DAY 8:
I couldn't imagine living my life unsure of my purpose. To honestly choose to believe that I'm just some floating organism, lost in the universe, when there is another option?! The Bible, inerrant and powerful, offers everyone meaning in life. To live to love, to give, to grow, to know to show. To receive life eternally, to praise the Creator, to be in community, and to share all of these things with the people that are still lost.
I have purpose, I have life. I have a reason to live, and unbeknownst to Hoobastank, the reason is not a "you". It's to honor, serve, and mirror my Creator. When I spend my time letting Jesus change me, day by day, I don't have time or interest in greed, lying, gossip, slander. I then have my focus set on loving, being joyful, giving generously, serving. Too many people look at the Cross as fire insurance and Christianity as too many rules. But what about loving, giving, uplifting, encouraging, motivating, and living an inspired fulfilling life sounds like a rule book? If you focus on doing what you are called to do in Christ, you won't have time to do what God says not to do, and in the process you are guaranteed a fuller life.
I wake up, knowing that I have been created individually, given new life and perspective, and I wake up with motivation to live better because I have life in Christ.
If you are wondering about this Jesus thing, or you want a new view of Jesus, allow Him to "reintroduce Himself". Ask me, ask Him. Search the Word. Don't hate the author if you've never studied His work.
Laugh. Inspire. Believe. Love
0 Comments
DAY 7:
This week has been an interesting one. If you did not hear, I got a new job! I have accepted the position of Executive Assistant for the Patient Safety Department at the Tennessee Hospital Association. This comes with a lot of excitement, anticipation of the transition, and a little sadness of the schedule and commitments I leave behind. I will be going to bed early, waking up early, and will no longer work the desk at Body Shop Fitness or be at so many events with Infinity Events and Catering. This, to me, is like graduation. It will be different to be out of the comfort zone I have acclimated myself to, but my real friends from either place will continue to be my friends. Today, I am so thankful for both where I have been and where I am going to. I have been looking for some time now to find my place in the world: a full-time career doing something that is important. So here I go. I am thankful to those who gave me the opportunities to be where I was and who helped me grow while I was there. Yet, I look forward to the coming weeks, months, and hopefully years of getting acclimated to new territory, learning and growing along the way. I thank God especially. Change can be hard, and with so many things out of my control in life, it's so nice to know that Jesus Christ alone is my solid rock, who does not waver in the storm or leave me in the valleys. He is right there in the ups, right there in the downs, and there in the times when I'm not sure what I'm feeling. I struggle sometimes with moving on and leaving places and people behind, but God has given me such peace for this move, that I remain completely content. Excited, but not fearful, and I am thankful for that. Laugh. Inspire. Believe. Love. DAY 6: Today I'm going to keep it simple. Today, I am thankful I have today. I have clothes, shoes, a job, food, family, and friends. God has blessed me, and I am thankful to have another day to live. What will you do with your today? Laugh. Inspire. Believe. Love. DAY 5:
Have you ever thought about how many things have been invented? Seriously. And then, many other things had to be invented to make THOSE things work! I just think we take too much for granted these days. I know I am guilty of that. For instance, today you probably at some point went up or down a flight of stairs. Do you realize that you put your entire weight on a staircase, assuming that the builder did his job right? Did you make coffee this morning? But you didn't grow coffee beans, pick them, grind them, fill up your cup of water, heat it by the sun or over a campfire, and somehow mix it all together, right? No. Someone invented the parts of the coffee machine and made it function. Every piece of furniture in your house came with multiple parts, all which were made individually. Someone thought of a solution to your problem. To my problem. I just think we should take time to think the people God blessed with the ideas that they created that inevitably have made our lives a little easier. Laugh. inspire. Believe. Love. DAY 4:
