Slow Down

Speeding up doesn’t always put you ahead. Slowing down in certain seasons can be more beneficial in the long run. In this episode, we talk about the importance of taking your time in certain spaces and remembering that time and seasons belong to God.

Scripture References Acts 1:7

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Welcome everyone back to another episode of In the Conversation with Amaya. Happy Tuesday. We are at the end of May, and man, has May been a good month. Yeah, May has been a good month. We are about to head into the month of June. And June every year is like the busiest month for me. Like every time I go on my calendar, it is always so busy. And I had family coming into town last year. It was the same. I had family coming to town, but I'm already looking at my June calendar and I'm like, oh my goodness. Okay, so June is already starting to get packed between work and uh some client stuff and family coming in town and something that I'm trying to host. Uh yeah, there's just a lot going on in June, but I am thankful, I praise God, for bringing me this far into the year. The year is moving, but you gotta keep moving even as you are moving, so even as time is moving. So again, happy Tuesday. The weather in here in Georgia, it is raining. It's been raining, y'all, for like over a week. I don't know if Georgia is in its feelings or what is going on, but Georgia has been crying, maybe tears or just a bunch of rain has been coming down. But you know, a little rain will not hurt. It doesn't hurt to get some, it doesn't hurt to get wet sometimes. It doesn't hurt to get uh the water that's needed for the plants for outside. It can be a refreshing time when you have water. So we are thankful for the rain. Even though your girl is not a fan of rain, I do not like rain, y'all. Believe it or not, rain begins on my nerves. I think it's when I don't have my umbrella. I think that's when I begin to add it to. But other than that, y'all, I would rather have snow. I know that sounds crazy, but I I'm just used to snow more, so rain is like eh. So, anyways, other than that, life is going well, everything is well for me. Uh, classes for mixed fit at my Thursday location. It has been going so well. We have been having a blast. And if you're not in class, my question to you is why aren't you in class? Come to class, okay? We be having a time, and it's just so fun to be able to dance and connect and use the talents and what God has given each one of us to be able to share. Nothing that the Lord gives us is just for us to just have, it's for us to share, for us to build community, for us to connect with others in different spaces. So I am just grateful for the opportunity to dance and I'm able to move my body. It is definitely such a blessing. I am in dance since I was a child. My mother, uh, who passed away when I was 16, um, she raised, of course, she raised us, but we got into dance in church and then we kind of just continued on. Really, me and my other sister did, and it's just been something that's been with me, so it's very personal for me. I really enjoy dancing, and I just I just enjoy it. It's just it's just so much fun. So, anyways, enough of all that. Let's get into today's episode. So, y'all, today's episode is actually sending back from so it's something that happened recently, but the lesson and the teaching is gonna come back from something that happened a couple weeks ago. So, um uh back in April before I went to Nebraska, I've been making sure to keep my nails done because let me tell y'all something. The reason why I had kind of stopped getting my nails done for a while was because I would get my nails done and they would break because I would get the acrylic right. And a couple years ago, I went to the gym, had my nails done, and I was doing a leg press or something, and I somehow, somehow, the nail got broke. It broke, and I remember I didn't want to keep working out because I didn't want to get an infection. So the people at the front desk were here to help me with some stuff, and then I went over to Walmart real quick, got some stuff, some yeah, all type of stuff. I ended up becoming a a little doctor there, and you know, bending up my finger, and so I just would keep breaking my nails at the gym. So I was like, I'm done getting my nails done, anyways. I'm kind of over that phase, and so I've been saying, okay, this year it's gonna be non-negotiable. We're gonna keep these nails done. Okay, we're gonna keep them done. So I went to the nail shop, and this was this is yeah, this was literally like a day before I was flying out. I had got French tip, and I'd be a little worried about going to new salons. I had gone to one, but I went to a new one, and when I go to salons, I'm always looking at, you know, how clean it is, you know, the customer service, how they're doing, and and all that. All that's very important to me. You know, I'm an entrepreneur, I'm a businesswoman, so customer service is big to me, and so is cleanliness, you know, when you have clients and people coming into your space. And so I went there and it was cool. Um, the staff, they were very great, they were local, and um, I was speaking to them and they were, you know, I was telling, you know, you know, I wanted a French tip, and I was trying to explain to them, like, hey, I don't want like the pink coloring, but I want like the one that's gonna make my nail, you know, pretty clear. And so like, yeah, okay, you know, like they got they got me, and you know, they did it and it was good. Uh, it was a little longer than