Choose Wisely.

Team = a group of people coming together to achieve a common goal.

         Throughout history there is one thing that you can almost always find, teamwork. Sure you can do “it” alone but you can surely do it better, faster or more effectively with the help of others. Most of the teams we see now don’t really have too much of a say in who they have by their sides. The team owners pick and choose who they want to wear those team colors that you love so much and the players just either learn to get along or attempt to hide any discord. They learn to put aside their differences and fight against a common enemy.

         Like those professional teams, we have a team that we can join together with in “battle”. Unlike those teams though, we have complete control in who is on our team. It’s one of the most important decisions that you can make (in my opinion). I recently read an article about the different types of people that you should surround yourself with, and it really got me thinking about my own team. Part of this list is from that article and parts I tweaked a little bit for myself.

1)    The instigator. This person is someone who pushes you, who makes you think. Who motivates you to get up and go, and try, and make things happen.

2)    The cheerleader. This person is a huge fan, a strong supporter, and a rabid fan of you and your work.

3)    The doubter. This is the “devil’s advocate”, who asks the hard questions and sees problems before they arise. They are looking out for you, and want you to be as safe as you are successful.

4)   The taskmaster. This is the loud and belligerent voice that demands that you get things done, and your goals are reached.

5)    The connector. This person can help you find new avenues and new allies. They can most often walk ahead of you the reach the people and places that you don’t have access to yet.

6)    The example. This person is your mentor or the person that disciples you. There presence can act as a constant reminder that you too can do amazing things.

As I said before, this really got me thinking about who I’ve picked over the years to be on my team. I’m thankful for everyone that has been a part of my team and gotten me to this point in my life. However I think that your team is capable of a constant shuffle of players. I don’t know that I’ve ever had 6 people like this list, BUT I know that the people I’ve surrounded myself with have met those needs for me. Some people were/are better multitaskers than me ;) I DO however think that it’s vital that you have these people in your corner, fighting for you and encouraging you along the way. We weren’t called to walk alone but as believers you aren’t called to walk with just anyone either. Be careful and pray about who you let into your camp and who you let spend time around you with your armor down. Above all else make sure that you and the people on your team love each other sacrificially (John 15:13), accept unconditionally (Proverbs 17:17), trust completely (Proverbs 18:24), have healthy boundaries (1 Corinthians 13:4) and give mutual edification (Proverbs 27:6).

How To Let A Dream Die

Fair warning, I didn’t write this blog post, it’s actually part of another blog that I subscribe to. HOWEVER I had to post it here because it is that good and I think it can help those of you in my sphere as well as the one who originally wrote this. Hope you enjoy it!

How To Let A Dream Die

#1 – Expect for everyone to understand you.  (The quickest way to let the dream inside of you die is to dedicate yourself to everyone else’s dream for your life!)

#2 – Believe that you are going to face zero resistance and that everyone will be excited for you!

#3 – Believe that it is going to be easy (where in the Bible did Jesus ever ask anyone to do anything easy or attainable without His involvement?)

#4 – Fall in love with the way things are rather than how they should be!

#5 – Allow people who have never accomplished anything significant to tell you why you can’t either!

#6 – Procrastinate, always say “later” whenever you want to pursue the passion that the Lord put in your heart!  (The snooze button is one of satan’s best friends!)

#7 – Look at failure as confirmation that you should not have done what you are attempting rather than a lesson to be learned.

#8 – For goodness sake, don’t you dare try to work hard…if a dream is going to die you have to sit around and “pray about it” rather than stepping up and using the gifts that Jesus has placed inside of you!

#9 – Don’t trust anyone, you have got to believe that the only way for something to be done right is for you to do it…that way you never believe in others OR ask them to come along side of you.

#10 – Buy into the lie that you are average, ordinary, that OTHERS may be able to do great things but there is no way you could ever accomplish anything significant.

#11 – NEVER ask God to set you on fire with HIS passion and plans for your life.

Do these 11 things on a consistant basis and I will guarantee you will live a life filled with boredom, predictability, frustration and jealousy of others!

Genuine late night convos

Isn’t it funny how the Lord reveals things to you? Sometimes you get all the information you’ll need right away and other times He does a little bit at a time, slowly peeling back layers as your heart gets more prepared. I think that the amount of “sneak peeks” we get from Him is, in a way, up to us. He waits for us to sit quietly and listen with open ears and a receptive heart.

         With that being said I was talking with someone last night and we began playing this game that involved us saying where we saw ourselves in the next 3-5 years. It’s a really great way to get to know someone who you may think that you already know pretty well. They may surprise you J And as it was my turn the more that I talked I realized that the Lord was revealing things to me mid-convo! My calling is to work with orphans in Africa (as you already know) but I realized that that doesn’t necessarily mean living over there. I’ve been called as one of the few and it’s time that I started think and more importantly acting like one. There’s no better time then right now to go ahead and take a leap of faith. My calling doesn’t have to be limited to just Africa unless I make it that way. It started with India this summer and is leading me Haiti currently through connections I made while in Bihar.

         It’s a funny thing how when you get to a certain point in life when you start to notice your calling begin to line up with others. I began thinking about that yesterday and realized that my calling will align perfectly with the calling placed on my husbands life (whoever he may be). They will complement each other perfectly because that’s how the Lord orchestrated it before either one of us was aware of it. These are all things that I could have heard a long time ago but the Lord waited until I was receptive and then gave me a sneak peek.

