I saw it in my sister this week.  She had to go up against the experts on behalf of her child.  It wasn’t a fight she was looking for or one that she relished.  She got all “Mama Bear” because her daughter needed an advocate.

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I’ve had to play the role occasionally myself.  It’s the needs of kids that propels moms into the unnatural state of fighter.

Before we had kids, my husband thought he would be up with the babies at night because I slept like a rock.  He had to drag me out of bed during a five point something earthquake aftershock because I slept through it.

But, after the birth of our first baby, the slight sound of an infant in distress was enough to wake me.  Of course, we all sleep on alert when listening for an alarm clock for fear of sleeping through it.  But, I believe it goes deeper than that.  That miraculous maternal instinct.  That sleeping mama bear that is roused in time of need.

We watched the movie, Miracles from Heaven last weekend.  I was so intrigued by the story I had to read the book to find out what was true and what was Hollywood.  (Read my book review here.)  Christy Wilson Beam, the mother in the story had to go up against the doctors on behalf of her daughter when they weren’t taking her symptoms seriously.  She referred to herself as Mama Bear when she had to fight to get the medical help her daughter needed.

What is it that turns mild-mannered mamas into to fighters?  I guess if you look at nature, it’s anything that threatens the well-being of the off-spring.  In our lives today, sometimes it’s the experts. They may know their field, but mamas know their kids.

Mindful gratitude gives me perspective.

It’s easy and natural for me to focus on the negative.

I’m thankful for the practice of pausing to be grateful.

Joining other bloggers on Modern Mrs Darcy who are sharing their life-savers.

What’s Saving My Life 2016 

500 Words a Day

I got the idea from Jeff Goins.  He says to be a writer you have to write.  The man has a keen sense of the the obvious.  His point is: be consistent.  Five hundred words a day.  Every day.  So I took the challenge.  I determined at that pace, plus a little more, I could write 50,000 words in three months.  Amazingly, I hit that goal.

But a funny thing happened on the way to the coliseum.  I was writing more and blogging less.  How is that possible?  I used up my time and energy getting my 500 words down and spent very little time editing, polishing, choosing photos, posting and promoting.  So, this quarter, I’m spending another 20 minutes a day doing those things while still drafting 500 words a day.

In order to get 500 words a day recorded in as short as time as possible, I was just “brain dumping”— stream of consciousness writing, without  focus or a plan.  I’m shifting this strategy a little to be more productive to write something that’s worth editing, polishing and posting.

Here’s the thing:  writing 500 words a day on whatever comes into my head has been good for my emotional health.  I don’t want to lose that.  It’s been a slow realization over that past few years that I NEED to write.  I don’t even necessarily need to be read.  It’s the way I process.  The way I make sense of things.  Once in a while I churn out something that helps someone besides myself.

There you go.

500 words a day is saving my life.

Ah, the therapy of fingers on the keyboard, thoughts untangled, conclusions that bring peace. 

Best of 2016 Book Lists

I admit it.

I’m a fiction snob.

It’s hard for me to find novels I love.  So, I scour the book lists, always on the prowl for wholesome novels, brilliantly written.  Sometimes I strike gold.

I did another round up this year of my favorite Best of 16 Book Lists.  This is a survival strategy for me.  I need great books like I need air, so I’m highly motivated to find them.

Crash Course in Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis by Dr. Wentz

Izabella Wentz, PharmD., the Thyroid Pharmacist.

Last year I discovered I have Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis.  I searched the web for advice, hoping to avoid medication.

Izabella’s website has been the most helpful.

I cut out gluten from my diet.  I added some supplements— vitamin D, vitamin B12, selenium, zinc plus a daily multi-vitamin.  My migraines have all but disappeared.  I think my energy levels are up, but it’s hard to gage.  My face doesn’t break out as long as I’m taking zinc supplements.

I know one thing:  It feels good to be feeling better.  I’m thankful for Izabella.

The bottom line is bloggers are saving my life.

I am grateful.

What’s Saving Your Life?

What’s Saving My Life, 2016 edition

A classmate of mine is no longer walking this earth.

I feel the loss deeply.

I wonder for the umpteenth time why the bonds between third culture kids are so strong.  After all, it’s been decades since we shared a campus.  Only a small fraction of my life was spent building friendships in that arena.  And, yet, the impact is inexplicably profound.

I’ve pondered it again this week as I have before.   But, this time, I’ve come to some new conclusions.

The pyschological explanation is that we all met during impressionable, vulnerable years when our identities were in formation. We all experienced two or more cultures and were trying to decide which culture we personally identified with.  “Who am I?”  just became more complicated.  And here we are surrounded by a group facing this same challenge.

Most of us were not living in our passport country and far from extended family.  Into that vacuum emerges a third culture.  A group of expats on the same journey.  Kindred spirits who knew what it was like to be transplanted.  To be dropped into an island of English speakers surrounded by foreign languages, food and ways.  In this context, we struggle to answer the questions: Who am I?  Which culture will I choose?  Who are my people? Where is my tribe?  Where do I belong and how do I get there?

Those same fundamental questions we were all facing and answering, mostly oblivious to the process, but mindful that we were not alone.

The spiritual explanation took me by surprise.  I woke up one morning with verses from Mark 10 on my mind.  “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel, who will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age  (houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and fields– and with them  persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.”

