Tag: wisdom

The swap out.

Sometimes I get so preoccupied with me, how I’m feeling, what I’m going through, that I forget that many of us are just trying to get through life, the best we know how. So, to ignite a better outlook, I began to think about the below swap outs…

In my loneliness, perhaps I take a moment to pray for others who may be feeling lonely, that they find a healthy outlet to show love, be love, and find love and acceptance.

In my pain and discomfort of feeling misunderstood, perhaps I remember to take the time to try and understand someone else, where they’re coming from, their perspective – just hearing people out (the whole matter) before jumping to conclusions based on how I perceive them and their tone. There may be the slight possibility that how we take things could be off a bit from how they are truly being given (spoken/said). It may help more to assume the best in people’s communication style, vs the worst – Definitely NOT saying people may never come from a rude or disrespectful place, but let’s try to not assume that route from the jump.

In my impatience of waiting on change, from the inside out of me, perhaps I take it easy on myself a bit and be thankful for the parts of me that are already strong and make an impact for the better, i.e., positive outlook, going hard for my family, resilience, aiming to always show love. Not saying the strong and impactful parts of our character don’t need constant building and strengthening, but the point is we have things we can celebrate about ourselves NOW vs until such and such happens…

In my anxiety about the future and trying to always piece things/paths together as I think they should be, perhaps I just truly let go and let God. This is an amazing statement to make, but for me at times, it’s easier to say than to walk out. I let go and let God for a moment, then I pick things back up thinking I’ll just give God a little help, knowing full well “my little help” is more so pacifying my need to have some type of control over the situation.

In my horrible habit of trying to maintain control over what little I believe I have control over, perhaps I surrender and take on the peace of God which surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:6-7 NKJV). Maybe that peace doesn’t have to be a one and done moment/experience. Maybe the peace effect can be a life-long experience, a constant place of rest and confidence that God is not only in control, but He loves me enough to have good thoughts and plans for me, regardless of the rugged path life sometimes takes (Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV).

I’m thankful for the possibility to swap out not so great habits and ways of handling things, for new ones. Pray for me as I press on, taking steps toward change for the better – I’ll do the same for you 😊

Heart vs mind (head) and trusting the Lord.

Heart vs mind is a tricky balancing act for me. In my younger years, I was for sure more of a heart over mind type of gal. Strong emotions, passion, and feelings guided many of the actions I took, especially when it came to personal relationships. I strongly believed that since I was an awesome person (my personal opinion here – You better know you are awesome for yourself – just saying 😊), everyone I met would just adore me, treat me well, and have my best interest in mind. Various life experiences and lessons shifted this way of thinking, more towards the all-mind (using your head/logic only) end of the spectrum.

For me, the all-mind (head) thinking ran the risk of me becoming jaded, bitter, hard, and closed off from the world and others. In my specific case, it wasn’t that I was hard, angry and unfriendly, quite the opposite, as I love being friendly. It’s something everyone has an equal ability to do, just at different levels and expressive routes. My thing was more of I just didn’t choose to let anyone in – shallow relationships were just fine – you know, the casual greetings, sincere well wishes, but getting to know me – know me, was out of the question. I didn’t want to get hurt or disappoint myself by being so carefree and unguarded, that I unintentionally let the wrong person/people in.

The question then became, “how do you balance using both heart and mind (when it comes to relationships)?”. One word rings out loud and clear to me here, and that is WISDOM!

I pray that I continue to invite the Lord into the mix, and utilize His kind of wisdom as I am granted opportunities to try again at being willing to open up and get to know people, as well as allowing them to know me.

Y’ all pray for me as I step back out in faith on this.

Staying encouraged, hoping the same for you!

*Feel free to refer to “Don’t start none, won’t be none” for a share on using wisdom when contemplating starting something up.