“So I have a vision board, if you will. On it, I write three things at a time that I want to see come to pass or that I want to work on and stay focused on in my personal life. Amen. And I do this because in the book of Habakkuk 2:2: “It says, Write the vision, make it plain and run with it.” Amen.

And one of the things I wrote is simply this: Be You. Amen.

I said this because as you get older, if you’re not careful, you will never truly be yourself in life. You will simply try to measure up to what others expect of you how they act, what they believe and you’ll twist and turn in every direction trying to fit in. Maybe you try to be quieter. Maybe you try not to be so expressive when you talk. Amen. Maybe you try not to laugh as loud as you normally would in public because you don’t want to disturb anyone. Amen. But you get where I’m going with this.

But for me, this year, this is truly my goal in life to simply be me, and all of who I am. Praise the Lord. Because here’s the thing: God made us, and He made us the way we are for a reason. Amen. And what God does is perfect in every way.

I was thinking about my life and how I have always been. For me, as some know, I love bright, bold colors. Amen. We had a little store in my hometown where I grew up and even now there are still different locations around it’s called Cato’s, and they would get these bright, colorful jeans. and I loved them. So I would work, save my money, and go purchase those jeans to wear. To me, they were fabulous. Amen. Other people may not care for that whatsoever and that’s okay. Amen.

And I’ve also always have been a huge talker. I can talk all day long. Amen. That’s just simply who I am. I am also a hugger. I hug everyone or at least give them a pat on the back. Others are not so much huggers. Amen. I always joke with my sister-in-law and say, “I’m so glad you love me,” because she isn’t much on the hugging part of life. Amen. Yet I’m constantly hugging her when I’m around her and laughing hysterically. We just bring that out in each other. Amen.

But yesterday, one of my friends at work said, “Mandi, you are a social butterfly. You’re like Mother Nature always bright and shining. You’re always happy.” Amen. And I thought, what a beautiful compliment that is, coming straight from her heart. Praise the Lord.

But being yourself in a world where others expect you to be like them or more like the world can sometimes be hard. Just to simply be you, and remain you in all that you are, it truly takes courage.

So this morning, that’s what I want to say to us all: Be you. Whoever you are. Whatever your personality is that God created you to be, I pray you are just that. All the crazy, loud, happy, spirit-filled, funny, person or the quiet, gentle, loving, kind, compassionate, listening person. Amen.

Because we all have such a beautiful life to offer this world, and we make it more beautiful when we are who the Lord made us to be. Amen. Not trying to be like another person. Not trying to dress like them, talk like them, or act like them. But simply being you fully and completely. Praise the Lord.

Because who you are is the gift that God has given to this world to enjoy and to bless. Amen.

That is my heart and my prayer for us all that we don’t shrink back from life or from ourselves simply because of someone else and who they are. We were never meant to. Amen.

I always think about John the Baptist and how he lived out in the wilderness, ate honey and locusts, wore camel’s hair for clothing, and had a big leather belt wrapped around his waist. He was loud and bold, calling people to repent, saying, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.” And the Bible says they came from Jerusalem, all Judea, and the region around the Jordan, and they were baptized in the Jordan, confessing their sins (Matthew 3:1–6). Amen.

So never stop being you. For who you are is enough, and it is completely perfect in the way God designed it. Amen. The world needs us all. And Jesus needs us to be who He alone created us to be. So be bright. Be bold. And BE YOU. Amen!”

“For it is in His name, Jesus’ name, that I do ask and pray..Amen and Amen..Be blessed today my dear sweet friends and remember wherever you go and whatever you do, Be a light for our Father, Much love to you all, Mandi ❤️