So often in this crazy world of ours, we expect instant results. We have grown accustomed to fast food, drive thrus, instant messaging, tweeting, and digital photos {remember the days of 35mm photos? Where we had to wait until the film was developed to see if you were caught mid-blink?} Some off us, okay, I’m guilty, have the tendency to carry over that instant gratification expectation to other, more important areas of our lives.

Whether it be weight loss, financial success, overcoming addictions, climbing the corporate ladder or other… we have been programed to expect immediate — or, at the very least, quick — results.  And when we don’t get them…

we grow weary. frustrated. and impatient.

At times, we might even give up if we don’t see the changes we would like to see in OUR time.

And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Hebrews 6:11-12

Many of us have made prayerful resolutions for the new year, commitments to live a healthier lifestyle, exercise more, spend less, get promoted, pay off debt… I challenge you to persevere. God tells us through faith and patience…

we will inherit HIS promises!

Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant. Robert Louis Stevenson

So, my dear friends, persevere. Continue your hard work, it will pay off! Continue sowing those seeds and you will one day reap a harvest worth celebrating!

And as the old saying goes — good things come to those who wait.

Photo Credit:  aviana2

(If you received this post via email, be sure to click here to watch the video.)

Why?

What is the inspiration behind what you do…in all. areas. of. your. life?

Do you know?

Some set goals for the new year, some wrote resolutions, some chose a One Word {that’s what I do} others simply reflect and/or don’t about the new year — whatever you chose to do, the question I’m asking is what is the why behind how you …

“live” — “work” — “parent” — “relationship“

…do you know?

As I was looking ahead to the new year, I started to ask myself that question.  I peeled back the layers and identified that part of my why is to simply…

Be A Light.

My desire is to be a light into the world in which I have the opportunity to live.  In the lives of my children, my marriage, in relationships both personally and professionally, to strangers.

Taking that a step further, as I journey to discover truth, embrace love, and experience joy in my personal life — I see that’s the deeper part of my why.

I am passionate about inspiring others to find what inspires them by discovering their own truth, to fall in love with who they are, and to discover joy in their life.  Professionally I do this with my clients through life-coaching, The Ultimate Journey course, speaking, the book I wrote, and The Refine Conference.

Clearly defining my why — and wrapping my arms around it has been exciting and fuels me to press on!

So, friends, I ask YOU — what is it for you?

What is your why?

If you know, I would LOVE for you to share it with me.  If you don’t, I challenge you to explore and discover what it is.

Then…for 2012 — lets lead with our why…may it be the inspiration behind all that we do and how we live.

Photo Credit: Amy Alldis

From the archives and modified…

I arrived at the airport to catch an evening flight to Ft. Myers, FL. To my surprise when I checked in, I was seated in 1st Class!  So grateful for upgrades, I LOVE it when that happens!

As I walked through the airport I thought…

• it’s been a LONG week
• I haven’t been feeling well AT ALL
• I can’t wait to board the airplane, get a pillow and a blanket and sleep for 3 hours – YES, I need sleep!!

Little did I know, God had other plans for me.

As I got settled into my seat I casually started talking to the guy sitting next to me. Small talk, “How’s it going?” — “So thankful for the upgrade.” — “Are you from Florida, or just visiting?” Our small talked turned into a 3 hour conversation and no sleep…but it was worth it!

After 45 minutes of talking I finally learned that the guy I was talking to had a name, it was Tom. We shook hands after we formally introduced ourselves to each other and continued talking. As we talked I learned that Tom was in the financial services industry. He was heading to Florida looking to potentially purchase another company to grow his company.

I also learned that he was in the process of writing a book, Three Commitments of Leadership, boy did I have lots of questions about his book project.  I too have been thinking of writing a book someday, Overcoming The Nevers. His message, as he described it to me, that he’s writing about in his book sounded similar to my vision with Keeping it Personal, except with a business angel — how cool is that!

I was so intrigued by his words, the wisdom he had with his many years of experience, I can’t WAIT to pick up his book when he’s finished. {it’s OUT and it’s GREAT! Three Commitments of Leadership}

Another topic that we covered during the flight was…

…simplifying and living a life of balance.

