Being of service

"Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr

Believe it or not, being available for others is something that does not come natural to me.  I have to work at it!  What is ironic is that I use to think that I was of service to others.  The reality was that I would make myself available if I wanted to, it was convenient or if it was going to be recognized for my service.   If it didn’t meet one of the criteria; I had excuses abound as to why I wasn’t available.

So I sometimes wonder if I’m in this coaching/writing thing for the wrong reasons. Do I do this just to fuel my ego and because I want to feel good about myself?

So what does  being of service  to  others  mean to  me? There is volunteer work; but what I’m mostly referring to is being physically and emotionally there for those that I know and people I don't know.  It means taking time to listen to a friend who may be going through a tough time and missing a favorite TV show to do so.  I don’t even necessarily need to offer up advice; just listening and being there for them can be enough. Being of service is an integral part of the journey toward finding fulfillment and staying spiritually connected. Being of service requires alignment with your values. 

Being of service to something — a person, a group, a community, a cause or a belief — means that you’ve chosen to engage without expectation of reciprocation

My greatest fear is not living up to my fullest potential and fully utilizing the gifts God chose to instill in me. I am gifted in certain areas, so as not to make me rich with material things, but to bless those who need my talents the most. There are lives in this world I am suppose to change just by my serving them. It’s so easy to get caught up in our own lives. Our families, friends and our work are naturally our priority and sometimes we feel we have nothing left to give.  We stress over things that others pray was their only challenge. If we aren’t careful, we can take for granted the blessings all around us. We should all be grateful for the gifts and get busy serving. 

But also taking care of yourself isn’t selfish. It is a requirement needed in order to serve. You have to have some level of self-focus and self-care in order to be able to have enough to give away. If your choice to be of service is costing you more than you can afford (financial, emotional, physical, spiritual) you need to make a new choice. 

We want you around to live your purpose and give your gift for a long time. If you are so worn out that you end up resenting those you are helping, what good is that to you or them?

An openness to learning about being of service begins a most illuminating journey to self discovery and to keep you spiritually connected.   

1) What does it mean to be of service to yourself?

2) What does it mean to be of service to others?

3) What does it mean to be of service to others and not lose yourself in the process?

  

                #Getinspired

Acceptance is key!

Throughout our lives, many of us will face circumstances that seem unfair, painful and traumatic. And, in the moment, that is true.

WE MUST LEARN TO LOVE TRUTH!

Otherwise we leave the door of deception open for the enemy to take what is meant to be yours. Some people have a difficult time facing the truth and reality.  They prefer to live in a make believe world, pretending that certain things aren't happening. But we cannot deny the existence of problems or act as they are not real. Life is real, people are real, and pain is real.

And from what I have learned from church, Oprah's lifeclass,  the word of God, therapy, and from just being a counselor is that we must allow ourselves to feel the pain. Then deal and then we can begin to heal. In order to feel we must accept and be honest with ourselves.

Acceptance is something that you do. It is an active process that involves a willingness to experience thoughts, feelings, and emotions without denial or evasion.

A lack of self acceptance involves a willingness to experience these thoughts,feelings,and emotions thereby leading to a rejection of the self.  Self acceptance therefore means to honestly accept the facts of your reality, rather than trying to deny, disown, or repress the things you don't like yourself or your life.

A person who lacks who lacks self acceptance would automatically try to you repress, deny those feelings disassociating themselves from the reality of how they feel. And the consequence this would most likely Manafest itself in the form of anger tension frustration self doubts substance abuse depression and other problem. Self acceptance don't mean necessarily liking are enjoying but rather it means accepting the true reality of the situation.

Be real with yourself!

If you can acknowledge and accept what you are feeling, you can then take the  necessary and appropriate action to move forward.  And once you begin to deal and problem solve you can start the healing process. The Healing process may not be instant for some. It takes time for a wound to heal. Ways to heal may be to let go and move on.  Use memories don't let memories use you.

The first step to moving forward is to accept where and who you are now. And to remember we are more than our circumstances.

But as we grow and evolve, we get to see that once we accept what happened, we now have the power of choice to be able to redefine the meaning of the event.

Was it GRACE or was it a disaster?  Was is the worst thing that happened to you or was it an amazing lesson?

Was it a tragedy or an opportunity for you to be able to see how Loving You can be?

Was it a dark chapter in your life or was it that the events had to happen in order for you to discover your Light?

We can accept and eventually rise above our circumstances because we realize at our essence we are a Soul that is unlimited and that we have the power to CHOOSE how we are going to respond, interpret and live our lives.

What meanings are you giving the events of your life and what are you choosing to create? And what would you like to change?

Are you living in truth or in fantasy?

#getinspired

Dream Big!,

Happy New Year!! I'm back!!

"When you create a vision for your life, doors will open. If it's not hard, you're not dreaming big enough. " - Oprah

Believe Big, Pray Bold. Dreams are never too big, God can dream bigger for you.  Be able to live in the space of that dream for you.

If you need to know how things will play out in the end before you start, you will never start. And if you do, it will not be full of power and creativity.

Time and time again I’ve seen friends, clients and even myself – try to weigh options, figuring out what is the best path – instead of trusting themselves trusting God, taking action and course correcting as they come.

But when it comes to making your dreams come true, DELIBERATE and CONSISTENT ACTION is the cure-all. And most of important of all is FAITH.

Massive action is what it takes to make our dreams come true.

Our goal is to learn and get better through the action that we take. When we sit back, analyze and try to create the best plan first, we waste precious time that we could be learning on the field.

I have mentors. I learn from others. I look ahead and plan. But most of the wisdom in my life has come from failure.

One of the most important questions you can ask yourself on the path to your dreams is this: “Am I willing to risk being nothing in order to become something?”

If you can be cool with being nothing, then and only then can you have the freedom to take the risks that are necessary to make your dreams come true.

There are no certain outcomes. You can’t get it wrong. The only thing that prevents your dreams from coming true is when you stop and try to anal-lyze everything to death, while taking no action and living out everything in your head.

This is a dream killer.

Everybody has their own lane to their dream....don't do anyone else's dreams-do your OWN!

Don't think about how far you have to go,  think about how far you have come.

Again Happy New Year!

         #Getinspired #Gratitude