Nov 6, 2019 | confidently, Do The Hard Thing, Speak up |
She prays, she studies, she writes.
She steps into what she is made for.
She leads others to pursue
the heart of God.
There may be some who
think she should not speak,
that she should go home,
but she doesn’t mind.
Let them talk.
She doesn’t answer to them.
She advocates, she speaks, she stands.
She steps into who she
is made to be.
She realizes her worth
and desires to educate others
about a system that still exists
to squelch her people.
There are some who
believe she is making
something out of nothing,
but she doesn’t mind.
Let them talk.
She doesn’t answer to them.
—
She teaches, she heals, she cares.
She pursues her passion
to help others who are sick.
She is wife, mom, and
a leader in her field.
There are some who
believe she should be home,
that she is in the wrong,
working outside her home,
but she doesn’t mind.
Let them talk.
She doesn’t answer to them.
—
She creates, she writes, she spits truth.
She rhymes sick lines
that seep from her heart
onto the page.
She speaks her mind and
she will not be contained.
There are some who believe
that her truth is too loud,
that she should go home,
but she doesn’t mind.
Let them talk.
She doesn’t answer to them.
—
Say what you want,
believe what you want,
truth will prevail and
your words
meant to hinder,
meant to restrain,
meant to demean
will be what we
step on as we pursue
who God made us to be.
We don’t mind.
We don’t answer to you.
We don’t mind –
but we do wish you would
consider what we could
accomplish if we
worked together.
#PermissionGranted
Oct 24, 2019 | Community, Do The Hard Thing, Speak up |
The greatest gift we can
give someone is
inviting them to be
fully themselves with us
and then cheering them on
as they pursue all
they are meant for.
We don’t all receive this gift.
And this is why:
We withhold
permission from
others to step
into all that they are
made for
because it will
personally cost us something.
It sure doesn’t feel great
when this happens to me.
I feel defeated
and it is that much
harder for me to
take up my space.
I don’t appreciate when someone
denies what I see in me,
or tries to keep me small.
And yet I put others through it –
the cost is too great,
and we make excuses.
And what happens then?
We are all miserable.
All of us living out lies,
all of us in the wrong.
We are either wrong for
witholding permission
or we are wrong for
waiting for it.
#PermissionGranted
Oct 17, 2019 | Do The Hard Thing, Lead |
When it seems like
joy is hiding,
When it seems
laughter is
A risk you can’t afford.
When you question
whether you can
smile without lying,
don’t forget to breathe.
In
And
Out.
Just be.
It is okay to be angry.
In fact, you should
be mad.
Just don’t sit in it,
instead, let it fuel you.
It’s not wrong to be frustrated,
just don’t let it lead to bitter.
Don’t feel like you need to
pretend you are ‘just fine’.
Our world is far from
‘just fine’.
So probably,
no one can claim that.
And if you can,
well… that’s another post entirely.
Let’s not pretend that
we are okay
and good with things
as they are.
Let’s strive for more.
Let’s demand better.
Let’s pursue
thriving for all.
When it seems like
joy is hiding,
When it seems
laughter is
A risk you can’t afford.
When you question
whether you can
smile without lying,
don’t forget to breathe.
In
And
Out.
I’m here.
Beside you.
Breathing.
In
And
Out.
Take my hand.
Let’s get to work.
#PermissionGranted
Sep 25, 2019 | Becoming, Do The Hard Thing, Encouragement, Grow |
I’ve stranded myself
in the middle of a tightrope.
Maybe that is where
you are now…
worn out from
maintaining the status quo,
but you are frozen in place.
Every muscle works
at maximum capacity
to keep you
safe, steady, and stuck.
I’ve been there –
working hard
and doing what
should be done,
but not budging an inch.
Working hard to
keep balance
even though I can
see what I want is
on the other side
of the chasm.
There’s a lot of questions
between here and there.
A whole lot of strenuous,
tedious, teetering steps
to be taken.
The choice is:
stay or move forward.
Is it more scary to stay
in a precarious place
and work so hard
to not move at all?
Or is it scarier
to never know what
it is like to cross
the chasm to
dance and
take up your space
where you belong?
Proceed with fear.
It is time.
One step,
then two.
No more stuck
on a tightrope.
#PermissionGranted
What will be your one step for today?
Sep 18, 2019 | Becoming, Do The Hard Thing, Encouragement |
When I am driving
a long distance at a solid
73 miles an hour
I often wonder where the
cars I am traveling
beside are headed.
Where are they going?
The car with the license plate
from Maine –
are they headed
home or are they
just arriving to their
destination?
I had just left
family in Charlotte
and was headed home.
I knew where I was headed
but no one else
driving beside me
knows where I am going.
They might see my license plate
and figure I might
be on my way home.
But there’s no way to know.
It struck me then:
Where we come from
doesn’t dictate
where we are going.
What you’ve been through
doesn’t determine your
destination.
Our struggles,
trauma,
the addictions we fight,
and past failures
are not the deciding
factors of where
we go in this life.
These are strong influencers
in our lives
but they don’t
get to decide
the end result.
We are meant for
life to the full
and if that means
you must drive
in the opposite
direction of what you’ve
been through –
then put the
pedal to the metal.
Where you and I are from
may not be
all that we
are meant for.
Purpose,
possibilites,
and
passion
await our pursuit.
Turn up the music,
put the windows
down,
let the wind
breathe purpose into you,
and drive on.
#PermissionGranted
Where are you headed, friend?
Which friends and what resources do you need to help you get to a place of purpose, passion, and possibility?
Sep 4, 2019 | Becoming, Do The Hard Thing, Grow |
I stand in the backyard.
There are more leaves
on the ground
since yesterday.
The morning is cool
and so I seek the sun.
I step into the rays
and can’t help but
notice that the
sun is in a different spot.
The light has moved.
I turned, to see where it was
that the sun used to hit.
Ah, yes, that plant
is probably glad
for the shift in the
sun’s rays.
The seasons of the soul
are not unlike the seasons
of the earth.
There are times that the
light shines on one aspect
of life and that which
is lit up
consumes us for a bit,
holds our attention
in a bright embrace.
And then the light shifts.
That which is now
in the sun’s path
is warming,
becoming pliable,
moldable,
so that change can happen.
When the sun shifts off
of one part of who we are,
it is so that it can
cool and harden.
So that
what was once pliable
can be solid.
So that it doesn’t move.
So that what we’ve learned
in that season
can be built upon in
another season.
What is the light shining on now?
Is it causing you to
squirm,
melt,
feel undone?
This is what growth feels like.
Let the light do its work.
#PermissionGranted
