Then, I saw this…

Sarah is such a genuine, beautiful lady – so is Ellen. It’s so encouraging and inspiring when celebrities and corporations use their powers for good.

As far as habits go, this one is really an easy one to implement and it makes sense.

There is another Voice in my head. I wish it were louder. I wish it would shout. It doesn’t. This Voice is quiet and gentle and persistent. I never confuse it with my own. His name is Jesus. He speaks words like, “I will never leave you nor forsake you”, “nothing can separate you from my love”, “you are wonderfully made”,”you can because I will strengthen you”, “come to me, I will give you rest”, “as far as the East is from the West so I have forgiven you” and on and on His Word goes. His voice makes me feel afraid, too. But, the fear is different – it’s more like being vulnerable, softer, new, hopeful.

I despise the Barking Dogs but they are familiar and louder. They demand my attention. The Voice of Jesus is becoming more familiar over the years, too. But, I must choose to listen for His voice. I must resist the Growl. Fortunately Jesus’ Words are written down. Hearing His voice makes me thirsty for more. Someday I will be satisfied.

I heard this Tenth Avenue North song today and it encouraged me to listen to the Voice of Jesus. I hope it encourages you, too.

What do your voices say? Who do you listen to?

By Travis Silva on Flickr

 I read this quote over at The Write Practice:

“The world has already been created and will survive without the help of man. The world has our hands, but our soul belongs to Someone Else.”

-Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

Sigh.

Em & Mark...I love them.

On Tuesday mornings I get to walk my youngest to school. It’s a pretty special time. I look forward to it.

On cooler days, we hold hands underneath my sweatshirt sleeve or share my coat pocket. I like walking with her on cold days best.

Today I learned that she would like to go to Alaska. Stay for a week and learn how to dogsled. How cool is that? Awesome.

Moments like these bring a sweet connection. They’re so simple but go down so deep.

How about you? How do you connect?

Stress. Selfishness. Discontent. Less than. More than. Not enough. Materialism. Boredom. Me.

Perhaps a healthy dose of…

Gratitude.

I truly see you.

I am listening.

I am blessed.

I appreciate you.

God is good.

I have enough.

I will trust Him.

Thank You.

"The Dip" by Seth Godin

Feeling the fog brain today and general discouragement. I’m in the middle of big project for work and I think I’ve hit “the dip“. The “dip” is that place where I (we) decide to quit or push through. All stories that matter hit it at some point. I know I’m going to push through but for now…this evening…I will procrastinate and wallow. It’s funny because I’m really excited about the project. It will be a life changer for so many people…for teenagers. I wonder if the size of the dip is directly related to the potential impact of the project?

Ever feel that way?

(by the way, “The Dip” is an excellent, encouraging, quick read. I highly recommend it!)

Starry Night Over the Rhone

“The answer is always in the entire story, not a piece of it.”
— Jim Harrison

“I wanted a perfect ending. Now I’ve learned, the hard way, that some poems don’t rhyme, and some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next. Delicious Ambiguity.”
- Gilda Radner

“Miracles are a retelling in small letters of the very same story which is written across the whole world in letters too large for some of us to see.”
- C.S. Lewis

Credit: Flickr User DeeGirlDee

Today, thanks to author, presenter and Twitter user @NancyDuarte, I learned about the amazing photographer, Camille Seaman. Nancy invited Camille to visit her company and then later posted an interview with her.

Read this excerpt from Nancy’s blog:

Photographer Camille Seaman’s daughter was watching Storm Chasers on the Discovery Channel one day, when Camille stopped what she was doing to admire the storm’s light.

Her daughter noticed her and said, ‘Mom, you should do that!’

Three days later, she was.

You know what I love about that? Camille’s daughter thought enough of her mom that she believed she could be a storm chaser!

Now, take a look at this interview quote:

Nancy: You’re so busy, successful and adventurous. What’s it like to be a mom and be so dedicated to producing amazing work?

Camille: I think it’s really important for my daughter to know that being a mother does not negate the necessity for her to live her purpose, to follow her dreams, or to do what she feels is important. In fact, it amplifies it. Being a mother really made me want to stand up and say, ‘I cannot leave this planet in the shape that it is for my child.’ She’s, in many ways, been the inspiration.

My takeaway is that even as parents we still need to seek after what our God given purposes are, discover our talents and use them. I think when we do seek after our dreams and do a little risk taking. we model it for our children and they look up to us for it.

My author friend Jenny Lundquist wrote this week on her blog about “Mama Writers and Guilt”. Jenny has been pursuing her dream of being an author and has struggled with guilt for it. About the guilt, she wrote,

So this is what I figured out: I spent so much time over the past five years worrying about what writing was taking away from my children that I didn’t stop to ask myself what writing was giving to my children.
(read the complete post)

Did you catch that? It seems that when we pursue our dreams and purposes we are actually giving a gift to our children. I want to inspire my daughters to be who they were made to be. I want them to take risks. I want them to dream big and purse God sized adventure. Perhaps… my dream pursuits may actually inspire and train them.

Ann Kiemel Anderson and her husband Will adopted 4 boys. Remarkably they developed relationships to the young biological moms. To one of those moms, Ann wrote,

“I serve a giant God. And we dream big dreams for you, my God and I.”

Let’s be storm chasers.

Mom & Dad on their Wedding Day

My mom passed away in January, 2001. I still miss her and want to honor her today. She was an incredibly generous woman and always gave great gifts for birthdays and Christmas. The best gifts she gave, though, aren’t the kind you wrap up.

5 gifts my mom gave me:

1. She liked to have fun. My mom played. She really enjoyed laughing and was a bit of a jokester.
2. She saw past our faults. Though I’m sure my mistakes and those of my siblings grieved her, she forgave and looked beyond. She believed in us.
3. She tried new things. Mom was adventurous in learning new skills, going to school, building a career later in life and in traveling. She did all of this without the emotional support of my dad – that’s amazing to me. She was a strong, courageous woman.
4. She was proud of her kids & grandkids. She bragged about us and was proud to introduce us to others.
5. She liked her kids and really enjoyed spending time with us. I love that she wasn’t afraid of getting dirty or ruining her clothes. The fact that my dad wasn’t around didn’t stop her from taking us places. Some of my favorite memories with her are of going to Disneyland, South Lake Tahoe, camping or just playing games.

Today, I feel extra grateful for my mom. Writing this list has caused that. I wish I’d done this when she was alive. It would have really blessed her. Thank you, Mom!

Now your turn…what gifts has your mom given you? Have you told her?