Meet Adriana
Adriana Morales-Spokane was born in Venezuela. She relocated to the United States at a young age and lived in Florida for twenty-six years. She visits her family and friends in Miami yearly and delights herself with Cuban meals.
Adriana lives with her husband in Tennessee and works full-time as a Clinical Psychologist. She enjoys adult coloring, creative Bible journaling, piano playing, card-making & stamping and blogging for KeynotesinHisPresence.org
What is her favorite time of day? Adriana enjoys waking up at sunrise to read her Bible and does journaling every day. For over a decade, Adriana delights in serving faithfully in discipleship communities. Her motto is “Truth in action.” She is passionate about The Great Commission.
Professionally, Adriana has been in the mental health field for over twenty-six years and has faithfully served children, adolescents, and their families as well as adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). She worked as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), and registered Clinical Supervisor with the State of Florida Board prior to her relocation to TN. Adriana is also a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst worldwide and a Licensed Clinical Psychologist in the State of Tennessee.
Adriana’s Testimony
When Jesus captures your heart, He radically redefines The American Dream for you!
My dad wanted me to become a famous concert pianist at a young age. He even dreamed about traveling together for competitions and performances over the course of my adolescence.
My Dreams were different though. I wanted to help people in their emotional distress. I genuinely wanted to ‘fix’ a family member, so I became a mental health provider instead & achieved my ‘American Dream’ over the course of three decades.
Now, my friend, there is nothing wrong about having dreams or specific goals for the future. It is healthy to be intentional about our daily, monthly, quarterly, and yearly goals. Our Lord even recommends for all of us to be purposeful in life and maintain a clear vision; otherwise, we would perish in the long run.
”So go ahead and be intentional every day in pursuit of your American Dream.”
I am thankful for accomplishing my ‘American Dream’ and so much more. Today, I know God had the best plan for me and He even took me further than I ever imagined. Be cautious though not to be blindfolded along the way… I know I was!
For so long, I was prideful of all my career pursuits and hardly ever acknowledged God in my plans. When our goals become idols, neglect God’s precepts, rushed thru our circumstances, we will miss God’s will for our lives every time. I was disobedient when I was on the ‘fast track’ to my American Dream, friends.
In my late 30s, I worked 70-80 hours a week, held two and sometimes 3 consulting jobs, smoked up to two packs of cigarettes a day, rushed throughout the day so I would get to the next action step, never had time for family or friends, and even divorced twice. In my brokenness, I never acknowledged the Lord, prayed nor asked Him for wisdom.
Yes! I was too busy checking things off from my ‘to do’ list:
Bachelor’s degree, check!
Master’s degree, check!
Wait… a second master’s degree, check!!
Completed a doctoral program at age 30, check!
Postdoctoral in Applied Behavioral Analysis, check!
Leadership roles, check!!
Strategic monthly meeting with Tennessee State Commissioner, check!!!
I am quite exhausted right about now just thinking about the energy I spent all of those years on the ‘fast track’ striving for peak performance and excellence. I am an overachiever. Do not be impressed though, my friend. I am not here to boast or impress anyone.
I am here to share briefly with you about the damaging effects of idolatry. A complete devotion to career goals or workaholism without a close fellowship with Jesus Christ. I thank God for His wisdom and discernment; otherwise, I would have probably self-destructed by early forties. I never had an opportunity to be still and allow God to speak to my heart much less time to renew or be transformed by His Word. If I would have known He was already there fighting on my behalf, I would have listened to all His whispers, obeyed His commands, and waited on His promises to be fulfilled in His perfect timing.
I have got quite a few regrets today such as: Strained and distant relationships with family members, and significant upper-respiratory health issues. I was in bondage for way too long! Trapped. Blind. Lost. Dead in my transgressions.
When the ‘American Dream’ blindfolds us, we may be self-centered or selfish when achieving all types of goals.
Until one day…
I heard the Gospel preached at a local Church, and It finally came all together. I admitted I was a sinner who was dead in my transgressions and caught up with today’s cultural pursuits and success track. God was relentless in His pursuit. I finally surrendered it all and started to renew my mind with His Word one day at a time, then my life was forever transformed. The Cross has the final Word, sweet friend, not the ‘American Dream’. I am now free from the ‘American Dream’ bondage. I still work hard in everything I do, but my purpose is not to please man anymore. My main purpose is to maintain an eternal perspective, fear our Lord and glorify Him at the end of the day in everything I do.
In Christ, I am alive and free.
“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be
burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”
- Galatians 5:1 NIV
