“Change is God’s specialty and interruption is God’s area of mastery.”
Marshawn Evans Daniels
It’s my birthday week (February 24th) and I am grateful. It’s also a moment of reflection. I am grateful for life lessons. Many of the experiences have come at unexpected moments. Transitioning to another age reminds me that change is a natural part of life. Changes are in the form of interruptions , disruptions, and detours.
I’ve discovered that sometimes the detours life make leads us to the tours that we’re supposed to take. It’s the detour of the delayed flight that led to the tour of the airport and running into a friend I had not seen for decades. It’s the detour of major life shake up that leads to the tour of shift our thinking. Change shifts the predictability of life and the notion of being in control. Another life lesson – we really can’t control everything. Change is that reminder. It’s an opportunity to push us out of comfort zones – even if we don’t think we are ready. That’s the beauty and challenge of change – it’s happening whether you are ready or not. The only consistent and unchangeable thing about life is that there is always change.
How has life taught me about change? …….. wait a minute, I need to correct that statement. How is life teaching me about how to deal with change? Surrender
Surrender – This means getting out of the way, my own way and into the flow. Surrender means allowing myself to be in this messy and unpredictable space of change. Surrender releases you from pre-set expectations to open up to what God has in store. I am reminded of my beloved friend Dee (who is now my beloved guardian angel) and her message to me whenever I knew I had to move out of a comfort zone and make a shift.
"Girl, you know God has got you with this change, just surrender and allow yourself to be in this messy space and be real with God about how you're feeling ….... and that is what will make it AWESOME. (No one could say and mean the word awesome like Dee!) The message can come out of the messiness"
1. Practice Gratitude – In the midst of shifts, being grateful grounds you. Jen Sincero says “Gratitude isn’t about denying your difficult feelings; it’s about not being a prisoner to them” I appreciated because it’s acknowledged that being grateful doesn’t mean ignoring the hard stuff of change. You can still feel all of the emotions and be grateful.
2. Practicing Trust/Letting Go - Life is this delicate balance of holding on and letting go at the same time. My acronym for TRUST – To Rely Upon Someone Totally and my Someone is God. Trusting means I will do the work and letting go by trusting God for the outcome.
3. Practicing Prayer – This is the foundation. Prayer keeps us in communication with God. Dr Monica Coleman offered a perspective on prayer. She shared that maybe prayer is for grounding us and connecting us to God. In every situation …..in every shift, change and interruption.
I am choosing to be grateful. I am grateful for having this blog and space to write. I am grateful that we are on this journey together because you are reading and listening to my words now. I am grateful for never passing up an opportunity to give and receive love languages of words of affirmation, acts of service, receiving gifts, quality time, and physical touch. I am grateful for Sheila love languages of food, music and travel. I am grateful for the gifts of those who make time and treasure me and allow me to do the same. I am grateful for changes that challenge, stretch and push me beyond comfort zones into greater spaces. I am grateful for taking risks, making jumps, shooting shots that will move me into new places.
Birthdays are truly gifts, because they remind you of life shifts. It’s an opportunity to start a new chapter and begin again. Feel free to leave me a birthday blessing comment right here in the blog.
This is birthday blog – cue Stevie Wonder Happy Birthday.
