If hurt people, hurt people then...

Last night I held part one of my 3-Part Impact Series on Forgiveness and it was a blessing to share some of the things I’ve learned on my journey to forgiveness. I’m still learning and growing and as I do so I will continue to share.
 
“Hurt people, hurt people." We’ve heard this before but what about people that have been healed? What do they do?

Healed people, heal people.

 

This healing of others is accomplished either directly or indirectly. What else could one possibly do with the healing but heal others? Even if indirectly, once you’re healed from whatever wounds you might have had, it shows. Your mental and spiritual posture is different, your attitude is more pleasant, you love harder, laugh longer, celebrate others, etc. Your presence is a blessing. Your smile lights up the room and when you ask someone how they’re doing, they sense that you care because you do. And why do you care? Because you no longer bare loads of unforgiveness, anger, resentment, etc. which means you have the capacity to actually care about others.

In turn, you begin to more positively impact those around you. They notice something different in you, they see the way you treat others, the way you treat yourself, the way you respond to those that hurt you – or more importantly the way you don’t respond! And they too want it even if they don’t know what to call it. People start asking questions like “Why are you so happy?”  “How did you two become friends again?” “Wait, you’re no longer angry about…?”
 
So I encourage you to focus on healing. For those making grand list of New Year’s resolutions, which I highly discourage (maybe I’ll share why in a separate blog post), I pray that you will at least focus on healing for yourself. We can’t restore, retain, focus, achieve, etc. until we heal.

Let's get to work!

Ready to forgive???  To receive more details or to sign-up for the next series, click here.

Tired of wandering aimlessly? Hungry for more out of life? Ready to transition careers? Feeling stuck? I'm here to help! If you're ready to identify your God given purpose, transition careers, or simply figure out what's 'next' for you, schedule a time here for a FREE call to discuss further.

"Heaven is nice, she should go there."

Last week my good friend was faced with the challenge of explaining to her 11-year old son that his great grandmother, “Honey”, whom helped raise him was growing more ill. She told him that Honey was in a lot of pain and Jesus would probably call her home to heaven soon. He responded, “Heaven is nice, she should go there.” That certainly wasn’t the way she expected the conversation to go; she anticipated having to comfort him. Instead, what he said has brought great comfort to her in this time of need.

For many, the holidays are difficult. We lost my grandmother, Queenie Esther (I say her name every chance I get) and my cousin Mikey a few years ago, just before Thanksgiving and there have been plenty of times that I’ve cried wishing they were still here. This year, I will take comfort in knowing that they are 'in heaven and it’s nice there.’

As we approach Thanksgiving and Christmas, remember that it’s not about turkey and gifts. Remember those in need, without families, feeling lonely and abandoned. As you celebrate with your family, pray for those that have lost a loved one. Adopt a family if you can, host a community service drive of some sort, serve a meal, just do something to remind someone else that they are not alone. And after the holiday day season is over, don’t stop. Keep showing up, doing something as often as you can to remind someone else that God still sees, hears, and cares.
 

RIP Honey, Queenie Esther, and Mikey.

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Let's get to work!

Ready to forgive??? There is still time to sign-up for next month's 3-Part Impact Series on Forgiveness. To receive more details click here.

Tired of wandering aimlessly? Hungry for more out of life? Ready to transition careers? Feeling stuck? I'm here to help! If you're ready to identify your God given purpose, transition careers, or simply figure out what's 'next' for you, schedule a time here for a FREE call to discuss further.

"I'm not judging but..."

Yesterday, Wess Morgan was a surprise guest at my church. He sang a couple of songs which I thoroughly enjoyed but what stood out most was his testimony. He shared stories of his life as a preacher’s kid, in and out of jail, addicted to drugs, etc. While sharing he said something that truly hit home for me…“As you become more self-aware, you become less judgmental.”

“No one is perfect.” For most, this is truly just a saying; something thrown around as needed to defend our own actions, crude remarks, behaviors, etc. but where is this thought when it comes to others? This notion is completely dismissed when scrutinizing our peers. In fact, most precede their judgmental comments with “I’m not judging but…” which is equally as disingenuous as “shade but no shade” or “I don’t like to gossip but…” However, as Wess pointed out, the more honest you are about yourself, the decisions you’ve made, the people you’ve hurt, your fears, secrets, etc., the less likely you are to pass judgement on others.

Although some of this judgment may happen subconsciously we have to be more responsible for our thoughts toward others. Think about your thinking…my teacher friends refer to this as metacognition. Although it’s different in the education field, I think it would go a long way here especially because some of the studies point out that without the ability to do so “people tend to be blissfully unaware of their own incompetence.”  Ouch!

“So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.” (Romans 14: 12-13)