The Director's Vision

The Belgian Pavilion, Virginia Union University
Virginia Historic Landmark (1966)

On Saturday, May 31st, 2014, I had the pleasure of auditioning for The Heritage Theater Ensemble at Virginia Union University located in Richmond, VA. It was an audition like no other, a variety of fun acting warm-ups and activities I'd never experienced before. Hooray for new experiences! Not only did I have fun during the audition process, it was a beautiful, sunshine-filled day! Virginia Union University's campus is classic and it reminded me of my college days at VSU. All of the elements were adding up just right and on the inside, I felt joy, peace and excitement all at the same time.

Selfies in the Sunshine!

          During the days following the audition, naturally, I waited and wondered whether or not I would receive a call back. I remained confident but also came to grips with the fact that I may not fit a role and be cast. Just then, like an Epiphany, it hit me! It's not about me, it's about the director's vision. Not being chosen for a part only means that I did not fit a particular role, and has nothing to do with my worth, value, talent or abilities. I could be the best actress in the entire world but it does not mean I fit what the director has envisioned. Then, I thought about God, as if He, too, were like a Director in our lives. He has this great vision that He wants to see become a reality! 

Jeremiah 1:5 NLT ~ "I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born I set you apart..." 

          As actor's (and humans), we sometimes do not see what the director (or God) sees. We think we want a role, a particular position, a certain job, who we thought was the 'perfect' girlfriend or the 'perfect' boyfriend, or that we should have, could have or would have. But if God does not allow it to happen, it's because it was not apart of the greater vision He has planned for our lives. It does not determine our worth, value, talent or abilities. Just because this or that did not go the way we expected in the past, does not mean we can't have high expectations for our future! Your 'baby daddy' may have abandoned you and your child but God says He has a Knight in Shining Armour waiting for you if you will just trust and obey Him!

Proverbs 16:9 NLT ~ 'We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.' 

          If you were putting together a production, a show, an event, or even a puzzle, wouldn't you want it all to fit together magically? Yes, of course! How blessed we are to have God choosing the pieces of our puzzle. Some pieces of our puzzle will be hard to find a purpose for and connect to, while others will be easier. There will be curves and corners that you will have to turn in order to get it to fit into your destin(y)nation. We may not see the full picture now, but we have to trust that we will later.

Jeremiah 29:11 NLT ~ "For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."

          

                 Sometimes we feel as if when we have control over how our lives play out, we can control our happiness. We need to let go of this impossibility, we cannot control every part of our lives. We can however control our choices, the choice to be happy and content regardless of what happens. Refuse to let the Devil's attacks steal your joy! Regardless of what happened in your past or even what's going on right now, God has a great plan for your future. Let go and let God write your timeline!

Romans 8:28 KJV ~ And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose. 

           Well, God added July 12, 2014 to my timeline. 

Virginia Union University & The Heritage Ensemble

proudly present

The Art of "Staged Reading" at the 

Belgian Theater

"The Slumber Party"

By E. Claudette Freeman

4  pm

Free! (Donations Accepted)

1500 N. Lombardy Street

Richmond, VA 

See you there! 

Leave a comment: What vision of God have you seen come to reality in your life? What picture have the pieces of your puzzle created in your life? How did He allow your setbacks to work together for your good or the good of someone else?  
Share your testimony below:

Thank you for reading!

               

The AUTHOR of L O V E

  

If I had a quarter for every time I heard the phrase "God is Love", I could likely quit my part-time job! I can remember hearing this phrase since my childhood but in all actuality, even though I called myself a "Christian", I had no clue exactly what this phrase meant. Yes, I went to church and I understood the concept of God loving me, but I had no true direction for application of the principle to my real life.

After experiencing several failed, unhealthy and even abusive relationships, I decided to give up my search for love from human beings, search for this love from God and find out exactly what this phrase meant. I was so sick and tired of failing, I said "Forget this! Jesus is going to be my imaginary boyfriend!" In a sense that is what He is, an imaginary, friend, father, brother and lover all in one. The only thing is that His love is so real! I didn't blame my childhood, my ex-boyfriends, or anyone else for my past relationship mistakes. It wasn't them, it was me. I had no clue what I was doing. I didn't know who, what, where, when, why or how to be in a relationship! If we weren't taught or did not experience examples of real love as a child, we have to accept the responsibility as mature adults to teach ourselves.

