And if they tear before I can afford a new pair, I will run without any shoes at all because God gave me feet and the ability to run and that's just what I will do.

Yesterday when I spoke about God giving us what we need in order to make things happen that we pray about, and this is what I was talking about. I prayed about getting my life in order and doing certain things, not realizing that I have the tools to get them done right now. They might not be the exact tools I want, but they can get the job done and that's what I plan on doing.

It hurt just as much as it did yesterday, but after I shower and get ready for work, I feel good about myself, knowing that I have begun to do what I desire to do to better my life.

Finally, I was stomped by an email that I received yesterday from a dear friend of mine. I would mention his name but he is a very private person and doesn't like to take credit for anything. But the email that he sent pertained to my post from yesterday. I had no idea that he read my blog from time to time, but when i got the email, it was confirmation that he did. He quoted a passage from a poem by William Earnest Henley that he said he thought of when he read my post from Day 1 and I would like to leave it with you today,
"It matters not how strait the gate
How charged with punishments the scroll
I am the master of my fate
I am the captain of my soul"

Thanks for the inspiration....my man and a hundred million grand-Soup!

The Revitalization of my Life--Day 1

Today I decided that I was going to revitalize my life. I awoke this morning and began my day by thanking the Lord for allowing me to see another day. Then I decided that I was going to stop thinking about improving my life and start doing it. I put on my athletic gear and plunged out the door and begin running. As I was running I began to think about some of the things in my life that I needed to work on and how I had put them off because I didn't have enough time to do them. Well, all that is out the door! Then I begin to think deeper...if I can make time to do everything else in my life like go hang out with the fellas and have a few drinks; go to Starbucks and write/work on my novel; sit around and watch a movie, then I can make time to improve my life.


All of this begin when I proposed to my girlfriend whom I have been dating for 3 years. Our journey within our relationship has not been easy and not been pretty, but it was well worth it. I knew that there were things within our life that we weren't doing right from a spiritual perspective and this bothered me everyday. I prayed to the lord and asked him to forgive me and give me the strength and ability to make things right because I was tired of living a lie. Well, one day when I had this thought in my mind I got the answer that I was looking for. I heard a voice say, "you have everything that you need to make happen what you want to." I started thinking to myself, I don't have the money to have a wedding or buy a ring so how can this be possible? Then I started thinking about that statement the voice told me and the voice was right. I had everything that i needed to make it happen. I had gotten a new job from my previous job making a little more than what I was making; I had benefits and a little more flexibility in my schedule. The more I started thinking, the more the statement made sense. I was looking to make a lot of money and save a lot so that I can get a NICE SIZE ring and have a NICE SIZE wedding. Sometime God gives us exactly what we ask for because it's exactly what we need at the time. This is our test to see if we are serious about what we prayed for. He gives you just enough to make it.

I don't have a lot of money, but I have a lot of heart. And so I decided to step out on faith and ask the woman that I love to marry me with the little that I have. With the little that I have I got her small engagement ring and I told her exactly what I just told you. She then said something to me that was the most honest thing I had heard from a woman she said, "truth be told, yes I would love to have a NICE SIZE ring, but I can always upgrade and that leaves room for us to grow and that means that we have something to look forward to, together." With this statement, I knew I had found the woman that God wanted me to be with.

This is just the first step to revitalizing my life. It's small, but it's so powerful because in order to take the next step, I had to take the first one first. I don't know where you are in your life right now, but wherever you are, you can start revitalizing it as soon as you finish reading this. If you want to start working out, get down and do one push up right now. If you want to start walking or running, go outside and run from one end of the driveway to the other. Do this until you can build up endurance to do more. All it takes is a start. And if you think your going to stop, STOP thinking that. Just keep thinking that you are in charge of your life. No one can detour you from making your life better. The better you try to make your life, the better the Lord will help you make it...if you don't believe me just try the little exercise I stated earlier...do something that you have been thinking about to better your life as soon as you finish reading this and then let me know how you feel...but you will never know until you try!