To Serve well

Serving with Excellence for a Life of Excellence

Simple Thoughts Sunday

Time to hit Airplane mode

Happy July y’all.

It’s July 2, and therefore the perfect time to throw on the airplane mode feature on our phones, and (as much as we can) implement that idea into our lives.

I’ve been writing the blog now for four years and decided two years ago to not write during the month of July. The time away creates space to think, pray, read, reflect and hopefully be inspired in my writing. That is the intention I’m setting!  This year I am going to push out some inspirational messaging that “I heard on Peloton.” I recently purchased one of their bikes and it has been an incredible experience. I won’t blog (although I’m sure I have plenty to see about some of the great content) but will focus on what I feel is a simple and powerful message during my regular postings, Sunday, Tuesday and thursdays.   I hope it will add a bit of fun to your summer.

It is such an honor to serve you all with these short thoughts and I am so grateful for your support. My prayer is that you too will go on “airplane mode” so to speak. Look up and savor the joy in this season. What a gift we have been given to live out what God has provided us with.

Have a wonderful 4th of July celebration this week!

GO AMERICA! WE LOVE YOU!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Reflection and purpose

Summer is the ideal time for reflection. The water – lake, creek, river or ocean – offers us an open space to think. The mysteries of what lies beneath the surface can transport us to a different level of awareness of our immensely-complex world.

I may use Brendon Burchard’s “The Motivation Manifesto” several times during the year because I’m halfway through and have more pages earmarked and thoughts underlined than not. Like this thought of looking back on our lives and answering to our creator…

“Did you use the time I gifted you each day to be a purposeful being? Did you follow your own path and make your time count? How faithfully did you tend to the dream I sowed in your soul?”

My thoughts: WOW. Thank you Brendon for this pause. The opportunity to ask the deeper questions and allow ourselves to realign with our purpose if necessary… to polish those areas where we are not fully using all that was given to us.

I’ll close today with his thoughts on mastering our days. It’s as though each morning, we hurl the shining spear of purpose far into the fields of the future, and then make it our mission to go pick it up and throw it once again, moving toward the horizon line of our greater destiny.” That is powerful imagery.

I pray that today, we all “hurl” our swords forward and seek to be fully purposeful in using our god-given gifts.

 

Simple Thoughts Sunday: A banner year!

Happy Sunday! I love some abundance! My favorite is abundant life, as in full with joy and achieving purpose.

We are nearing the halfway mark for 2018, so it’s a great time to stop and declare (or recommit to) this thought and promise over our lives. We were all designed to live in abundance. We only have to set our minds on those things and move forward with actions that ensure we are on that path.

My prayer is that this week, you will consider what this looks like to you in every key area of your life, relationships, health,  finances, community engagement, etc. Abundance is yours for the taking.

Let’s all drive toward having a BANNER YEAR!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Lean into the word

First of all, isn’t this image terrific? I could sooo use this scene. What about you?

Although today we have so many options to read, listen and receive the “word,” without a lot of intention and focus, diving in and really “leaning” in isn’t that easy. It should be, but let’s be honest — it’s not. Getting away to really soak it in would be fabulous.

One year at the family camp we always went to (shout out to Pine Cove), they had remodeled the rooms, and above my bed was a scripture that essentially said, “he’s got this… you can breathe… be still.” It disarmed me. The scripture reference allowed me to reset. As I went in and out of the room that week, it spoke to me and helped me realize that I often carry around things I really don’t need to.

We all need a reset. I find myself needing them more often as I get older. It never ceases to amaze me that the ancient texts of the Bible can magically point us into the direction we apparently needed to be pointed, and perhaps didn’t even realize.

I am going to do my best to “lean in” this week. If you are able to, let us all know if something stood out to you in the process. I think it just might be powerful.

Here are a few that I kind of love thinking about in the context of resetting.

“The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still.”
— Exodus 14:14

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds.” — Philippians 4:7

“This hope we have is an anchor of the soul. A hope both sure and steadfast.” — Hebrews 6:19

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Living Unafraid

Summer is often a time where we get out there and sometimes have the opportunity to explore new heights. The boat goes faster, the mountains we climb are higher… It can take us outside of our comfort zone. Our adrenaline amps up and our body responds in ways that often catches us by surprise.

I read Adam Hamilton’s new book, “Unafraid,” this week. At first I wasn’t too excited because I don’t view myself as a fearful person at this point in my life. It pretty much immediately captured my attention though. I got a ton of inspiration out of the book. Here’s a quote I resonated with…

“We are the healthiest, wealthiest, and the longest lived people in history.  And we are increasingly afraid.  This is one of the great paradoxes of our time.”  (ref:  Daniel Gardner)

Our hurried lives create a need for yoga, meditation, mindfulness… Anything to reduce our anxiety and stress. The one thing that we can all rely on is that God’s peace doesn’t change, no matter what is going on in our lives.

Hamilton covers the biblical support of God’s promises and how we can truly rely on him to carry us through these times. He covered everything from financial stress, to FOMO (Fear of Missing Out and the impact of social media), aging, death and loss.  I found myself in every situation he illustrated and I think you might too.

