One of the hardest things to overcome when following your dream is the urge to give up. It’s hard to go against the grain and follow your own path – the one that makes sense to you that no one else understands. But everyone who has been successful will say it: they have failed multiple times but the key was to never give up.
One thing I’ve noticed over my lifetime is that sometimes it’s hard for the people who have been a part of your life or previous career to accept that you’re moving on. I understand it because there have been many times I’ve wanted to follow my dream but I’ve not had the opportunity to do so. People move on, things change. And we are creatures of habit – we don’t like change. And unfortunately even resentment can come into play.
There will be those who purposefully disengage because you are no longer a part of their life – it’s hard but you have to realize this and don’t let it stop you or hinder your forward momentum. Perhaps they will come back at some later time. Stick to your path and continue moving forward.
Keep going. Pray for them; but you stay on your ordained path. You can better your life and maybe reach a level where others can learn from you and you can give back in many valuable ways to others who need your knowledge and wisdom to better their own situation.
So just a word of encouragement for you today sweet people:
God’s got you. Keep going, everything will be alright. You’re one step closer to fulfilling your dream~
Over the summer I shared several ways we can move into a satisfying life which brings greater happiness and freedom. (I have so much more to share on this topic.) Sometimes this process can take years, other times only months or even days.
The first time I put these principles of unconventional living into action, it took about four years. But somehow the end result of those four years catapulted me 7000 miles across the Pacific Ocean to an island in the middle of nowhere.
This time however, it took one season and I’m not going 7000 miles away thank goodness! But the idea of breaking free from a nine-to-five job seemed unattainable. Then I started walking and praying in the park…
Those Sunshine Walks changed my life. No joke. After walking and talking with God through the summer months, and really embracing the idea of an unconventional approach to life, I have discovered a few things that have kept me from living a life more true to myself. I’ll share with you what has happened.
I have worked 21 years in the business/corporate world which consumed all of the best hours of my day. Everything I’ve ever been passionate about – writing, art, nonprofit work, reading, volunteering – I relegated to the fringes of my life. All these things would start and stop continually because invariably my 40 hour workload snuffed them out.
It wasn’t too bad when I was younger because I had the energy to halfway punt and fit everything into my schedule. But as I grew older I dropped more of the activities I cherished and reality sank in…
I was shackled to making a living – but not doing much living at all.
It’s impossible to dedicate yourself to something when it remains on the fringes of your life. What’s more, it’s near impossible to be successful at it. I thought to myself, either move it front-and-center if it means that much to you, or leave it as a mere offshoot among all the business of daily chores and career and be unhappy.
Forget that. Sometimes the heart just won’t let you betray yourself any longer.
During the course of the summer, walking gave me precious time to search my heart and I realized after some scary introspection that I had to let everything go. I had to let go of the fear of failure, the fear of others’ disapproval and the fear of going it alone. Men ambitiously forge their own path often; women not so much, though we’re getting better at it.
So I made the decision to do just that. Forge my own way. Of course God will be with me (who needs anything more?) And He’ll connect me with all the right people and opportunities to make this a successful venture.
I’ll be leaving the daily corporate grind to move a writing career front-and-center. I’ve given myself one year to establish a platform and make a living. It’s going to take a lot of hard work, but it’s work I will enjoy! If after a year I am not earning a living, I’ll seek something more in line with my values and interests: nonprofit, publishing/editing, arts, etc.
It’s just time to launch out and do what makes me happy. I believe that if I spend the majority of my day working hard at what I love, I can have more success than merely working for a living.
Finally, balance. We don’t appreciate enough the peace balance brings to our lives.
There’s nothing more damaging to a creative soul than having to work where there is no opportunity to create anything at all. It’s maddening, frustrating and ultimately depressing. It’s who we are, yet we’re given no opportunity to be who we are. It’s a recipe for sadness.
You see, everyone wants you to be what will make them happy, comfortable and less stressed. Then you get the stamp of approval. But you walk away unhappy and empty.
Not anymore.
This summer, God and I decided I’m not living for anyone else. Going to close that chapter right now.
