** The following is a synopsis of the Natasha Marie book, First L.A.D.Y. Re∙de∙fined. Please click the link of her name below this entry to purchase the book. **

There was a time that I didn’t quite grasp my identity as a wife, as a believer, as a mother, and certainly not as a woman. I was married for many years, but often felt that I didn’t fit the mold or measure up. I felt inadequate on every level. It took me some years of self-discovery to determine that what I felt had nothing to do with others around me. Rather, it had everything to do with the woman within. 

It was during a quiet encounter with God that I heard the words, “You are First… Lady!” In disbelief, I wondered:

How?

Why me?

Being single at the time (shall I say, and as single as ever?), I sensed the explanation to be: “You’ve finally figured out that you must FIRST Love And Develop Yourself!” The words themselves were quite anti-climactic and so uneventful during my conversation with God; I kept questioning Him. In repeating God’s very words to myself over and over, the acronym L.A.D.Y. emerged.

I realized what God was saying to me.

In that moment, which occurred while in prayer (confirming my absolute necessity of prayer), I realized that God’s whisper had the potential to literally transform my life, and enhance my state of being. I realized that I would never again allow anyone—other than God—to dictate my identity or tell me what I was not.

I realized that when others tell you what they think of you, it is insignificant and powerless. When God defines you, you are whatever He has called and identified you to be!

Scripture is actually full of identifiers for anyone who is in need of a clue about who they are, and it is more than just your last name!

As Christians, too often we give power to others who do not have the right, the authority to define us. Through God’s Word, our power is limitless to craft and design the very masterpiece that we are to become.

My desire is to now share this profound truth with every woman who will listen; to uplift, encourage, and inspire every woman to believe in herself more; and to call forth the TRUE First Ladies of our day—the women who will first Love and Develop themselves, in order to better serve the world in which we live.

God has put us on earth to be His Ambassadors, and to ultimately die empty. If we fail to develop who we are as individuals, we will leave this earth full of hidden treasure. The world is waiting for you to first love and develop yourself! That way, you can walk in your calling and the world can embrace all that God has placed in you to offer back to His kingdom.