Let it Over-Flow

I swear I feel like the widow in 2 Kings 4:1-7 – Her husband died and the creditors were coming to take her two sons yet the prophet Elisha asked her what she had in her house, and she had nothing but a little oil. He then commanded her to walk in Faith and
ask all her neighbors for empty jars and to fill each of them and put them to the side as they were filled. She kept pouring and when the last jar was filled, the oil stopped flowing and she had enough to pay her debt and still had oil left over that sustained her for the rest of her life and she was able to leave an inheritance for her children too!

Oh taste and see that the Lord is good!

I feel just like the widow, because everything I have needed in my business and personal life, God has taken what I had and stretched it so that I could get what I needed and still have enough to keep me sustained for the next thing!


Since I signed that lease back in November for my store, God has been stretching my finances, my faith, and my favor, and I have received everything I needed. The day I signed the lease, I had .38 cent in my bank account but was still able to pay my rent, and security deposit and still order inventory. I thought I had run out of money but even after that, I was still able to purchase store fixtures and when I thought I had got to the end, and I needed to purchase other things that were essential to me running my business, God provided and the blessings have not stopped flowing! I took the leap of faith, I stepped out on God’s promises and he has fulfilled everything he has promised me!

Today, I’m here to remind you, to walk in Faith and rest on God’s promise, and watch how his favor flows into your life and I’m a witness whatever you need will be yours and not only will he give you enough but he will give you more than enough!

I was suppose to only be in business for the holiday season (2 months) and I've just entered into my 5th month of business because God is truly amazing.

My plan was 2 months but God had a plan for me to be here after my deadline and I didnt even know it. Many are the plans in a man's heart, But Gods plan prevailed.

Today, I dare you to take what you have and work what you got. I promise you won’t run out! God will provide, I decree it in Jesus Name!

I Love You!

Back to the Basics

Glory to God! For he is truly worthy to be praised!!!

For the past few days, I have been experiencing a battle within my mind. The enemy tried to use my thoughts to trap and defeat me but, because I serve a God who never leaves me or forsakes me, what the enemy meant for my evil has turned out to be God's plan for my victory!

Let me just pause for a moment to say "HALLELUJAH"

In the midst of the war that was going on inside of me, I began to wonder why the enemy kept bringing negative thoughts and moments from my past back to the surface of my head and I realized that because the enemy has no control over our futures, he has to hold us back with our past but I decided that I would not fall doomed to the traps of satan and I began to pray for renewal of my mind, and restoration.

As I began to pray for restoration, God began to show me something vital not only to me but to you reading this as well. He began to show me that in order to be restored, it was important that I got back to the basics.

Sometimes we veer off so far into temptation, sin, and on the wrong path that God has to pull us back to where we first began in order for us to experience true peace of mind.

So today I ask you, where were you where you first began your walk with chirst? What was it that gave you peace of mind and granted you an abundance of victorious thoughts?

As I began to take a deep look into myself and into my life I realized that though I thought I was operating in my gift of inspiring others and speaking positive words into their lives, I got so caught up in the hype of the world and in the hype of myself that I neglected the gift that I should have been operating in all along that would have made room for me to achieve all my other dreams later down the line.

Today, I stand before you ready to get back in the fight, ready to return back to the basics, and ready to give God all the praise, honor, and glory because in the midst of my storm, God comforted me, In the midst of my sin, God cleansed me, In the midst of my battles, God protected me, In the midst of sickness, God healed me, In the midst of darkness, God showed me the light, and in the midst of me veering in the wrong direction, God pulled me in and allowed me to return Back to the Basics.

I'm so excited to know that we serve a God of Grace and Mercy! He has given me a fresh start even though I don't deserve it and for that I shall praise him the rest of my days.

Life is Filled with Valuable Lessons

Life is filled with many lessons, decisions, and situations that alter and feverishly change not only the present but the future as well. In my life, I’ve been in many situations that have weighed me down and have caused me to lose myself and become wrapped up in negative thinking. Though I tend to appear to be a very positive, motivated, and outgoing individual, I too face obstacles that sometimes cause me to lose sight of my visions and dreams but, I consider those moments lessons to better myself, strengthen my faith, grow my confidence and another reason to continue to operate in my gift.

This week, I had to meet stress head on when things with my new business: Religious Expressions went wrong. For the past 11 months, I have been dealing with branding my company: creating an identity, developing and finding unique products and creating the overall experience of my company. Because, my vision was perceived the wrong way, through one of my contractors, I faced a major breakdown that caused me to lose faith in my dream, re-think my vision, and ultimately lose sight of what I should do next.
The Devil would have loved that! Me giving up on making my God-given dream a reality but, luckily through passion, my faith was restored and God directed me in the way I needed to go in order to take the next step in fulfilling my dream.

Sometimes, we are faced with obstacles and we immediately think of them as a sign that we should give up but I believe Success doesn’t come the first time around, It goes to the person who is willing to look beyond their failures and setbacks, and continue to move forward until their dream has been achieved.

I’m operating in my gift and though I’ve had a setback, I believe that the lessons I am being taught through this entire process are just preparation for what God has destined for me to do in this life, in this day, in this time, and in this year!

Next time you are setback, keep believing in your visions and dreams, Next time an obstacle comes in and destroys the very path you were walking, take heed to the lesson, trust God, and let your steps be ordered according to his divine purpose!

Until Next Time, Stay Driven, Motivated, and Inspired to Succeed

Jaylen LaGrande
Chief Executive Officer – J. LaGrande Enterprises
http://jaylenlagrande.com

Publisher – Motivation Magazine
http://motivationmagazine.net

Discover Your Gifts, Discover Your Destiny!

