“Story and Music will forever have an intrinsic connection in my life. In my opinion one can’t exist without the other.”
PODCASTS
PODCASTS
PLAYLISTS
PLAYLISTS
I don’t have all the answers; but I do know it starts with GRATITUDE. And if it has to start with gratitude it must end by thriving in DISCOMFORT. We all deserve to live life, and to live that life to the full.
John 10:10
Two quotes from good men:
“Pain and suffering are inevitable; but so, too, are emotional refinement and the development of resilience. The pain is real. The suffering is unimaginable, but when the dust has settled a bit, the trauma will act as a defining point.”- TD Jakes
“Life is one big tug of war between mediocrity and trying to find your best self.” - David Goggins
A compilation of music from around the world. Timeless cuts-- made better because you listen. Thank you.
I usually leave inspirational stuff here so here it goes.
“God wasn’t having a bad day when He made me, and He wasn’t having a bad day when He made you either.”
- Angela Manuel Davis
Negative self-talk runs rampant for a lot of us. But, why? If anyone else would talk to you in that manner you would tell them to shut the hell up!
You are only as great as you let yourself be.
Love is light, and light is love. When your light is dim we all lose— For we were all made to illuminate the world.
Behavior modification says that I need to change so that I can receive His love.
Relationship cultivation says that I have received His love and through proximity and grace I’ll forever transform.
Modification is reservoir. Transformation is running water.
More about Him. I’ve got a lot of love to give to the world, but nothing compares to love that God has for me. Pressed down. Shaken together. Runneth over. Speak these two statements over your life: God wasn’t having a bad day when He made me! My crown is already paid for.
In my youth inconsistency in these two areas cost me more than I may ever realize. As of late consistency in these two areas has brought along with it blessings I never imagined. This playlist is shufflable, but I recommend all summer you let it ride.
If it’s impact that we seek; when are we going to start to do the work? If it’s love; when are you going to let her know how you feel? If God called us to it; when are we going to stop running from it? Don’t wait until it’s too late to fight for something you believe in. Don’t wait too long to love something more than you love yourself, for it’s in that love—that all good things flow. If you can reprogram everyone’s phone and alarm and replace ringers with your voice what would you say to everyone as you wake them up in the morning?
I’d say you’re loved by God more than you know, and that there’s no one else in the world that can do the work that you’re called to do. So get your ass up and start doing it.
With hope and love, enjoy these tunes!
Nos
Love in its truest form
What happens when love loses love? Do we gain it back just to lose it again? What happens when it’s effervescence is replaced with the trope transformation of melancholy? How do I know when love won’t lose love anymore? Nosa Eguae on Love: I’d rather realize the joy and pain of love, than experience a life without it; for as relational beings the absence of love brings upon an unbeknownst pain that brings with it unfathomable despair.
Toni Morrison on Love (May her wonderful soul rest in perfect peace): “It is easily the most empty cliché, the most useless word, and at the same time the most powerful human emotion—because hatred is involved in it, too."“Don't ever think I fell for you, or fell over you. I didn't fall in love, I rose in it.”“Love is or it ain't. Thin love ain't love at all,”
The only way to heal a broken heart is to love more. To lean in and make a proclamation that I won’t forebode my best day to save myself from the worst. Life just doesn’t work that way, no matter how good you get at foreboding joy; the pain of your toughest day will still consume you. I refuse to brace, slow down, or taper my love; because I’ve learned through enough goodbyes that the pain is going to hurt anyway. The only way for us to move forward is to love and live in its fullest expression; with vivacity that lets the vulnerability of goodbye create the intimacy for the next hello.
I’ll close with this.. When our heart is broken we know that we feel all of the hurt. So when our heart is full why don’t we give ourselves the freedom to feel all of the joy.
Life is always getting better if you let it.
- Nos
I keep a running log of quotes that inspire me. I’ll turn it into a book one day, but until then peep a few of my favorites.
“The single greatest way to find out how you feel about someone. Say goodbye.”- Phil Knight
“The reward you get for overcoming your last challenge is your next challenge.”- Bishop T.D. Jakes
”God wouldn’t have allowed you to see it if He didn’t put it in you to be it.”- Angela Manuel Davis
“We should not waste our failure—the great thing about failure is it is not final; you can always fail forward.” - Tim Storey
“I am who I am, at the worst of times as I am who I am at the best. If I don’t recognize the least of me, how will I ever be able to grow into the best version of myself.” - Nosa Eguae
“Small interactions and effortless acts of kindness can mean the difference between failure and success, pain and pleasure—or becoming the people we loathe or love to become. We are all more powerful than we realize.” - Travis Smiley
“I don’t trust people, who don’t love themselves then say I love you.” - Maya Angelou
“Cheer up you’re a worse sinner than you ever dared imagine, and you are more loved than you ever dare hope.” - Jack Miller
“Justice grows out of recognition of ourselves in each other. My liberty depends on you being free too.” - President Barack Obama
“If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less.” - Hunter Harrison
“You can only become great at the things you’re willing to sacrifice for.” - Maya Angelou
”Vision is a skill-set.” - Chris Carmona
“I can only trust you if when you make a mistake you are willing to own it, apologize for it and make amends. I can only trust you if when I make a mistake I am allowed to own it, apologize and make amends. No accountability, no trust.” - Brene Brown
Is it release, or is it control, or is it both. Oftentimes I find peace in release, but if I’m honest sometimes I also find peace in control. The duality doubters will tell you that it’s zero sum. That it’s one or the other, but I’ve lived enough life to know that’s not true. Life is way more nuanced than that. Yes, peace does come with release, but sometimes control brings peace with it too. Maybe I’m just a work in progress, or maybe we’re all just works in progress. Maybe most things aren’t simply summarized as this or that, black or white, maybe there’s more gray than we often want to accept. Maybe we need more grace for the gray.
I’m working on the release, while slowly relinquishing the peace I find in control. As God be my witness, and love be my focus. This playlist is perfectly curated compilation of sounds from across the world that resonate with either release or control or both. I hope you enjoy it.
**Shuffle if you want, but it’s best consumed from front to back.
-Nos
I don’t dream a lot, but when I do I think about you. I wonder if you’ll appreciate a summer vibe as much as I do, how about entertaining? What’s your summer drink, are we going to have a summer wedding? If we do, where will we go on our 10th anniversary? How about our 30th? Questions that will soon have answers— I can wait, but I hope I don’t have to wait too long.
I’ll keep living, loving, and growing until then.
-Nos
This playlist is best consumed on shuffle. I hope you enjoy.
I just want to keep showing up whole and loving big. Stepping up for the ones that love me, and staying away from the ones that don’t. I’ve got a lot of love to give, but I also have a lot of work to do. I want balance between the work, but I'm aware of how precious these times are. No kids, no wife.. So I go hard now. So one day I can have the freedom to give them my love, my time, and my everything.