Both seem difficult to accomplish at times with everything going on in this world.

One of his practices that helps him live a balanced “simpler” life, looks like this:

ADD — KEEP — GET RID OF

Very interested, I asked, “How does that work?”  He explained, “You have to determine what’s important to you and what is it that you need and desire to KEEP.  Then, as life happens and we are faced to ADD things into our world, whether it’s a material possession, something that will take a time commitment, or something in business to expand or grow – we need to answer the question, how will that effect your KEEP?  As we determine how our KEEP is effected, what, if anything do we need to GET RID OF in order to ADD?”

I know it’s a little complicated so let me give you an example on how I relate this to my life. My husband and I have made a decision that we need to simplify – we aren’t going to try to do this, we are doing this and are making changes as we do our year end/new year planning.

As we make our KEEP list we’ve determined that there are many things that we currently have that we are going to sell or eliminate in our lives in order to have more time and resources.  The result is, our list of GET RID OF is growing and we will work towards that in the coming months.

The ADD hits us daily. We are constantly being approached by others to invest in new “ventures” which take resources that we want to KEEP, so we will have to pay very close attention to this and be sure to go through this exercise.

Sometimes we can get caught up with a “great opportunity” …act too fast and before we know it get completely out of balance because it’s effecting our KEEP and we don’t want to GET RID OF what we wanted to KEEP so as we look back we probably should not have ADDED in the first place!  {oh my goodness!}

I am grateful for the connection I made and for what I learned from Tom, he inspired me in many ways.

I wanted to share this story before Christmas as I know for many, this is the time of year that we ADD to our lives with Christmas gifts from others.  As you wrap up this year and bring on the next, consider Tom’s statement –> ADD — KEEP — GET RID OF <– Ask yourself these questions:

Is there imbalance in your world?

What can you do to simplify?

What adjustments need to be made?

Wishing you Peace and Joy and a Merry Christmas!

What do YOU do when you get discouraged? How do you find the courage to press on, persevere through road blocks or negativity?

Today I’m talking about my…

S M I L E file

In this file are:

affirming emails, text messages, and comments
encouraging cards and notes that bring a smile to my face
quotes, positive sayings, and verses
my vision and identity statement

…when I question “why” I’m doing what I’m doing.
…when I wonder “if” what I’m pursuing is making a difference.
…when I’m discouraged and find it difficult to smile.

I go to my file…here I am reminded and encouraged.

Where do you go?

Do you have something similar?  Do you have a smile file?  …OR another method that fuels you to keep moving forward; that puts a SMILE on your face?

It’s Monday and I don’t have a video to share, so I write…

5:00 am comes quickly, but I jump out of bed — there’s no snooze button for me.  This is my favorite hour of the day, my quiet alone time when everyone under our roof is asleep…

…oh the quiet, the silence, the calm.

My time to reflect, my time with God, my time to get my soul food.

I open my devotional, the one that never gets old, the one that continues to challenge me –> The Message//REMIX Solo <– I turn to Day 110, it says:

There are many parts of Proverbs that carry a specific theme.  But other parts of Proverbs deliver wise advice like machine-gun fire into the sky — wise saying about various subjects in no particular order.  Chapter 28 is one of these machine-gun-into-the-sky chapters.  Yet no matter how they’re fired, every bullet is precious.

It goes on to say, select two proverbs that speak to your specific condition this week.  So, from the devotional I open my Life Application Study Bible – I turn to Proverbs chapter 28 and out of the 28 verses in this chapter, I pick two machine-gun-into-the-sky verses that stand out to me…

Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper,
but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
Proverbs 28:13

My reflection:  When I am willing to face anything head on, to discover the truth, I can embrace love and experience joy.  I {we} are undeserving of grace and mercy, but it is freely given to us by our heavenly father.  However, we must do our part — we must confess AND renounce, give up or put aside voluntarily, abandon and reject our wrongs…our sin.  This takes courage, but there is SO much freedom when we uncover and expose our ickiness.

“Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing. Use the pain as fuel, as a reminder of your strength.” – August Wilson

Those who trust in themselves are fools,
but those who walk in wisdom are kept safe.
Proverbs 28:26

My reflection:  Who am I…to think that in my finite being I can rely solely upon on what my eyes see and my ears hear?  I have learned that I must rely upon God to lead me and direct me every day, every step of the way.  I spent most of my life “trusting myself” — it didn’t work out too well for me.  So much heart-ache, so much confusion, so much hurt.  To walk in wisdom is to abide in Him, through reading the Word, through seeking Him first…HIS will, plan, and purpose for my life.  When I do this, I can honestly say, I feel safe.  I DO know the difference but even though I do, I need this reminder — FREQUENTLY!  It’s SO easy for me to revert back to self-reliance.  Surrender is the word I keep top of mind, thy will, NOT my will.

…I pray

This is a little glimpse into my 5:00 am quiet time — it’s Monday, it’s the start of a new week.

How do you start your day?  How do you start your week?  Do you include HIM?

Without any self-control and shouted loud enough for the neighbors to hear, if the windows were open, these words flew out of my mouth like hot flames,

“You are ungrateful and spoiled!  All you do is fight, whine, and complain — I am DONE!  Just done with you, BOTH of you!”

It was 7:30 in the evening on a Tuesday, homework time.  The tension always seems to be high when we sit down to do this.  They both need my help.  There is frustration in the air, no patience…

…But, my words.

Those words, those shouted words that flowed off my tongue so freely — that’s what I’m talking about.  You see, there is no excuse that can make my behavior okay.  Once I said them, I could not take them back.  When I was done, there was silence…my raised voice got their attention, they both completed their homework; I continued to help.

When my oldest nugget was done, he packed up his backpack and said, “I’m done now.  I’m going to bed.  Please don’t come tuck me in.”

When my youngest son was done, he packed up his backpack, looked me in the eyes and said, “I’m not sure I want to be your son any more.”  With his little lip quivering and his voice cracking trying to hold back his tears he whispered, “I couldn’t swallow, I almost stopped breathing.  My heart almost stopped beating, it’s cracked by your mean words.  Am I a bad person?”

…my destructive words.

I always have a choice to respond positively or negatively in every situation, A L W A Y S…so do you.

I wrapped my arms around my little guy and spoke softly through my tears, “I’m so sorry sweetie, I was wrong.  You are not a bad person — you are a very good person.  God created you and me and everyone very good.  I was wrong to respond with those words.  I was wrong to raise my voice.”

I made amends with both boys that night, I tucked them both in.  I did my best to affirm them and build them up.  I shared with them how I felt about their behavior and about what happened that led up to my inexcusable-outburst.  It was an opportunity to discuss the power of words, we all learned a lesson from this…

Words can build up or Words can tear down — choose them wisely.

“Handle them carefully, for words have more power than atom bombs.” - Pearl Strachan Hurd

Are you choosing your words wisely?  Is there anyone who you need to make amends with because you tore them down with your words?  Who can YOU build-up with your words today?

Are YOU an encourager, a cheerleader? Do YOU stimulate others spiritually?

People are revitalized by encouragement.  Today I ran the Twin Cities 10 Mile — the day was perfect; the weather was beautiful, the colors in the trees were amazing. The spectator support was E N C O U R A G I N G — there were cheerleaders everywhere!

In the video, I share a short story that inspired me to talk about encourage today…we ALL need people in our lives who brighten our days — are YOU one of those “lights” to others?

BE intentional this week about encouraging others!

LOOK for opportunities to…

• reassure
• cheer-up
• comfort
• inspire
• praise
• strengthen

…those you come in contact with.

The F R E E gift of encouragement is the gift-that-keeps-on-giving.

