There are many things I'm not crazy about that come with growing older. I'll let you guess what some of those things are 😉, but there is one thing that comes with age that I'm a big fan of – and that's being able to look back over my life and see the big turning points.
What do I mean by a turning point? Well, a turning point is when I hear something that challenges what I have always done or always believed, and it causes me to change course – I'm talking about a significant, life-changing course. I'm not saying the course change happened immediately, but it did send me down the road of investigating, learning, unlearning, and re-learning, which led to, like I said, a total course change.
So, why am I choosing to share these turning points with you? Because, all of them have brought significant positive change to my life, and I believe they will do the same for some of you. Not everyone will agree with me; I'm well aware of that and am totally okay with it. I hope we can agree to disagree – I'm not out to try and change anyone's mind about anything. I simply hope to share what I've experienced and encourage any of you who may be on the same journey.
I plan to share these on social media in the coming weeks (and I will also link to them on my website … which I am HORRIBLE at keeping updated, whatever – don't judge me, lol).
To my friends who know me, I would love to hear your thoughts and feedback. To my Facebook friends I don't know personally, please jump in with your thoughts and comments. I'd love to hear what you are thinking as well!
Turning Point #1
"If you are being self-conscious, you aren't being God-conscious."
I heard this statement in my early 30's. This started me down a path I could have never dreamed of. I was PAINFULLY shy. (They call it "painfully" because it literally hurts to be put in a situation where you are on the spot). Being self-conscious literally robbed me of the ability to be God-conscious. I wasn't thinking about God; I was thinking about how uncomfortable I was (and usually planning a way of escape).
When I heard this statement, it literally gave me a different way to think. Instead of thinking about myself and what would usually cause me to panic or my heart to race, I would focus on God. It literally set me free from years of pain (I know, I know...it sounds dramatic, but I know my shy friends totally get me right now). It didn't happen overnight, but the journey began with this turning point. I went from needing to escape a room where I knew I would have to introduce myself to speaking and teaching in front of countless people over the last twenty years. And to be clear – it's not because I'm more "self-confident" – I didn't learn how to grow my self-confidence. It's literally because I quit being self-conscious and became God-conscious instead.
Be encouraged. God WANTS to use YOU. And He will. Sometimes, all we need is to look at Him instead of ourselves. Trust Him. He's got this.