FOCUS IS EVERYTHING IF YOU MUST SUCCEED

 What's up wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are you all doing today? I hope you're all having a great day, today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day!

Happy Labor Day my people! I hope you're spending it with those you love.

Get my accessories here:www.maryamsjoyfullifeapparel.com

Today, I want to share a topic that helps me everyday of my life. I believe that this will help you too. See, in life, we are constantly being bombarded with signs and signals and these things have the power to control us if we let them. We have to know how not to let them control us. Our ability to focus is very powerful. 

Focus is power. Where your focus goes, your energy flows and where your energy flows, there's growth and expansion. You want to make sure that you're only fueling what you want with your energy and that includes the type of thoughts you let yourself dwell on.

The sun gives vitality and strength to plant life on earth. Without the sun, we won't have warmth and life as we know it, would not exist. The sun is the number one and most vital source of energy and life on this planet. You're the sun of your world. If you pour your energy on people and things you don't like, you are empowering them to do you harm. I encourage you and me to become aware of where we focus our attention. If it doesn't feel good, if it brings you fear and constriction, it's not right. Focus on things and people who bring you joy and excitement. 

Don't focus on things that you want to change, focus on the thing you want, that is the change. If you want a baby, focus on a baby not the absence of a baby. If you want money, don't focus on poverty. The trick of the enemy is to make you focus on the things that are going wrong or missing. Being that we are vibratory beings, your focus determines the state of mind you're in and that in turn, becomes your point of attraction. If you allow yourself to focus on what is wrong with you, you feel bad about yourself and when you do, you attract people and circumstances that will make you to keep feeling bad.

I want to feel good all the time because feeling good is amazing! I have come to the awareness that when I am not feeling good, it's because I am focusing on negative thoughts. To feel good, my thoughts have to be positive ones. So, I shift my focus to positive thoughts. You can do this by giving thanks for the things that are going right in your life. You cannot be grateful and feel bad at the same. If you can't seem to find anything to be thankful for; "you're alive!" That is a great place to start. While you still have breath in you, IT AIN'T OVER!

I hope this inspired you because it sure inspired me.

Have an amazing day!

With gratitude,

Maryam

LEARNING TO NOT OVERWORK AND SHOWING MY NEW COLLECTION FROM FEMME LUXE

 

What's up wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are you all doing today? I hope you're having a great day today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day!

Life is beautiful when you have God in it. I can not imagine my life without God. My life would be over without God's grace and mercies. So, for this I am forever grateful to God.

The past few days, I have been really busy with work and creating new merchandise for my store. I rarely rested and that's not acceptable. I should know better and do better. Somehow, it's as though hard-work is what sustains me. But I know better. God is my provider and helper. It's almost as if there's a spirit in the air pushing me to keep overworking so I wouldn't have financial issues but I know better. I can't trust in my power because God is the One, who gives me power to make wealth. So, I have made up my mind to take a break and take care of myself and step out of the way for God to do what only He can do, sustain me. Overwork leads to resentment and unnecessary anger and I don't want any of that.

If you find yourself constantly striving and pushing without any rest, maybe this is your reminder to slow down. Don't push yourself to the point where what you love doing becomes a chore. That's also my reminder. I am so full of gratitude to have the opportunities that I have. God is to be praised for all of it.

One of the things I love to do is blog about my favorite things, food, clothes and places.

Today, I have a few pieces I received from Femme Luxe Refinery that I am excited to share with you.

Grey Off The Shoulder Loungewear set Imana https://femmeluxe.co.uk/grey-off-the-shoulder-loungewear-set-imana

This set is so beautiful and comfortable. I love it. The front is cropped but the back is full covering. How cool is that?!

Sage Mesh Overlay Long Sleeve Dress https://femmeluxe.co.uk/sage-mesh-overlay-long-sleeve-mini-dress-mensa

I love this dress. The style and texture. The only thing is... I ordered a size too small. This is a size 10 and that's my size on everything but this dress seems to run a little small. Make sure to order a  size bigger than what you'd normally wear.

Emerald Green Metallic Puff Sleeve Dress: https://femmeluxe.co.uk/emerald-green-metallic-puff-sleeve-twist-front-mini-dress-emily

I love this dress. It's a size 10 and it fits perfectly. I like the shine to it and feel really sexy in it. This dress is true to size. Get it if you feel it calling your name.

