Her name is ME!!

So many of you have been asking about me. Who is "CybTay"? What makes me tick. Why do I like reading so much? Well here we go.

As a child I hated to read. I made a decision in about the 10th grade to start reading because my teachers convinced me that to be successful in college I needed to read and read a lot. I decided to read books by African American authors. I figured "hey I'm black, they're black so this must be a good place to start." My first book was "Roots" by Alex Haley. I know! It was huge. I had big dreams. Well, in the middle of it I got bored and I read "A Raisin in the Sun" by Lorraine Hansberry and then went back and finished "Roots." I like both of these books so much that I joined a book club in...hmm... I think 11th grade. Then I read "The Learning Tree" by Gordon Parks, Jr. and the "Autobiography of Malcolm X." Please don't ask me to blog any of those cause I only remember bits and pieces of each. Then I broadened my horizons to non African and American authors and I read "Of Mice and Men," "True Grit" in addition to all the books we had to read as part of the school curriculum. By my senior year of high school I was turned on to literature and fell in love with books like "Beowulf" (the movie did it no justice) "the Iliad" and "the Odyssey," by Homer. My mother used to call me Penelope because Penelope would give up on her man coming back. LOL Hence my love for reading began.

I wish I could say it was that deep now.

Honestly, the motivation for my recent "quest for knowledge" was stimulated by a break up. I was really in love with a really great guy. We had a rocky start but that is because as our goals and expectations transitioned in the middle and it created unnecessary drama for both of us. However, we finally managed to get it together, or so I thought, and for about 8 months we were having a good time. I guess only I was. To his credit, I will say that at the end he opened up and told me how he was feeling which is rare for a man (especially a single man). So I had a snippet of what was going on. Like it says in the Bible in 1 Corinthians 12: 12 "Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." I could see and know but only in part. Even though as he was talking to me it was like Charlie Brown's teacher "wonk, wonk, wonk, wooonk" I didn't understand what he was trying to communicate to me. So, I wrote it all down and began my quest for wisdom and understanding.

I started with "The Five Love Languages" because while at church I heard pastor talking about it. I often said to myself "I know love him and I know he loves me but I don't understand him. It like we speak in different languages and I mean not Latin based languages like French and Spanish that perhaps certain words sound alike but German and Chinese." When it is good it is great but when it is bad it is awful. So when he said some of you don't have a love problem but a "love language" issue. Well a light came on. I mean I just said we seem to speak different languages so that made so much sense. While I was at Wal-Mart one day I went to the book section looking for another book actually, I saw "the Five Love Languages" and I bought that because I remembered the pastor at church. This book changed everything for me. I wanted to call him and say, "Honey, I figured it all out!" but I didn't because I learned so much about myself in the process and that started my quest for wisdom for about me. The biggest enemy for me is me, but the enemy I bet every time is me because greater is He that is in me. So when I am on God's side He fights and wins every battle even when is against me.

So I created a reading plan to assist with the quest to gain wisdom and understanding about myself . Every Sunday of a month I would begin a new book as follows:
1st Sunday - a book to improve my relationship with God. I believe that is the foundation!
2nd Sunday - a book to improve my relationship with myself.
3rd Sunday - a book to improve my finances or business savvy
4th Sunday - a book to improve my relationships with others
if a 5th Sunday - a fiction book (sista needs to take it easy some times)

For those of you keeping score, since I started on a 4th Sunday week I decided to leave that as the week for relationships with others. But I didn't want to get into a rut and only read relationship books because I would spend hours agonizing about all the things I could have done better in my failed relationship. I was sinking instead of rising and when that happens I have to encourage myself in the Lord. That is why God got the first week. I wish I could say it was deeper. I wish I could say I wanted to "seek ye first the kingdom" or that "I wanted to offer God my first fruit of the month" but see how God works His plan regardless. Remarkable.

So the books I have either blogged or still need to blog are as follows:
God = "Qualified for a Miracle"
Me = "How to talk so people will listen"
Finance/Business = "How to remove your salary cap without quitting your day job"
Relationships = "Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus" and "Catch Him/Keep Him"
Fiction = "The Shack"

Then... one day I was listening to Moody Bible Institute Radio and I heard this man, Steven K. Scott, talking about his book "The Richest Man Who Ever Lived. King Solomon's secrets to success, wealth, and happiness." I was so intrigued by what he was saying I went to the bookstore. This book was $20! I said I wasn't spending that on a book. So I went to the library. Well the whole library system had 18 copies and they were all checked and the next 3 returned were requested. So I had to wait and wait AND WAIT. When I got this book I was convicted about my life by chapter2! I called my mentor and told him to get this book so he could press me in these areas and challenge me. Well he got the book and I didn't hear from him for 2 weeks. He then told me that he too was challenged and I picked a real winner this time. So for all of April I read this book and did the "homework" at the end of each chapter. And the book touches all 4 weeks topics so I was still good.

I did go out and spend the $20!! LOL

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND "THE RICHEST MAN WHO EVER LIVED!" As my mentor and I dissect this book I will blog chapter by chapter cause this book is deep!


I can't say what is going to happen with that relationship. I do miss him but I am really enjoying gaining wisdom and understanding and bringing diligence into every area of my life. Proverbs 16:16 says "How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver!"

Oh yeah... if you can't tell I am a Bible believing Christian and I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

And her name is Me!