Connections

I have had more revelation in the last 48 hours than I think I can process right now. Believe me, when you ask God for a word, be listening and be ready.....He will show up and tell it to you(whether you want to hear it or not). His truth will change you, trust His neon sign the first time....if you don't you will see it again and next time it may hurt. An amazing friend posted something about this on Sunday and God has used it to open doors and show me more than I could ever imagine.

This summer He has peeled off layers, exposed to me some of those this is where that thought process comes from etc., and gotten real. It hasn't been pretty, easy, or even fun, but it has been necessary. Change will not happen until you make the decision to change. As long as you want to stay comfortable and doing what you have always done, the way you have always done it, and making sure those people who you have always made happy or happy....nothing is going to change. God will put the opportunity to change in front of you, but He will not make you walk down the road. There comes a point where you have to make the decision, you have to listen when He says let's go. He is not going drag you kicking and screaming down the path He wants you to take. His truth is sometimes not easily digested in one setting....sometimes you have to chew on it awhile. So I guess this blog is me chewing ;-)

Who are you connected to? Take a minute to really seriously think about the answers to that question. I'm not talking about your connection with God, we'll talk about that One in a minute. I'm talking about who is in your everyday world. Who do you communicate with on a daily or even weekly basis? Who communicates with you? Who are you around in meetings or other group settings? Whose social media do you pay attention to? Who do you check with before you do something? Who are you allowing to speak into your life be it verbal or nonverbal communication? Who is impacting your walk(good or bad)?

Sometimes those we find ourselves connected with are not necessarily those that have a good impact on our lives. Another thought to think about is, who is adding to your life and not just subtracting from it? Now before someone says, God says to be a servant, do for others etc. Think about this for a minute: If you are truly involved in service and doing what God told you to do, they are adding to your life by building fruit. Subtracting service moments just keep you busy. Know the difference and make your time mean something. That was my word at the beginning of the summer. Be fruitful, not just busy. Balance is the key and no one area should dominate all of your life(job, family, health etc.) There is time for it all when you order your priorities right and remember what truly matters.

Just because someone speaks something doesn't mean you have to accept it. It has taken me a LONG time to get that truth. You can really choose what you think about(Joyce Meyer has always said it, but it has taken me a long time to "get" it). God will give you the strength to do what He has called you to do. He called you to be you, no one else. He is happy when we look in the mirror and smile. He gets excited when His children realize the gift that is on the inside of them. After all, He is the One that gave it to you in the first place.

There may be more on this to come in the next couple of weeks, but for now just think about it. God has given you an incredible journey and race to run. Stay connected to those that are going to believe in you, support you along the race, and run with you. He has given you an amazing gift...YOU! Show the world that gift and just be YOU!! Part of that is letting go what may so easily entangle us and setting our eyes on what really matters.

Until next time,
~Melissa

Sweet Spot

Summer is slowly winding down, and I must say this has been a good one. Don't get me wrong it's had its "stressful" moments, but notice I said moments. The moments quickly faded and what came after was peace. Not peace that it was over, but peace that it was all going to fall into place. This is what the other side of people pleasing looks like. See for so long, I've worried more about other people thought than if I was being me. In other words what others thought and asked of me was placed as a higher priority than what He thought and asked. End of last year brought me to a point where I knew things had to change, I had to adjust and start listening or there were going to be serious consequences(stress is not good physical). The goal this summer was simple, be fruitful not just busy. I think it is safe to say I've listened and have really enjoyed the time. I've learned to let the stress roll, this too shall pass, and why worry if you can't change it. Things that would have kept me in unnerved for days, last minutes. The process isn't completed, but I am a lot closer than I used to be.

So why is the blog titled sweet spot? Think abut what you love doing, what you are good at, passionate about, those things that make you smile. Now how much of your day do you spend doing these things? Probably not as much as you would like, and if you are honest with yourself....there may even be some days where no time is spent at all. Sweet spots are from God. He has given us all things we are good at. Not necessarily things we went to school for, read in a book, or ever thought we would be doing....but things that just come naturally. We smile when we are doing them, they bring happiness and peace. Those are moments when you know you are operating in the place where He wants you and doing what He asked you to do. So many times He tells us what to do, we listen, but never put it into practice. Then when things start taking a turn we don't like we ask Him to intervene, when He's already told us how to jump over the turn, and walk across to the other side. We listen when He talks, but it is more than just words, we have to put action to what He says. Sweet spots come when you put it into practice. Sweet spots bring a smile and even when those stress moments come, they are only moments and not hours.

Balance and perspective are key to walking in peace. Remembering that it isn't about what others want, but what He wants that matters. We spend too much time running around being busy when we need to be fruitful. Fruitful moments will last after we have moved on, busy moments will only last for the moment. Live in your sweet spot and when He speaks, you need to do. Stress moments will come and they will go. Don't let them wreck who you are or even where you are at. God called you to be you and no one can play the part He wrote just for you in this show called Life. Don't let others steal that from you. Take a moment and ask about your sweet spots. Listen when He tells you(again) about your gifts,  your passions, those things He gave only to you. Now when He gives you the next steps...the what to do with what He has told you.....DO IT! Are you sitting on a word today?

Until next time
~Melissa