If I think about it, I really was like Enoch, I “walked with God, and then I was not”. Haha. Not a lot of things that I thought I was. God pulled me out of my old unprofitable mindset that was killing me and brought me into His plan for my life. Spending time with God helps us find ourselves and ultimately, happiness.
Prayer is powerful. And God isn’t joking around. It’s taken longer for me but rushing is the worst thing I could’ve done, and I know God’s timing is perfect.
I have a few more months before finishing my current obligations – I wouldn’t feel right otherwise. But I’m super excited about the path ahead!
“Enoch walked with God, and then he was not, for God took him.”
I have been walking every day I can find the time and making the most of the pleasant weather. When I first started walking, I just threw on some flip-flops and headed out to one of the parks in town. My main thought was to get some sun and fill up my vitamin D tank. (Be healthy about it and don’t forget to grab some sunscreen to put on.)
But as the summer progressed, I found my walking had some beneficial side-effects. One particular benefit I wasn’t expecting was better posture. It just automatically comes with toning and exercising your core. Sitting behind a desk in an office all day is not good for the body. (or the soul for that matter.)
Getting Serious
I upgraded to some cushy walking shoes because my speed got faster and I went from leisurely flip-flopping for 30 minutes to walking at a faster pace for more than an hour. Any longer than an hour-and-a-half, and I’m feeling it in my back and hips. But hopefully I’ll build up endurance to keep it up for two hours. Then, if I can ever get my hands on a bicycle, I’ll switch over and cycle come Fall with its cooler weather. It’s been a fluid progression to start out walking like I was headed to the mailbox and my body increased in ability over the course of a month. Pretty cool how efficient and adaptable we humans are.
Just start, that’s all. Ten minutes, fifteen minutes. And before you know it, you’ll have your own little program going. The shoes I bought were cheap enough – nothing crazy – but importantly, they fit well and keep my knees from hurting. Good shoes will help you walk for longer periods of time without wearing you out.
Here’s a great article for beginners that goes into the specifics of walking on Very Well Fit And more info about shoes and such.
But the best benefit of walking, besides the sunshine, is it gives me time with God. I talk to Him, or pray to Him – really it is a conversation. If you’ve never had a conversation with God – like you would with a friend – I would encourage you to approach Him in this way.
God is Always Available
He’s not a God that is only accessible when we are in church, or quiet and in a reverent posture (whatever that means to you) but He is accessible at all times, in all situations. A personal relationship with God is like no other. He created you, He knows you like no one else ever will. He counts every hair on your head – that’s how much everything about you means to Him!
Enoch Walked With God
The Bible says Enoch walked faithfully with God for 300 years. Then I guess he got so close to Him that one day, God just took him. All other people were described as ‘died’ or ‘was laid to rest’, but not Enoch. He was just taken up to heaven it sounds like to me. Fascinating!
So, concerning these sunshine walks; maybe one brisk morning while I’m out talking with God among the cicadas songing in the trees, the sun shining, or the summer rain sprinkling and like that – “I was not, for God took me”….
Yeah, probably not but if nothing else, I’ll have walked and talked with a Friend who will never leave me, and that’s good enough for me.
Find your ideal park and get out there in the sunshine! Fill up your vitamin D tank, enjoy the extra benefits and let your body take care of the rest. You’ll feel much better, trust me : )
Don’t wander in the Desert, move through it to get to your Promise Land.
Want to wander around out there and die of exhaustion? Of course you don’t. The key to not fainting in the desert is to remain faithful to God in seasons of discomfort.
Sometimes life just isn’t fair. I mean, don’t we all think that sometimes? And isn’t ‘fair’ relative? Right, well before getting too upset that you could be doing so much more if only, I’d advise anyone feeling the pressures of life to not complain to God about it.
Israel did that and lived to regret it. After being delivered out of the hands of their Egyptian oppressors, they grew tired of following God in the desert and started complaining. They wanted meat to eat, not the same old manna day after day – you know, that got boring!
I can relate partially. It’s hard when you have to walk through the desert or wilderness in order to make it to your Promised Land. Whatever your goals or dreams may be, you’re going to hit rough patches, character building seasons (that go on and on forever!!) and believe me, I understand.
