“God Made Me to Be a Somebody, Destined to Achieve Great Things!”

God Made Me to Be a Somebody Destined to Achieve Great Things!

Hmmm… What are your first thoughts when you read this statement?

This statement is from the book The Dream Giver by Bruce Wilkinson.  Mr. Wilkinson challenges us to pursue the big dream that The Dream Giver has placed in our hearts.

I’ve been working with this statement in my own life the past few weeks.  Hence the creation of this bookmark in the picture above.  I started out strong, loving the colors and design effects of the background. The first two lines – God Made Me to Be A – were just how I envisioned, straight and bold.

Then I got to the word Somebody.  Hmmm, feeling a little less strong now.  I wanted this word to be a bit different from the rest. Interestingly, I think I unconsciously made it this way because that is so much of how I roll – just a little differently.

As I pressed on, the words destined to achieve – got a bit shaky and wonky.  I think this is telling about how I feel about God using me to achieve great things for Him.  I feel a bit shaky about what this might look like and get all wonky in my head.

That wonkiness is what I call “limiting thoughts” going round and round in my brain.  Thoughts like “Yeah right, seriously? God use me to do great things for Him? My husband calls this “stinkin thinkin” and even wrote a song about it. I know, I know, “way to put in a little plug for Brian.”

I ended up fairly strong though with the words Great Things, albeit a little off kilter. Hey, I’m okay with that!

After all my deep analysis about this silly little tag, I’ve decided to look at this statement the way I believe God sees it.  I’m guessing He could have said this same statement to Moses, Abraham, Paul, Peter – the list could go on.

Insert Darth Vader’s voice here, “Moses, I have created you to be a Somebody, destined to achieve great things.” Moses had the same reactions we have, “Seriously? Do you remember who you are talking to God?  Me a Nobody?”  But in the end look how God used Moses for crying out loud!

Just think if we were to really allow this statement to soak deep into our souls. There is no telling what God would do through us to make an impact on the world for Him.   If you have been reading my blogs for very long, you know I always invite you to do a little coaching with me.  So here’s your chance to take this statement and play the “what if” game.

• What if you believed that God created you to be a Somebody and has given you a dream to pursue?
• What if you believed that your dream could achieve great things for Him?
• What if 2014 was your year to pursue your big dream?  How would your life be different?

If you are ready to take your answers a step further I invite you to check out the 14ers Club – Reaching to New Heights in Your Life.  The courageous climbers that gathered in January are going strong and we are having a blast!

New groups are forming again this month! We will band together for a journey up our metaphorical 14er and explore the dream that God has given each of us.  If you are interested in knowing the details just click HERE or click the clip board below.  Easy peasy!

Sign Up for The 14ers Club

Happy Climbing!

Pam

Read Full Post »

My First Art Journal

A few months ago my Mom and I took a class on how to create tags with Tim Holtz distressed inks.  This was where I first heard the term, “Art Journaling.”  I was intrigued with the idea and since then I have been following blogs by a few amazing artists, Valerie Sjodin and Contadina K  After months of oohing and aweing at their blog posts, I decided to take the plunge and make an art journal of my own.

My motivation was my Mother’s 75th birthday.  I’m so grateful that she is doing well and we were able to spend another year together.  I decided to start the journal by asking her for some of her favorite scripture passages, then went to work.

What I didn’t realize was how much I needed this creative outlet during this season in my life.  I’ll tell you more about that in another post.  For now, know that if you are going through a challenging time Spiritually, emotionally, or physically, you may want to consider making some space in your life to be creative.  It’s therapeutic and allows your brain and body to slow down and be still in God’s presence.

Here are a few pictures of the art journal.

Read Full Post »

It’s Not Mine to Begin With

How to learn and put into practice the lesson of letting go, that’s been a theme running through my life this past year.  Being unattached from things, people, situations, even my own fears and thoughts. Release… 

Inspiration

I think I held on so tightly for so many years, that I became unconscious of it.   Yet, I always wondered why I felt so crazy; all those thoughts racing through my head making my body feel all wired and nutty. Running around doing things that distracted me, when all I really desired was to feel needed, purposeful, at peace and more deeply connected with God.  I was just talking with a friend this morning that is in this same process.  Can you relate too?

So how does letting go, being unattached help me in my Spiritual life and every day life?  How do they connect?  I mentioned in my last post about God getting my attention this past summer.  All I knew is that I had to stop what I was doing.  “STOP THE MADNESS!” Stop the striving, the anxiety, the stress, stop building the box that was crushing me.  All I could hear was wait, (stop), surrender, let go, trust Me (God).  So I did, not having a clue what it was really about, nor what the “end result” was going to be. 

What did “stopping the madness” do for me?  Well for one, it gave me a LOT of space in my physical and mental environment.  Also, much more time, so much so that it sometimes felt overwhelming.  By allowing and accepting it, and not running off to find a distraction, it deepened my relationship with God, and others.  It quieted my spirit. 

One by one, God showed me things I was attached to.  Things, thoughts and feelings that kept me anxious, things that kept me in that crazy mode, that box.  It’s like I had chains around me, wrapped around my entire body.  They were heavy, and that’s what my life felt like, heavy and constricted. 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30 NIV.

Things like my career, material things, things I felt that I “should” be doing and ways that I “should” be doing them.  Of course, they needed to be just right.  I’m pretty sure they call that perfectionism.  Then came the hard stuff, facing my fears.  Loneliness, failure, lack of money, lack of confidence, and the possibility of loosing people I love. 

Looking back, I see that God was and still is, stripping away the stuff that is holding me back from living more fully in His design. It reminds me of stripping wallpaper.  It’s not too hard to take off the top layer, but getting all the backing, the white paper underneath, is another story. It sometimes comes off in tiny strips.

As they say, life is a journey, a process.  It also takes a lot of practice, forgiveness of others and ourselves, and courage to step into change, into a new way of being.  I’m still practicing, that is what the painting  above, is about, that is what these words are about.

Practicing, releasing my attachment to how it “should” look and being grateful for the inspiration that came through the process of creating it, and now letting it go out to the world. 

Of course, I have to wonder, how come it always looks so different in my head than on paper?  I see that my personal “filter” is still very judgmental, I’m working on that.  As my friend Pepper says, “It’s not mine to begin with, it’s Gods.  It’s all God and it’s all perfect.”  Thanks for the reminder and the challenge Pepper.

In what areas of your life is God asking you to let go of and trust Him? 

How are you dealing with the fears and anxiety that come with letting go?

What do you do to practice releasing your attachment? 

Would love to hear your thoughts. 

Until next time, 

Warmly,

Pam

Read Full Post »