“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” George Bernard Shaw
Happy Monday!
Spring began 10 days ago! I hope you’ve made time to enjoy the transition from winter in the northern hemisphere. In beautiful SoCal, we went directly from winter to summer, but it looks like we may have a bit of spring in the next several days. I’m looking forward to spending some time outside in nature and reflecting on how we’re motivated.
This week is Holy Week in the Christian tradition. We take time to reflect on the events that led to Resurrection Sunday, also known as Easter. It’s also the beginning of Passover in Judaism. As I reflected on the week ahead, I remembered a recent conversation with a dear friend who urged me to take stock of my motivations. Let me explain:
In today’s vernacular, the phrase “as if “refers to unlikely or contradictory situations. “As if you really can do this or that,” or “As if that were true.” If you consider the phrase, however, in the sense of motivation, it may mean “As if you were an expert, or “As if you had done it your entire life.”
There’s another meaning, though. It might be “in the manner of,” which shifts the focus of the motivation. The stimulus may not even be the how or why of a thing, but the for whom it is being performed or who is doing the motivating.
An example in Scripture is found in Colossians 3:23-24:
“Whatever you do [whatever your task may be], work from the soul [that is, put in your very best effort], as [something done] for the Lord and not for men, knowing [with all certainty] that it is from the Lord [not from men] that you will receive the inheritance which is your [greatest] reward. It is the Lord Christ whom you [actually] serve.” (AMP)
My point is this. Maybe we’re not meant to find ourselves, as the saying goes. Maybe we’re supposed to find the motivation to create or recreate ourselves, as the case may be. And maybe the motivation is an external factor that generates an internal spark.
What if we aren’t supposed to settle for how far we’ve come? Maybe we might consider being curious about how far we can go? Maybe our journey thus far has been to prepare us for what’s next in the narrative, and we only need someone to remind us that we’re not done yet. These can all be true on so many levels of mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual wellness.
Perhaps we need to listen to a trusted friend or colleague who tells us that we have a wealth of knowledge stored in the places of our minds that we’ve forgotten or haven’t tapped into in a while. We may need to step outside of our daily grind to see how much more we could become ~ how much more joy, how much happier ~ if we’d only entertain the idea that we could be limiting ourselves with our finite ideas in a world that has infinite possibilities.
As we reflect and consider this week, let’s remember to push ourselves a little bit. Not in a frenetic or destructive way, but in the “As if we’re destined for more” way. And remember to engage in the “as unto” aspect of it in whatever manner the idea applies, personally. I hope you make the time for self-discovery and self-care this week. The practice may open new options as the week’s blessings unfold.
May the blessings of Holy Week and the Easter season be multiplied in your life and in the lives of those closest to you!
Be Well & Be Blessed!
Lucinda
