What's Your Message?

Ever see a celebrity advertising a product and wonder why they were chosen for that product? Usually it's not too hard, right? That's because that person fits the message the advertiser wants to send. Then we all know of the cases where a celebrity looses their endorsments because they fail to uphold the message. Funny thing about that is they may loose their wholesome, family product endorsement, but they then they show up somewhere else - suddenly fitting a whole new message.
I met with my agent last week and while the food and drinks she provided were great (and very appreciated) she provided something more important. She gave me back my vision. My vision for what I do in my writing. My vision for the future of the agency. My vision of myself.
She helped me remember the message I want to fit and she encouraged me that it was the right message for me to fit.
What are you endorsing today? What message do you fit? Is it the one you want to fit? Are you trying to fit too many messages? Do you confuse the folks around you-even the ones who know you best?
Finding, and then fitting, our own special message is important. We get to give life to a message - make sure it's worth your time and trouble.

This is Crazy, This is Crazy, This is Crazy

"This is crazy, this is crazy, this is crazy." Now, those of you belonging to the culturally elite are picturing Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) in "Vacation" standing on a hotel pool diving board swinging his arms back and forth. What is he calling crazy? That he's getting ready to jump into the pool where a dreamy model (Christie Brinkley) waits. She's naked, and not his wife.
Haven't we all stood on the edge of something, thinking jumping would be crazy and yet . . . Applying to that beyond dream college, asking out that girl you just met, signing enlistment papers, moving to the other side of the world - state - city, deciding to be a parent-then deciding to do it again, and again, changing careers instead of checking out retirement options.
And yet we jump.
Recently, talking to my agent I asked, "Am I delusional?" She laughed and said, "No, you have a vision."
But seriously, when that chant of "This is crazy" gets to going, don't you feel delusional? I sure do. And if I'm not careful I can let the fear of being delusional keep me from jumping. Making sure I'm connected with my vision helps me spot when I might actually be deluded. Good to remember.
What do you want to jump in to but fear of delusion is clouding your vision? Even harder for me to ask myself is this - Who in my life is ready to jump but I'm feeding their delusion monster?
Clark was right, for him jumping was crazy. But if it fits the vision we've been given, isn't it crazier not to jump?

Running Ahead - Come On!

Mike and I went walking in a local park on recent beautiful Saturday. The park was full of young families. As Mike and I stopped beside the stream for a moment or two, one of those young families headed off on the wooded path which begins by crossing a bridge. Mom and Dad walked at a steady pace, but anyone that's ever started out on a walk with a child can guess where their little daughter was. Yep, six paces ahead skipping, hopping, jumping all to her own sing-song refrain of "Come on. Come on. Come on." Occasionally she'd personalize it with a "Mom" or "Daddy".
They passed on by and we headed for our car. We then came upon another small family, also at the end of their time at the park. Can you guess where their child was? Yep, on Dad's shoulders. No running ahead, no urges to go faster, no pushing for side trips and races. The little boy's head drooped a bit, his back bowed, and his little arms had all they could contend with just holding onto his daddy's head. The legs streaked with dirt hung limp and tired. The walk which had refreshed and strengthened mom and dad, had worn him out.
Such a simple thing to learn, but I don't think I have.
God and I start out on a journey and I can't enjoy it for wanting to go faster, see more, climb the hill quicker, have a little race with others on the journey, jump, skip, hop anything but just walk.
And how do I end up? Worn out.
Lucky for me God doesn't just shake his head in pity as he passes me by. Nope, he picks me up. Time and Time again 'cause I don't seem to learn this lesson very well.
How about you? Anybody else have a tendency to run ahead of God? For some reason I don't think I'm the only one he has to carry sometimes.

Dreams can get HEAVY

Dreams can get kinda heavy, but you know, that's just not on their labeling.
Dreams are associated with things like rainbows and clouds and unicorns. Lately, my dream of being a published author has gained weight and gotten a bit hard to carry around. (Of course, it is fifteen years old and who hasn't gained weight in the past fifteen years?) So I drag it around with me and wish it would get up and walk on it's own two feet, earn it's own way, do some good for a change.
Want to hear something really bad? Maybe that's why I like American Idol.
Each week I get to see bunches of folks whose dreams let them down, too. (Whoah, I probably shouldn't leave that in today's blog, should I?)
Then this morning I got a new thought - I'm not the only one carrying this dream.
God let me know that he was carrying me and then added a new thought - he's carrying me AND my dream. Pretty clearly let me know that neither one of us are that heavy to him.
How cool is that? So now I'm feeling way lighter, much happier, and free to take a rest.
Bring on the rainbows and unicorns!