It’s like ‘let me shed another tear to put in the bottle He keeps with my name on it’ (you do know scripture tells us He collects all our tears in a bottle…I’ll write about that sometime). Be encouraged, this season in the wilderness won’t last forever. And it will make you stronger and build more character than one could imagine.
Another awesome truth to know is this:
The quicker you submit to God’s will and be faithful in the season He’s taking you through, the more expedient your journey will be to your Promised Land.
I can complain, not going to lie. But refocusing that energy into something more positive gets me moving forward and keeps me from reaping the consequences of whatever I’m tempted to complain about. It makes me stronger and builds my endurance in difficult times. Let me get back to the illustration..
So God was feeding Israel with manna from heaven which was sort of like bread they would pound into cakes and boil or cook over a fire and eat. Day after day after day, the same stuff – it’s just like life sometimes, whatever it is we’re doing that makes us weary — diaper after diaper, dirty socks-wash-pickup from floor-fold-wash again, baby puke, (lol, the struggle is real though I wouldn’t personally know. I deal in feline coughed-up fur balls which are pretty gross) pushing papers, fixing computers, answering phones day after day after…
Ooo, don’t complain. Because sure enough, God will hear it. And He heard Israel and called Moses into a meeting. He told Moses, I’ve heard the complaining of the people that they want meat, so they will get it. They will eat meat until it’s coming out of their eyes, ears noses…. (whew, don’t make God angry). So God brought the people quail, and they journeyed out and caught it, loads of it! But there was also another consequence…
Numbers 11, specifically 31-35 but the chapter gives you a good idea of the problem at hand.
But while the meat was still between their teeth and before it could be consumed, the anger of the LORD burned against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague.
While the meat was still between their teeth…for sure, if we skirt the edge of God’s plan for our lives, when we get what we think we want , then even before we can satiate our appetite with it, there will be consequences to bear. If we shortcut the path God has laid before us, we will not be ready for what we want. We won’t be ready for our dreams and our visions.
Let’s understand a couple of things here:
God still feels the same way about sin, He just deals with us differently now than in the Old Testament due to the work of our Savior Jesus Christ. His mercies endure forever~
God will always give us reprieve in the desert that does not bring sorrow with it.
The blessing of the LORD makes a person rich, and he adds no sorrow with it.
And here’s is how you get the blessings of God – remain faithful through the difficult times, knowing with surety that God will deliver you from distress.
One of the most powerful verses in scripture on deliverance is also one of my favorites and one that I have used to build my faith and receive the promises of God for my life. So I’m here to tell you, this works and is powerful if you only believe!
“He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food. Job 36:16
So beautiful, so lovely and filled with power to deliver. God’s word never returns to Him void. Because it’s truth. But we must remain faithful. No shortcuts — or what was supposed to be our victory will end up a pile of ashes and we might even find we get burned in the process.
Stay true and fixed on God’s word. You’ll get there, one faithful decision at a time~ Until God delivers us and sets us free from our distress~
Back in 2009, I decided to sell/donate/trash most everything I owned and move to a remote island for two years to teach Marshallese children on the Island of Ebeye.
I was talking to a client at work and telling them I was leaving and that their account would be in good hands. Chuck was an entrepreneur who made great money and travelled everywhere his heart took him. He was free, satisfied with life and fulfilled.
After telling him of my plans to pretty much insert an intermission in my conventional 9-5 work day and slam the door good-bye on it, I remember Chuck saying, “Wow, now that’s really living right there. You know? You’ll really be living…”
I’ll never forget that – it took me by surprise but he was right. Fear had kept me strapped to a job making money for someone else that I didn’t enjoy doing in the first place. There was no reward, no sense of satisfaction or fulfillment for me.
Just money to pay the bills, steady income to stay independent and ugh! The boredom of it all!
For some people, this is a perfectly fulfilling life and they don’t want anything crazy or out of the ordinary. That’s great and I wish I was more like that sometimes – it isn’t easy never being satisfied with a life that’s so readily available. Why do I have to pine away for adventure, new experiences and something beyond the normal day to day routine of work– eat-sleep- do it all over again? Why do I feel this way about it?
