Not all at once

I love blueberries.  I love them so much that I planted a tree in the backyard.  I’m a novice gardener so I wasn’t totally sure they would even grow.  It’s been about 5 years now and I have a pretty large bush of berries each year.  Some years are better than others but this year has been amazing.  The berries start out green and then over time they change to a beautiful purple. That’s when I pick them.  When they are ripe.

I noticed the color changes and decided to get started one day.  I picked an entire bowl of ripe berries.  They were so good.  Delicious too.  But there were plenty of berries on the tree that were not ripe yet.  So, I waited a few more days and sure enough, they were ready.  This happened over and over again.  I started giving some away to friends as gifts but I started thinking about how the berries are not ripe at the same time.  I thought that it would be good to get them all picked at once and then be done. 

But after some thought, I said to myself that its God’s design for things to ripen at different intervals.  I thought it was pretty cool how I can come outside every day or every other day and get a few more.  Constantly being provided for all summer long.  Isn’t that cool?  Some blessings are one and done.  Other blessings just continue to provide over time until the fruit is all gone. Things take time.  We won’t all be in season at the same time. Our gifts will ripen on God’s timing.  We must be diligent and patient. You see,  I can freeze my blessings, give them away, eat them all or let the birds have them …whatever I like.  But each day I get to choose what to do.   I’m provided for. I just have to go get it.

Deuteronomy 28:4,12 Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep……The Lord shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

Just keeping it Cristaclear!

You don't need permission to succeed, only commitment.

As a child, everything we did had to have approval.  Whether it was what we wanted to eat from the fridge, leaving the house to go see a friend, taking a job over the summer, learning to drive…I could go on and on.  But now that we are adults, what are we waiting on?  Most of us have limitless dreams… if you don’t—please take a moment to come up with something.  It could be financial success, health goals, school achievements.  And you don’t need anyone’s permission to succeed.  All you need is commitment.

Commitment is an interesting word.  Just saying it out loud can give you anxiety.  A nervousness to meet a goal that on the outside seems unobtainable. Some of us are unable to commit to a relationship, others can’t stick to a weight loss goal.  It varies with every person you meet.  But commitment is something that you shouldn’t be afraid of.  It can call for some moments of truth and clarity before you do it, but it is definitely obtainable. 

Need help with commitment?  Me too!  however, I can offer you one piece of advice… Start small!  There’s an old proverb that says,” How does one eat an elephant?  One bite at a time.”  Just remember that you can do big things, but you must first realize that it can’t all be done in one day!  You want to go back to school?  You have to first decide to apply.  You want to learn to swim?  You have to get a teacher and GET IN THE WATER.  You want to lose weight?  You must first make a decision on what you currently are doing and what you need to do! 

Commitment is a big word, but it isn’t such a big monster that it can not be conquered!  Go forward with courage.  Start small and as you can add more to your plate…eat it.

Just keeping it Cristaclear

Things I'm choosing today...

Life brings us so many choices.  Some don’t feel like choices.  When it comes to taking care of children, parents, friends, bills, relationships etc.—we don’t really have a lot of choices.  We either take care of them, or they take care of us.  We can pay the bills, or they can turn the lights off. We can feed the kids, or they can be taken away.  You get the point.  But there are some things that we can say No to.  When people send information and its last minute and I don’t want to go, I don’t let them guilt me into going. It was a choice.  They chose to send the request at the last minute, and I don’t have any obligation to commit to it if they didn’t have the mindset to invite me sooner.  I make choices that will improve my mental clarity.  It can be challenging, but every day I find the courage to say no to people.  Some of us can do it easily.  Unfortunately, I’m not one of those people.  I am a reformed people- pleaser so everyday can be a struggle. 

So, what am I saying?  I’m saying that today I’m going to choose the following things:

·         I choose faith over fear

·         Progress over perfection

·         Kindness over criticism

·         Confidence over doubt

·         Healing over disease

·         Mental clarity over confusion

·         Trusting God over needing control

It’s all a decision.  There’s no reason for any of us to feel guilty over saying no.  Take a moment today to think about what happens when you are always running to the rescue of others.  Just because you are a great player doesn’t mean you have to play all the positions!  Let others help.  And in most cases, they will if you stop saving everyone. 

Use what you have.  Let God help you and I’ll be here to encourage you along the way.

Just keeping it CristaClear!