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Standing Strong, Even When It May Not Be Easy

Take A StandThere are times in life when you have to choose what you will stand up for. Sometimes that might be on behalf of another, other times it might be for yourself. Making your point doesn’t mean the other person is wrong, but what they are asking of you isn’t right for you.

Recently I had to do that and it was scary to me. If you don’t already know, I blog and I love it but it’s also my source of income. I pick and choose what works for me and my blog because I want to be authentic to who I am. You won’t see every single opp, review, or whatever else I get pitched on here because if it’s not a fit for me, why take time out of my schedule? Though bringing on writers, I hope to bring a little more to the table when it comes to content and reviews that readers will enjoy, but aren’t a fit for my family.

Anyhoo, back to the point at hand. Here is the story:

I got accepted onto a campaign and was THRILLED to be part of it. It was a brand I used and a topic I could easily write about. After going over the details and guidelines, I knew what I could and could not talk about. I wrote my post and was very proud of it. In the post I mentioned prayer and talking with God, being something I need in my life. I had comments on the post agreeing with me, and everyone seemed to really enjoy my tips.

Fast forward a few days later, I get an email saying the brand would like me to remove the portion about prayer because they were uncomfortable with religion being associated with their name. I wasn’t pushy at all and simply stated this was something I needed in my life, personally. There were no guidelines about not mentioning religion, I had done nothing wrong. At this point, I felt it would be very unauthentic of me to take something out of the post that played such a big part of my life AND that many people had already seen in the post. If this had been mentioned up front I would have left it out as to follow the campaign rules, as I was doing already.

I offered to make a change and take the word God and religion out of the post, but I could not remove the entire part about prayer.  I would be comfortable doing that because 99% of people who read my blog know my beliefs and I would still have been sharing my heart.  Unfortunately, the brand was still not okay with that but would rather me change it to meditation or quiet time.  I simply said no, and resigned myself to thinking I was done with this brand campaign and that possible future campaigns through the company (with other brands) would be a wash.  The irony in all this is the brand actually offers religious organization services, so why in the world would it not be okay to mention prayer in my post?

I had been very upset over this the day it happened and talked to my mom about it.  On the verge of tears, I just had to remind myself to trust God and if this didn’t work out  there was a reason.  I stood up for what I believed in and made sure my voice remained true to who I was.  That’s when the scripture Matthew 10:32-33 came to mind “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.”

In my heart I knew I did what was right, at this point I just had to let that assure me and God comfort me. A bit later I found out that I would still get paid for my post, though the particular brand did ask to be removed from the post. Then, shortly after that, I found out I got a campaign from the company (not the brand) that will pay 5 times more.

God was reminding me that He was my source and by remaining true to Him and standing up for me and what I believed in, He would take care of me.  One song puts it perfectly “I’ll stand with arms high and heart abandoned, in awe of the one who gave it all. I’ll Stand, my soul Lord to your surrendered…all I am is yours”  Without God and prayer I would not be who I am or where I am today.

I know there are going to be days where it is tough and sometimes it might seem easier to just cave and do what someone is asking, even if I’m not comfortable with their request.  But I won’t because I want to stand strong. Stand strong for me, stand strong for what I believe in and be an example to my children.  If they see me make a choice to stand up, I hope it encourages them if they ever deal with a situation where they have to stand up for something.

In the end, taking a stand for myself and my beliefs is what is important. I have to look myself in the mirror and I want to know I didn’t settle or compromise…I stood when it wasn’t the easiest thing to do. Someone out there at some point will go through a situation where they will have to stand or compromise and I hope they will stand! It doesn’t matter if it is over religious beliefs or something completely different…take a stand.  I hope you will stand up, strong and proud,  if you ever need to, don’t settle, don’t compromise, stand! In the end you’ll love yourself even more for it.

Have you ever had to stand up for something or someone when it wasn’t the easiest decision?  How did you feel after?

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Hi! I'm Toni. I am a happily married, christian, momma of 3 living on Florida's sunny Gulf Coast. I am a lifestyle blogger and Seint Arist. I started blogging when my last child was born as a way to share my love of all things travel, cooking, beauty, recipes, and more. Now pull up a chair, grab a glass of sweet tea and let's get to know each other. I truly hope you enjoy getting A Daily Dose of Toni!

Comments

  1. 1

    I’m so happy you took a stand for what you believe in. I have had to do this with brands as well.

  2. 2

    You alone know exactly what it takes to make you feel real. I have taken a stand recently and I fear that perhaps I may lose this battle. I’m not sure what my next steps are suppose to be but I hope GOD will show me what I’m suppose to do next cause I’m really not sure.

  3. 3

    Kudos to you, Toni! Do the right thing or standing up for what we believe in usually isn’t easy, that’s the reason a lot of people don’t do it. I’m so glad you did not compromise your beliefs. 🙂

  4. 4

    Thanks for the inspirational post! That is very admirable of you to stand up for what you believe in, even if it meant losing the campaign. Some would have just written it off and complied to their rules. Personally, I’m appalled by the brand and company’s strict guidelines regarding this, because this is unethical since it is discrimination all of the way. 🙁

  5. 5

    I am really surprised that they asked you to change your post. You need to be you.

