Perpetual optimism is a force mulitplier.
- Colin Powell

Lord, I offer you this day...With everything I do and say...

Great day, projects going well, business where I want it and kids giggling in the pool. Good life.

Please join me TODAY as I am the guest on Dr. Katie Brazelton's radio show from 12:00-12:30 PDT. (That's 2:00-2:30 for us Texas folk!) www.blogtalkradio.com/Life-Purpose-Coach OR call us live (347) 637-2470. We will be talking about Social Networking and would love to hear from you!!

Please join me tomorrow as I am the guest on Dr. Katie Brazelton's radio show from 12:00-12:30 PDT. (That's 2:00-2:30 for you Texas folk!) www.blogtalkradio.com/Life-Purpose-Coach OR call us live (347) 637-2470. We will be talking about Social Networking!

Supposed to be back in business this week, but not in the cards until at least Thursday.

Ready for a productive day. Eat that frog!

Kenny Hudnall: A lesson in strength

To view this inspirational video about Evan's best friend, Kenny, check the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glUZqdyLO-w

Learning from the past, looking towards the future.

How can you escape the riptides in your life?

My good friend and fellow coach, Melissa Williams posted a great question on Facebook yesterday. She wrote, "It's Monday. What do you do to get started?" Most of us thought about it in terms of the Monday morning blahs, but it got me thinking beyond manic monday. (Yes, I know, I just dated myself, but doesn't that song sum up how many of us feel about Monday?)

We all have such busy lives with a lot going on - spouses, children, jobs, volunteer work, church - that it sometimes seems hard to keep your head up let alone swim to shore. It's like being caught in a riptide - those insidious undercurrents that can pull you far away from the beach.

But as anyone who has done lifeguard training will tell you, we can become exhausted just treading water. And if you try to swim against a riptide you will become exhausted even faster. Either way, you are in danger of drowning.

So what can you do to move forward? How do you get to shore?

To fight against a riptide, experts suggest swimming parallel to the shoreline. See, the good news is that riptides are usually small. It is pretty easy to get away from one if you keep calm and know what to do. If you do get tired, it is recommended that you rest by floating on your back rather than treading water.

If you are a good swimmer, this is not too difficult. And anyone can float on her back. The trick is to stay calm.

Isn't that also true of the hurly-burly we experience every day?

What riptides are there in your life, trying to pull you away from the shore of your goals? And how can you swim out of them?

Psalm 25:4 says, "Show me the path where I should walk, O Lord; point out the right road for me to follow."

The Lord knows what riptides are pulling at you. He knows about the volunteer coordinator who won't take no for an answer, the relative with the self-inflicted crises, the needy friend.

Can you give these over to Him? Can you identify a riptide that you need to swim away from? Remember, they are pretty easy to escape as long as you know what to do and you stay calm.

What can you do to move forward this week?

Smiles and Blessings,
Sharon

By Request - The Birthday Story

Last year, I posted this entry about my birthday. The response was amazing! Several folks have asked me to send it to them, so I am reposting it along with 2 of the comments. And I am trying a new restaurant today for my birthday. Thanks for the birthday wishes and I hope you enjoy the story! - Sharon

What would you do if you were completely fearless?

Several years ago, I found myself alone in a rural French town a week before my birthday. I was there for work, not pleasure. The only French I could speak was what I could cram into my brain on the flight over. It was cold, wet and grey outside. I didn't know anybody. The only birthday party I could foresee was a pity party.

Then my dear friend, Mark, called me out of the blue. We hadn't seen each other since he relocated across the country, and he was astonished to hear that I was in France. He was traveling with his new business partners, who just happened to be German. Mark told me he would be in Munich the following week and asked if there was any way I could break away for a visit.

I was so moved and grateful to be rescued from such dismal prospects on my birthday. We arranged for us to meet at the train station in Munich.

When I arrived, I saw Mark and he took me out to the car. The car turned out to be a Bentley limo, complete with liveried chauffeur. It turned out that his business partners were from a wealthy, formerly aristocratic family. When they heard that Mark's friend was coming to visit AND it was her birthday, they pulled out all the stops.

Like Cinderella, I was whisked all over town in a beautiful silver coach. I was the only woman in the group and was treated like a real princess. Mark's friends belonged to all the exclusive clubs in Munich. When we arrived at a discotheque, we were the ones to get in while all the others waited behind the red ropes. I ate five-star food, stayed in a five-star hotel, shopped in five-star stores, and was not allowed to pay one pfenning for any of it. We ended that day in a very chi-chi rathskeller club in the former dungeon of a castle somewhere outside the city. (I have NO idea where it is now...) The members offered toasts to my health. It was one of my best birthdays ever!