My Family Often reminds me of how at a young age I would always inspire, encourage, and motivate everyone I came in contact with. To me it came natural; speaking kind and uplifting words to others. It was one of the many natural gifts and talents I was born with but little did I know, my gift would be the difference between failure and success in my life.

As a young child I remember when everyone else wanted to play “house” I wanted to play “store” or any other type of business I could be the boss of. At the young age of seven, I had everything I needed within me to properly execute my purpose in life because I possessed the child-like imagination which made everything I ever dreamed possible. Little did I know, my imagination would become the fuel to ignite the passion deep within me to become an entrepreneur, find my other gifts and talents in the process, and realize one of the most important principles of life.

When I was eleven years old, I began my first business venture: Jay’s Card Designs – A print and Graphic Design company specializing in the print and design of business cards, flyers, invitations, personal greetings cards and many other unique print items. It all started with my drive to be my own boss. Read How I started Here

Through Starting my own business, I began to discover that I possesed other great gifts and talents and one day, as I surfed the internet at the young age of 11, I stumbled across a poetry contest, entered into the contest, got my first poem published in an anthology with several other poets and from seeing that, It motivated me and caused me to declare that I would one day write and publish my own book/ pursue a career in writing and motivational speaking.

The basis of this blog is not just to share my story, but to empower you to create your story by discovering your destiny, pursuing your gifts and talents and letting life open unimaginable doors for you.

Over the next few days, I will be sharing with you How I began my journey to success through entreprenuership, writing, and encouraging others with the hopes that it inspires you to operate in your gift and Live your best life. . .

Today, I want you to stand up and declare: THE REST OF YOUR LIFE WILL BE THE BEST OF YOUR LIFE.

Until next time, Stay Motivated, Inspired, and Driven to Succeed.

Jaylen LaGrande
Author.Motivational Speaker.Entreprenuer
http://jaylenlagrande.com

M O T I V A T I O N

I am truly excited to announce that one of my major dreams is finally transistioning into reality.

Since I could remember, I've always wanted to publish my own magazine and through faith, patience, and a wealth of support from my network, I am proud to announce that I will be publishing my own quaterly magazine: MOTIVATION. Motivation Magazine is not about the thousands of advertisements we see so regularly in most magazines, but It is prepared in a way to encourage, inspire, uplift, and motivate every reader who engages in the content of this amazing publication!

I am excited and I hope that you will join me in making Motivation Magazine the #1 source for Motivation, Inspiration, and the Keys to Business Success.

Encourage all your friends to join and remember you're not just subscribing, you're joining a movement!

For more information visit http://motivationmagazine.net

No More Games, Time For Change

Lately I've noticed that I'm not doing all I should be doing. I've noticed that I've become too comfortable again and I am not truly operating in my gift as I should so I wrote this poem as declaration to get me back on track.

Check it out. . . .

I'm trying to hide behind lies that are not right. . . .
Living my Life in vain, because I'm scared to put up a fight. . . .
I know what I am doing is wrong, because I toss and turn at night. . . .
I can't continue to live in darkness, I need the Lord's marvelous light. . . .

God told me:
I must live what I speak. . . If I wanted to be made whole and able to acquire all that I seek. . . .
but, I've been running from the truth and dealing in lies. . . .
but, I thank GOD for watching over me and never moving his eyes. . .

From this day foward;
I'm going to truly operate in my gift. . . .
By faith I declare the storms in my life are about to majorly shift
I must stay strong in my mind because the devil tries to be swift. . . .
but I'm going out to battle and I'm fighting full force. . . .I WONT DRIFT!

So If you dont want to encourage me
and you are scared to see my strong. . . .
To you my friend I have two words. . . "So long"

It's time for me to move mountains
and live what I speak. . . .
I've let go and let God
and now strength resides where I was once weak. . .

Haters: Go ahead and hate but still shall I rise
Naysayers: Go ahead and speak your lies
Enemeies, I declare that you shall stumble and fall
Because everything the devil stole
I'm getting it ALL!

Journey to Success Lesson #1

I’ve learned a very valuable lesson this past month. As I continue to embark upon my journey to success, I’ve learned that though you’ll want to take everyone along on your journey, it is merely impossible to do so because all it will do is set you back.
For the past 4 months, I have been working on publishing my magazine: “Motivation,” and I because I believed so much in my dream and I know deep down inside “Motivation” will be the next greatest publication, I decided for my first issue I wanted to feature some family, close friends, and people from the network I have been building with authors, motivational speakers, life coaches etc.
I informed many of my family, friends, and colleagues that I would be publishing a magazine and though everyone seemed excited, when I asked them to write stories, or create advertisements (free of charge), or I wanted to simply interview them for an article all I received from many of them were false promises, procrastinating spirits, or continuous talk: “I will send it tomorrow” “O yea, I forgot.” And I began to grow frustrated and weary because I really wanted to help those close to me succeed.
Today, I stand strong, with a valuable lesson learned, It’s great to want to take everyone on your journey, especially those close to you, but you can’t because everyone doesn’t see your vision the way you see it.
I am no longer letting anyone hold me back from doing the things I need to do to get where I want to get, I know once the magazine is published there will be people saying I’m wrong for not including them and blah blah blah but I’ll have to push past the talk and succeed for myself and maybe then I’ll be able to help everyone else but just like the flight attendant says on every flight; In case there is a change in cabin pressure (which we do not anticipate) please secure your oxygen mask first, then assist others.
No longer will I continue to be setback, Today I move forward and run towards the mark, Today I declare I will succeed with no self-made limitations!