Value Added
There is nothing more exciting than seeing women excel in their profession, transitioning to new opportunities, or just simply being intentional in making the decision to grow. I talk to women from all walks of life and listen to where they are and where they are trying to go in their next phase, season, or opportunity. I am a firm believer that when we engage with others, value should always be added. Value can be added to their dreams, goals, and sometimes challenges when encouragement takes place.
Arrhythmia
I have a full plate, even as a recent retiree. I call it preferment as I choose to do what I want to do when I want to do it! However, it can get overwhelming. I love to serve, and I love to connect others to resources that will help them in their journey. Sometimes I tend to take on more than what I am physically able to do even though I have the gift or capability to do it. It is almost like overworking your heart muscle to a point where your heart rhythm gets off beat. It’s called arrhythmia in the medical world. In your mind you are just trying to “make it happen.”
So, what happens when I find myself in a position of feeling like I have not achieved my hearts desire to make an impact on others or have fallen short of my commitment? Well, I must retrace my steps back and identify how and when I got off. Was the timing off, did I choose a task that was not necessarily my assignment? Or was I not strategic in my decision and planning? Now I am feeling like I have failed someone or maybe even failed myself.
Not Staying
My personality is such that I do not like staying in a place of discouragement. I feel like it is taking up space in my brain and my heart that could be used for productivity. I have to evict it! How do I do that? I am like David in the Bible when the Amalekites invaded the south and burned down Ziglag. The Amalekites captured the wives and children and took them away. David’s men were looking at him in disdain and blaming him for the situation they were in. David did not go into a woe is me nor did he engage with his men going back and forth trying to defend himself. David did what I worked to do when I was in a place of discouragement. He encouraged himself in the Lord (I Samuel 30).
Encourage Yourself
I know you are wondering how does one who is discouraged, encourage themself. First thing, I have to seek the One who can encourage me in whatever state I am in, Jesus. I must acknowledge where I am and call it what it is. Sometimes I find that people do not confront their discouragement because of various reasons. Sometimes it is because it is tied to unresolved issues, trauma, or insecurity. In coaching women through their challenges, one of the goals in dealing with being discouraged is to identify the root, acknowledge it and its effect on you, then make a decision to do the work to move forward.
Encourage Others
We are to encourage others by provoking with love and to good works (Hebrews 10:24). It is something about having other sisters walking the journey not for you, but with you. It is amazing how a simple, “You can do it” can keep you moving in the right direction. Encouraging yourself fuels you to encourage others out of your own process of working through that temporary barrier called discouragement.
