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Do you feel like quitting?

January 5, 2014 by amani Leave a Comment

I had just met Jennie , and one of the first things she said to me was- “ I want to quit!”

She was serious.

This was not some false humility moment here, she meant every word.

The irony was, here we were about to start a 2 day film shoot. She was about to teach a Bible study, like a boat-load of sessions, to a room full of women, and the first thing she said was....” I want to quit”.

I knew at that moment, I liked her.

Can you relate?

Let’s look at the outside. Here she was a published author, filming on this gorgeous film set, being attended to by a personal make-up artist and hairstylist, and she would rather not, thank- you very much.

Not because she didn’t care about the women in the room.

Not because she didn’t appreciate the opportunity before her.

Not because she was lazy, or any other thing other than the cold hard truth……... obeying God requires a lot from us. No, not a lot- our EVERYTHING!

We can sometimes glaze over the sacrifice part of our relationship with God. We gloss over the loss and pain of “giving up” those things we want to desperately hold on to.

For so long we have fought to claim “our lives”, “ our place in this world”. Then God steps in and rocks our world.

His ways are not our ways. He thinks long-term, short-term, and all in-between. And we can barely see past the end of our nose.

So, yes- sometimes following His lead makes us want to quit. We don’t always get it. We don’t always understand. We think we know a better way. And all of that makes us want to just..... quit!

But, we know deep down, that’s not really what we want.

From time to time, we’re just plain tired and overwhelmed with the pursuit. But here’s the good news, God get’s that.

He promised to never ask or require more of us than we can handle.

Duet. 31:6 It’s a promise.

So, if you’re feeling the urge to quit.

I feel you.

I get it!

You’re not the only one.

And most importantly, God understands that feeling - deeply and intimately.

Jennie ,made an incredible turn around that day. Once she opened up and shared her feelings, we prayed together as a group, and we committed to follow hard after God - together.

So if you feel like quitting.

1. Admit it. Say it out loud. It’s okay.

2. Pray to God for strength to be faithful to all that He is asking of you

3. Find some friends who are committed to doing the same, and do life together.

What about you?- Ever felt like quitting?

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: confrontation, making decisions, online class, quitting, stressed out

The #1 Enemy to Launching Your Online Course

January 5, 2014 by amani Leave a Comment

When you are considering doing an online course, there are plenty of things to stop you.

There are a ton of decisions to make when creating and delivering a course. But even those who’ve been through my training course, which gives them tons of practical information on how to launch a stellar online course, some still haven’t set the date for the very first one.

Why?

There’s a sneaky enemy among you, that’s throwing you off your ‘A’ game. And if you continue to listen to this tricky,yet relentless voice, you might not ever launch.

The voice sounds like this:

I’m not sure I know enough yet.

I need to do more research.

Maybe spring is better than the fall for a class.

Maybe summer is better than the spring.

Maybe fall really is best and now it’s too late. I’ll just wait until next fall.

I need to practice more with the technology.

Sound familiar?

Each time you take the time to answer one of these comments, you delay.

Delay…..delay……delay.

We need to Beat This Enemy For Good

But, before we go into battle we must first identify the enemy by name. That voice is the voice of perfection.Perfection makes you feel that what you are doing is never enough.Perfection will always cause you to doubt who you are, what you know, and what you are doing.

When it comes to your online class, I want you to win this battle.

Here’s a simple, but powerful game plan.

I want you to do 2 things:

Pick a date AND
Stick to it

Short of a major catastrophe - you’re In a car wreck and injured or a major unforeseen opportunity like you are invited to be on national TV and can get incredible exposure, do NOT change this date.

Stick.with.the.plan.

That enemy, perfection, will test you. He will push you to the edge of what you believe to be possible. But in the end, you can do more than you think with less than you can ever imagine.

Don’t quit.

Don’t count yourself out.

You can do this.

The world needs you to step up and deliver.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: motivation, online class

Guest post – Into the Light

March 10, 2013 by susan 3 Comments

Please welcome this guest post by Rachael B. May her words be an encouragement to you to no longer let fear hold you back from building authentic relationships. And remember, encourage her by leaving a comment at the end.

Recently I have been pondering Jesus' words from John 3:21:

"Whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God."

At the start of my working career, I participated in one of those get-to-know-you games with my coworkers. Someone would shout out a random fact and anyone who that was true of would run to the middle of a circle. One person yelled, "You have a secret that no one knows about." I'm not sure what surprised me more-the amount of people this was true of, or the fact that women in their 50's and 60's have held on to a secret for so many years. What a burden!

As I have come into adult-hood, I now understand why we keep things hidden.

Fear often drives me to put on a mask or cover up something I don't want others to know about. Honestly, it's pretty easy to put up a front. As a young mom, I want to look like I have it all together. When I get together with other moms, it is much easier to talk about our kids, or our outfits, or our lack of sleep. I feel pressure to conform and to be "good enough"-in comparison with other moms-and so I hide things. Truthfully? I feel a deep sense of inadequacy. If I pretend to have it together, I might actually convince myself that I do. Fake it till you make it? 🙂 Unfortunately, this discourages true friendships and leaves us to carry our burdens alone.

Have you ever been so anxious you felt sick to your stomach at the thought of telling someone something you've been hiding?

Perhaps you're crumbling inside with the guilt or shame of your secret. Did you ever share your secret? Did you overcome your fear, or has it (is it?) overcoming you?

In our heads we tell ourselves that no one has it together; we are all inadequate. But we know our innermost thoughts, and God can see how truly broken we are. Yes, He sees all the gunk we so desperately try to hide, and we live in fear and darkness. But what does God say about it? He doesn't tell us to clean up our act, or go to church more, or read our Bible more, or pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and just do a better job. No, He gives us Jesus:

Isaiah 42:5-7

"Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on itand spirit to those who walk in it: “I am the Lord; I have called you [Jesus] in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness."

