Exercise Humility

In church yesterday our Priest talked about what it means to have humility. The Beatitudes of the Bible teaching and why humility brings us closer to God. I really took the time to reflect on what that means to me. Sometimes being humble means getting stepped on, beat up, taken advantage of because you are doing things without any expectation of favors or good deeds in return. You are doing what you do out of the kindness of your heart, out of love and admiration and you are serving others based on the will God has intended for your life. Sometimes people can get burned out by doing all the time and not getting anything in return. This is when it is most important to keep doing right by others. God says if you take good care of his people, he will take care of you. Mother Teresa in my opinion was a great example of someone who lived a life of humility! She is an amazing figure who practiced what she believed and did so without any expectations from anyone. She lived a simple life... but her life was full... not from the riches of this earth but of the confidence in knowing she was pleasing God and living her life based on serving him. I truly believe she is in Heaven receiving all her riches now. Those who live their life with passion for what they believe in and a passion to serve others cannot accomplish this with less than a whole heart! My goal this week is to be kind and gentle, to give more than I have, to stop and practice acts of kindness, to cultivate optimism, to avoid social comparison, to forgive others, to nurture my relationships and exercise humility... I am way to blessed to be stressed and there are often times when engineering Harmony is better than being right... so I will let go of anger and disappointment, respect others and use kind words. I hope that everyone's week is filled with many blessings and that you savor life's joys! The hate and anger in the world around us is just another reason to let go of hurts and disappointments and let life be easy. No one needs to further complicate things... there is always a next level of relaxation you can go to in any situation. Start today.

THE EIGHT BEATITUDES OF JESUS "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Gospel of St. Matthew 5:3-10

Blessings of Clutter

For any of you who know me well know that I really can't stand clutter (well except for on my desk filled with papers in stacks where I swear to you I know where everything is! HA!) In my kitchen in my living room, in my sink... I really have learned in the last few years sometimes I am just too busy and I need to let it go... but I still get that achy feeling when stuff is lying around. On days that I am in too much of a hurry that I didn't have time to make my bed, it actually bothers me throughout the day that I didn't wake up an extra 5 minutes early to do so. But yesterday a friend of mine wrote about turning 30 and how letting go of certain things as we age helps us to appreciate the other things we have an opportunity to partake in... pick your battles RIGHT? as they say... If my house is a little messy once in awhile or there is stuff that just doesn't get put away immediately after each use... am I still me? Is my family still functioning? Are we so busy living our life that we are creating memories instead of constant friction with our children or spouse so that we are nagging to remind them to pick up after themselves! Is it worth the negative vibe or words or yelling or whatever you may do to stress their lack of concern for their mess? Ask yourself what is more important? The stress of constantly having to be tidy and presentable or enjoying time with your friends and family and doing what it is that makes you happy. Don't get me wrong... I am completely happy when I have a clean house. Living in the desert with family members, horses and 3 dogs..dirt is tracked in on a daily basis. But I will not take memories of dirt or a clean house to Heaven with me... Don't get so behind and overwhelmed that you live in constant dirt... but don't stress over the few items that may be out of place or cluttering up your living room floor. It means your child is engaging in toys that he has, or you ate dinner together and your dishwasher is full but just didn't have time to get to all the dishes that night. Make your family your priority not your counters or kitchen table. Will I still strive to keep a clean house, you bet I will that is just me, but can I relax and let it go sometimes? You bet I am working on that... EVERY DAY! Life is full of unexpected twists and turns you may not be prepared for ... Enjoy the people you love as if it is the last time you will see them... it just may be! Matthew 6:19 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal

Shut Yesterday's Door

I had a recent occurrence that really made me question if I did everything I possibly could to help or if I could have done more. I was lied to and that really stung. I talked it through with a few close friends and played it over and over and over in my head. I even cried over it! I was struggling to "let it go." Last night a client of mine posted something on my social media wall that made me reassure myself that I can please some... but not everyone! Thanks Kristal. As long as I do my best, I cannot blame myself for someone else's expectations. I value myself as a good person who tries really hard to help everyone and do my best everyday at what I do. So often we can play over and over in our heads a situation that occurred. Normally it is something that goes wrong. We re-play it over and over again to see what we could have done differently, said differently, reacted differently to change or prevent a certain occurrence. However, doing this often adds to the stress we are creating for ourselves and we mentally conjure up things in our mind that may or may not even be true regarding how the other person views the situation. Being human this is going to happen, we as humans are often "fixers" and we want to be able to mend a situation or at least learn from our mistake. I have found that sometimes it isn't even something that we did wrong or didn't do that causes another person to react a certain way. It honestly just might be that person... so the next time you go blaming yourself for something that failed or didn't work out just know that if you did the best you could with what you have and were the best person you could be and that wasn't enough for someone else... it just may be them and not you. So mull over it a little, because you know you will. Then shut the door rise above the situation and move on to continue being the best you can be for all the other amazing people in your life who truly value your help. "shut the door on yesterday leave what happened in the grave you were made to rise you were made to shine Creation’s longing for the day for kings and queens to take their place you were made to rise you were made to shine" - Danny Gokey