The bonds are strong, the connection is deep because Jesus promised to provide family to those who had given up family.  He hard-wired the bonds to be stronger than passing friendships.  Many in that expat community were missionaries.  They had made sacrifices for the sake of the gospel.  Jesus promised to recompense those sacrifices.  Not only in the life to come, but in this life as well.  Inexplicable.

Related posts:

When Your Family Tree is Grafted

The Itch I Couldn’t Reach

Turn the Ship Around! by David Marquet tells the engaging story of his own command on naval submarine. He explains why he chose the leadership style he did and what effect it had– on the intangibles as well as the metrics. Using your team’s strengths as well as their free will and initiative was key. He built on Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People to define his leadership style.

Out of all the financial gurus out there, why listen to Dave Ramsey?  What sets Dave apart is his understanding of human nature and the emotional roadblocks that keep people from make good financial decisions.

Part of his signature advice is the “debt snowball”.  Arranging your debts from smallest to largest doesn’t necessarily make sense, except, you need the encouragement of seeing progress, of seeing a debt paid off . . . “sometimes motivation is more important than math”. This encouragement keeps you on track to meet your financial goals.

Another thing that sabotages a good plan is an emergency expense.  Planning for emergencies is a bedrock principle for success financially, according to Dave.

He suggests two ways to do this.  First is a small emergency fund.  Later, a larger fund is created in preparation for a financial tidal wave.

It takes an intensity and focus to succeed financially. Dave calls it “gazelle intensity”.

The book oozes with stories of people who have overcome significant obstacles to achieve financial freedom. These serve as an inspiration and encouragement to those in the trenches.

Dave advocates each step as the way to financial peace.  As a believer, he also testifies that the Prince of Peace is the only way to true peace.

In ReBoren, Marc Thomas Eckel novelizes  the life of John Boren, former Kosciusko County Jail Chaplain.

John appeared to be living a good Christian life, but he was harboring secret sins.  His heart hadn’t been transformed.  He successfully deceived those closest to him.  But, after conviction of sin, his transformation was total.  His executed an unparalleled plan for confession and restitution.

His dedication after this transformation was complete. He started a ministry in the jail. He drove a bucket of bolts on wheels.  He humbly served.  He opened his home to homeless men.  He sought God with fervor.  Even as his body weakened and failed, his faith remained strong.

At John’s funeral, former inmates gave testimony that often John would bring them a candy bar.  This small act of kindness was the undoing for many hardened hearts.

Don’t underestimate the hope and inspiration that the story of one changed life can bring.

Practical.  Informative. Inspiring.

Eat That Frog!  by Brian Tracy is a quick read.  It is a compilation of wisdom from many gurus of time management, self-management and motivation.  The subtitle is “21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time.”

If I have one beef with the book, it’s that he doesn’t attribute his ideas to the original authors.  But, the content is gold.

Simple and profound.  So why isn’t everyone doing it?  Because it’s hard.  At least, it’s hard to start.

He does tackle the psychological side of motivating yourself to do difficult things.

It is a book full of action points, laced with a few stories to illustrate the effectiveness of the principles he advocates.

The whole “eat the frog” analogy comes from Mark Twain who said that “if the first thing you do each morning is to eat a live frog, you can go through the day with the satisfaction of knowing that that is probably the worst thing that is going to happen to you all day long.”

Talking ourselves into doing difficult things instead of avoiding them gets us ahead.

Buy now from Amazon

One thing I’ve struggled with personally is how goal setting fits into God’s plans.  I feel uneasy with the idea of setting goals and then asking God to bless them.  And how to you deal with unmet goals?  Was it not God’s will?  How much better to set the goals that God wants.  But, the problem is, how to know for sure.   God has the habit of revealing only step at a time in front of us.  He very often doesn’t give us the long view.  How then do we make long-term plans?  And how in the world can we set ministry goals for what God is going to accomplish in the hearts of willing people?  God and other people.  Impossible to control.  So how do we produce the metrics for the people who are looking for a “bang for their buck”?

Tracy makes some good points in chapter 4, Consider the Consequences.  For example, the rule, “Long term thinking improves short-term decision making.” This applies beautifully to ministry decisions.  Thinking more long-term than even Tracy is anticipating– thinking eternally.  But, to bring it back around to goal-setting again. How can we set long-term goals on what God will do?  Is it right to even put ministry into the machine that was set up to sell more widgets?  Think for a minute.  What if I set a goal for how many Bibles Studies per year that I will conduct? For how many people outside the church that I will visit?  For how many people will be baptized this year?  For what the church budget will be?  For how many new people come to church?  How about for the number of minutes I will spend in prayer every day?  And what about any of these goals if my heart isn’t right?  Won’t it just be like a clanging cymbal?

What can be our goals, then?  What if our goals were to increase in faith, hope and love?  What if our goals were not to bring people in, but to send them out?  How do we reconcile having long-term goals with “Abraham going out, not knowing whither he went”?  How do we reconcile having long-term goals with the Israelites following the pillar of cloud and fire, of the way God often seems to work, showing us only the next step?

Is it possible to apply “the laws of the widgets” in some areas, say exercise or a reading program, but not in other areas, such as number of new believers or new leadership positions filled at the church?

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