Spring Cleaning

It’s time to do some spring cleaning!  I love spring, the time when everything comes to life again.  The trees start budding, the flowers begin to pop up from under the ground, and we get more sunshine as the last few weeks of winter start to fade away.

Every year I would take a week off of work just to stay home and organize, purge junk and clean everything from the floor to the kitchen cabinets.  It was wonderful therapy for me to get rid of stuff and get everything fresh and new!

Well this year I am spring cleaning my life!  I am taking inventory of the habits (good & bad), my relationships, my career,  my health (emotional & physical), and my finances so I can make changes for a better self.  Yeah I know it is easier to just clean the refrigerator out or donate a bag of clothes to the Salvation Army, but self-cleaning is necessary.  I want to live the best life that I can live and if I have stuff that is not doing me any good to reach that “best life”; guess what. . .it has to go!

I am always praying and asking God for divine wisdom and guidance for my life as I desire to be everything that He ordained me to be.  Sometimes the changes are hard, but I realize in the end the reward is greater.

I am going to start a journal of my experience as I blossom into the person that God wants me to be.  Perhaps this will be the making of my second book!

I think that it’s necessary to evaluate the present state of your life in order to reach your full potential.  Asking God the whys of your life and listening for clarity are lessons well learned.  He will give you everything you need to push past hurt, pain, and unforgiveness and give you the desire to walk in your destiny!

This spring will be the best start for my new life!  I pray that you will do the same.  Happy spring cleaning!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

Don’t Just Stand There

If you are anything like me I get motivated by the visions that I have.  I see the end result and am stirred to high motivation.  It is the steps in between that kill my motivation sometimes.  It looks too daunting to complete!  I fall back and retreat from taking the next step; I feel paralyzed.

God is teaching me in my journey that I need to take one step at a time.  He will reveal the parts as I go.  This life is a test of faith and without it you won’t have a chance.  Sometimes you don’t know which way to go, but you have to stand firm and listen to the still small voice of God to direct you.

God told me this week that I need to push passed my fear of the unknown and He will make every provision that I need.  I trust Him because He has never failed me yet.  I have been commissioned to minister to hurting women at all levels even situations that I have never experienced.  He will give me the words and prayers to pray.  God will be in the midst and it is up to Him to do the transformation not me.  I just need to keep my motivation to move!

Sometimes we lose our motivation to fear, to tiredness, to life itself.  But God is telling us now is the time to change our lives for a better (new) life.  If you can only find the motivation for each day.  Don’t worry about motivation for the entire journey, just search and get motivation for one day at a time.

My mother asked me “how do you eat an elephant”?  The answer; one bite at a time.  Allow the Lord to get you from here to there.

So find your motivation for today and listen to God for what you need to do today that will move you toward your purpose, heal you from your past, and change you from the inside out.

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

The Journey Day 3

We are really moving now!  Day 3 we wrote one last letter.  We wrote a letter to God from us.

In this letter we had to express to God everything that we are, what we were not and all the little things in between.  We took this opportunity to ask God questions about our lives.  The things that have happened to us that have shaped the person that we are today.  We asked about the things that happened to us that we did not understand.

Even though we understood that God already knows these things it was important for us to write it out for ourselves.  The exercise allowed us to reflect on our lives the good, the bad, and the ugly and just let it all out on paper.  We believe that it is very therapeutic to write.  It allows you the opportunity to express what may be inside but no other opportunity to release.  We must purge those thoughts and pains out in order to allow the good things and new things into our spirit and heart.  We will now be able to allow our minds to receive the new ideas to flow into us so that change can transform us.

We told God how we viewed Him in our lives and then gave thanks for the things that He has given unto us through out the years.  It was a time to give thanks!

What do you need to tell God?  Write Him a letter today!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

The Change Zone

Traveling to a new place is sometimes a little scary.  You don’t know what to expect.  You don’t know if the people will be friendly or will you make new friends.  It is just a big unknown.  That is how it is changing your life from one level to the next.

We don’t know what the new level  will be like because we have become accustom to where we are right now.  Most people tend to stay in their comfort zone; well because it is comfortable.  To me the thought of never trying to reach that new level is even more scary.  Never trying to be all that you can be; just living the ordinary life.  For me if I didn’t ever try, I would always wonder if I could have made it to the next level and actually enjoyed the benefits of living that extraordinary life.

I believe you go through a series of emotions and growing pains when you decide to launch yourself into the new level of life.  It isn’t an easy process; that’s why so many of us will decide not to venture out into the new zone.  No one wants to fail, so we stay comfortably in the place that we may or may not be excited about being.  The thought of stepping out is too daunting.

When I decided to walk a life of faith in God and allow Him to grow me into a new level; I never thought I would feel so indifferent.  I know God is great and would always lead me to a better place in life with Him.  But the journey isn’t easy and each day is a challenge just to stay on course.  I can only imagine what Jesus felt as He walked through His journey on earth knowing His ultimate assignment was to die.  I am grateful that He did complete the assignment for you and me!  It allowed us to have hope and  a future!

