Finding Courage

livingbygracemlLeave a comment

Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.

Brene Brown

It is a new year… a fresh start… last year’s slate has been wiped cleaned. Some people have made their new year resolutions and goals. Others, like myself, have chosen a word to focus on for this new year. I have chosen the word Courage.

What does courage look like for me in this upcoming year? That is something I have been thinking on, and I have come up with a few ideas.

  • The courage to step out of my comfort zone and into a new adventure.
  • The courage to embrace change.
  • The courage to follow my goals.
  • The courage to be my authentic self.

All of these things are braided together. My goals will have me stepping out of my comfort zone. My authentic self will have me needing to embrace change. Vulnerability and change can be terrifying and uncomfortable. But I also know that living a life without courage prevents you from living the life you were meant to live. Living a life without courage crushes your goals and dreams, entraps you in remaining where you are comfortable, and causes you to miss out on all that life has to offer.

..living a life without courage prevents you from living the life you were meant to live. Living a life without courage crushes your goals and dreams, entraps you in remaining where you are comfortable, and causes you to miss out on all that life has to offer.

Misty Lee – Living by Grace

Something new going on in my life is job searching. It has been seven years since I left the workforce to become a stay-at-home mom. I have loved every minute of it and honestly I’m not 100% sure I want to give it up, but the boys are getting older now and are more independent. I miss the challenges of a job outside the home and adult conversation. And lets be honest, some extra income never hurt anybody. An outside job would definitely be a new adventure for me.

Change. This can be a dreaded word and it leaves us with two options: 1. Run or 2. Embrace. I now realize that embracing change leads to less stress and worry. That doesn’t mean change is or will be easy, but it may very well be worth it! Along with possibly gaining employment, change for me also comes in the form of my health. I want to become healthy in three parts: mentally, physically, and spiritually. I have bounced back and forth with these three things like a ball at a soccer game…basically all over the place. It is time for a change and one that I am excited to embrace. (More on this topic in a future post!)

My goals for the new year are similar to every other year, but this time I want to succeed and have the courage to go after my goals without hesitation. My dream is to become a published author and it is about time that I put some real work into that. I want to fall back in love with reading. I want to be more active with my boys and less active on my phone. I also would like to be active without thinking I’m going to die because I have allowed my health to go.

Lastly, and this is the big one to finding my courage, is to be fully seen as my authentic self. I will find the courage to be true to myself. I know in doing so, that some will be unhappy, but my life and worth is more valuable than the opinion of others. I am a messy person who is blessed beyond belief, who has her faults, but is full of strength and perseverance. I will succeed. I am strong and resilient and from the ashes of my past I will find my courage…

I will rise.

A wild woman rises like a Phoenix from the ashes of her life, to become the heroine of her own legend.

Shikoba

Messing blessings,

Misty

Raising Children in These Tumultuous Times

livingbygracemlLeave a comment

Parenting is not for the faint of heart. It is probably one of the hardest jobs. You are responsible for a life. It is your job to instill values, morals, teach and instruct, protect, comfort, and discipline. I think most parents have uttered the old phrase, “Treat others the way you want to be treated.” But there is also an old saying that we should “practice what we preach”.

Have we lost that as a country? Who have we become?

I can’t scroll through any social media platforms or watch a news channel without feeling completely overwhelmed. We have been bombarded with information and opinions; and quite frankly, none of it is positive. It seems the more negative, opinionated, and hate filled speech, the more air time and likes it gets. What are we teaching our children? What kind of world are we leaving for them and how can they possibly thrive in a society like this?

25 WPBF News
Atlanta Journal
LA Times

Covid and the return to school debate. I have been overloaded with statistics, stories, and conspiracy theories. People who took all precautions and still tested positive. People who refuse to wear a mask and are still negative. Others who tested positive and had a symptom and felt bad for 24 hours. Still some who spent time in the hospital and a few cases in my hometown where others have lost their lives. I am trusting that our teachers and staff are doing everything to help prevent and protect my children from this virus. I am concerned equally for their physical and mental health, and I’m not sure there truly is a wrong answer in what we as parents decide. So, we made the decision to send our sons back to school.

Tampa Bay Times via AP
Star Tribune via AP

John Minchillo AP

Racial and social injustices, inequality, black lives matter, all lives matter, blue lives matter….

We somehow have lost what the real issue is. Instead of listening to those in our black community and their real life experiences, we want to defend ourselves and not believe them. We want to make the excuse that it is all politics and/or the black community needs to stop living in the past. I believe they are living in the present and how even to this day, they still face racism, inequality, and injustices. It’s not the past, it is the present. Why are we not standing united? Americans pride themselves on coming together, why aren’t we now? It is not a matter of supporting the Black Lives Matter organization, it is the simple statement that black lives matter and they are treated on a daily basis that they do not and this is real.

My children have questions that I have a difficult time answering. How do you teach children to not hate others based on differences when all they hear and see is the opposite? I have taught my boys respect, empathy, tolerance, compassion. Yet, those you extend those characteristics are persecuted for it. They are labeled “snowflakes”, “liberals”, “anti-Trump”. I disagree with all of these labels. Why? We are called to stand out by our actions. America…we are not loving each other.

Steve Helber/ AP
LA Times

So, what does God’s word say about how we as Christians should live and act?

A devotional I read the other day asked these questions that we all should ask ourselves, not only during these tumultuous times, but every single day.

  1. Motives- Are they pure?
  2. Thoughts- Are they kind?
  3. Judgments- Are they right and just?
  4. Words- Are they gracious?
  5. Actions- Are they pleasing to God?

This is what we should be teaching our children and modeling for them.

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

Colossians 3:12-15

Let them know we are Christians by our love….

Living by grace,

Misty