And Jesus himself says in John 12:46:

"I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness."

Are you in a prison?

Are you in darkness? Do you need to be freed?

Jesus can and will free you.

John 3:17

"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

God is calling you into His light.

Maybe you already know these truths, and you are still struggling with fear and the guilt of the secrets that you keep. So what should you do?

Tell someone.

Galatians 6:2 says to "bear one another's burdens". When you allow someone to carry your burden with you, you allow the work of Christ to be done. We are his body, and when we work together we grow up into what Jesus wants us to be.

Rachael B.

photo credit: James Whitesmith via photopin cc

Filed Under: Blog, Connect to God, Connect to Others

Managing the Family Calendar

March 4, 2013 by susan 4 Comments

I have a new love in my life! And it's okay my hubby knows. And even though he doesn't share my enthusiasm, he's cool with it!

You can check out the details and get your own if you want. But this one, is all MINE! hee-hee

I picked one up at a Paper Source. This is a paper lovers haven. I'm not too crafty so I pushed past all that rest of the store pretty easily, but this stopped me in my tracks. I mean look at it.

Gorgeous! It's everything a calenday should be, but up til now, none have compared. I know, I told you I was smitten.

One thing you should know about me, I love things big! Hello - I have 7 children. I drive a 15 passenger van. I'm 5'9" tall. I don't do things small. And my lovely calendar is no exception. It's about 8' wide and 3.5' high. H-U-G-E.

What do I love about it? I'm glad you asked.

You see all those colored post-it notes? Each one of those is a reminder for me. Post-it notes fit perfectly in each square. (BTW- Post- it notes can be pricey. I get mine at the .99 cent store- You're welcome)

Pink post-it notes are a deadline

Yellow post--it notes are "fun"

Blue post-it notes are hubby/children related

Here's how I use my calendar.

1. I have an upcoming event- (ex.-my daughter's birthday.)

2. Wirte it on a post-it note

3. Place it on the correct date on the calendar

4. Observe what else might be happening around that time.

5. Count back 3-4 weeks before the brithday to decide how we want to celebrate. If needed, create a meeting with my hubby (new post-it note) to talk about what we want to give the birthday girl. Make a note of our ideas in my journal. And make a special note to include any expenses for our monthly budget.

6. 2 weeks prior make any reservations needed for our family celebration.

DONE! I then transfer the dates, deadlines, ideas, meetings to my carry in the purse calendar. (My brand new thing is to enter them on a Google calendar.- we'll see how this works. )

This makes me feel SO empowered.

Far too many times I would feel like events snuck up on me.

I would enter birthdays on my brand new calendar at the beginning of the year. But I would only look month-to-month. I would end one month, flip the calendar, and BAM! Some important event was happening like the next day. I would have almost zero time to prepare. I would feel so rushed and panicky. I absolutely hated that feeling. I started to dread flipping the calendar each month.

With this calendar, I can see the whole year at a glance AND put things on it.

If you are a visual person, I highly recommend this calendar to you.

I know it's big. Maybe you have a hallway that could become your planning center. Mine is on my bedroom wall. When I sit on my bed, it helps me to look ahead and see what coming up each week. It also is a prompt for Ron and I to talk about future plans.

Who knew a calendar could make such a difference?

How about you?

What tools do you use to keep your family moving in the same direction?

photo credit: the camera is a toy. via photopin cc

Filed Under: Blog, Connect to Purpose, Home Manager Tips

Sure Fire Way to Get Your Kids to Do Dreaded Chores

March 4, 2013 by susan 5 Comments

Have anything you want to get done, but your kids dread it?

How about you? Got some things you know are "good for you", but yet you avoid them like the plague?

The next time you want to get something done and you struggle with motivating yourself or others, try this!

To see the video on YouTube - click HERE

Didn't that look so fun? And look at the results 66% more people participated because it was fun!

Let's bring the fun theory into the home.

Folding socks.

In our home, we have a sock basket. All socks from the laundry go to the "sock basket" to be sorted, matched, and put away. Unfortunately, by the time we fold the rest of the laundry, nobody wants to sit and match socks.

To liven things up, I sometimes will declare "Sock War"

Here's how you play.

All of the socks from the "sock basket"" are dumped into a pile in the middle of the floor.

On the count of 3, everyone dives in to find the matches. As you match your socks, roll them! The rolled socks become your "ammunition" in the fight.

You want to see socks get done in a hurry? Stop calling them socks and call them "ammunition", and change the work from folding laundry to "preparing for battle". Watch the attitude in the room shift right before your eyes. This even works with having mostly girls. A lot of times they are the most competitive ones in the room.

Once all the socks are matched (they have to match or they are disqualified), then each person dives behind couches, chairs. coffee tables, whatever space they can claim, and the socks start flying. Oh man, you wanna talk about FUN!

Sisters are pelting their brother in the head. Brother is screaming and blasting sisters right back. All the children gang up on momma. Momma enlists the younger kids to go grab ammunition from siblings. hahahaha

We have a great time!

Did the laundry get done? Yes

Including the socks? Yes

Did we have fun? Absolutely!!!!

Your turn to swtich your dreaded work into treasured memories.

I encourage you, use this in your home. Watch as some of the most avoided tasks get done quicker than you ever thought possible.

Got any tasks that are not fun, but still need to get done?

What things can you make fun for your children?

What work can you turn into play? I can't wait to hear your answers

photo credit: reb via photopin cc

Filed Under: Blog, Connect to Your Kids, Home Manager Tips

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