God is not asking me to die for Him, but He is asking me to walk into this new level with Him.  When I think about Jesus, He didn’t have many who understood His journey and at the end some of the ones closest to Him would betray Him.  But that didn’t matter to Him, He knew He must fulfill His calling.  He did suffer; and we too sometimes will have to suffer in this life in order to reach our full potential in Him.  To complete our assignments.

My prayer for each of you is that you trust God in your journey whatever that may be.  You are better off  finding your true self than remaining in a place of unfulfillment.  More so, I pray that you will have someone there to encourage you through the tough spots that are sure to come.  I vow to be that someone who will come along side you when things get unbearable and pray you through.  I will be that one who you can express your feelings to that will understand, because I too am on my journey and I can relate to the rollercoaster of emotions that come with growing into that person that God would have you to be.

The butterfly’s journey isn’t easy; what you see when you see it fluttering freely through the flowers is the end result of its journey to become what it was meant to be.

Don’t stand still in the place that you are in right now; God has something greater for you!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

 

Just One Day

I have been missing in action and I apologize to my faithful subscribers.  My life is about to turn upside down or right side up depending on the perspective that I take.  I will be venturing into a total new dimension of my life and while it is all exciting it is terrifying at the same time.

I am leaving my current job of 17 years to pursue my passion of being an entrepreneur.  My friend took a quantum leap of faith earlier this year to pursue her dreams and she is doing well.  I envied her, but I know the decision and the action to actually do it had her going in circles.  I know I have the skills, talents, a great business plan, and a great service that I am offering, but still there is this little voice deep inside saying; “You can’t do it!”  I am trying to push the little voice away but it has become a part of my subconscious mind and it is slowly developing into stress.  As we all know exposure to long-term stress is not good or healthy for you and I am a living testament to that.  Been there, done that!

On top of that I am finishing up my first book and now I need to prepare for its distribution in the spring.  That whole process is a job in itself!  Again, I am excited, but stressing about all the details that I will need to complete in order for its success to prevail.  And just to add a little spice to the mix, I am studying for my Christian Life Coach certification as a part of the service that I will offer through the ministry – The Butterfly Journey!  Yes, I started a ministry that is in direct connection with my book.

It seems as if I should be gearing up and my body and mind feel like taking a vacation.  My spirit is ready to move forward into my destiny!  I am just not sure how all this will play out.  But I do know that God is able!  So I am going to lean on Him for everything.  I know it all is going to work out, I just need to stay faithful and focused.

The other day I came home exhausted as usual (as I found out recently that I have severe insomnia) which I already knew and I just began to cry to the Lord.  I literally cried with every word that I spoke out to Him in prayer.  Graciously, He gave me instant peace and I rested that night.  Each day is going to have to be dealt with individually.  One day at a time.

Have you ever faced challenges that seemed to much to handle?  Please share your stories of how you got through it.  I know that it will encourage me and someone else who is facing a huge endeavor.

Continue on your journey, it is well worth it!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

Start Living!

Are you satisfied with your life today?  Are you stuck in the normal routine rut and can’t get out?  Well try something new!  It doesn’t have to be something elaborate just different.  If you have always driven by a store on your “normal” route to and from work but never stopped in to see what they offer, today go inside.  If you want to change careers or desire to start your own business but don’t know where to start, sign up for a class at  your local community college to get more information.

I believe it is each person’s civic duty to be all that they can be.  Or is that in the army?  Anyway, you get my drift, start something different in your life and live a little.  We all know that life is short, so why leave this earth without ever experiences some of the exciting moments it has to offer.

I had a friend that passed away a year or so ago, she had worked and retired, she had raised her children and had the short opportunity to know her grand-child.  She was just getting started to live her life but unfortunately death came to knock on her door and she had to go.  Don’t have regrets at the end of your time.  Use your life to its fullest potential.  Take risks and find your “sweet” spot in life.

Create your “bucket list” of things you want to accomplish before you die.  Don’t wait, do it today!  Life is worth living!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

I’m New Again!

God is so gracious to us!  When I found myself drowning in a pit of depression I never thought I would make it out.  It was the worst time in my life.   I had no one to turn to; no one reached out to me.  It was just hopelessness and darkness.  But God…

God was not only in the pit with me, but He lifted me up and out as a brand new “me”.   He made me NEW!

It was a tough process, but like the caterpillar’s transformation process, it was necessary so that I could FLY.  I am grateful for the entire experience, as it has made me a new person.  I now have clarity about who I really am, my worth in God, and my purpose in life.

I no longer have to conform to the people or things around me to feel valued.  I am free to be me and I will no longer seek the approval of “man”.  I will be excellent in all that I do, but temporal praise is not my goal.  I thrive now for a more eternal approval.  I no longer worship the gifts, more than the Giver!

I am new again!  I was broken in a million pieces and God put me back on the potter’s wheel and transformed my life.  I am now a useful vessel for His purpose.

You know the joy that is expressed in the Bible; that unspeakable joy? That’s what I have with God.   It is not conditioned to any circumstance or situation but it is there all the time.  Even when the storms of life coming crashing down, it is there.  Follow God, He will not lead you astray.  He will replace your ashes for beauty and give you joy, unspeakable!

Embrace your life’s challenges and seek clarity in what God is trying to show you about yourself.  It will renew your spirit.  It will make you new again!

The Buttefly Journey – Lisa