Shut up and Throw Yourself a Party

 Do you ever find it difficult to share good news because:

1. You are worried about how it will make other people feel?
2. You are worried people will start asking you for things?
3. You are worried it sounds braggy, boastful, proud, arrogant?

Do you ever feel like people only talk to you in times of crisis and rarely in times of joy?

YOU HAVE POWER OVER ALL OF THAT.

You have power over how you feel. You can choose happiness, joy, contentment. You have the power to say and do whatever the heck you want. Here is the flip side of that... so does everybody else. You cannot protect people from the sting of their choices, by shying away from your own successes. Yes, there is sensitivity to other people's plights. It would display a dismal lack of tact to go and on about your fabulous new raise and bonus, right after your friend has told you she was laid off. Use your brain and find the appropriate moment to share your good news, but SHARE IT!

Ever since I was little girl, I have always found myself down playing my successes so other people wouldn't feel bad. I would fear rejection because nobody likes the smart girl or the good-two-shoes. This silliness has followed me into adulthood. I find myself afraid to share good news with friends and/or family for fear that they might feel bad because "after all, they are going through a lot." Everybody is going through a lot. Everybody will always have some crisis they are working through. I will celebrate with them once they have gone through it. I will celebrate with them even if when the celebration occurs I have nothing particularly noteworthy happening.

Why should I share my successes? Isn't that arrogant? 

Well, it depends on how you share your news.

You can act like an ass, and go and on about how awesome you are. That is certainly one way to share successes. OR, you can say, "Hey! this awesome thing happened to me. It was lovely. I feel lovely." You never know if your success is encouragement for someone else. It may be just the thing they need to hear to keep pressing forward. You never know if your enthusiasm for the good thing that just happened or will happen, is the freaking ray of hope that somebody needed after working a long crappy day. 

Who knows, if this could also be your opportunity to share your faith. To share in whom you rest your trust and for what reason. As Christians, we often only display our faith in times of crisis. Why not also in times of joy and success? If we are to adopt a real attitude of gratitude, as opposed to just saying lame platitudes when crap goes wrong, wouldn't it then be prudent to celebrate when things go right. They sometimes do!

It is all about timing and delivery. But for,  Goodness Sakes! Shut up that inner mean girl who wants you to be docile and full of crap. You can be inauthentic and fake if you want to. That, of course, is your choice. However, I choose to shut up that inner meanie and throw myself a party! After all, the party may turn out to be more beneficial to the attendees than the hostess.

November 2014 Goals

I was home most of the month of October. My doctor hadn't cleared me to exercise so I took that as license to eat tons of candy and cereal. (I seriously have a Lucky Charms problem!) Despite being confined to the couch, I was able to do a lot a of "when I am well" planning.  I started my 101 in 1001 list last month. Here is a quick recap of last month's goal progress and what I hope to accomplish next month. 

October Goals Recap:

1. Pray daily
2. Purposefully encourage 5 people daily
3. Finish Skillshare class (Instead of worrying about my logo, I decided my time could be better spent pattern making.)
4. Make a plan for starting my fashion line
5. Get closer to my goal weight (I gained a few pounds while I was recuperating at home.)

November Goals:

1. Pray daily
2. Stay in sync with Bible reading program
3. Save $300 towards mini emergency fund
4. Lose 10 pounds
5. Drink 8 glasses of water everyday
6. Finish Round 3 of the 21 Day Fix
7. Start Round 4 of the 21 Day Fix
8. Complete November series the "12 Handmade Days of Christmas"
9.  Launch Shopify Store

Most of my goals involve what I call the Daily Five: Prayer, Read the Bible, Exercise, Encourage Others, and Pookie Time! 

Some of my goals will require little to no effort, like sipping water all day. The rest of my goals will require a little more effort and a lot more baby steps. I will check in half way through the month in order to keep myself on track. 

I am off to work on my blog and fashion line! What are your goals for this month?

Are you trudging or skipping?

 Why trudge when you can skip?

It is nearing the end of October and we have less than a quarter of a year left. (Dang, Judith why are you bumming me out?) At this point many of you have resigned yourself that the year is over and are merely hoping to get through this one and into the next. Many of you have even started planning your 2015 resolutions because you have resigned yourself to the notion that you won't be able to get anything accomplished this year. You are trudging through these last few months with sighs of resignation.

I encourage you to unstuck yourself from the muddy build up this year has mired you in. THIS YEAR IS NOT OVER! I REPEAT THIS YEAR IS NOT OVER! If you finish this year trudging along, no matter how awesome your 2015 list is... you'll likely carry that trudging attitude into 2015 with you. 

So maybe this year wasn't perfect. So maybe you aren't where you thought you'd be with regard to your weight, career, money, relationships, etc! So maybe you are tired and beat up. The end of October isn't reason enough to stay in that condition.