The next day Mark and I were walking in the town square and I was musing on all the things I had experienced for the first time. I had never celebrated my birthday in Munich. I had never been to a discotheque on my birthday. Then Mark and I walked past a tobacconists' shop where there were Cuban cigars in the window. In the spirit of doing something we'd never done before, we bought a Cuban cigar and sat on a park bench, smoking cigars while we watched the world go by.

Ever since then, it has become a tradition in our family to do something you've never done on your birthday. It could be something small, like smoke a Cuban cigar (I admit this is not the healthiest choice...), or something big like going to Munich.

My challenge for you this year is to try something new on your birthday. A food you've never tasted, a place in your town you've never been, an activity you've never tried. Set a goal for a milestone birthday to take that special vacation you've always dreamed about. Try something outside your comfort zone. Maybe even try something that scares you a little.

One of the biggest fears we all face is that of change. But doing something unfamiliar, yet easy and fun, can encourage you to conquer those bigger changes when they come along. Some of those changes might not be fun or easy. But stretching your 'change' muscles in small areas can equip you for the tougher ones. Just as marathon runners start by running a 5K, start small. It's all about those baby steps!

What would you do if you were completely fearless? I'd love to hear your answers!


Smiles and Blessings,
Sharon

p.s. Thanks to those of you who commented last week. If you haven't read last week's blog comments, check out the dream story posted by one of your fellow bloggers. Here's praying that you get the chance to live out your dreams!

2 comments:

Patch said...

Hi Sharon!

I'm sorry it took me so long to get here and post on your beautiful blog. It's hard for me right now to dream limitlessly, as my life is so very limited. But since you asked, I will give it a try.

Never having been fearless in my life, this is a hard one for me... Well, since I've already sung with the greats on a national opera stage, participated in a worldwide celebration on TV, traveled to Europe and performed there with a group, got a degree from a 4-year institution, married a man (a feat in itself), birthed two children (the ultimate fearful event in my book), built a house almost entirely on my own (no, I didn't hammer it together, I meant worked with the all male contractors etc.), almost raised two children (maybe that's the ultimate one), and herded 10 first graders all over the globe through their fifth grade year as Cub Scouts (well, ok, there were only five that last year... but have you ever had 10 first graders in an empty house for an hour and a half? 'Nuff said!).

Having all these accomplishment behind me, for which I had little role model growing up, I feel I can easily be fearless given the necessity of a situation.

However, there is certainly one situation I have felt called to which I have found myself not answering due to a kind of fear. And if I were truly fearless, I could have accomplished much that is more worthwhile perhaps than all the previous acts.

If I were truly fearless:

I would speak Truth in the midst of a struggling church body.

I would declare Peace to a squabbling brother- and sisterhood.

I would write Liberality to a religious community shaking in fear and disdain of the word.

I would sing Love to a parish more fearful than loving.

And I would live Honor to the peacemaker far more than the soldier.

But I am afraid. I fear lost friendships more than lost Truth. I fear lost reputation over lost Peace. I fear lost comfort more than lost Liberality. I fear lost friendships rather than lost Love. I fear lost pleasures more than lost Honor.

If I were only fearless..... but I am not. I don't want to upset my apple cart. I want to keep my friends on good terms. I don't want to have long, heated arguments and blow up at the people that support my life. I want my children to continue growing up in a community in which our name means something pleasant and good to everyone who has known us, not one in which people turn up their noses at the mention of their mother, shy away from them in fear they will be as "contentious", turn them down for opportunities, in order to keep away the Voice they have kept at bay for so long now.

I am not fearless.

But there is One who is. And if God makes me able, He can live His fearless life in me. He spoke Truth, declared Peace, wrote Liberality, sang Love, and lived Honor in ways no one had ever dreamed of. Perhaps truly being fearless, for me, is simply getting out of the way so He can go on living His fearlessness in my life.

Perhaps specifically that means I do all of those things I listed, but only after much praying and much listening to others.

This has been a meditation on "fearlessness". Thank you for reading and sharing this time with me.

When I figure out what it means, I'll let you know. 6;D

Patty

February 18, 2008 7:53 AM

Katie Brazelton said...

Hi Sharon,
I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed your BLOG story about your bday! Yo are really a great writer. I hope you publish something someday. You have definitely challenged me to see what I can cook up for my 58th bday this summer!!!! It won't be a trip to Europe or smoking a cigar, but -- by golly -- it will be something fab!

I'm proud to have trained you as a Life Purpose Facilitator -- to help women get "unstuck" -- now it's my turn, ya!