Black Public Figure Slogan Tee https://femmeluxe.co.uk/black-public-figure-slogan-print-t-shirt-leah

This tee is so relevant right now, it's crazy. Lol! I thought it was right to get a tee that reminds me of my status as a "Public Figure." What?!!!! I forget all the time that I am someone of interest. Grateful to Femme Luxe for reminding me through this tee.

Thank you all so much for your support. Make sure you're subscribed to my mailing list. Thank you once again. I hope the links above each picture leads you to next outfit.

With gratitude,

Maryam

I AM AN AFRICAN WOMAN GETTING A DIVORCE

 Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are you all doing today? I hope you are all having an amazing day and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day. Thank you all for joining me.

So, Divorce is the topic for today. Let's make it Divorce and being an African woman. According to the African culture, specifically Nigeria, when a woman gets married, she is expected to stay married forever. Women are raised to look forward to marriage and raising kids. There's a big difference between how the men are raised from how the women are raised. Men are raised to be independent, pursue careers and titles, while women are raised to prepare for marriage and child-bearing. It is a night and day difference. 

The attention I have received from my public divorce is crazy. The society expects a woman to be broken and sad when her marriage ends. As women, we are expected to conform to society's norm of being broken and walking around with a long face after a marriage ends or a relationship ends. Whereas, the man is expected to be strong and macho. Going about his business as usual like nothing happened.

Well, I refuse to be broken. I refuse to conform to society's expectation of me. In fact, I will shine my brightest yet, in this season of my life. As everyone now knows, I am not your average African woman. I won't endure pain and discomfort, hoping for a miracle. Whilst God is obviously telling me to pursue my peace and joy. I have discovered that I am a Miracle.

I no longer have to convince myself to be happy because I am happy. I have learned to be ENOUGH within myself and truly, that is liberating. The realization that I don't need a man to feel whole is truly amazing. Ok, let's face it, I am Maryam. I am a Queen. I don't live by society's or other's expectations of me. I connect to my God and follow His guidance as I go. I have always been this way; A TRUE  seeker but really needed to expand spiritually, in order to truly accept this side of me.

People's opinions are simply what they are "opinions." They don't define me. Society's expectations can not limit me. I refuse to be a robot controlled by society's buttons. Everyone of us came to this Earth to expand and create a life we love living. Whether that happens to involve others or not, we should keep moving. We can't allow people or things to keep us from creating a life that is full of joy and sweetness.

I am grateful to God for this awakening and the Grace to stay grounded in God. This truly is my biggest blessing. All of society's rules and expectations are limits, if we accept them without questioning,they become imposed on us. Every limiting belief you accept, becomes a part of your experience. 

Many African women stay in difficult/abusive marriages because of the fear of what people might say, the fear of being alone and almost always because of their children. For me, for the sake of my positive energy and my kids, I am embracing this new life. I want my kids to feel the right energy around them and truly learn about their true identity in God. 

Having peace is priceless. Having joy is priceless. These qualities are all part of who we are and nothing or anyone should be allowed to steal our joy.

Today, as I write this post, I chose peace, I choose joy and most of all, I choose me.

Society can have it's expectations and people can have their biases. In the grand scheme of things, it all doesn't matter until I allow it. I, MARYAM aka Maryam's Joyful Life, refuse to allow anyone or thing steal my joy.

With gratitude,

Maryam

TWO OF MY FAVORITE DRESSES|| FEMMELUXE

 

Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are y'all doing today? I hope you're having an amazing day and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day. Thank you all for visiting my blog today.

I did a video a few days ago, showcasing my scarves collection. In that video, I promised to make a post with links to purchase the dresses I wore on the video. Please, look below for the links to the dresses I wore in the video.

White Mesh Floral Sleeve Bodycon Dress: https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/white-mesh-floral-sleeve-bodycon-mini-dress-kellen

My beads are from my store: www.maryamsjoyfullifeapparel.com. Get 10% off your order: MARYAMSJOYFULLIFE10

Black Belted Bodycon Midi Dress: https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/black-belted-bodycon-midi-dress-angelica

I hope that this blog helps you find your next favorite dress.

In case you missed the video of my head scarves, here's the link:

With love and gratitude,

Maryam

MY NEW LOUNGE WEAR COLLECTION|| FEMME LUXE REFINERY

Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are you all doing today? I hope you're all having a great day today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day. Thank you for checking out my blog today.

Today, I wanted to share my new lounge-wear collection with you all from Femme Luxe Refinery . There are many reasons I love Femme Luxe Refinery but I'll share one of them with you. I always find what I am looking for on their website. 

