Gift - Friendship

The greatest gift of life is friendship, and I have received it.  Hubert H. Humphrey




There is this crazy holiday coming up in just the next few days.  I know some love it and others hate it, but I'm just pretty much indifferent.  My husband and I celebrate - somewhat.  This is one of those times when the gift of friendship is so important.  I use this as another opportunity to reach out to my friends to let them know they are loved.  It's more than just the romantic love that my husband and I share - though not so much on the day we are "supposed" to, but every day.  It's the smallest of gifts, running the dishwasher after I have gone to bed, or telling me he's proud of me.  The gifts I share with others are a kind word of encouragement or a heart-felt prayer, a private message of inquiry when I suspect life is difficult or frustrating as it is for us all.

The gift of friendship can be so difficult to find, it's about putting yourself out there for someone to accept or reject, fear of the unknown and of the possibilities.  What are you going to do to show your friends appreciation for the gift they have given you?

Unique - Friendship

A single rose can be my garden... a single friend, my world.

Leo Buscaglia

It's just takes a single friend to turn the worst of days into something far more tolerable.  It's the smallest word or the tiny good deed - a phone call, text or instant message from a single friend.  There are those who use the internet to claim thousands of friends, but are they?  Do they exist outside of the the internet world?  Each friendship is unique and needs to be cared for and nurtured, just like a rose.   I make sure that I reach out to my internet friends in other meaningful ways, especially with notes and prayers.  Connecting in Google Hangouts is another way to really get to know people over great distances.  How will you nurture your unique friendships today?

Joy - Friendship

I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it, friends make life a lot more fun.

Charles R. Swindoll

Joy?!  It's more than the momentary laughter at a joke, or the quick smile, but the quiet peace that comes from friendship.  There is a great deal of joy that comes from a quick Facebook message, a text message, phone call or even a very old-fashioned hand-written note.  I know because I try to be the kind of friend who does all of those.  There is a quiet joy in knowing that if I am truly in need I can reach out and will have some one to talk with.  There have been a few of my early mornings I have reached out in desperate need of prayer and had a friend there completely for me.  

Whether your friends are new, or have been with you since early childhood, your friends are there for you.  They bring you quiet joy, even if they disagree with you.  What joy can you share with a friend today?

Believe - Friendship

The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile nor the joy of companionship; it is the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him.  Ralph Waldo Emerson


Believe! was the word and encouragement for both January and for 2015.  Now to focus on the encouragement from friendship. 

I have the MOST amazing friends, some live nearby, some far away, and some I have never met in person.  Other friends live far away, I see then rarely, sometimes once a year, and other friends as little as once a decade.  Who would have thought an online group would produce some of the most amazing friendships?  The support and encouragement I both am able to give and receive is so very rare.  It is the online connection, which helps create these incredible connections.  I am sure there are some people who say that if it happens online, it isn't real.  The conversations and time spent even online builds the relationship and trust.  I can't imagine life without my long distance friendships.  

Then there's the four-legged friendship by my hip and my feet as I write this - the cuddles, stress relief and doggie kisses are a friendship I can always count on.  

Succeed - Believe

In order to succeed, we must first believe that we can. - Nikos Kazantzakis

Success!  Dreams and goals aren't going to reach themselves, I've talked about the what it takes to believe in reach those dreams and goals.  You do have to know what success looks like to you in order to reach it.  What does success look like for you?  For many success means money, the right "things", status symbols of one kind or another.  Success for me is about happiness.  peace, security, the journey of living out my dreams.  It means having friends and cheering them on as they find their success as well.  Success looks different for everyone.  You can't be successful unless you already know what that is going to look like for you.  Then you can move on to the believing.  Kazantzakis is right, you will never succeed unless you absolutely believe you can.  It is so much easier to sit back and complain, instead of stepping up and working toward creating an amazing successful future, but success is definitely worth the effort.

Kindness - Believe!