Think of the last two days of October as a pause in the program. Take time to Regroup, Refresh, and Re-frame your thinking. Allow God to show himself strong in your weakness. (II Corinthians 12:9-10) Allow Him to be your strength every morning. (Isaiah 33:2) Yup, every morning He showers you in new strength. You cannot undo this year or buy yourself extra time, but you can make the most of what's left of this year.

Start skipping now. Even if you only manage to get up to a jaunty trot, it is better than trudging. End this year skipping!

What are you working to shake off? How do you plan on ending this year skipping?

Happy Weekend!

Jesus Loves You! Bam! I said it. I'll say it again. Jesus Loves You!

It doesn't get any better or simpler than that! He loves you! Marvel in it! Revel in it! Rejoice in it! And... Go have an awesome weekend!

Day Five: Prioritzing

Today’s post is about prioritizing your goals and dreams.

You are not expected, nor are you required to be superwomen or supermen. We only have so much time allotted to us each day and only so much time allotted to us in life. This is often where I get stuck. I look at my crazy list, get overwhelmed, and my list will stay nothing more than a list. Let's push past this inclination!

Here are some questions to ask yourself as you evaluate where you should start first:

Is there anything on my list that needs to be done?

Is there anything on my list that should get done? 

Is there anything on my list that I want to get done?

Is there anything that will take little time or effort to accomplish?

Is there anything that will involve several steps to get accomplished?

What are the high, medium, and low priority items?

Are there any thematic categories that require my attention? Do yo

need to reach a health goal? Do you need to make your finances a number one on your list? 

The key is to determine what is most important to you. Let me give you an example of what I have done to prioritize and categorize my lists of goals and dreams. 

Step One: I made a list of 50 goals and dreams. They run the gamut from lofty dreams to simple goals.

Step Two: My first method of organizing was along thematic lines: spiritual, health & beauty, financial, career, artistic endeavors, and home decorating.

Step Three: Once I had my themes, I prioritized my themes. I felt the spiritual goals, praying everyday and reading at least a chapter in the Bible a day would have a positive effect on achieving the other items on my list. So not only is that category a priority, it does not take a lot of effort or time to accomplish, and I personally believe it is something I need to do daily.

Step Four: I then addressed each thematic category and the items in the category one by one.  Within each category what is most important to me, what needs to be done, what should be done, and what I want to get done. Put it another way, what is a high, medium, and low priority?

Step Five: Once I look at the items priority level, I then look at time constraints. Is there anything here that I can accomplish in the next week, month, three months? Is there anything I can do to get my encouragement up? What will have to be broken down into further little baby bite sized pieces?

Tomorrow we will talk about the baby bite-sized pieces. Today prioritize the items. Do not evaluate the merit or worth of your goals. This is not that kind of prioritizing!  The goal here is to make your list manageable so that we can go from Dreaming to Planning  and eventually to Doing.
  
To Read 31 Days of Dream. Plan. Do. from the beginning click here.

Day Three: Organizing and Categorizing

Take your list of dreams and categorize them.

 A good place to start may be thematic, such as financial, professional, hobbies, physical, mental, etc.;

     You can do it chronologically, such as, three month goals, six month goals, 1 year goals, 5 year goals;

You can categorize them by order of import;

     You can draw out your dreams in a bubble chart or web chart.

Personally, I am a girl whose lists often have sub-lists. The goal here is to begin to break down your goals into manageable bite sized pieces. Do not get overwhelmed and begin to edit your goals and cross things out. We are only at day three! NO EDITING! NO being suddenly afraid and allowing that fear to edit who you’ve poured out onto paper. Embrace hope and future possibilities. All we are doing is organizing your thoughts!

Here is what I do. I buy a really pretty notebook and dream freely. Then I categorize thematically. Some suggested categories are financial, career, spiritual, mental health, physical health, health, artistic, home decorating, or projects. Whatever categories make the most sense to you.  I also am a big fan of sticky-tabs and other office supplies that make things visually appealing and organized. Now, this may not work for you so I would encourage you to do what does work for you. Organize your thoughts. Please feel free to add to your list as new things pop into your head. 

If you want to stay here for a few days and really think about how to organize your dreams, feel free to do so. Stay on this journey with me. We will break this down into tiny pieces together.  Please feel free to share how you have chosen to categorize your lists.

Day Two: Freedom to Dream

Write absolutely every Dream and Goal you have. Today is the day to pour your hopes  onto paper.

Personally, there is nothing quite as beautiful to me as a fresh notebook and clean page. (I also have a thing for brand new books that creak when you open them.) I prefer to actually hand write my lists. So grab a new notebook, a new sketch pad if you like to draw things out, or even type it on whatever electronic device you will actually go back and review later. 

Please do not edit yourself. Please do not let that little nagging voice in the back of your head prevent you from writing something down. Write it all down!! You are not required to share your list with anybody. Don’t write something because you are secretly thinking of a certain person(s) and hoping for their approval. This isn’t a test and there will not be a test at the end of these 31 days. There will not be anyone to red-pen your ideas and goals. This is all you baby! So go ‘head write it all down. I’m cheering you on and doing a happy dance for you all at the same time!!  