Writing helps – painting helps – of course traveling eases the tension within my soul but it’s just not enough – I still feel fettered by this thing called ‘work’. I find no sense of freedom in it because it isn’t satisfying for me.
So many people break out of it and become entrepreneurs – how is it I can’t manage this? I think I get comfortable with the ‘easy’ and I fear losing out and having to start again. Which is odd because I’ve already done that once and I’m more blessed now than before my little island intermission.
I’m kind of using this blog to hone in on what exactly I’m desiring and how I’m going to attain it – changing your life around takes time and a lot of planning. Instead of journalling I’ll blog it because maybe I can help somebody somewhere out there who feels the same way I do. And that will make me happy – because that’s what I enjoy doing!
I love the satisfaction of work in general- it’s fulfilling….when I’m being creative and/or helping others I find satisfaction in that. Not so much anything else. The rest of it is total monotony. Pushing papers that helps no one, fighting computer glitches, printer malfunctions, slaving through the day so that I can…..turn around and do it all again tomorrow. I’ve helped no one better themselves, I’ve encouraged no one, I’ve created absolutely nothing and so it’s just dead to me.
If I can offer any inspiration, don’t give up on your dream, keep it in your sight. When you give up, you lose. Better to try and go for it and lose – at least you’ll learn something in the process and be ready to go for it again having learned from any mistakes and being stronger the second time around.
I just think life is too precious and the people that are in need are too vast to just sit behind a desk pushing papers. I need to make a contribution for the kingdom of God. God’s got a plan – I’m just going to have to be diligent in searching, patient in waiting and remain faithful right where I am until it comes to fruition and God (or is it me?) is ready to move~
Being unconventional can get you into a load of trouble with humans. It can also be a powerful tool in a boring, (even dangerous) lemming-like society.
I’ve never been one for following the crowd, and as long as I am quiet everything is fine. But I’m usually not quiet. And when you begin blazing a trail in the opposite direction, and those conventional humans start seeing it, (even seeing you doing well at it) you’ll receive plenty of flack.
Many people choose to follow the mainstream because their parents and grandparents did. If it worked for them and they are happy, then they made the right decision… for their life!
I. Never. Wanted. That.
The problem is, I see people resigning their lives to the pressure of the mainstream. That’s different than making a decision to do so. Mainstream is intolerant of unconventional ideas and ways of thinking.
Seventy-five years ago in 1945, getting married, having children, holding down a good with a pension, (or if you were a woman, keeping house and husband and kids at the expense of your own desires), was all the rage. It’s what a contemporary American family looked like. No more. And I like to challenge people and why they believe the way they do and why they’ve made the choices they’ve made – oh boy! That’s a crowd pleaser, let me tell you!
But I do care. I care that people 1. Get out of this way of thinking if they want to, but if not 2. Don’t impose this way of thinking on others, which decreases one’s value as an individual person and limits people’s potential.
It is a difficult balance to keep: not caring what people think about me and yet, showing people that I care for them. Fortunately, I did a pretty good job of staying out of the clutches of traditional, conventional living.
Alas, but not quite.
Here I find myself – again – in a daily corporate grind. It is an unhappy place for me. Think about this: eight hours of the best part of the day spent making someone else lots of money. Pushing papers. Calculating totals, Excel spreadsheets, emails, phone calls….working for a paycheck is not freedom. Just try to leave at 2 in the afternoon and go enjoy a hike for the rest of the day without telling anyone. Just try sleeping in until 8am, then instead of getting in your car and rushing to work because your late, you head to the park, or shopping or anything – you’ll be getting a phone call. Or your ears boxed tomorrow.
Or maybe even a pink slip.
Oh, you can do whatever you like, but there’ll be consequences for it.
Lack of freedom is anyone or anything capable of dictating to you how your time is to be spent without you having a choice to agree to it or power to refuse it.
Work is important. Very important. But so is satisfaction and especially what you are called to do in this short life you’ve been given. God’s Calling over your life isn’t to be taken lightly. It’s serious business..
The Calling is a pull – a steady desire of your heart that you want to fulfill or that you feel drawn towards. It could be broad or specific but it will not let you go. The sad thing is, many people let the Calling go because they see no other way to get out of societal judgment, the corporate grind, the conventional machine, the daily slog of humanity to make a living.