what I expected, but it's okay. And so um, one lady was doing my toes, and the other man was uh the man was doing my nails, and so he did them, and you know, me, I'm not very educated on nails, so you know I trust that when I go into a space with a professional that you know what you're doing. If I'm paying you, you know what you're doing, you know the expertise, you know exactly what it is that needs to be done. So he did my nails, and you know, long story short, okay, they didn't good now. Typically, when I get French tip, they last me almost about a month, okay, three weeks for sure before they even start to lift. So I got these, and I think literally the second week they were starting to lift, and I'm kind of like, mmm, okay, right. And so, like, they're starting to lift, and I just felt like that wasn't normal. Like, we're not even really two to three weeks in. Why is my nail already lifting? Okay, like that's not cool. So, long story short, came to that point where you know had to start taking them off, and it was time to go to the nail salon. Then the other thing was I was doing my sister's hair and I had the acrylics, but the thing about it was the acrylics were kind of slowing me down when I was interlocking my sister's hair, and so I can interlock with the nails, but they were kind of slowing me down because part of the hair would get stuck in the acrylic, and then it would just, you know, it would hurt my sister's head. So I was like, okay, I'm gonna go before she came back. I was like, I'm gonna go to a nail salon, I'm gonna get these taken off, and I'm going to just like I didn't know if I was gonna get my nails done or if I was just gonna like just leave it alone, right? So then I go to another nail tech because at this point, if you mess up my nails, if I feel like my nails aren't lasting, I'm not going to see you again, okay? So I go back to the nail shop, and the nail tech was looking at my nails, and he was basically telling me that whoever the person that did my nails, um, they basically uh went too far down into my nail bed, um, you know, causing damage and causing um some issues, you know. I think it had affected the lifting, but his point was that they basically took, you know, they kind of rushed through it. They weren't um very they didn't take, they didn't, they didn't use the right tools also. They said they used a tool that was a little bit more harsher, and they went further and deeper into the net nail bed that they needed to that they needed to originally do, and um, because of that, it caused for my nail to not only not last longer, but it caused damage, and so now there's gonna be some repairs. Now, you know, that nail has to take some time to kind of regrow, but that made sense is why my nails did not last as long, and so the other part, um, because of that is the importance of what I'm tying this into of taking your time. Now, eventually, I just kind of had him take them off, and I am now a gel nail girly, and so he was able to kind of go back in and he put he took his time and he put extra layers of the gel to kind of one help repair it, but also so that way the nail can last longer onto my nails, and so I said, you know what, I like the gel on the natural, it's not too much, it's simple, and my nails can stay done without the extra things. Now, my problem is, you know, I spent over, I don't know, $115. I I spent a good chunk of change for my nails and toes. So if I spend a bunch of money, I expect that to last me a certain time. And the thing about it, what I'm what I got from this was um the importance of taking your time in things, right? So when you don't take your time or if you rush through things, there's always gonna be leave rooms for gaps and issues that then later you're going to have to make up for because you did not take your time the first time, right? And so when you don't take your time and then you're in a rush, one of the points that he made out was that typically, you know, larger larger nail salons will do that because you know they're trying to they're work they're focused on speed, they're focused on speed. You know, let's hurry up so we can get the next client in, get your money, get the next person in, right? Now I don't know this is what the salon's intent was, but the work will speak for itself, okay? And I know the the nail tech that I went to, he said he cares about he cares about value, he cares about you know the care of the nail, right? Beyond the money, because you know you gotta send the money and that stuff will come, but how are you stewarding what it is that you have in front of you? And so taking your time in life, taking your time in certain spaces is going to give you um a more lasting effect than when you rush. And when you think about the current season that you're in, if you rush through that season, if you're like, you know what, I'm tired of being single, or I'm tired of working this job, or I'm tired of working through this business and nothing's so I'm just gonna kind of rush ahead and see how I can skip through the line. And so you decide that oh, I'm gonna skip through the process, I'm going to not get the necessary tools that I need, but I'm gonna see what's the quickest way for me to get out of the situation so I can go to the place and get the benefit. So, in the end, even if you rush through something, you're not benefiting or gaining. Just because you're speeding up doesn't mean you're ahead. It doesn't mean you're ahead because you're speeding and because you're running through something. It doesn't mean it. I don't know if you