:: Doing the Cabbage Patch while saying 

“Go You, Go You, Go You” ::

Yeah, I’m goofy like that.

Tomorrow you and I will meet back here to sort it all out. 

For now, be free to dream.

To Read 31 Days of Dream. Plan. Do. from the beginning click here.

Day One: Fast and Pray

Day One: Fast and Pray

I’m a Christian and I like to begin all adventures with fasting and praying. You may have just rolled your eyes, but before you pretend gag yourself and think I’m going to go all religious and weird on you, let me explain what fasting is, why I do it, and what fasting most definitely is not. Then I would ask you all to join me in a time of fasting and prayer.

1.                What is fasting?

Abstaining from food and drink for a period of time.

2.                Why fast?

To draw closer to God,

To ask for direction,

To ask God to meet a specific need.

Please note, this is not a command to fast, but a hope that you would link hearts with me before we embark. Here is a short list of people in the Bible who have inspired me to fast in times of need: Jesus, the Disciples, Esther, King Jehoshaphat.

3.                HOW AND WHY do I fast?

When I fast, I can typically fast and pray for a whole day. Honestly, I find it very difficult to set aside more than an entire day to fast and pray without getting super grouchy and losing the whole point for fasting in the first place. I only drink water when I fast—no food, no smoothies, and no sugar free food. I also try not to do any strenuous activity when I fast because then my blood sugar drops dramatically and then I turn into a big ol’ mess.

I have fasted for a variety of reasons. I have fasted for help with finances, career decisions, and battles with emotions, etc. I fast as a way to take some time to stop, quiet everything going on in my head, and to symbolically tell God that He is all I need to sustain me. It is my way of telling him that I believe that He will provide all of my needs, both spiritual and physical. I don’t think of fasting as a magic potion or super salve for all of my problems, but it does give me a timeout to look at my problems from a new perspective. It often gives me direction on how to face them. It does give me a hope that God hears me and will send me help to get through!

4.   Biblical Reasons for Fasting

STOP AND STAND STILL SO YOU CAN see and hear from god

II Chronicles 20 

King Jehoshaphat got some seriously bad news and called a community fast. The bad news: A foreign invasion army was headed his way. He had some choices: Panic, Terror, Fear, Running Away, Offering a Surrender in exchange for mercy… the list goes on. Instead he chose to call a community fast. The kingdom assembled with their wives, children, and families. (v.13) This is a little bit of what they’re prayer sounded like, “O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help.” (v.12, NLT) Encouragement came very quickly. A man standing in the crowd, Jahaziel, had the honor of speaking the word of encouragement. He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.” (v.15 NLT). He then proceeded to tell the assembly what to do next. “But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the LORD’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you!” (v.17) 

Even though many of you are probably not facing an invading army, your everyday problems may feel like an invading army. So before we tackle dreams, goals, and planning them out, we are going to stop as a group and assemble for a big dose of encouragement and direction from God. In asking for encouragement and direction, that doesn’t necessarily mean the problem goes away, but it does give us a glimpse into God’s heart. “Stand still and watch the Lord’s Victory.” Part of fasting is allowing yourself a moment to stand still and watch for the Lord. When you’ve stopped and are standing still you are in a better position to hear God and to actually see what He is doing and will do.

You may be fresh out of ideas as to how you are going to fix this or you’ve already tried to overcome your problems on your own. This time you don’t have to. We are going to start with a community fast/prayer fest and rely on God before we undertake any new adventure.

MOTIVATION CHECK: READ ISAIAH 58 and MATTHEW 6

1.               Do not fast out of false piety. 
2.             Do not fast to beat yourself up for past sins. 
3.            Do not walk around miserable and disheveled (Matt 6: 16, NLT) 
4.             Do not fast as a way to lose weight. 
5.            Do not fast as a sort of magic potion to get God to give you what you want.

Do wash your face and comb your hair. Do keep praying all day. Do what you can do. If you cannot fast because of health reasons, then set aside the day for prayer.

The goal is to stop and be still before taking another step forward.

So my dear readers please take a moment to bow your head with me and pray:

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for this opportunity to link hearts and pray. I pray that those who do not have a personal relationship with you, that they would come to know you. I lift up every person who is reading this to you. I ask you to speak into their life, to deal with the issues of their heart, and to honor this time of fasting and prayer. I pray that you would direct and guide us over these next 31 days and into the future. I pray that we would not allow fear, discouragement, and anxiety to take hold, but instead that we would take a moment to stop, stand still, let go of our own resources, and rely on you. Help us as we prepare to DREAM, PLAN, AND DO. In your name we pray.

Amen.

(or as my friend says, Yay Jesus!)

To Read 31 Days of Dream. Plan. Do. from the beginning click here.