Forget. That.
I found my way out once with God’s help. I’ll find my way out again.
Let me also say here, that sometimes there are silent, unnoticed seasons God will take us through to prepare us for the Calling over our lives. We’ll talk more about this later, but the Bible does say, ‘despise not small beginnings’. The critical issue is not giving up your dreams because you see no way out. Determine in your heart that giving up is not an option for you! God will show you how to overcome the situations you encounter so you can move into the blessings He has for you.
The problem can sometimes be people, especially when they don’t think like you. Most people find unconventional thinkers an affront to their carefully indoctrinated, socially-accepted lives. But when these people are our friends, family or mentors, we’ll listen to them, be made to feel guilty by them, have our value decreased or be made to feel foolish or selfish and before we know it, bam!, right back into the slog we go…
After all, who are you to have something different and better? Or maybe they don’t understand that their ‘happy’ is not your ‘happy’? Or perhaps they had to give up their dreams to fit in, and their hope of a better happier life in order to be socially accepted — so you should too! Because what does that say about them if you get out and blaze a better trail when they did not? You should suffer the same way they still suffer…
No. Way.
I just cannot accept less than what my heart is longing for – it’s what God put there to begin with and I must find it. Is your heart burning for something more powerful that will impact people’s lives in a great and meaningful way? Don’t forsake that desire in your heart. It’s probably your Calling.
Time. Oh Lord help me. I am starved for time. My energy is taken from me during the 8-5 workday, performing for something other than what my heart desires.
When I was in my 20s and 30s I had time and plenty of left over energy! Not so much anymore. Listen, isn’t your time more valuable than sitting behind a desk helping no one in any meaningful way? Time affords us the ability to think, invent, write, encounter, discover all kinds of things which in turn, brings the world around us to a better place. Try doing all that behind a desk, pushing papers and trying to figure out which cell has the wrong formula in that God forsaken Excel spreadsheet…there are only so many hours in a day, and even less productive hours…
Remember, what ever it is you’re working to obtain is also what you are exchanging your life for.
Think about this: how many years of your life did you exchange for that car you are driving? How about the phone your holding in your hand right now?
If you made $50,000 last year and your car cost you $50,000, well then, every hour of every day you worked for a solid year was exchanged for that car. It doesn’t matter how many months you spread the payment over.
It seems unfair, but it isn’t – some people can work one month, earning fifty-thousand dollars and exchange one month of their life for a car. It’s just how the world works down here.
The choice then, that we all have is this, “what can I do to make my life more satisfying and rewarding right where I am?”
Trust me, you don’t need to be rich to be satisfied and live a fulfilling and rewarding life. Listen to King Solomon when he said that much wisdom can bring much sadness. Money can also bring its own oppression.
Because money isn’t the answer. Freedom is the answer.
We also must face the truth that in many ways, money is freedom. Or it can at least buy you financial freedom to pursue what you want. But many get slogged down and miss the beat. Money can work for you or against you. And you don’t need money to find your Call or work in a field that is fulfilling and satisfies you personally. Understand that money is only a tool and half the battle is won.
Hold on tight. We’re going to get into a lot of unconventional thinking in the next several weeks/months that encompasses more than just work and the daily grind. Is your work fulfilling and satisfying and at the end of the day helping others and pushing the envelope to make this world a better place? Then thank God for that! We will all benefit from your valuable time being spent doing something awesome for the world. But let’s not stop there because God has so much more for us! And when we are done, we may just find ourselves a little more free and a little closer to living in the Call of God that is over our lives. Until next time…
I don’t usually do the typical New Year’s Resolutions. Instead, I have a theme which usually builds on the year before. I spend the month of January focusing my prayer on it – what I want to do differently, what I want in my life (what/who I want out of it) etc, and after writing a brief note-to-self, I tuck it away and let it go. Because honestly, I’m going to forget, but God never forgets.
