*** Okay the last in my L.I.V.E. series. No editing done. This is how I originally posted it.***
When does 4 days = 3 weeks?
Before you think I don't know math or you try to figure out the "riddle", let me tell you how. 4 days = 3 weeks when procrastination and work take over. The key words are "take over". I knew this series was a good idea. Naturally, I figured I could type it out in no time. However, I did not take into account my MASTERS DEGREE in procrastination. I procrastinated just long enough to where work took over. I have been working 7 days a week, 50-65 hours per week recently. Blogging has been the last thing on my mind. Mix procrastination with my work schedule and you get "unfinished business".
HOWEVER..............big drum roll please........
ESTABLISH! EMBRACE! EMBARK!
Yes, ladies & gentleman, the E's have it! The "E" in L.I.V.E. is establish, embrace & embark. I couldn't just narrow it to one of those words. They kind of work together, so let's dive in.
Establish, in the context of my thinking and this series, is defined more by answering these questions:
--What are you?
--What defines you?
--What has your heart?
--What have you given your heart to?
--What do you believe?
These aren't the type of questions that you should answer right away. Why? Because these are influenced by your life right now. But life is more than that. For example: "What are you?" would be influenced currently by my job, so I'm an employee. But that does not discount the fact that I am a wife, mother, daughter, sister, niece, friend, neighbor, etc. Make sense?
With that said, dwelling on the question of "What are you?", can lead to the other questions. The "what" part may be answered by answering "What defines you?". And that, in turn, leads to "What has your heart" or "What have you given your heart to?". Wrapping it all up, what you are & what's in your heart leads to "What do you believe?".
"What are you?": as I said earlier, I am a wife, mom, employee, etc. Some people may answer that by their race (I'm Hispanic, for the record), their job title (I'm a Claims Analyst), and still others by their country (yes, I'm an American). I would be remiss if I didn't add "religious" affiliation (not religious, just a Christian), but that's a post for another day. As a wife & mom (and so on), those "titles" if you will, define me, influence what has my heart & what I give my heart to. And ultimately, that will influence what I believe. What I believe dictates how I L.I.V.E. in my relationship with my husband, my kids, my employer, etc.
Not so easy to answer those questions now is it? Establish.
When you've ESTABLISHed, then you can move on to EMBRACE. Embrace what you've established . By answering the questions above, you establish your identity and then "embrace" it. How do you embrace it? By being okay with it. (still scratching your head??) Here goes.
I had been a Christian for a few years, when I started to believe that I had something to offer, in a public forum. I wouldn't necessarily say I wanted to preach but rather, when God called me to speak, I could speak. If He called me to sing, I could. But I never wanted to promote myself to do that. Some people get a "word" from God and they do whatever they can to make it happen......in their own strength and power. They try to be out in the forefront of things as much as they can, get favor with those in authority, and trample on those around & "under" them. I've seen that in the corporate world and yes, even churches. (Remember: churches are filled with sinners & hurting people...otherwise it's like a country club or PTA meeting).
I never tried to be a self promoter. If someone called me to be out front, I tried to resist it as much as I could. Every so often I would because when I'd pray or ask God about it, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, that He wanted me to. More often than not, people would come up to me afterward and thank or compliment me. I would try to defer the accolades to God because whatever I did, wasn't me because I didn't want to be in public view. The more it happened, the more I believed that God was preparing me for something "more". Long story short, change happens and the moment I believed God would say 'Your time in front is now', well, it never happened. And I was crushed.
It took me a few years to get over it. I constantly questioned: "What did I do wrong?, Did I miss God? Why did that happen? Where do I go from here?". All of those questions and more went through my head (think/dwell/ponder) and there was never a satisfactory answer. Nothing felt right. Nothing made me happy again. Very discouraged, depressed and unsatisfied was how I would describe myself. Nothing changed until I let go.
I let go of who "I" thought I was. I let go of what "I" thought "I" thought was supposed to be. I let go of the past ideas. It wasn't easy by any means. In fact, there are still times when I have to catch myself thinking like that again. But, I've learned. I had to learn the answers to the questions above. What am I? I'm a daughter of the most high king: Jesus. I'm a wife. I'm a mom (great "job" by the way). I'm defined by God and His Word, the bible. Jesus is in my heart. He has access to my heart and He's filled it with love, passion and caring for my family. It's also for missions around the world and kids around the world (currently those in Haiti but also Cambodia, Mexico and the entire African continent). These people and issues have my heart right now.
I believe, that one day, I will be able to go to those places and do the things that God wants me to do, in a public forum. One day. But not yet. For the main focus which I EMBRACE right now is my family. I am devoted to my family. I am passionate about my family. So that's what I embrace, although it took some time for me to realize that to the full extent I am now.
ESTABLISH. EMBRACE. EMBARK.
I have EMBRACEed what's been ESTABLISHed in my life. So I EMBARK. I have embarked on an adventure. This adventure right now is daughter of God, wife to my honey, mom (and Nana) to my wonderful children (and grandchildren). Marriage is an adventure in itself. And let me tell you, it's an adventure alright. Children ranging in age from 23 to 8 tends to be a wide-ranging adventure in itself. But, the greatest adventure is with God. I don't always know where God is going to lead me to. But as I go through life, reading my bible, spending time with God in prayer and song, I learn something new about Him. I learn more about loving people, forgiveness and even giving others grace who don't agree with me or who make me "mad". He could call me to be "out front" tomorrow and I would do it (with much resistance of course). And if He doesn't, that's okay too. It's all part of the adventure.
ESTABLISH. EMBRACE. EMBARK.
L.I.V.E.
Love with mercy
Invest yourself
Vision
Establish, Embrace, Embark
Are you ready to LIVE? Then go L.I.V.E.
Until next time,
RSPS Sunny
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