One of your biggest fans,
Katie Brazelton
Founder, Life Purpose Coaching Centers, Intl

February 27, 2008 11:22 AM

What would you do if God said "yes!"?

We often pray for things we'd like God to do. Sometimes the prayers are for the big stuff - Please help the hungry. Please cure breast cancer. Please stop the genocide in Darfur. Other times they are very specific indeed. Things like, please help me find the right gift for my sister-in-law. Please inspire me. Please tell me what to say to my friend in need. And God answers every one of those prayers. Sometimes, He says, "no". Other times He says, "wait". (That's the hard one for me, since I am a recovering impatient-aholic)

Sometimes, though, He says, "yes". And aren't we grateful? We tell people and we thank God for answering our prayer, and we are happy about it.

Aren't we?

Or do you find sometimes that you have a heart's desire and you've never asked God to say, "Yes"? Or maybe you have asked God for a heart's desire, but you're not as passionate as you are when you pray for, say Darfur.

Could it be that there are times when we are ambivalent about God's "Yes"? So ambivalent that we never ask for His blessings in the first place?

Or have you ever played the 'bargain' game? You know, the if-then form of prayer. "Lord if you bless me, then I'll give the money to (fill-in-the-blank)..."

What if God said "Yes!"?

What if God said, "Yes!!"?

He might, you know. He just might bless you so you really can donate $10,000 to cancer research. He might make your children healthy, productive members of society so they don't need to depend on you. He might bring people for you to minister to whether they are the people you had in mind or not.

He might say "Yes", whether you really mean it or not. Because He knows, you see. He knows if you are really ready to be blessed and He knows if you are just ready to be tested.

What are the things that hold us back from asking God to say, "Yes!" Well, fear is a big one, isn't it? Fear of what will happen, fear of what might happen, fear of what might change. And yes, things will change. And sometimes they seem to change for the worse, then we wonder if we really heard a "Yes" or not!

My dear friend, Rev. Carolyn Fritch, was facing a decision regarding a pastoral call. I asked her which way she was leaning, and she said something I never forgot. "I always ask myself, 'Does this scare me? And does it make me smile? If the answer to both questions is "yes", then I know I'm supposed to do it.'"

What scares you? What makes you smile?

What do you need to say, "Yes!" to?

What can you ask God to say "Yes!" to?

Smiles and Blessings,
Sharon

P.S. Please take a moment to continue your prayers for Kenny Hudnall. A real example of how God says, "Yes!", he is being released from the hospital as I write this. If you are interested in learning more about this inspirational 5-year-old, please click the link just under the photo and it will take you to his blog.

What would you do with an unexpected blessing?

There is a small prayer in I Chronicles 4:10. Jabez prays, "...bless me indeed..." We never hear exactly how God answered Jabez's prayer (only that He did), but doesn't it make you wonder what happened?

A few years ago, Dr. Bruce Wilkinson wrote a book on this prayer, "The Prayer of Jabez". Many of you have read this little devotional, where the reader is invited to ask God for the unlimited blessings He can give us.

Have you ever wondered what that would look like?

Would it be a 'yes' to a cherished desire? The first thing that frequently comes to our minds is usually material: a dream vacation, a home, financial independence. Or it may be family concerns such a desire for a child, concerns for a troubled teenager or reconciliation among estranged family members.

Such tangible things are easier for us to imagine. However, sometimes God's blessings for us are not the things we imagine. Did you ever experience a time as a child when the beautifully wrapped toy under the Christmas tree turned out to be a savings bond or some other practical item? (I'm dating myself here, aren't I?) To a child, it's kind of like getting underwear. But as adult, I realize that I was given an investment! Pretty cool, but I didn't appreciate it then.

So I wonder sometimes if I will recognize the unlimited blessings from God. Will they be what I think they will be? Or does God have a different 'package' under the tree?

One of my goals for 2009 is to strengthen my existing friendships and nurture new ones. So one of my prayers has been to bring me in the path of new aquaintainces. I've also been praying for the qualties of a good friend, to help me be a good friend.

Yesterday, God may have brought me yet another blessing in the way of a friend, but until right now, I hadn't looked at it that way.

My husband left for his afternoon round of voice lessions right as our son was getting off the bus. Ten minutes later, my husband pulled back into the driveway said, "I can't believe I'm doing this," and then opened the back door to let a little dog out of the car. Then he jumped back in the car and drove off, leaving me with a confused dog and a busload of excited children.

Now I have been asking for a dog for a while. Our son is very energetic and I thought a dog might be fun for him. But now that a dog was in my garage (fleas!), all I could think about were the practicalities: Is she lost? What can I feed her? Good heavens, she looks like a pit bull!! Where can I put her until I can get her flea dipped?!

