Soft, Strategic, and Sealed: What the Naturium Phyto-Glow Lip Balm Taught Me About Leadership in a Dry Season
You can be anointed and still need balm. Dryness is not a sign of weakness. It’s a signal to seal.
Let me start with this: I didn’t expect a lip balm to be a metaphor for survival. But sometimes the Holy Spirit will use a $10 tube from Target to remind you who you are and how you’re called to move in this world. The Naturium Phyto-Glow Lip Balm wasn’t just a beauty buy—it was a leadership revelation.
Because here’s what I’ve learned lately:
You can be high-capacity, deeply strategic, emotionally intelligent, and still dry.
Not bitter. Not burned out. Just… parched.
From pouring too much.
From speaking too often.
From making it look easy.
From being the one everyone pulls from, even when your own cup is cracked.
And God has been whispering this to me all season:
You don’t have to stay dry to prove you’re disciplined.
Balm as a Boundary
I picked up the Phyto-Glow Lip Balm in the shade Petal. Nothing special. Just a neutral, slightly pink tone with a glossy, plumping finish. I didn’t expect it to preach.
But when I applied it—thick, cushiony, slightly minty—I felt sealed.
Like nothing could get in.
Like no comment could pierce.
Like no dry environment could win.
This wasn’t just lip care. It was soul care.
Because let’s be honest: Too many of us are walking around unsealed.
We’re leading teams without spiritual covering.
We’re showing up to meetings after being spiritually bruised.
We’re giving wisdom in boardrooms while bleeding silently in bathrooms.
We’re saying yes to everyone because we’re afraid to say no to the wrong thing.
The balm reminded me of what it means to seal up again. To not let the world’s dryness rob me of my softness.
The Power of Softness in a Hard World
In professional spaces, especially for Black and Brown leaders, softness is often mistaken for weakness. So we armor up. Harden. Keep our lips tight and our words calculated. Stay ready. Stay “strong.”
But that’s not sustainable.
There’s strength in softness.
There’s power in moisture.
There’s divinity in stillness.
The Phyto-Glow balm made me ask:
Where in my life have I mistaken dryness for discipline?
Where have I withheld softness to protect myself from hardness?
Leadership doesn’t require you to be crusty.
God didn’t call you to be cracked.
Anointing doesn’t mean you never need balm.
Spiritual Lip Balm for the Executive Soul
Here’s what I realized: the Holy Spirit is the original balm.
Scripture literally calls Jesus the Balm in Gilead. The healer. The sealer. The restorer of cracked places.
And just like this balm:
He fills the gaps.
He smooths the rough edges.
He adds shine in low-light seasons.
He seals what the wind tried to dry up.
This balm is a reminder that God is not asking you to lead from your cracks. He’s asking you to let Him fill them.
ACCESS Points from Petal Balm
🪞 IDENTITY: Soft doesn’t mean ineffective. You can be gentle and get results. You can be calm and command the room.
🛡️ BOUNDARIES: Balm doesn’t just add moisture—it blocks dryness. This week, apply spiritual balm over your schedule, your inbox, your phone, and your peace.
🔥 LEADERSHIP: You’re not more impactful because you grind until you’re brittle. Your power increases when your soul stays moisturized.
🙏🏾 FAITH: Let the Holy Spirit re-seal the places you’ve allowed to crack in order to survive.
Reflection Questions:
Where are you spiritually or emotionally dry right now—and what do you need to seal it?
Are you mistaking hyper-productivity for health?
When was the last time you embraced softness as a strength?
What does it look like to live moisturized in a brittle system?
Product Mention (Not Sponsored, Just Loved): Naturium Phyto-Glow Lip Balm – Petal
💄 Vegan, cushiony, minty, buildable color, sealed-in softness.
I will no longer lead from cracked places. I choose softness as strategy. I allow the Holy Spirit to balm my spirit, block what’s trying to dry me out, and restore what this season tried to strip from me. I am sealed, moisturized, and set apart—in Jesus’ name.