Don't let fear or insecurity stop you from trying new things. Believe in yourself. Do what you love. And most importantly, be kind to others, even if you don't like them.   Stacy London

Believing in yourself creates a confidence, unlike anything else.  With that confidence and belief it is so much easier to express kindness both to your closest friends and to those how make it difficult to give those small acts of kindness.  Our world is such a busy place, everyone has so many things to do, so many places to be.  Are each of us always in that big of a hurry?  Are there just a few minutes here or there we can give up to make the life of someone else better?  Letting someone else go first in the checkout line, especially if they only have a few items, holding a door, a note or card of encouragement to a friend.  These smallest acts of kindness build your belief in others and yourself.

Miracles - Believe!

I truly believe that everything that we do and everyone that we meet is put in our path for a purpose. There are no accidents; we're all teachers - if we're willing to pay attention to the lessons we learn, trust our positive instincts and not be afraid to take risks or wait for some miracle to come knocking at our door. - Marla Gibbs



Miracles come in ways both great and small.  From the smallest of things, the rising and setting of the sun, catching a red light which causes you to just miss a traffic accident, the friend of a friend in social media, which develops into a long term supportive network of encouraging friends.  

Miracles also happen in the greatest of ways.  The birth of a child.  The development of a new love, the medical prognosis which doesn't come to fruition.  

Miracles cause us to increase our ability to believe, and it is our ability to believe which cause us to see the miracles for what they are.

Imagination - Believe!

I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge. That myth is more potent than history. That dreams are more powerful than facts. That hope always triumphs over experience. That laughter is the only cure for grief. And I believe that love is stronger than death.Robert Fulghum




Belief in your own imagination is an incredible power.  Your imagination is what makes myth seem true.  It paints mental pictures of history.  It allows dreams to be within your grasp.  If you can imagine it, there is hope and belief of your ability to achieve.

As a child we all have such incredible imaginations, but moving toward school years, middle school and beyond our imagination seems to get squashed time and time again.  We must find a way to reach inside ourselves and find our child-like imagination.  We can use that in so many aspects of our life. We can use that imagination, in music, art, writing, business, personal relationships and entrepreneurship.

We add to our own creativity to our lives and to the lives of others improving our world and the world around us.   How can you use your imagination to help yourself?  Or those around you?

Achieve - Believe!

Don't limit yourself. Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember, you can achieve. -- Mary Kay Ash



Achievement, really isn't that what we are all here for?  Sometimes it's about the smallest of achievements.  Sometimes it's the great achievements which happen a single small step at a time.   It's the 50 pound weight loss that happens four and six ounces at a time.  It's the novel that happens one chapter, or one page at a time.  It's the student who struggles and finally achieves a C, hard earned and well deserved.

There are times in our lives when it's still about achievement, but not our own.  We relish the achievements of a spouse, child or another family member.  It's may be difficult to celebrate the achievements of our coworkers or friends.  Does it come from a place of lack of support from those around us?  Or jealousy?  It's one thing to want to have the achievements, others are doing.  We often don't see the hard work, which comes before the "sudden" achievement.  Are you willing to put forth the same effort or even more to achieve those very same things?  Achievements are much more valuable when you believe you can achieve and then do the hard work.  What dream are you willing to work that hard for?

Confidence - Believe!

Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy. - Norman Vincent Peale




There are times when the only one in your life who will have confidence in you -- is you.  A person with too much ego, conceit, self-centered-ness is just cocky and foolish.  That's not a sign of confidence.  That comes from a place of insecurity.

We want to believe in our dreams and we would like for others to, too.  Those things so sacred we hold them deep in our heart.  We may want them so badly we even fear to speak their name aloud. As if the mention of such as idea will immediately vanish.  We consider the feelings of others.  We worry what they will say, or the effect our dreams will have on those we love the most, even if we see it as a positive.  Some people inherently dislike change, even when it's for the positive.

Another way to have confidence in yourself, is to share your gifts and talents with someone who can benefit from your knowledge and abilities, with no expectations of anything in return.  Even helping another may be fraught with fears.  Most people seem to be uncertain about accepting offered assistance.  It seems everywhere we look we find someone with the what's-in-it-for-me ideas, but it doesn't have to be like that.  There is confidence building in freely providing time and encouragement in someone else.