He shared my favorite Bible story from Matthew 8 23-27 where Jesus calms the storm. I have loved this even as a very young girl. Somehow the image of Jesus asleep during a storm, reveals to us that we can rest, knowing that whatever happens we are safe.

I’ll end there today. As you go through the week, know that you are covered. You can rest knowing that even if the storms are strong and seem out of control at times, that God has you.

Praying for us to all to grow our faith life so that we can live “unafraid.” I hope your summer is off to a STRONG START!

A day to honor: Memorial Day

Memorial Day is about honor.

As we kick off this week, focused on honoring those who have served our country and lost their lives, I pray that we will all consider the impact this sacrifice has had on our lives. In America, we experience freedom of every possible type. This has come at a price. It will personally be a great joy to lift up to God my many thanks for this gift. My gift in return will be to not only live a life of excellence, but to inspire others to do the same.

Let’s make this week all about HONOR. One of my favorite discussion topics, because we need to keep it front and center.

Have an amazing long weekend. I pray that you will be refreshed and that a spirit of honor will fill your heart and home.

I want to also take a moment to recognize not only those who have left us through their service to our country, but to all who have gone ahead of us. We are who we are because of their impact on our lives.

(Rewind — this post is adapted from 2016, 2017)

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Doing “business” with God’s word

Priscilla Shirer is credited with the quote here in the photo. She is one of the top Bible teachers of our time… Around my age — younger I think — and full of sass and wisdom.

Her devotional, “Awaken,” was given to me at the end of last year and it is really good. I spent more time with it in  January and February this year, and need to dive back in. This idea above was in the introduction, followed quickly by a call to action to “not just scan the Bible, but to do business with it.”

I don’t know about you, but that speaks to me. You see, I have learned over the past few years that the one place I really “hear from God” is when I’m reading His word. That is when I listen for that still-small voice that points me in the right direction — and yes, at times, redirects. If you haven’t found out this truth yet, please give it a try. It is worth your time to really explore the meanings of the scriptures and how they impact your life directly today. Sometimes it is less easy to see how it is lived out in my life, but at times it is so clear I could argue it was written yesterday, intended for me personally.

If the whole idea of hearing from God via His word is new to you, or seems hard to embrace, feel free to reach out. I’d be glad to show you how I started, just 7 or 8 years ago. It has revolutionized my life and it’s pretty darn cool.

Have an amazing week.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: It is truly all joy

(Is this not the greatest photo? Credits go to Ann Voskamp who is wonderful to follow, and she took it I believe from “@Bored Panda,” which I am now following, and they credit: “@howfarhome.” That’s an Instagram account focused on travel! Worth following!)

So, it is truly all joy. I know that is hard sometimes.

I never even knew about this famous verse in the Bible until about 10 years after my divorce, infertility and some other fun and not-so-fun experiences. I sure wish I would I have known about it because it would have helped shape my perspective.

It is one of those that you have to live through to “feel it… to know it’s sheer truth.” Life throws curve balls, course corrections and all sorts of hurdles that cause us deep desperation, pain, or simple tears. In the end, these are the times we clarify and cleanse our souls. We find God through this times often, and we lean into friendships and a new level of family intimacy. It’s the layer where magic unfolds.

This picture is taken in the Netherlands, which is known world-wide for their annual tulip festivals with over 15,000 types of tulips and literally fields upon fields of elegance. (This happens in April every year.) I would sure love to see this beauty with my own eyes. The notion of riding bikes through the tulips sounds like a fantasy. You see, the magic = the beauty found in the fields. The fields only arise after rain and plenty of upkeep. This, my friends, is where the beauty of our lives happens: In all kinds of seasons.

As you go into your week and month, remember no matter how bad, good, emotionally or physically you may be challenged… COUNT IT ALL JOY. It is bound to produce something beautiful.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Nourishing our souls

So, what is nourishing you?

We need healthy food and lots of water so that our bodies have the best chance to give us optimum performance. We need sleep to achieve full restoration each day. From my point of view, we need a strong spiritual life to truly nourish our soul so that we can fully utilize the gifts God has given to each of us (and to serve well).

Today seems like a great day to think about what is nourishing our souls. Are we spending as much time in the word of God as we are on social media? Watching mindless Netflix or reality TV shows, listening to music that doesn’t inspire? Are we filling our minds and hearts with the truth, or are we distracted constantly?

This week, can we up the game on our focus toward nourishment through spending our extra time in activities that draw us and our families and loved ones closer to God? I’m totally up for this challenge and would love to hear if you are too!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Living in abundance

Most of you know that on Sunday’s I usually write about my faith. This thought was powerful for me and I hope it will be for you. What do I mean by abundance? Here’s what I am thinking:

Abundance in positive thinking (vs fear)

Abundance in joy

Abundance in strength

Abundance in prayer

Abundance in deepening friendships

Abundance in health

Abundance in wisdom

Abundance in generosity for others

That’s a short list. What areas of your life do you need or desire “abundance” in?

God’s word tells us that he desires for us to have great victory in this life. (The Psalms are a great place to find these messages first… Psalm 37:4 is a good start.) 

If we can lean in on Him, instead of our own understanding, we can experience the freedom of His love and provision over our lives. I pray that this week you will pray for ABUNDANCE in the areas that might help your life to overflow with just what you need. When we are filled, we can exponentially give back to others.