“You need to be aware of what others are doing, applaud their efforts, acknowledge their successes, and encourage them in their pursuits. When we all help one another, everybody wins.” -  Jim Stovall

I’m back and I’ve invited 18 women to join me — to write — to contribute to the Keeping it Personal blog.  Since my last post, “I took a Break” I’ve been doing a lot of thinking…praying…connecting.  Through my networking and asking for feedback, here’s what I realized:

–> I’m only one voice {there needs to be more}

–> People like variety {I know I do}

–> Our audience is growing and diverse {we need to grow and offer diversity}

With that, I’m feeling led — I’ve been working hard to pull together “variety” and I’m thrilled to share with you that starting Monday, September 5th {Labor Day} WE are back!

From the East coast to the West Coast

From 20-somethings to 60-somethings

From empty nesters to newly-weds

From all walks of life…

Our desire is to encourage and inspire you, by keeping it personal.

We hope to connect you with us by sharing our experiences and our stories, and hope you’ll feel compelled to leave comments and fuel discussion so we can in turn connect and get to know you!  Take a stroll over here –> Meet Our Blog Contributors.

 ”Rest when you’re weary. Refresh and renew yourself, your body, your mind, your spirit. Then get back to work.” -R Marston

See you monday…

I was on a roll.  For 15 weeks, I posted a vlog (video blog) each Monday.  The last one I posted here was on Memorial Day.  Since then, I’ve had several calls, emails, and messages asking why I stopped.  My answer?  I was empty.  I all-of-a-sudden had nothing to give.  Being the “perfectionist” that I am {not} — I felt bad, actually a little guilty, when I missed the first Monday.  After all, I made a commitment {to myself} that I would do this each Monday.  But, as time went on – I accepted it…I was empty.

I took a break.  I needed it. Silence.  With writing the book, being a wife, mother, facilitating The Ultimate Journey, and coaching — my plate was full!

I’ve been questioning the blog portion of the Keeping it Personal site for a very long time.  content. frequency.  I’ve been praying about it and have not received anything firm and solid to go with.  One thing, I do know…I will keep writing the Daily KIP <— this I feel good about.  The Daily KIPs keep me grounded and focused — they keep me accountable and growing.  Based on the feedback I receive, I believe others like them too.

I don’t know today what the future holds for the blog on this site — I’m confident God will lead me to that answer in His timing.  But I wanted to share with you that I post daily on my personal site –> terijohnson.com <– come on over if you haven’t already!

Here’s what I’m up to over there:

1. Project 365:  Each day I post a “picture of the day” and write a little bit about it.
2. Book:  I just finished writing a book – Overcoming The Nevers — it’s in the editing process and expected to be published the end of September 2011.  You can watch a video and learn more about it –> here
3. Life Coaching
4. Speaking
5. Choose To Grow:  Today we {me and several others} start an 8 week online study unpacking The Lord’s Prayer.  If this is something you might be interested in, join us. =)  You can learn more by clicking –> here

Thank you for taking a few minutes to read my update; why I took a break.  When I feel led, I will post here again, but until then, I would love to connect with you and keep it personal with you on my personal blog.

“See how nature – trees, flowers, grass – grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence…we need silence to be able to touch souls.” - Mother Teresa of Calcutta

I LOVE watching good movies that share heartfelt stories.  I LOVE reading good books, both fiction and non-fiction, that tell stories.  I enjoy telling stories to my kids and hearing stories about people in my life.  There is nothing better to me than getting to know and understand people better through their stories.

A special friend of mine has an amazing gift of sharing her life and relating to others through analogy stories.  I always look forward to talking with her and listening as she shares her insight and wisdom through great stories.

As we embark upon our 1 year anniversary of our keepingitpersonal.com blog and our Daily KIPs, I’ve been reflecting.  These words, Stories are Gifts – Share, speak to me.  Over the past 12 months, I’ve had the privilege to hear AND read a lot of personal stories.  Many of these have encouraged me.  Many have brought me to tears.  Many have changed me.  Many have inspired me.

It brings me joy to share MY story with the hope to encourage or inspire others…….or simply plant a seed in someone’s life.  Stories ARE a gift and I am grateful that I’ve been on the receiving end while others were willing to share.  Priceless!