Confidence building happens a little a time.  What can you do to build your own confidence or the confidence of someone else?

Challenges - Believe!

Believe in yourself, take on your challenges, dig deep within yourself to conquer fears. Never let anyone bring you down. You got to keep going. - Chantal Sutherland






 It's a challenge to get up every morning, and do what we do.  For some people getting up and going to a job they hate is a challenge.  For others, just the fact they have to get up and go on without those they love is an incredible challenge.  It doesn't matter what the first challenge of the day is, that first challenge is about listening to your inner Jon Acuff and Punch Fear in the Face.

I did this a couple of years ago for the first time.  I have a minor disability, which keeps me from being able to walk very far or very long.  My parents were living part of their dream by spending the winter in Texas and came back with a couple of bikes.  They looked and felt great.  A couple of weeks later I found a garage sale bike for $10, spent another $25 making sure it was OK to ride, and began riding.  The following fall I got a great bike and  stationary bike so I could train indoors during bad weather.  By summer of 2013,  I was riding the 240 mile Katy Trail from end to end, including a one day ride of 70 miles.

Last May, I did my first road ride.  A 50 mile, Tour de Cure for the American Diabetes Society.  This year, I am doing both of those rides and considering adding a third big ride. There are even cross country rides.  The more I ride, the more I was to try to meet that challenge as well.

Now I challenge myself to regularly write.  What do you challenge yourself with?

Dreams - Believe!

Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe. - Gail Devers

One step in the direction of your dream can start that journey. Believe! in your dreams.

Dreams have power.  Even more important your dreams have an incredible amount of power, to you, to those around you, and to those who follow in your footsteps.  My friend, Kevin Buchanan over at Living Out My Journey in his videos on Your Morning Hustle talks about the Butterfly Effect.  That is what you do makes a difference.  Living out your dreams makes a different not just to you and your family, but to your community and the world around you.

First you owe it to yourself.  We are supposed to be true to ourselves and to our purpose.  Next and a distant second, for every step you take toward living your dreams you are helping those around you.  There are also those who want to do ministry.  If you write, you may be writing for them.  If you are an artist, you may be able to do artwork for that ministry.  If you are an actor, you may be acting to help a ministry.  Just the pursuit of a dream is inspiriting to all those other people who are also pursing a dream, whether it's the same dream or a different dream.  Pursing a dream challenges and inspires those around you.  Stand up for someone else, or someone else's dream.  It empowers them and empowers you because you believe you have power to help someone else.  

New Year - Believe!

Take a leap of faith and begin this wondrous new year by believing. Believe in yourself. And believe that there is a loving Source - a Sower of Dreams - just waiting to be asked to help you make your dreams come true.  - Sarah Ban Breathnach






Today is the first.  New Year.  New faith.  New beginnings.  New dreams.  New goals.  Time to Hustle according to Jon Acuff.

It is the New Year.  Many people make New Year's Resolutions.  I'm not sure about the idea that we can at the stroke of midnight, we can totally change our lives for the better.    I have spent the last six months regularly meeting and encouraging and being encouraged in an online group of people.  Each who are working to better their lives in both small ways and large ways every single day.  We meet online every day.  That's what it takes to make a New Year's Resolution really work.  Meeting every day.  Encouraging each other every day.

We live all over the United States and all over the world.  We are all striving for different goals. Each person has their own hustle.  The thing that seems to matter the most is that we are all working to make ourselves, our lives and our world a better place.  We laugh together.  Cry together.  Pat each other on the back.  Give advice.  Hold each other accountable, sometimes with a bit of encouragement; other times by lacing up the combat boots and giving a good swift kick to the seat. We notice and check when people go missing for a day or two, or check in late, because they have overslept.  We matter to each other.  We send each other old fashioned paper letters of encouragement, have online video work sessions and some of us have even met in person.

In the last few days, several people have talked less about resolutions and more about living with one word, or setting goals.  I have done both.  My word came to me in late October.  I am going to Believe! this year.  Ultimately, we Believe! We Believe! in each other.  We Believe! in our dreams enough to regularly work to make our dreams come true.