guys have seen those races where there's people that are ahead, they seem like they're ahead, but there's someone in the back, and then all of a sudden, the last time at the finish line, that person crosses them and they win. One thing that you have to understand about time and process and things and how things become what they are is it takes time. And if you rush through a season, if you rush through a time, if you rush through an assignment, if you rush through a business, if you rush through your singleness, if you rush through relationships, if you are rushing through a conversation, because you want to be the first person to speak, you want to be the first person to get your point out. It's not benefiting you or the other person, it's actually doing more damage because now it's exposing your pride, it's exposing this. Oh, I need to be heard. In the nail situation, it exposed that yes, I paid a lot of money, but it also showed that when you rush through things, it doesn't also last as long. Yeah, I paid a lot of money, and yeah, the nail, see, it looked nice, the nails looked nice, but as time started to go on, the nail started to lift. And you see, time is going to also expose things. Time is going to be able to reveal to you, okay, what's going on in this season? When am I learning? What do I need to take? What are the issues? What is it that I need to adhere to? And if you rush through time because you're trying to get to the end of the clock, you're going to miss the seconds and the milliseconds and everything in between that's going to help you get to the finish line. So by rushing through something, you're not benefiting by anything. If the Lord has you in this season of singleness, right? It wouldn't be wise for you to just like, you know what? I'm I'm tired of being single, I'm tired of not having anybody, I'm tired of being lonely. So I'm just gonna go ahead and download a dating app. And hey, I'm not coming against those that are on dating apps. I'm making a point here of saying how desperation or how sometimes we will start trying to move and put things in our own order because we feel like time is moving too slow. There's a scripture in the book of Acts, chapter one, and it is in chapter one, verse seven, and it and it says, and he said unto them, it is not for you to know the times of the season which the father has put in his own power. So I want you to also understand what the major points is that time and seasons belong to God. So do you know it and took me this revelation and me understanding this, like literally right now, and in the past two weeks, that God knows, right? He knows the time and season, like the time and seasons are in his power. So even if you try to rush, even if you try to move, you have to understand that that belongs to God. Everything under the sun is nothing new to the Lord. The Lord already knows what's gonna happen tomorrow. He already knows what your season's going to look like in two months, in three months, in five years, in 20 years. But there's a peace that you can get when you surrender the time, when you just say, you know what, Lord, this belongs to you. I'm not gonna rush through this, I'm not gonna try to um find shortcuts so I can try to get out faster. Cause yes, they did my nails and and they looked nice. But then as time went on, I saw that yeah, they put some time in it, but there was some rushing through it. Now I gotta deal with, you know, my nail not lasting as long. So the the investment that I put into what it was supposed to last me longer, you know, it kind of in a way I kind of got cheated out. And it was a lesson learned. But then I also learned from the nail tech, you know, that there's certain tools that you gotta be able to know when to use when you're doing when you are doing nails. There's certain tools. So some tools are a little bit harder, some are a little bit softer. And he was saying that he had to use he was using the softer one on my um nail bed. So you have to be able to discern what tools you need to use in this season. What tool then I do I need to use in this season that's gonna further elevate me? What tools do I need to help me remain stable so I'm not rushing ahead, so I'm not moving ahead of God. I gotta be able to know within myself when I'm doing too much and when I'm doing too little. Because the Bible says, be still and know that I am God. That's a commandment. It's not asking you. You gotta know when you're reading scripture. Is it asking you? Is it telling you? Is it giving you instruction? It says, be still. That's a posture. Being still in time is also goes back to the posture of your heart. While you're waiting, while you're going through the process, are you trusting? Because it was funny, because even as he was doing my nails, I was just kind of watching. I'm just like, they're not looking the way, but as time goes on and as he was adding the layers, I started to understand the process of how the jail nail works because they all have like their own process. So as time goes on, you start to see things come together. They put on one layer. You take one step, you're here, you take two steps, you're there. And then by the time you get to the finish time, by the time he was done, I said, Okay. And they've been lasting. And so time will reveal things, it will expose things. When you're able to be aware of the season that you're in, you'll be a little bit more careful about not trying to rush it. You'll be more grateful that you know what, you know, this season that I'm in, it may not be what I thought it was going to