Do You Know Charlene???

Well let me introduce her to you. Charlene is a hard-working woman who loves her family. She is a good mother and is married to a loving preacher; who inadvertently loves other women. And she goes about handling her life as an accountant of a business in the red. She knows how to cover it up by manipulating the numbers and all who look at the paperwork remain dumbfounded and fooled. So I ask again, 'Do you know Charlene? Could she be you? Or is she someone else you know?

This is an open discussion! So feel free to comment on any of the posts. But I ask you...to share your story. Tell us how you changed your name (story). It may not only be beneficial to others but it may even help you better understand yours. I'll go first.

I know many Charlene's. As a matter of fact, my name used to be Charlene; but it wasn't always, and it isn't anymore! So here is a snippet of my life; pre-Charlene, as-Charlene, and post-Charlene.

Remember that old Gwen Guthrie song-Ain't nothing going on but the rent...You got to have a J-O-B if you want to be with me? Huh? Boy do I! That was my 7 year-old anthem! Every time I heard it, I sang my heart out. And I purposed then, that I'd have a family with a man who had a J-O-B; as if that was an appropriate thought process for a 7 almost 8 year-old. (LOL) Fast forward 10 years or so. My purpose was manifested! I had a family that included a loving husband with a J-O-B and life was good. I had a nice home and my business began to thrive. In walks Charlene. My husband accepted his calling to preach, my business grew and I bought a bigger, better, house. But little did I know that with his acceptance came confirmation. The confirmation that said, 'Now you have a husband who is a preacher and he not only loves you, but his position allows him to love others (other women to be exact). I as Charlene, wore my mask with painful pride and you couldn't tell where it ended and my skin began. Outsiders thought all was well. That's because they couldn't see my heart. Remember, I told you Charlene is a good accountant. If only they would have went to school to learn how to read the 'numbers' of life. If only someone would have taken my papers and read them, I mean really read them with a fine-tooth comb; I would not have not suffered such loss! I lost everything-my marriage, my home, my job, and almost my mind! Not to mention the pain my children suffered from a divorce! Fast forward again. After all that, I had to regain my composure, straighten my stance, and check my swagger! The realization of how life was supposed to be, hit me like a ton of bricks and when the wind returned to my body, I decided it was time for a change. A name change came first! You see, after all the hell I'd been through, I didn't need a court document to approve the change; my life was the jury and God was the judge; and He said to me; as I tearfully say to you; 'No longer will I allow you to be a victim of the past. Though you were beaten down, bruised, and even broken, you were not destroyed. Your promises have been delayed but not denied. And for these reasons alone, I call you: Life!' Life walked in when Charlene walked out!

So there you have it....This is me...This is life...and This is...my story (well a portion of it)... . What's Yours?