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WE ARE NOT HERE TO BE SUCCESSFUL…

We  had it shoved  to our faces and dangled under our noses  a hundred times that you’re successful if you’re good looking, have big savings, if business is doing well, if you have power and position, if you have all the new gadgets, and if you can travel the world—- those things are the measure of you being successful.

I remember January this year, when I decided to toss my lucrative career as a Graphic designer to an “adventure” as a solo photographer/graphic designer. My parents were like “Are you sure? It’s difficult to survive now, a lot of people are looking for work!”

But I told myself I need to go out of my comfort zone, need to go out of my nest, I need some flying lessons—— I wanted to grow.

We are all afraid of failure. It’s so easy to lose heart and be shamed when we are trying to live our lives for our dreams, and there are times when things don’t seem to be conforming to the world’s Idea of what our version of success really is. we get pulled off course, we give up, and we head off in another direction.

I remembered one late night, I was in the kitchen having coffee. My mom came in, and she was like, “how are you doing? You’re not getting any younger, should you look for regular work? I’m talking about daily work and monthly salary.” I know what she meant, but I was like “Ma I know what I’m doing. What’s wrong with doing what you love? Besides, it’s only June, so we’ll see what will happen when this year ends.”

Honestly, there were low times. It’s quite frustrating when you check your bank and your savings aren’t enough to keep you afloat. When things don’t seem to be going well in our lives, and all we see are heaps of trials, it becomes easy to conclude that we made a bad decision, and that I’m in the wrong place, doing the wrong thing, on the wrong path.

But I have decided to be strong in my resolve and continue. I always told myself that God has a plan, and His plan is different from mine. God doesn’t waste His miracles. When it’s beyond your power to get things  done, that’s where God performs  His miracles. God’s time to help is when things are brought to the last extremity.

God truly is a great provider in my personal journey. He guides me when I ask for guidance. One example of that is when out of nowhere I’ll get a client, and the client would refer me to another client. I can’t say I am already made, but the jobless guy is slowly seeing his path starting to straighten up. And I am now even thinking of hiring my own artist/photo editor. All these came from my trust in God.

How bad do you want your dreams to be fulfilled? What is your purpose? Do you want to be famous and be glorified? You know on the one hand the world’s shouting at us you’re not good enough, you should be this and that. The world will make you feel that you need to be somebody, you need labels to be significant or successful, and in short you need to be affirmed. You and I, we are not here to be successful in the eyes of the world, we are not here to get all the glory. The one thing that I found real fulfillment, real joy, real satisfaction, and real life, is in taking the one thing that God has given me- - -  the courage and the ability to be a story teller for Him.

I’m going to switch gears for a second. I received an email last month from a complete stranger I was quite shocked, I was like “Maaan! Somebody’s reading my blog.” No idea what that person has been going through but the email made me smile. Inspiring people through your life is one of the greatest things one could ever do. Not everyone wakes up hopeful, not everyone believes in himself, and not everyone has someone to listen to them. So this is a motivation for me to do better. Fulfillment comes in life when you go for the things that you love and getting out, doing it and training towards it. 

Visit my online portfolio and peep my works at www.arturoalera.com. All rights reserved ART ALERA.