I discovered that the reason why we hear the phrase "God is love" is because He is the AUTHOR of Love. He wrote the greatest love story of all time: The Bible. It tells of how he loved us and the world so much that He sent His son to die for us, but most importantly to be a living example of love and the type of life we should strive to live. If Trey Songz invented sex, God invented Love! 

John 13: 34 - NKJV ~ A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 

We will not be able to follow this command, if we do not study and understand the example of love that Jesus showed to the world while he lived on Earth. The B I B L E is often referred to as our Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. Do you remember the popular question and answer sessions on the topic "What is love?" We need to stop trying to come up with our own answers. The Bible clearly tell us what love is. Even further, it gives instructions to wives, husbands, discusses sex, adultery, name the topic, the Bible covers it! God's love is the rock to all strong foundations.

Proverbs 3: 5-7a ~ Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; 

Not studying love before entering a relationship is like trying to become a pediatrician without going to medical school! I can hear an angry mother now yelling "Keep your hands off of my child!" Well I'm saying this, "Stay out of relationships!" Think about it, marriage is like a divine graduation. Most people get married in a church, their weddings are officiated by licensed ministers, pastors, preachers and teachers, but we've forgotten one thing! We did not study, go to class, pass the tests, and we skipped the school of God's Love. We are cheating, taking the easy way out, paying for our marriage license without studying for it and so many are getting away with it. 

Imagine if like getting a driver's license, we had to take a test before we're given our marriage license! How many of us would pass? When the tests of marriage come and they will, we can't pass so we take the easy way out again and we pay for a divorce! You decided to start it, but where are you getting the strength to finish it?! Our foundations our weak and the divorce rates steadily increase.

One thing I've learned is that people are not perfect. It is not humanly possible for them to love you in a perfect way. Only God is perfect, and only He can do that. The reason why we need God is so that He can be there to help us when we are hurt by people.

Proverbs 10:25 ~ When the storms of life come, the wicked are whirled away, but the Godly have a lasting foundation.  

T's 10 Tips!:

• Establish a good support system!: friends, family and a church home that will love you and encourage you to pursue God and His plans for your life. 
• Go to class!: Bible Study, Sunday School, Workshops, Conferences, Revivals will equip you with the tools to learn how to study the Bible on your own. They will also keep you busy and allow you to meet new people! You won't have time for a pity party then!
• If you still don't know where to start, find someone in your area who can help you. Call that "church boy" or "church girl" you know or message the person on Facebook who is always talking about God, lol!
• Now you can study on your own! Find a translation of the Bible you can understand. These are a few good ones: NIV, NLT, The Message & Amplified Bible. Study how much God loves you and how valuable you are to Him! Read books, articles, and of course, my blog :-)!  
• Study the example of love Jesus exhibited while on Earth!
• Learn what He requires from men and women in relationships. He designed us differently but we have an equally great contribution to a relationship.
• Learn the difference between healthy and unhealthy relationships, and the definition of Domestic Violence.
• Don't strive to be perfect but do your best! I am not saying you need to have read the entire Bible before you enter a relationship, but you at least need some basic principles and to know how to seek His wisdom, understanding and direction in your time of need. 
• Pursue your dreams and goals, focus on God and focus on YOU! 
• And finally, "Don't seek a mate, seek God!" ~ Creflo Dollar.   

Once you have studied enough and come to a realization of how valuable you are, you won't settle for anything less than God's best. God will then direct your path to the person He plans to bless you exceedingly, abundantly, and above all with. If you are already married or in a relationship, it is not too late, you can still apply these principles to your current situation! God can help you with your mate! Trust Him. He is the author of love. God is love. He loves you and He wants what's best for you. 

In the meantime, check out this song and video entitled "Higher Love" by Sho Baraka, one of my new favorite Christian Hip Hop Artists. It's a perfect match to this blog, Enjoy!

Thank you for reading! Remember, I'm new at this! Leave a comment, ask a question, let me know what you think! If you're shy, you can leave a comment anonymously. Thank you in advance for your love and support!

Tiffany Lee

The A R T of Tiffany Lee

art¹

ärt/

noun

1. 1.

   the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.