Is Trusting Easy for You?

The ability to trust is an amazing luxury.
I shared in a small group recently that my ability to trust is great because I've not been betrayed. Their shock surprised me. I hadn't really meant for the focus to be on me not being betrayed, but rather on my ability to trust not being such a great accomplishment on my part. Those who have been hurt by people they love - them being able to trust is huge to me. But, when you've not been hurt by those close to you?
The more I looked at it the more I was able to see the self-fulfilling prophecy of trust. I am able to trust easily because my trust hasn't been betrayed. However, my trust probably hasn't been betrayed because I've been trained to look for trustworthy people. I also don't have a high tolerance for just hanging around waiting to be hurt. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice - you can try, but it ain't happenin' cause I got my eyes open.
There are just so many good, trust-worthy people out there wanting friends and wanting relationships - I never spent much time trying to turn the untrustworthy into people worthy of trust. Maybe that's bad, but that is why I can say I've not been betrayed.
Once when a youth had been betrayed and then he dumped the girl, another adult-leader said to me that the young man would need to lessen his standards and not be so hard. "Hard?" I said. "No, he's someone worth winning. Worth putting your heart and trust into. I know because I'm married to a man like that."
And I have parents like that. People who are who they say they are. No different at home than at church or work. And, yes, I know. I am blessed.
I hope my kids can say I'm the same at home as I am out in the world.
Now, that's a goal worth having.

Who Needs Friends?

Maybe it's because we moved many hours away from family upon Mike's graduation. Maybe it's because I like to be prepared. Maybe it's because I watch people and have seen needs met in hard times. Maybe it's because Mama seemed to operate on the same principle. Whatever the reasons, surrounding ourselves with friends has always been high priority in our lives.
I actually think about who I'd call if we got one of those awful calls. When we left Jacksonville for Tampa in 1986, I talked to a good friend in Jacksonville and said, "If you were to hear anything bad happened to me or the baby, you must get to Tampa for Mike as soon as possible." Our friend promised he would.
We've kept many kids in emergency situations. Four one night and we had met the parents only once. But they had an emergency and I was there when it happened. Another time I was with a friend when the doctor said their baby needed to be admitted to the hospital. So her three older kids came to our house for several days. When their dad came to bring them some clothes it was our first time to meet him. Others would end up staying when their mom or dad would call and ask if they could walk home from school with my kids just for an hour or two - and then that would become a day or two.
And every time I thought, "One day I'll need this done for me." Yet we didn't. Our youngest is 20 and we never had to make special arrangements for the kids due to a crisis. But even now, I know who I'd call if I got awful news.
I have no illusions about getting through on my own. None.
Because I'm just not made that way - I want someone to lean on, count on, someone to be there when I need them. And it's not a morbid thing, or a worrisome thing. It's a comfort knowing who I'd call and knowing they'd drop whatever was going on in their lives at that moment.
Struggling on my own is not my way. Is it yours?

Do It Anyway

Nike says, "Just do it." My motto is more like, "Do it anyway."
When I was asked a few weeks ago to help with confirmation at our new church, the answer "Yes" jumped out quickly because it had been sitting on the tip of my tongue for a while. It's been a couple years since I've done anything with youth and jr. high kids are who I like working with best and I love confirmation classes. Something had been telling me to get involved with confirmation and so when the question came, the answer was quick.
And then I started regretting it. Immediately.
The reasons were many and varied, as they usually are. But my motto stood firm - Do It Anyway. You see I know myself. And myself doesn't like to be uncomfortable, not in control, and/or not in a position of strength. This new situation contained all three and so my regrets grew, but I repeated over and over, "Do It Anyway."
Today we leave for the confirmation retreat and my regrets have not just been growing, they are being magnified. A whole weekend? A 6 hour bus ride? People I don't know? I'm not in charge? But, say it with me, "Do It Anyway."
And about thirty minutes ago it happened. My emotions got in line with my will. Joy came in as I looked again at the weekend's schedule. Regrets melted to a laughable pile of mush. Excitement took over and now I can't wait to get on that bus.
It's good to know how I feel is often a stupid thing to listen to. It would be nice if what God is telling me and how I feel always matched up, but that would mean I'm not human. And, Lord knows, I'm human. That's why he gave me such a simple motto.
Do It Anyway. Most days that's about all I can handle.