  6. 6

    I know you were worried about this, I’m glad you stood up for what was important. Hopefully everything will work out.

  7. 7

    Good. For. You.

    Proud of you, my friend.

  8. 8

    I love this post! I’m so glad it all worked out for you. Trust in God and He will not disappoint. I’m glad you stood by your beliefs.

  9. 9

    It really is such a great {but scary sometimes} feeling to stand up for what you think is right. I think you handled the situation perfectly.

  10. 10
    Lauralee Hensley

    I’m glad you stood up. I’ve had to stand up, not to brands as I don’t have a blog, but in areas of my life with individuals who didn’t want me to post anything with my religious beliefs because they thought harm would come to me in some form. Hiding isn’t what I’m about, so if harm comes to me it is better than me being afraid and silent. I don’t think God wants us to be afraid of expressing our faith just because it might offend someone, somewhere, sometime.. If you live long enough at some point in your life you’ll be offended by something, everyone is, but we have to be adult enough to know that is going to happen and to deal with it. We do have free speech in this country, well at least for now we do. Expressing your feelings on your own blog is not bullying when it is not threatening to kill someone else or if you’re not going to someone else’s blog and just trashing them or more on their blog. I mean if you disagree with a person you can post the disagreement on your own blog if you want to get dirty about it. Otherwise if you’re just expressing your opinion back in a non-threatening way, you should be able to express back to that person on their blog or maybe via a private message would be better so the person won’t feel embarassed by your disagreement on their blog. We are all individuals and brands need to recognize that, so if they want blog posts to gain as much exposure for their brands as possible they need to remember there will be diversity, so maybe they should have multiple bloggers blogging at the same time about a particular item they want promoted to get variety of opinions, as well as variety of personal experiences of bloggers.. Maybe they need to give thorough guidelines to begin with on what they do or don’t want and if they don’t they need to accept the posts for the individuality they each are sure to have expressed in them.

  11. 11

    I think it’s awesome that you took a stand for what you believe in. I’ve had to do it with my beliefs many times in the past and know it won’t be the last time. God for you!

  12. 12

    Aww Toni, this made me tear up. I\’m so glad you know your heart and have strong beliefs to guide you. So many people don\’t.

  13. 13

    I just had to pass on a well paying opp, because they wanted me to say the product was a healthy thing to give kids, when it contains an ingredient I avoid having in my own home & has very misleading messaging on the packages. I need the money, so it was hard to walk away, but the way they were masking the product as something it wasn’t and targeting giving it to kids just was not something I could stomach.

  14. 14

    One door closes and another one opens. 🙂

  15. 15

    I’m so happy for you Toni. I’m sorry it didn’t work out with the other brand but you are definitely amazing for standing up for yourself. This is your blog and nothing should make you compromise your beliefs. Maybe this will make other brands think twice because money ISN’T everything and we won’t back down just because they are flashing in our face.

  16. 16

    I can’t even tell you how much I admire your choice and strength. God blesses those who trust him even when it’s hard, and you did that.

  17. 17

    I am really proud of you for taking a stand. That can be hard to do sometimes. I’m so glad it all worked out in the end. I am still a little stunned that any brand would have a problem with a blogger sharing her personal experience.

  18. 18

    I’m glad that you followed your heart.

  19. 19

    You did the right thing by taking a stand in what you believe in!

  20. 20

    sounds like you did the right thing.

  21. 21

    You handled it really well Toni!

  22. 22

    Wow! Good for you for sticking up for yourself!

  23. 23

    Good for you for staying true to you and your beliefs – not always an easy thing to do!

  24. 24

    I think it is your site, and it is important that it reflects your personality.It’s good you took a stand, that’s always something to feel good about.

    • 25

      Thanks, it was definitely one of those situations that was scary to possibly lose out on something we needed but in the end it was what was right for me.

  25. 26
    Little Miss Kate

    While I may not share your beliefs I am glad you took a stand. I would hope that the company would value the authenticity of your writing and your readers would appreciate your openness.

  26. 27

    Good for you for standing up for what you believe in. It may have been hard, but you did the right thing! Sounds like the brand is conflicted to me!

  27. 28

    Good for you! Its always hard taking a stand for what you believe in.

  28. 29

    Good for you for standing up for your beliefs. I glad to hear that things turned out well in the end.

  29. 30

    I always stand up for what I believe is right. One particular instance is when people are saying things about others behind their back. Some people might be afraid to speak up on behalf of the person who is not their but I am not. I have spoken up on several occasions and I will continue to.

  30. 31

    My stand took my family from me. It was extremely painful and took a toll on me, but I knew my relationship with God and the future of my very soul depended on how I handled it. In the end, they came to understand where I came from. They didn’t completely come around, but I felel that God called me to do what I did and then leave the rest in His hands.

  31. 32

    I’m amazed the company would ask you to change your posts. What that company should do is review a blog before they have a blogger sponsor their product. If they had taken a few minutes, they’d realize you have a site that it is obvious God, religion, faith, prayer, is an integral part of your blog. Glas you got the new assignment. I’ve had times I had to stick to my values/precepts, etc., there have been times that it did make me wonder what would happen, but I do try to trust God, and bring my cares to Him daily.

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