It wasn't until lunch today that I looked at her another way. We went for a walk and sat down to rest for a minute. She curled up next to me, a calm little companion and lifted her chin so I could rub her face and neck. I realized that God had answered a friend prayer with the appearance of this dog. Not only will she keep me company without interruption while I work at home, but she will also be a work-out buddy, keeping me motivated to take daily walks. When I told my trainer I had a work-out buddy, I never pictured a dog!

So while she will never have pedicures with me or tell me what looks good on me in the dressing room, Ruby will fill a friendship role in my life for as long as she is part of our household.

What about you and the friends in your life? Are you satisfied with those relationships? Could they improve? Are you missing a "type" of friend: Do you have a cheeleader, an accountability friend, a spiritual buddy? Might it be possible God has placed that "missing" person in your life, but you haven't recognized her yet?

What baby step can you take today to reinforce an existing friendship or find an opportunity to make a new friend? Recently, many of my friends and I have connected via Facebook. Is there someone to whom you can reach out? Is there someone you've been saying, "let's get together" to, and can you make a firm date to see her? Is there a small group at church where you might get to know new people?

Who might be the unexpected blessing in your life?

Smiles and Blessings,
Sharon


P.S. Thank you to all of you who commented last week and for the prayers offered up for Kenny and his family. Please continue to bless them with your prayers as they prepare to bring him home next week! I will keep the link to his blog on the upper right of this blogsite.

What would you do if life threw you a curve ball?

Yes, it has been a long time since the last post, hasn't it? When Donald passed away, I planned to take an extra week or two off from posting. Little did I know that it would be nine months!!

The logistics of dealing with long-distance estate issues were more time-consuming than I thought. Spring was very busy with life coaching, speaking engagements, Evan's final days at pre-school and planning for a return trip to California. There were even loose ends from my own parents' estate to wrap up, and they needed to be done in person.

Evan and I spent part of May and June away from home. Much of the day was spent entertaining my energetic little boy, who had to endure waiting at the DMV and going to the county clerk's office. We found time for fun, but at the back of my mind was the never-ending 'to-do' list.

Evenually, I got sick. Poor Evan was stuck in the house with me for two days. As often happens when we get sick from overdoing, God finally got my attention. He said, "Enough, daughter. Rest and prepare for what is coming."

Darrin arrived for a few days, and we planned a much-needed July vacation. I was able to chart out goals for my business. Evan was to start kindergarten on August 25, and I composed a schedule that would allow me to coach and also help my friend Gigi Hudnall with her start-up business. Everything was falling into place. I was rested and prepared.

Or so I thought...

Three days after school and Gigi's business started, she and her 5-year-old son Kenny were in a terrible car accident. Kenny was paralyzed from the neck down, and the Hudnall's lives were thrown into chaos. Friends and extended family prayed, brought meals and helped Gigi keep her newborn business afloat. The Hudnalls were amazing in the face of such a crisis and thousands of people logged on to Kenny's blog to pray for the family.

My ideal plans were tossed right out the window. Evan was having a hard time adjusting to kindergarten, my mornings were taken up with helping Gigi by attending meetings for her business, driving the van with Evan proved to be less than idyllic... Then a much loved friend experienced a life-threatening medical crisis, and on and on it went. I was uncomfortable and felt that I wasn't giving enough to my family, my business, my friends.

Plans to attend my high-school reunion nearly went out the window too, but God kept prompting me to go. Isn't it great when we listen to Him? It was a wonderful mini-sabbatical, and the Lord placed several dear friends and spiritual 'uplifters' in my path. Once again, I was reminded that my timetable is not His timetable. "Relax daughter," He said to me over and over until I got it. (I'm so glad for His infinite patience!!)

So December was spent in the lap of His love. Yes, things were still busy, but now I had a sense of His peace. It was alright to re-launch the blog in 2009. It was OK to not have my photo up on Facebook right away. Everything that had to be done was done, and as for the others...Well, sometimes we just have to give ourselves some grace. He certainly does.

Things fell into place, but it felt different this time. It was not frenetic. There was no sense of forced urgency. Yes, I made plans and thought about goals, but it was in His time, not mine.

So thank you all for your patience, prayers and good wishes over the past nine months. My prayer for 2009 is that you live in the lap of His love, remembering the amazing grace He has shown to us. How reassuring to know that He is big enough to catch any curve ball life throws at you.

Smiles and Blessings,
Sharon

P.S. Kenny is doing extremely well. To read about this incredible family of faith, click on the link above. You will be blessed beyond measure!