End of year, I pull the note out and see just how intricately God has weaved the results of those prayers into my life. Some of the most important unfolding events were the ones that I wanted and He stopped – I have found myself more thankful for those things than actually receiving the desires of my heart. God saves us from all evil if we allow Him too. Oh sure, I get frustrated and hurt sometimes, but once I see what awesome thing I thought was behind ‘Curtain No. One” I thank God He kept me from it.
God always opens other doors more suited to us and our purpose.
Sometimes we get stuck viewing life only one way. We get too focused on the means in order to obtain the end we want, and we lose site of how creative and infinitely intelligent God is. We think something can only be resolved one way and God is saying, ‘Trust Me and I’ll show you many ways which are better for you.” Fear holds us back – we fear the unknown so we stick with what we know (which limits God) in order to stay comfortable.
“Comfort and a fear of the unknown keep us stunted and living a less fulfilled life.”
So this year’s theme for me is Freedom. I hope you try this approach instead of the conventional NY Resolutions and see how it works in your life. You’ll be surprised at just how present and attuned God is to you and how your prayers really work powerful results!
Love and Blessings to you in the upcoming year 2020!
When God moves, things begin to happen fast; in the meantime, take advantage of the ‘wait’ and learn more about him, about yourself, gain knowledge and strength because once things start moving you will not have time at that point to figure out what to do. Either you’re ready or you will be dragging behind – and that’s no place to be!
“For the Lord will execute His word upon the earth, thoroughly and quickly” (Rom. 9:28).
I love it when God moves. It’s precise and accurate and wow does it ever make an impact! God is not messing around, playing games and doing things just for the heck of it. He is deliberate. I love that about him.
There are seasons for everything.
Solomon tells us this. Two seasons I’m very familiar with: sowing and reaping. Or, to put it another way working-waiting-working.
You have to sow a seed, an idea, a dream before you can reap the benefits of it. You have to place it in the ground and let it die – isn’t that what Jesus said?
“I assure you that unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it can only be a single seed. But if it dies, it bears much fruit.” John 12:24 CEB
That takes work. Sowing isn’t easy. You have to let some things go, make changes, work on yourself and be diligent in your pursuit even when you can’t see one scrap of evidence that God is doing anything in your life or that anything is going to change. You have to, in essence, start living the change before it occurs. People can think you’re crazy, but remember, with God, all things are possible.
Being productive during the waiting season.
Then comes the waiting season. When the seed is growing, pushing out from the dirt (oh God, is it ever going to happen!?) This can be a very frustrating season. But sitting idle while you’re waiting is not the thing to do! Never wait without also filling your time with productive work.
Waiting on God is a two-part process. You are indeed waiting on him for direction or an answer or a way forward so that you don’t hastily make the wrong decision. This is a good thing. However, you should definitely be learning and growing in all aspects of your life during the waiting season. Never just sit and grow lazy during these times. I know, because I’ve done that – and it is absolutely no fun once God starts to move and I’m totally unprepared! That’s when I encounter disappointment and heartache.
Be learning; about him about you about the aspects of your dream or vision.
Gain knowledge and be ravenous when it comes to learning about his ways and about the people out there who are living in their dream. Learn from them, study missionaries and martyrs and business men and women – anyone who is living for God – and keep growing and stretching while you are waiting for your own harvest to come. By learning, you are in essence watering your seeds that you’ve sown. Your fertilizing and tending what you sowed. This is how to do it!
Then, one day when God says the time has come, your harvest will come in and it will be time to move. And guess what? After all the hard work you put in during the ‘waiting’ season, you’ll be ready to move with him!
If you have questions or need direction on how to begin to make a change, don’t hesitate to contact me. Leave a comment or email me – you can also reach out on social media like Linked In or Google+.
I’m not trying to get my way in the world’s way. I’m trying to get your way your Word’s way. I’m staying on your trail; I’m putting one foot in front of the other. I’m not giving up. -Psalm 17:4-5 The Message
Aligning your way with God’s way doesn’t mean you have to give up on your dreams and aspirations. Many of us work because it’s necessary, not because we find it deeply fulfilling. Do you ever find yourself pausing at your desk or while you’re waiting at the dock for a shipment to be loaded on your truck and think surly there is something else I could be doing with my time that is more productive and gives me greater satisfaction than this. We’ve all been there. You may find yourself there right now.