On this particular go on their website, I wanted to pick lounge wears that I had never had before. Something that was cute and appealing to me. Well, I found four very cute lounge wears that I am very excited to share with you on today's blog.

You can purchase anyone of these lounge wears you see me wearing in this blog post. Just click the links I have added to each outfits and you will be taken straight to the location of each outfit.

Rust Ribbed Pocket Detail Lounge-wear Set

 https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/rust-ribbed-pocket-detail-loungewear-set-rust

Here's why I love this Rust Ribbed Lounge-wear; it's soft to the touch and orange is a beautiful color.. If you like this type of style, you may want to check it out.

I love that the pants are high-waist and the strings add a little character to the outfit.

Grey Ribbed Twist Front Lounge-wear Set:

 https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/grey-ribbed-twist-front-loungewear-set-calley

I think that I might like this one more than the rest of my lounge-wears. I love the twist front and gorgeous fit of this set. It gave me the feeling of wealth. I like wealth😁. Grey is a neutral color and I wouldn't normally go for it but I am glad I did. This is gorgeous. If you like this type of style, make sure to click the link above and check it out.

The material is very stretchy and the outfit is very well made.

Running up the steps like I always do, is even easy while wearing this gorgeous set.

Even watching my favorite Hallmark Christmas movie has never felt better in my gorgeous lounge-wear.

Beige Lounge-wear Tracksuit Set:

 https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/beige-loungewear-tracksuit-set

This cute beige tracksuit set is really lovely. It was the first I opened on my package and I love it. In fact, it is what I was wearing while typing this post for you all. I've never had an outfit in this color before. I mean, I have had many tracksuits in my life. As an athlete, you live in tracksuits lol. I used to live in tracksuits when I was in college. Now, I live in lounge wears lol. This particular style appeals to me. If you're not into all the extra cute stuff in your clothes, this may just be the right choice for you.

It even has simple pockets you can play with.

Even my Zozo likes the pockets. Remember to click the link above to check this out for yourself.

Khaki Crop Lounge-wear Set:

 https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/khaki-crop-jumper-loungewear-set-deanna

This Khaki Crop top lounge-wear is gorgeous. I really really like the color. I like the extra satiny look and touch to the material. It's a first for me and I am digging it lol. 

The pants are cute too and are tight all the way to the ankle and I don't mind that at all. 

Seems like strings are the thing too and I still don't mind lol... The strings bring a little bit of play to the outfit to keep your hands busy when you're nervous lol.

If you like any of these outfits, make sure to click the links next to each title and you will be taken straight to the page where you can make a purchase. 

Thank you for being here today.

You're amazing!

Maryam

A HEARTY CONGRATULATIONS TO ZOZIBINI TUNZI CROWNED MISS UNIVERSE 2019

Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are y'all doing today? I hope y'all are having an amazing day today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day!

Zozibini Tunzi former Miss South Africa was crowned 2019 Miss Universe a couple of days ago. I dedicate this post to her and the inspiration she's brought to young girls all over the world. "It is always deemed impossible until someone does it."  Your success is NEVER the result of being born in the perfect skin, race, country or family. It is born from knowing how much of God you have in you and how to access God in you!

Zozibini will serve as an inspiration for every brown girl and woman who has had to deal with self-esteem issues and derogatory remarks for the color of their skin. I hope that young girls and women all over will see this as an inspiration to believe in themselves.

In today's social media age, women and young girls compare themselves to highly edited images of other women that they are deceived to strive towards. While many of them are unaware of the negative energy that saturates these images, they are however, very well influenced by them. This negative energy shows up in different subtle ways. The most common way it shows up is in their minds. It may appear as a harmless little thought about losing an extra pound or getting plastic surgery in order to measure up...  It could show up as a mindless thought of feeling inadequate.

Anytime you feel negative about your skin, size or appearance, I want you to remember that you're perfect! The God who created you didn't make a mistake. Strive to be a better version of you each passing day. Don't let somebody's poor image they hold of themselves, affect how you feel about you. Anyone who condemns you because of how you look, they are expressing how they feel about themselves not you. You're simply perfect sister!

Don't let negative thoughts creep into your mind. Embrace yourself and speak positive things to yourself.

Thank you Zozibini for inspiring young girls and women everywhere. Your reign has brought a new vibe to what is beautiful. All that God created is beautiful and thank you for reminding us all of that.

Until next time,
💖