Moving Forward

Good Morning and Happy Monday!

I hope you had enjoyed the weekend and spent some time outside delighting in the beauty of nature!

As the world seems to be opening up, many of us feel like we’re striving to find ourselves again. An interesting thing happens when we realize that we were never really lost. We may have been in a unique season with many conflicting emotions and quite a bit of uncertainty, but we weren’t lost. I like to think that we’re not finding but remembering ourselves. We’re recalling what was and noticing new avenues to explore, determining how we’d like our lives to look moving forward.

We can’t find ourselves if we were never lost. Did we experience loss? Yes, of course, on many different levels. Are we the same people we once were? Yes, in some ways, but our goals and desires may have changed, we may have recognized new skills, and our overall perspectives have most likely evolved. I question the thought, “I don’t know who I am anymore.” I wonder if it’s more that we’ve forgotten our core truths and are discovering new realities and understandings rather than feeling as though we were lost. Here’s something to ponder:

Wayne Muller is an American author, mentor, and therapist who graduated from Harvard Divinity School. He’s spent many years working with people struggling with loss, addiction, abuse, and illness. Among his specialties are being enough and learning how to rest.

Remembering takes courage and a willingness to looking at our defaults. We begin with an honest evaluation of our core values and truths. We may be intelligent and creative. Perhaps we have the gifts of compassion and empathy. Maybe we are discerning and can evaluate many options to find the best for a given situation. We could be people who help others without hesitation. Perhaps we’re innovators and can build a strategy for success around the mere glimmer of an idea. You see, we’re not fashioning a new persona from thin air. We’re coming out of a tough season to uncover the next, best iteration of our true selves.

Scripture offers these thoughts on discovery and creation:

“Be generous with me, and I’ll live a full life; not for a minute will I take my eyes off your road. Open my eyes so I can see what you show me of your miracle-wonders. I’m a stranger in these parts; give me clear directions. My soul is starved and hungry, ravenous! — insatiable for your nourishing commands. . . I’m absorbed in pondering your wise counsel. Yes, your sayings on life are what give me delight; I listen to them as to good neighbors!” Psalm 119:20 (MSG)

“Because of this decision, we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life emerges! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. . .” 2 Corinthians 5:15 (MSG)

We have the opportunity to determine who we’d like to become. We may be rediscovering, or maybe uncovering, our talents and desires. These qualities didn’t get lost; perhaps they were dormant for a time, awaiting the proper season or calling. We know that desperate times are fertile soil for creating fresh approaches. Pastor Steven Furtick noted that “olives only become oil when they are crushed.”

If we spend some time intentionally looking within for our truths, we will remember who we are and then determine to create the opportunities to become who we’d like to be. That person might not be so different than who we are now. And, that person may be the new and improved version of who we’ve been all along. How will you move forward this week in remembering?

Be Well & Be Blessed!
Lucinda