be, but I'm gonna stay here for a minute. I'm not gonna rush ahead, I'm not gonna move ahead, I'm not gonna try to take shortcuts. Understand that the Lord already knows my heart, right? So even if I don't confess it, he knows what's in what's in my heart, what's in my mind. And so you don't want to go through life rushing through things. It and this can literally be applied to anything, especially in business. Things are a process. It takes time for something to be great. Think of the athletes, think of the times that they went for trainings and getting up early and working out and and eating healthy, and then going to college, and then going to the NBA, then going to an NFL or whatever professional sport that they decide to go into, there was a process. So now they have the experience because they went through that time, they didn't rush through. Now, sometimes within your process, because you're working hard, because you're going through it, the Lord may elevate you early, but that's up to God, He may promote you faster, but you have to understand that time and seasons belong to God, and so you don't benefit by rushing through things because time's gonna expose time exposed what really happened at that nails a lot. I didn't I couldn't see it and I wasn't I wasn't aware that they were going too deep. I just trusted and that's the other thing. Are you are you trusting in this season? Now, in this dance, you want to always trust God. Right? You don't want to lean into your own understanding. So while you're going through that time, while you're going through that phase, it's not wise to lean into your understanding and to settle into that because you're just seeing one viewpoint, but God sees everything. He sees the front, the back, the sides, the diagonals, the in-betweens. The Lord sees it. And so working faster, running ahead, don't doubt the person that's walking. Don't doubt the person that's taking one step at a time. Don't count out the person that is in the slow lane. Just because you're going 75 miles per hour doesn't mean you're gonna get there before me because I'm going 40 miles per hour. Because going fast at a certain speed can put you at risk for an accident, it can put you at risk of not paying attention to other cars that are coming because you're just focused on getting on there, you're just focused on getting to your destination, but you're not realizing what's going around that traffic. So sometimes when you get in that car, you need to get in the slow lane because you need to learn that it's okay to slow down, it's okay to take your time. You don't always have to be ahead, you don't always have to be going the sp uh above the speed limit. Let me say that. It's okay to slow down, it's okay to take your time, it's okay to say, you know, I'm gonna take my bike out today. I'm not gonna take my car. I'm I'm gonna take a slower route today. I'm gonna walk and then I'm gonna jog. And then it's okay to walk again. It's okay if today you wanted to run, but you decide to walk. My point is, it's okay to slow down, to take your time. Don't be in such a hurry. Enjoy life. But know that when you do take your time, when you really go through something, there is something that you gain in learning. Because the nail tech was able to educate me as he was doing my nails. He was able to educate me. So yeah, it may take a little bit longer. But what am I learning during this while he's doing my nails? I'm I'm gaining more understanding. So now next time, we hope this isn't happening, but I'll be more educated. And then my nails can last longer. I can I can go in and get what I want without the fear of are they gonna do it correctly? So there's no necessarily a gold medal in always being ahead. Don't doubt the one that the the things that may seem behind the things that may seem delayed. Work on in this season, knowing it's okay to slow down, but also trusting and remembering that time and seasons belong to God. They belong to God. So that is today's episode. And yeah, just slow down. That is really maybe that should be the podcast episode. Slow down. I think that's what's yeah. I think we're gonna change the episode. It was gonna be take your time, but I think the name of the episode is gonna be slow down because it is just so important that we slow down and that we take our time and things because we'll be able to benefit from it much longer when you slow down. And remember that time is to belong to the Lord, and so during that season, whatever season that you're in, slow down, trust, wait, let God lead you, and you will see what's on the other side of waiting and slow me down. So thank you guys so much for tuning in to today's episode. I think this is episode 20. Yeah, episode 20. So we are about to wrap up season one. It has been a ball, okay. When I say it's been a ball, y'all, it has been a ball. I have been enjoying these episodes. Thank you to everyone that is tuning in, that has been listening. Thank you for supporting. I just I really appreciate it just to take the time out just to listen. And I hope you learned something within the conversation. Because in the conversation, we have conversations and hope that you learn something. So thank you so much. If you ever need to be connected with me, you can always email me my information. And I also have things within if you're watching or listening on ABBA Podcast, there's a way for you to support the show or seeing feedback as well. Hope you guys all have a great week and let's finish out this month strong. And don't forget to slow down. I'll talk to you guys later.