Tag Archives: Wilkinson

Jan10

The Lie that Says “You Can’t”

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Marathon

When I read this Annual Report provided by Word Press, I literally caught my breath. A year ago this blog was a secret little dream, one that I thought would stay hidden in my heart.

It wasn’t until our small group leader introduced me to a book by Bruce Wilkinson called “The Dream Giver” (Thanks , Josh Grosshans!) that I began to consider the possibility. I was inspired by the book; I was encouraged by my hubby, whose confidence in me is epic; and I was terrified by the voice that said “You can’t”.

It’s been just over six months. I remember sitting in our favorite coffee shop with my sweet, patient niece. Armed with nothing more than a laptop and a name for the blog, Annie walked me through setting up the page. Since, then I’ve pretty much flown by the seat of my pants.  Jesus, take the wheel because WordPress isn’t exactly babysitting bloggers!  As I write I am so thankful that I didn’t wait until I had it all figured out to start. I wish I knew more about web design and had a bigger budget but one thing I know: this undertaking is a marathon, not a sprint.

This morning my grandson and I drove out to Epcot to watch his mom, MY daughter, cross the finish line at the Disney marathon.  She didn’t train as much as she’d hoped and I’m sure that at 2:00 this morning when she ate a bowl of cheerios, hoping they would digest before race time, she heard that same terrifying voice saying “You can’t” This wasn’t her first marathon; she’s run a Goofy (that ‘s a half marathon on Saturday, followed by the marathon on Sunday – she’s her father’s child) a couple of times and she knew exactly what she was about to undertake.

C and I worked our way up to a barricade near the finish and stood anxiously on tiptoes, surveying wave after wave of finishers. That boy never looked away, his gaze intent for the face of his mom.  As runners passed, the crowd cheered and shouted out names.  In the hour that we stood there, I wept for those who obviously were overcoming more than 26.2 miles.

Before I could spot her, in spite of my height advantage, he shouted “There she is!” Her eyes lit when she saw him and she blew a kiss, then crossed the finish and collected the prize that finishers earn.

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DSC_0005As we walked to the car, she talked about the tough miles and moments when she fought hard against the voice that continued to tell her “You can’t”. She chose the only way to overcome the lying voice; keep moving forward.

This writing journey has been an emotional roller coaster, but I’ve kept my head up and my eyes forward.

I cannot begin to express how encouraged I’ve been by friends and family who have faithfully read every post. You are part of the analytics that follow.  I love you all.

Along this journey, my most faithful encourager has been my hubby.  He proofreads my posts and cries with me over the words every week. I can’t imagine any journey without him. I love you, baby!

As we stood near the finish this morning, I witnessed the joy of a stronger, more seasoned runner reaching back to cross the finish line with a novice.

One of the greatest blessings of writing has been in the encouragement from other writers. One precious momma in particular has reached back and taken my hand. The unselfish sharing of her reputation and influence in the blogging world has been refreshing and life-changing. Thank you, Jami Amerine, for your friendship!

It is with humility and great awe that I share what HE has done with the dream that he placed in my heart.  Take a few minutes to read the report. You will be amazed, as I was.  Your dream is safe with him, but you have to take the first step, my friend. The only answer to the lying voice that says “You can’t” is “Watch me!”

 

To Him alone be the glory!

Here’s an excerpt:

A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 3,900 times in 2015. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 3 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

Jul20

It’s a beautiful day for a launch!

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Launches are exciting events.  I grew up in Central Florida in the years of President John F. Kennedy’s expansion of the U.S. space program.  I watched as the Friendship 7 carried John Glenn 162 miles away from the earth.  We could stand outside and see the trail of the huge rocket as it slipped away from the bonds of earth’s gravity!  We were all on pins and needles awaiting reentry. Nearly five hours later the country let out a collective sigh of relief as the capsule landed in the Atlantic Ocean.  At seven years old I had no idea where the space program would take us. There were skeptics, of course. I even heard that some didn’t believe it happened. But those dreamers…they took the first step and fifty years later there is a manned space station orbiting the earth.

For years, really since ninth grade, I’ve had a yearning to write.  A teacher expressed that I had talent, and it touched a deep place in my spirit. Fast forward many years when I began to put some words on paper.  It was challenging, yet cathartic, this process of writing. I wrote a few articles for a church-sponsored inspirational column in the local paper.  It’s a little embarrassing to admit that I read them over and over, even though I didn’t even get a byline.  Something that I wrote was good enough to publish! To be honest, it is more likely that I was willing and they needed 250 words to fill the space, but it was enough to rekindle the yearning.  Some of my favorite authors have blogs. The short posts are often humorous, inspirational or even instructional and I decided that is the arena for me to step into this venture.

Recently our small group at church studied the book The Dream Giver by Bruce Wilkinson.  For the first time, I shared my dream publicly.  I began to pray and prepare to leave “Familiar” and begin the journey toward my “Big Dream”. The most profound realization was that God is the Dream Giver.  How foolish would I be to miss his gift to me?   With this post, I’m launching MY dream.

So, what to expect from this dreamer?  I’ll be writing from my heart about being a wife, a mother, a friend, all from the perspective of a woman seeking to know Christ in his fullness.  I’ll be sharing about my Tribe – the women who surround me with love, who allow me to speak into their lives and do the same for me.

I’m strapped into the seat and with this post, the engines have fired and I’m on the way!

Thanks for watching the sky, my friends.  I’m enjoying the ride!

“Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, the days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.” Psalm 139:16 MSG