         I know this might not be the most exciting blog that I’ve posted but I just wanted you all to see that one conversation with someone can open up a serious “stay up way past your bedtime” convo with Jesus. So why not ask those around you questions that delve below the simple surface level ones that you normally use to navigate friendships and REALLY get to know each other. After all we’re all called to fellowship so why not make the most of it!

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ”

Galations 6:2

Constructive Criticism?

         First things first I need to do a roommate shout out, Becky Fain has recently introduced me to Miller’s Creek North Carolina and I can now say that I fell in love with it this week. Also, I’d like to thank every single one of my Elementary teachers for all the hard work and preparation for every school year. Helping get a classroom all setup for school to start is NO easy task. I didn’t realize how much work goes into it until I began living with a teacher, I guess I just always thought that everything was prepared for them. Crazy I know.

         With that being said, I need to be very transparent with y’all today. We talked about criticism this morning at church and at first I didn’t think that it was something that I’d have to pay much attention to honestly. But the more my Pastor spoke I realized that I’ve been on the giving and receiving end of some painful criticism. I never thought that what I was saying was considered as criticism until today. I need to be a lot more careful with how I talk about certain situations. It’s easy to get caught up emotionally with something and say more then you should or saying something that is way out of line. One situation in particular comes to mind for me. An old boss of mine made some decisions (non-work related) that I didn’t agree with. I’ve never talked about any of this on here but a lot of my close friends and family have more then likely heard me on more then one occasion vent about it. What I was doing was doing more harm then good for me but I didn’t realize it until today. It was showing zero respect for him because of the fact that I didn’t agree with what was going on. And by me talking about it so much out of frustration and sadness, it opened the door for others to do the same with me. So starting today I won’t be talking about it anymore. I have to guard my own heart and doing that will help me to guard his as well. If you read this and you know the specific situation that I’m talking about I would like to ask you to help hold me accountable with this. If you have no idea then your prayers are definitely welcome as always!

         As far as receiving negative criticism goes though, I never really noticed that that was exactly what it was until today. And I don’t think that the people that were dishing it out were doing it with those intentions at all, it just kind of happened. A lot of people have expectations for my life, not bad ones at all. In fact they are actually really great things that they wish for me. But I think that it has somehow turned into them living vicariously through me. Those dreams and expectations have never been mine, but somehow I let myself believe that they were. Recently I’ve been learning more about myself and about my God-given purpose so that part of the message this morning didn’t slap me across the face quite the way the first part did, BUT it still was painful to hear. I’ve been living my life for 24 years to please others, whether that was my parents, grandparents, friends, a previous roommate, leaders etc. and doing whatever I THOUGHT was supposed to be done. And for the past 6 months I’ve been living my life to change their minds about some things I’m choosing to do but at the same time not being 100% honest with them about what the Lord is calling me to do. All of that being said, from now on I’ll be doing my best to follow the calling on my life without worrying about impressing or disappointing certain people. After all the Lord didn’t call me to serve them, which is ultimately what I’ve been doing by being so worried about what they would think.

         That’s about all of the vulnerability I can dish out for the moment so I’m call it quits for the day. But in other news, this past week I was told about two different jobs and seriously was considering one of them because of the consistent schedule. But I asked the Lord what I needed to be doing since I didn’t feel like I was working all that much with this cleaning company. He answered by delivering 40 hours of cleaning for this week coming up and a bunch of new clients for the next foreseeable weeks. Needless to say I’m sticking with Truly Spotless :) 

Ch ch ch changes

         Well I’d like to first apologize for not blogging as much as I’d like, and secondly I’d like to apologize for jumping off of my short-lived India blogging train. I’d like to say that I’m going to get back on board and tell you more but I’ve had a pretty big change take place just in the past week and I need to get all of this out and see where it takes me.

         “I’m currently unemployed” Those words strike fear in so many people, myself included. Until I had to say them myself this week. Call me crazy but I’m completely at peace about being unemployed. Working at the coffee shop for 3 years was such a blessing, I made some great relationships, reestablished some old ones and learned a lot of lessons along the way. Yes it was a minimum wage job with no benefits but I’m walking away completely changed because of that place and the people that were connected to it in anyway.

“It is strength that endures the unendurable and spills over into joy, thanking the Father who makes us strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful that He has for us”

Colossians 1:12

       For a while now I’d been praying for a change in myself, I thought for sure that would happen in India. And it most certainly did, but it didn’t end over there. The changes have continued back in North Carolina. I’ve reconnected with family that I hadn’t gotten to talk to or let alone spend any time with in months. I got to reestablish a friendship with my old roommate when I didn’t really think it was possible. I’m transitioning into a team leader role on our nursery team at church. A lot of things are new for me right now but great non the less. So I wasn’t exactly surprised when I got word that the coffee shop was closing. It was almost humorous the way that the Lord is suddenly shifting things in and out of my life. With that being said, I have no idea what is ahead of me on this path. I don’t know what direction the Lord is taking me. I don’t know what he wants me to be doing with this season. But I do know that this whole situation is completely in His hands. My needs are going to be taken care of 100%. A shepherd never leaves His flock so I know that the Lord is by my side through this, as long as I’m obedient. And in my heart I know that I have been, that’s the only thing that explains this feeling of peace that I have about everything. There is a definite sense of excitement in my life right now as so much is unknown but I can’t wait to see what is up next for me!

         This song is my anthem right now thanks to Anna George. So thankful for her new presence in my life!