But have you ever thought how you might take a step away from your current life and towards the one you always hoped for? At this point is where we let our current reality dissuade us from making that first step. We get overwhelmed with questions of how and what to do about it. You may have family or financial strain that pops your dream like a frail soap bubble. One moment here, the next moment non-existent.
So we tend to start looking for the quickest way out because frankly, it just seems easier. And sometimes that’s addiction, sometimes it’s going numb and just doing the daily routine without thinking.
Get rich quick schemes that sound so legit, gambling and maybe even opting for crime. The world’s way is always going to seem easier and let’s face it, somebody has to win the lottery, right? But going the world’s way is never successful or fulfilling – especially when we are serving God. God’s ways are legit and so much more rewarding. Are they harder? You bet.
You have to dig down into yourself and pull up answers that you don’t want to wrestle with – the whys and hows of your current situation. It’s hard to look at our mistakes and own them. But sometimes that’s where we have to start – humbling ourselves before God and saying ‘I thought I knew the way, but I was wrong’.
God is always listening and ready to help. He never rubs mistakes in our face or makes us pay. Sin has consequences but God has answers! He will move on your behalf, he even states
Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life. – Isaiah 43:4 NIV
This is how much He values you! It is nearly unfathomable for us to understand his love. Not even the Apostle Paul could do it:
…that you may be able to comprehend what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. -Ephesians 3:17-19 NKJV
If you are ready to begin stepping out of a life that is unfulfilling and into God’s life that is waiting for you, then He is ready to meet you at the crossroads. Pray diligently for direction, for knowledge and for the courage to begin the journey. Remember, small steps are all you need to start out. Prayer is God’s way of moving on this earth. Don’t neglect this powerful intimate time with God to exact change in your life.
If you have questions or need direction on how to begin to make a change, don’t hesitate to contact me. Leave a comment or email me – you can also reach out on social media like Linked In or Google+.
We can get overloaded with life’s daily duties and not realize how quickly our time here is passing. It’s as if our list of obligations dictate to us how and what our lives are going to be like every minute of the day. And we can be so tired by the end, that we flop into bed without another thought and hope to sleep through the night. (Sometimes if things are really stressful, even a good night’s sleep is difficult to achieve.)
We slumber through our days without realizing that God has a purpose for us. He has a purpose for you. We get what we focus on the most – ever heard that you veer your car in the direction your eyes are going? Same concept here. If we are only focused on getting the next thing on our list checked off, we are stifling our creative side, our own dreams and hopes. The time we spend getting to know and understand what God has called us to and just who we are in Christ is precious. It’s like spending dinner with your family around the table so everyone can talk and share about their day. It’s bonding time, learning about each other and growing together.
We also need time like this to reflect on God and on our own heart’s desire whether it is something creative like painting, or starting that business you’ve been dreaming about for years (if only you weren’t so busy) or turning your hobbies into something more profitable. How much more fulfilled would we be if we pursued and worked at what we loved to do the most?
There are many things that can set you on the path to a more happy and fulfilled life, and the foremost step to achieving this is spending the extra time to get to know God, His word, and who you are in Him. Searching His word and understanding that there’s so much more to life than just the daily grind is a great place to start. God should always be the place from which we branch out in anything – He is our firm foundation. Then we can add on His foundation with confidence.
“If God gives you something you can do, why in God’s name wouldn’t you do it?” -Stephen King
Think about this for a moment. All good things come from God. What has he given you that perhaps you have forgotten about? Something that you are good at doing but maybe you thought it was a small thing of no real significance. What small thing have you always enjoyed doing but you never have time to do it? Could it be that this is the gift God has given you? That this one small (or large) thing could be the key to changing your life and being happier for it?
So I hope you take some thought of these things and begin to think about how you can take control and not let you schedule dictate your life to you; but instead dedicate a portion of your time each day to learn and to reach out and pray God’s will in your life so you can begin to direct your focus on what He is calling you to do. Search your heart for what truly matters to you and don’t be afraid to begin pursuing it.
If you have questions or need direction on how to begin to make a change, don’t hesitate to contact me, leave a comment or reach out on social media like Linked In.