                                                                                                                                      ((www.google.com))

 { { Welcome to "The  Art of T I F F A N Y L E E" } }

Speaking of expression, words cannot express how excited I am to finally begin writing this blog! You may be able to tell by how much I've written! I promise not to make a habit out of this! You may be wondering why I chose to write or maybe even, why I chose the name. Well listen (or read!) and let me explain!:

I love the definition of art above. As human beings, everything that we create, from our own imagination, everything that begins with a thought and evolves into a physical reality is a form of art. Art is something that encompasses a broad variety of human creative skill. We see art in the form of paintings, crafts, photography, drama, fashion, poetry, sculpture, graphic design, architecture, music, and the list could go on and on. We can see it, touch it, hear it, taste it and feel it, it just hits our every sense! I mean think about it, sometimes we eat really good food and it's like art work on a plate! As human beings, we are able to produce an array of works that can be appreciated for their beauty and.or emotional power. 

For so long, this blog has been a figment of my imagination and has finally evolved into a physical reality. For as long as I can remember, writing has been a very important part of my life. When I first began learning to read and write in elementary school, my grandmother stressed the importance of my penmanship and how my writing needed to be clear enough for people to read. My letters were required to look exactly like the letters I am typing right now. 

                        I didn't choose to write, writing chose me! 

By the time I was in the 2nd grade, my cursive penmanship looked exactly like the examples! One school day, my second grade teacher sent me to the classroom of one of the strictest teachers in the entire grade with one of my writings. I wasn't asked to write in cursive but I decided to show off on this one particular day. Honestly, I was afraid of what would happen. After leaving her class, I returned to Mr. Bruno with a handful of candy. To this day, I receive a compliment on my handwriting just about every other day. I hope my grandmother smiles in Heaven every time she hears it!

I am not saying I am a perfect writer, but, this is sort of how my love affair with writing began. A few years later, I began journaling. At the time, I thought the events of my middle school mischief belonged in a major motion picture movie. Let's just say some of those journals are currently nowhere to be found after my mother and father got a hold of them! I got into so much trouble, I stopped writing. A few years ago I was still somewhat resentful of my mother for invading my privacy because I thought she'd hindered a gift or a destiny in progress. At the time, I was devastated but now, it's funny to me! I took Honors English courses in High School and College and received one of the top scores in my high school on the English Regents Exam. My mother loves to journal and write as well and my 21 year old sister is studying Journalism at the University of Tampa and is Head Copy Editor and News Writer of The Minaret (The University of Tampa's online newspaper). One of my lifelong goals is to write a book (or books!).Writing is a Family Affair over here!

I decided to call this blog The Art of T I F F A N Y L E E because art is so unpredictable. Forest Gump would describe it as a "box of chocolates because you never know what you're gonna get!" I am inspired by so much and just about any experience can spark an idea or something for me to write about. So instead of me trying to describe everything you could possibly get from this one blog, you will simply just have to taste and see. One thing I do know is that I have an intense love and passion for God, inspiring and encouraging others. The days of me writing solely about everything that happened in my day in my journal are long gone. I've had my fair share of trouble with that! Now when I write in my journal, I write words of encouragement (usually based on biblical readings & bible verses from my personal bible study, quotes, etc.) and have finally decided to share them with others who may need it! 

~

Enough about me, YOU have a GIFT, too!

Romans 12:6-8 ~ God has given us gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness, do it gladly.

God gives us all gifts, our gift in return to Him is to share it with others. Your gift may be something that you do so well, that comes so naturally that it does not even feel as if it is a gift. You receive compliments about it all the time, people encourage you to pursue it further and plainly put, your gift looks good on you! Your gift may not be the same as someone else's but that does not make you or your gift, any less special! It should not be about competition, but about making your contribution, to the world.

What is your gift and when are YOU going to share it? How are you sharing your God-given talents with the world?! It is one of the many reasons you were placed on this Earth!

Leave a comment and tell me what your gift is, how you've shared it in the past, how you are sharing it now or how you plan to share it in the future. If you have a business or product that has evolved from your gift, share that, too! Let's support each other on our quest to share our God-given talents with the world!

Thank you for reading! 

Tiffany Lee