To Serve well

Serving with Excellence for a Life of Excellence

Simple Thoughts Sunday

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Reset your soul

Starting 2019 by resetting your soul seems like a great idea. I have to be honest, that is absolutely my goal.

There is well known scripture, Ecclesiastes 3, that reminds us that there is a season for EVERYTHING in our lives. So, whether 2018 was a challenging year or a year of great favor, you can rest in the peace of knowing that there are all types of seasons in our lives — and better yet, we can (and will) not only survive but thrive in order to achieve our purpose.

I heard a message about the new year that highlighted the idea in the photo above: RESETTING your soul. Sometime between Christmas and New Year’s my phone did a hard reset. For several hours, it was completely wiped. I’m sure many of you can imagine the distress that might occur when literally everything had reset back to zero — nada, nothing. Not even one of my 18,000 photos, or a single app, password, or any of my hundreds of notes. Thankfully after reaching “Level 3 support” from Apple, I was able to recover much of the data, though it felt more like recovering parts of my life.

After that trauma, I could only be amused when just two days ago, it did it again. Then, I heard this message. I had to laugh. It was as if the whole thing was speaking right to me. Have you ever felt that way? (Somehow the universe always knows what we need to hear as individuals, and delivers us that message at just the right time.)

I do believe it is purely logical that God would power the whole thing (i.e. my soul) down, in order to resurrect it and bring it back. I like to think that when it comes back, it is FULLY RESTORED — or at least restored to the original, or maybe even a better self, getting rid of any “corrupted data” so to speak.

Do any of you need a reset? Perhaps a soft reset would be enough, and perhaps a full out hard reset would get you to your optimum level of power. I hope that over the last few weeks you might have been reset and restored. If not, I hope you might find time soon to get to that space. Winter is a great opportunity to hide out a bit and allow these resets to occur.

Cheering you all on as we go into our best year ever.

LOVE BIG!

I think all of my boys would say Christmas is the best time of the year, but one of my sons in particular really loves Christmas. I bought him a sign with the message, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year,” a few years ago, and he proudly hung it in his room everyday of the year until he went off to college.

I love that, and I love that he understands the message of Christmas and that it’s truly all about LOVE. My mom-heart hopes that he will hold on to this truth all through his life.

Loving well is central to our hearts as humans. We are meant to love and often we get it right, and sometimes we don’t love as well as we can or should. Regardless, we strive toward LOVE and the world usually magically gives it back to us.

As we head into this week, my prayer is that we love well – the best we can! Even when the world sometimes doesn’t give it back, we press forward and continue to love. Thanks to the Christmas story, we know the truth is that God so loved the world, and He gave us His only son…

And our hope in this wacky wonderful world is real and beautiful. Enjoy every minute of this week… For many this is what most believe holds the MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR.

Love my friends! Love well!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: God says Go

(Rewind! This post is adapted from December 2017.)

How many times have you had something difficult to overcome and you kept going to God in prayer, hoping he would take it away or change it somehow?  Frustration increased as it seemed like nothing was happening, and you began doubting your own faith? 

In my life there have been  plenty of times that I simply had to CLIMB over “it” (aka those “issues”) and through them.  Often it seemed like there had to be  blood, sweat and tears involved. (Okay… so maybe tears and night sweats but not blood so much, thank God.) , and yet I had to keep my focus to CLIMB.  I’m sure you might resonate. 

It is in those experiences that I believe we truly grow deeply and learn the most about ourselves.  I feel that it is how we endure these challenges that reveals who we are and how much we can achieve in life.  As you are planning your week, give some thought to anything that you have been hoping that God would take away or change. Perhaps your direction is to move up and over, or through it instead.  (After all, what fun would taking it away be anyway? Haha) 

I am praying for all of us to have the energy, resilience and peace of mind to overcome … to both CLIMB hard and with grace.

Have the very best week! Only a couple left in this crazy year!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Living the best life by sharing our “more”

How we respond to life matters. From my point of view, God blesses us with many gifts, some more recognizable than others. Our purpose is to use those to elevate the world around us.  The very community you are in — your group of friends, peers at work or those in your neighborhood — I believe all were designed to be in your life.

I heard a message last weekend that stuck with me. The idea being to ask ourselves what have we done with those gifts we have been given… (“the more”)

Did we receive an extra dose of JOY that others could use?

Do we have a cozy apartment or home that we can share with others?

Have our life experiences delivered a powerful story that would inspire and help others overcome their challenges?

I personally hadn’t thought about my “joy” as a gift, but I think it can be. Do I use it as often as I could… especially at home? Most of us have been given more than we need in every category and the next few weeks it is fun to see how people all around share that “more” in the many ways the season offers.

Have the best week and revel in sharing your gifts.  

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Pause, reflect, celebrate

Happy Sunday and welcome December, the month of culmination… love… joy and celebration. I’d submit that this is true only if we allow it. If we pause. If we reflect. If we set our intentions early on to achieve peace and resolve to find open spaces of quiet.

I’m committed to find this in the next 29 days – to pause and embrace solitude when I can and have quiet conversations that center around true joy. Getting to the depths of…

  • What brings me true peace?
  • Who brings me full joy?
  • What activities create a positive energy that leaves me wanting more?
  • Where can I see growth?
  • How can I curate more days of fullness and beauty?

These are not easy questions. I need to recognize that and take time to go all in. I would love for you to walk this path with me this month. I’d love to hear your stories and I’d love to know what questions you may add to the list. At the end of the month, let’s celebrate this reflection and forge into 2019 with a fresh view of God’s purpose for my life.

I am praying as I write this that you find yourself right now in a moment of gratitude and commitment to use the month to find the joy you so richly deserve. I believe that is God’s plan for all of us… to fully feel the love, joy and peace available to us.