Last week, I took my car in for an oil change, and Midas found a decent sized screw in one of my tires. They said it was pretty packed in there and may not ever actually puncture through, and if it did, they didn't know if it would blow out or leak or do nothing at all. Well, having already gotten a flat tire on the side of the interstate before, I was worried it would pop while I was driving, before I got a chance to get it fixed. Well, on my way home Sunday night, I stopped by a friend's house. As I was just about to head down the driveway, I heard a "shhhhhhhhhhhh" sound and I knew immediately that the screw had decided to take action. Thankfully, my friend's husband had a jack and daylight and some tools to quickly and easily change to my spare. It just could not have been better timing!! So today, I'm thankful that God is watching out for me, and I'm thankful for wonderful friends who helped me out of my mess! Laugh. Inspire. Believe. Love. **To clarify, this cleanse is more about thankfulness, and how I find contentment in the things I'm thankful for.**
DAY 3: I fully believe that God created us as beings that desire community: more than the groups you join on Facebook or those you retweet on Twitter. I believe we are people who crave physical interaction. Because of this, I am so thankful for the core groups of community that I am a part of: my friends from Belmont, my friends from Body Shop Fitness, my friends at the Bridge Building, my friends from Sunday School, etc. I have several quality groups I am a part of. Each group strengthens and challenges me and each have their own dynamic. Some bring out my witty side, while others bring out my intellectual side. All have their way of shaping me into the woman I am becoming. However, I believe in short-term divine appointments as well. There have been times where I have only briefly met someone and they have exhibited a quality I admired. I see the way they made that server smile, and I think, "Why can't I do that next time?" I have gone through job interviews and took note of the way the interviewer presented and postured themselves. All of these have also helped me to be a more intentional person. In each circumstance, I have learned something about building character. I am so thankful for each group as well as the combination of the two. To me, it's just more proof that God loves us enough to meet us on every level. Laugh. Inspire. Believe. Love DAY 2:
Look at the pictures above. What do you see? These are the people who risk their lives to save ours. These heroes are always on call. There is never a guaranteed day off for any of these occupations. All of these jobs are dangerous in order to secure MY safety. This post probably needs little explanation as to where I am going with this. I am SO beyond grateful for the service of anyone in the military, police department, or fire department. Many people complain about working too much, but realistically, you will get a nice paycheck for those extra hours, a day off after a longer working period than normal, a vacation week in the next month. I can't imagine being on call 24/7. Yes, a lot of firefighters work something like 1 day on, 2 days off, but firefighters as a whole ALWAYS have to be working. Law enforcement has their days off as well, but it's the same situation. They are pivotal roles. And the military, they don't truly have a day off until the day they return home. But I do get time off. Every week. And I'm not put on the frontlines of a dangerous situation every time I go to work. It may not seem ideal at times, but I am choosing to be content with my work schedule and atmosphere, and all other complaints seem completely irrelevant. If you see someone in uniform today, will you say thank you? Maybe buy them coffee, pray for them, or just ask how they are doing? It might just make their day! Laugh. Inspire. Believe. Love This is it. I spoke of this a little over a month ago, and I am finally doing it.
This is the 30 Day Commitment Cleanse. DAY 1: I am recovering from two sprained ankles right now. I have cancelled Zumba, taken off of work, and cancelled social plans. What may surprise you is that I'm not really upset. Yes, the dip in my paycheck will hurt a little, but this time has been very valuable to me. Over the past week, I have slept, and read, and played with my little sister. I have prayed, studied Scripture, and spent time with my family. I have been forced to rest. And I am embracing it. I am thankful that I have time to experience the peace of God. I am thankful that I have the stillness to appreciate His glory unfolding in the creation around me. I am thankful that I have time to engage in quality conversation catching up with people whose friendships I hold dear. This time of rest has given me the time to write and send letters. This time has given me opportunities to build patience. I am thankful, and I am content. Laugh. Inspire. Believe. Love. |
AuthorNative to Nashville, TN, Taelor Barnette is a hyperactive over-thinker, who likes to express herself though written word, pictures, and dance parties, all while she tries to figure out her God-given talents and how to use them to help leave this world a little better than she found it. Archives
September 2015
Categories
All
|