#inspiration

New Year’s 2025

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you had a peaceful, meaningful holiday season no matter what you celebrate. And now we are in 2025. Where did the time go?

Every year I see people posting “New Year. New You.” I wonder what changes they are expecting. Yet, I applaud people’s desire for growth and change. We are hardwired for growth. Sitting idle creates a stirring that can haunt us.

Do you have something in your life that you are dissatisfied with? Make the decision to change it, whatever it is. Then commit. No matter what happens, you will make the change and not go back. It’s gonna take work, but you can accomplish anything you set your mind to.

Once you make the commitment, it’s over. Set your sights on greater things.

Again, Happy New Year! I wish all of you good health, great experiences, and solid relationships in 2025 and beyond…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Nearby When You Need It

All of us have things in our past we would love to forget. The mistakes we’ve made, the things we have said we wished we hadn’t. All of them play on a never ending loop in our heads.

At the same time, there are more things we did right, and we continue doing them. We aren’t constantly reminded of them because they don’t induce stress. Yet, stress isn’t always a bad thing.

I grew up in a constant “fight or flight” way of thinking. My mind created coping mechanisms so I could survive. Over time, those coping mechanisms ceased to serve me well. At that point I was kinda lost. I was living in an adult world with no adult skills. Only by the grace of God I made it through.

In 2010 I found the right psychotherapist and I went to work on myself. Over time, I learned what the root causes were of my decision making. Only then did I remove the root and began making better, healthier decisions. It has been challenging, but man I have grown immensely.

The past remains in the past. It’s always nearby if I need it, but its only use is as a reminder of how far I have come. I’m still working on myself because that never stops.

Do the work…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Draw The Line

You have probably heard people say “that’s whee I draw the line.” This signals that someone has crossed an imaginary barrier and the declarer says no more!

Setting boundaries and saying no to things that aren’t enriching to your life is healthy. Sadly, there are people who will prey on others, taking advantage of them But when you say no to something or someone, you are saying YES to yourself. And you are making room in your life for something better.

In the United States (and possibly the rest of the world), people drew their lines in the sand over political differences. When you stop and consider the infighting that happened between the Founding Fathers, you realize there’s been an element of this in our DNA for centuries. It got so bad that George Washington called for a three-day recess for fasting and prayer. Yep, he did.

Do what you need to do to take care of yourself. Sometimes that’s as simple as saying no…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Sayings

“Early to bed, early to rise makes a man…” you know the rest. There’s a lot of cute, catchy sayings that are meant to teach us something. Life is the best teacher of all. We take to heart the lessons we learn through experience.

All my life I’ve heard people say, “you know, they say” this or that. Who are they??? I wish they would show themselves because I have a few things to say to they!

When we are seeking wisdom, go to the Book of Proverbs. Written by King Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, it’s full of solid advice to guide us in life. His writings were inspired by God so we know they are true. God gave us a guidebook to navigate life on this planet. We are being prepared for eternity.

Remember, God didn’t create us and forget about us. We are in His thoughts. Always…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

In Hiding

How do you define yourself? When you are asked to describe yourself, what is your answer?

Our identity begins with our name. We do not have a choice of our lineage, and I’m glad we aren’t given that privilege. God, in His infinite wisdom and planning, created us uniquely for a purpose. Only through our unique DNA could this have been accomplished.

People try to hide behind facades to cover up their insecurities. Embellishing one’s life is a tell-all that there’s more there than meets the eye.

I encourage you to take an honest inventory of your character traits. What are you good at? Do more of that and allow yourself to grow.

Don’t hide your talents. Use them to benefit others, just as God intended…

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#inspiration

Prime Time

The word “prime” means the best. We have Prime Rib, prime location, prime example, Coach Prime and many more. Today I want to talk about prime time.

When we think of prime time, our thoughts might go to television. In that sense it means the time most people are watching television. Or we may think of our age. It’s been written that we are in our prime in our 30’s and 40’s. Does this suggest that life goes downhill from there? I don’t believe so.

You are in the prime time of your life right now. The wisdom and strength you have acquired will serve you well in life. And as you age, you continue to learn and grow. This never stops until you breathe your last.

Focus your thoughts on growing and improving. Look for opportunities to learn new things. Then use what you have to influence the world in a positive way…

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#inspiration

Take The Lead

Are you comfortable when you are placed in a position to lead others? I hope your answer is no.

Leadership requires humility and adaptability. The people you are leading might have a better idea than you, and when you recognize that, they believe in you even more. You won’t be ceding your leadership position. When you become less important, you are positioning others to grow. When your followers grow, and they trust you, they will march through the gates of hell for you.

Feeling uncomfortable as a leader is natural. Your growth comes through discomfort. Your confidence expands. And your emotional intelligence increases.

Leaders have a servants heart. Lead well…

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#inspiration

No Room At The Inn

In today’s political environment, tempers flare and relationships are damaged, even severed completely. I believe this is ridiculous.

There are over 7 billion people in the world. There isn’t another person who looks like you, thinks like you or believes everything you believe. And that’s good. If we were all the same, life would be very boring. It’s perfectly fine to see the world differently and to have different political beliefs. You should read about the battles the Founding Fathers of the United States engaged in. Yet, they found a way to work together and look what came from that.

Give plenty of margin to your fellow man. There’s room for all of us…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Help Is On The Way

Everywhere on the internet we see pictures of people memorializing the events in their lives. I think it’s wonderful to see people experiencing great travel, personal victories, and I can’t leave out the back to school pictures. We should celebrate life’s special moments.

We are given a certain amount of time in this life. I believe we all want a lot of the same things: to live life fully and live freely. We want to live in safe neighborhoods and not feel like we have to look over our shoulders every time we go out. If you have these things, take a brief moment to thank your Creator. Not everyone in the world lives like everyone else.

If we are able, we should help those who are less fortunate. Otherwise we are making it about ourselves. Living selfishly is not living fully…

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#inspiration, #spirituality

Tension

My childhood home was filled with chaos and violence. As a result, tension became my close friend. I was used to it subliminally.

When I became free of living in that hellhole I thought I could leave it all behind and create a new, better life for myself, free of tension. Boy was I wrong! I had this innate ability to be attracted to people who created chaos. It was like a tractor beam. When I was married, one day I came to the realization that I had recreated what I was desperately trying to escape from. In that moment I realized the common denominator was me and I had to do something about it. So, I began working on myself.

Looking inside myself exposed why I made the choices I made. Then I went to work to modify my thinking which led to better outcomes. It wasn’t easy working through this stuff, and it took time, but it was worth it.

Today I’m peaceful, content, and still ambitious as hell. Do I miss the chaos? In a word, no…

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