Nurture Relationships

How easy it is for us to often take those closest to us for granted. To think that they will always be there tomorrow or the next day or the next week? I have had the unfortunate opportunity to attend a few funerals in the last week. Not something that one regularly strives to do. All the beautiful things said about that person once they are gone, you hope are said while that person was alive, that the person truly knew how others felt and it just wasn't assumed. When these deaths are so close in our thoughts it helps us hone back to how important our family, friends and relationships truly are! Everyone says to call those you love, hug a little tighter, take time to spend with those around you that are most important. Don't leave things unsaid, don't forget to thank others and tell them how you truly care about them. After the sting of death wears off a little, it is so easy to fall back into our everyday hustle and bustle of pushing things off with our compliments to others so that other things can get done. Working, making money, projects, deadlines and all that comes with life and responsibilities. And although we might tend to not nurture our relationships all the time like we should... we must strive to do this. Whether is is just being kind and nice to those around us, doing some little thing to practice an act of kindness. A short email to someone who doesn't live close, a text to just say " I am thinking about you." A note in a lunch box, 15-30 minutes where we turn off our phone and pay attention no distractions. Taking time at night to eat dinner together, pray together, practice the habit of going around the table and picking 1 thing you are each grateful for that day! Life is a blessing, our family, friends and animals are a blessing. There are so many things to be thankful for that 1 thing should be easy to share with those you love... Sometimes we do 3-5 each! Practicing thankfulness for the things you have causes a ripple affect of more things you can be thankful for. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 "Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing."

Define Success

When I think about how success is defined I always wonder if what I consider success is what others consider success. What does success mean to me? What does it mean to you? Sometimes I get in a slump and wonder what am I scrambling around to do to be successful? What are my goals, are my actions lining up or am I off track? Do I need an adjustment to my mind set to be successful? Is having enough success? Do you have to win an award or fame to be considered successful? Does it matter if others view you as successful as long as you view yourself as such? Merriam-Webster's definition of success is "the fact of getting or achieving wealth, respect, or fame.: the correct or desired result of an attempt. : someone or something that is successful: a person or thing that succeeds." When I view others and contemplate what I think makes them successful it is definitely from my view point. I tend to view what they have, where they have come from and now are or how they are changing lives every day. As many books as I have read, webinars I have listened to, seminars I have been to and motivational experts I have admired I gauge what I feel is their success by what I see and hear. Mostly people might define success as how much money someone makes or wealth and possessions they acquire. Maybe they started out with nothing and built a huge empire. Then I wonder does success in the monetary aspect always equate to happiness? I see these actors/actresses/sports icons/politicians and such and sometimes they don't always seem happy, always chasing happiness. Are these people that I am viewing as successful defining success as I am viewing them as successful or does success take on a different meaning in their eyes? To me I define success not as the amount of money I collect, the things that I have, the awards that I have won, the amount of houses that I sold the books I have had published but as the amount of lives that I am able to touch on a continual basis and making a difference even to the smallest degree. Am I successful in my home life? Does my husband and son respect and admire me for my actions? Yes, money and wealth are great bonuses... that is how I pay my bills, have nice things and enjoy life... however I like the dictionary definition that states "success is the correct or desired result of an attempt"... my desired attempt is to help and serve others...if I can do this on a daily basis I am successful. Surround yourself with positive people today, strive to be a better you. Serve the Lord by serving others. And realize that success defined for you, may be completely different than how someone else views your success or even views their own.

Cultivate Optimism

I try hard not to make New Year's Resolutions that I will not keep. I see this happen over and over again to so many people. It is cliche the amount of people who make and break goals within such a short period of time. Is it because the goals are too far out of their reach? Do they get board with the goals they set? Are the goals sabotaged by something else that is going on in their life? Are they just really not committed? Do they really not want it bad enough? These are probably all reasons, whether single or combined that face a lot of people who make these resolutions. I do not want to be that person. I do not want to be disappointed in myself for not sticking to something that I say to others that I am going to do. Sometimes life gets in the way, goals change and circumstances hinder! Therefore this year I do not strive to make that specific goal but an in general resolution. I want to be a better person, not only to my family, my friends and my clients, I want to be a better person to myself. Because in all honestly that is where it starts... I am in control of my thoughts, my attitude and my actions. I can control these things even though I would like to sometimes blame circumstances that I cannot! This is simply not true, I CAN turn a bad day into a good one, I CAN smile at others when I am feeling blue, I CAN love others unconditionally, I can be happy despite my circumstances no matter hard it is, Happiness is a choice! Choose it. Make an effort to see the upside of a situation and surround yourself with positive people! Start today... don't delay... Happiness is letting go of what you think your life is supposed to look like and celebrating it for everything that it is. - Mandy Hale