Simple thoughts Sunday: You have the power over your “IT”

I firmly believe this statement.  Over and over again in my life I’ve felt it personally and I’ve seen it to be true on the front lines of the lives of my family and friends.

Isaiah 40:29 is one of the most known Bible verses, stating, “He gives POWER to the weak, and increases the strength of the powerless.” Some believe that the scripture is all about the sick or downtrodden. I believe it’s for all of us.

We all have moments of grief, sadness, and yes, even weakness.  As in… I don’t know how I can get through this situation, trial, or whatever life may have ushered in — God’s power is there for each of us to grab on to and when we don’t know how we made it through, we can know that God provided exactly what we needed for that moment. That may be extra sleep, a friend calls or texts at just the right time, a child belly laughing from across the room… He provides precisely what will give us the POWER to push through.

As you start the week, know that you have ALL THAT YOU NEED! We are covered in love and strength for our journey. Now, that is all of the good news I need to kick off this chaotic and fun time of the year.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: The magic of humanity

Hey… you… yeah, you.
 
This post is about you.

As a woman of faith, one thing I know to be true is that God created us all with absolute perfection. Everyone you meet – every last one of them – was designed for a purpose, for the generation they were born into. Every person – especially the most seemingly hard to love – were once a child ready to be poured into and ready to pour out to improve our world.

It’s useful to be reminded, especially during the holiday season, that there are a lot of people that really could use this message. Our communities are filling with stories of pain, heart ache, dreams shattered, illness and love lost. The innocence of that once-happy child is only a memory now. It is up to us to recognize this reality and provide a light of hope and joy to those in our presence.

If you are reading this, I’m certain that you, like me, truly want to “serve well.” Your heart is willing and able and that is exactly what we need more of. We need to stand with an internal motivation to be on watch for those that this week could use some extra encouragement… to be seen, to be heard, to be loved. I feel this ability we all have is the magic of humanity. We have this great power to hold and be a lights for others, and that is where our beauty really shines.

Praying that you and your loved ones cherish the moments this week and that you are able to bring your joy to those who may be counting on you.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Breathing in all that is good

In high school I was a part of a group that was introduced to the power of controlling our thought processes through focused breathing and channeling in the good and out the bad stuff that tends to create anxiety. It admittedly has helped over the years, when I remember to do it.

If you ever find yourself in a place where you are upset or out of sorts, take a minute to breathe deep and thinking of calm and peace. Then with a strong exhale, push out all that is causing this distraction. For me, that exhale sometimes feels like there are 10 things that went through my mind…

This practice – which we now call meditation – is a hot topic in our increasingly-hectic world. As we start the new week, remember that we are all human, and we weren’t designed to take on all that we try to on some days. (Heck, we don’t even have to try. The issues just seem to come our way, at times – fast and furious.) 

The following scripture supports this idea that we are better if we are able to focus our minds in the right direction:

“Set your mind on things above, not earthly things.” Colossians 3:2

My prayer for you this week is that you will try to do just that. Keep your mind focused on the fact that we are here to serve well and achieve our purpose – the rest is simply a distraction. I hope that this idea of breathing in peace and breathing out the rest really is a game changer for you.

If you want to dive deeper into meditation, there are so many resources.  One I have found helpful is the CALM app. It offers a daily 10 minute guided meditation exercise I started using earlier this year. 

Simple Thoughts Sunday: A stadium cheering you on

“Let us Run.” This has always been one of my favorite scriptures because to me it brings action to mind.

I am not a runner, but wish I was. I do, however, identify with the idea that in order to truly live that we have to get up and move forward, regardless of what is going on.

At work, I have the honor of working with seniors. I love them. Just this week I was talking with some of our patient ambassadors and they were sharing stories of their lives, including struggles with diabetes, cancer, family, etc. Their unified message was that you have to get up and move. They also shared about the faith and friends that have provided them strength during their “race.”

That had me thinking, that the first part of this scripture, is often not quoted… This part from my perspective fills in the key part of the truth.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And, let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”

Did you get that “surrounded” part? Envision a stadium – better yet, ARROWHEAD – where the loudest fans in the world are supporting you. Put yourself on the field and throw out any excuses, pain and discomfort, and make a decision to move forward in FAITH. You have a universe cheering you on no matter what position life has you in today.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: The power of the wait

This is a Christian truth.

Wait, maybe it’s just a life truth.

There is POWER in the wait. As we hold tight to our faith, and pray that God will reveal our “next step,” our “best next move” our optimal “way to succeed” in this life, we try to keep our faith strong and forge ahead with grit and hope. It doesn’t matter if the topic involves, school, career, relationships, finances, etc., it’s all the same… the WAIT is a real part of our lives. We endure the WAIT so we can CELEBRATE the “next” outcome and eventually become our best self.

Here’s my thinking today… we just HAVE to try our best to be optimistic, hopeful and even eager to see where God wants us to go next. We have to believe there is a “better” for us… A place that helps us to understand why we have been where we have, and where we are headed. A “next” step to fulfilling our purpose and allowing us to use our gifts, talents and resources to improve humanity all around us.

Here’s what I know… as a 50 year old, I know that my faith is what helps me endure the wait. My faith gives me all I need (although sometimes it is not pretty) to know that His plan is perfect and I’m headed in the direction I’m supposed to. I have truly found that I am strengthened during seasons of waiting and that I am better able to sustain and even prosper during “dry” seasons due to my knowing that there is a better plan… A plan much better than my simple mind can understand.

As you go into the week, know that if you or someone you love is in a period of “waiting,” that God has them right where they are supposed to be. If it happens to be you, I pray that you will be strengthened by this post and are able to realize that the WAIT is WORTH IT and before you know it, you will be STEPPING up to the next level.