SparkysGirl
Guild Creative Team
Registered: October 2009
Posts: 297
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** I had to delete and re-upload this page, because I had several versions on my hard drive - I inadvertently uploaded the wrong one the first time! **
Credits:
As seen in the Artisan Notebook Essentials, January 2013 Edition
Wings Of Hope, The Artisan Guild Kit for January 2013, by Dee Bee Designs, available at DSAG ( www.dsaguild.com )
About the photos: The blended background photo was taken by my husband using an IPhone.
Journaling: I read an idea recently, and I fell in love with it. It comes from a book called “My One Word: Change Your Life With Just One Word” by Mike Ashcraft and Rachel Olsen. Basically, rather than create a list of resolutions at the beginning of the year, you choose one word to focus on. Once you choose your word, you apply it to every aspect of your life. One suggestion is to share your word with friends and family so that they can support you throughout the year in your quest to discover application opportunities for your word and by doing so change your life. I have been thinking about my word for 2013 ever since I read about the concept. At first I thought “peace” would be my word ... because Ryland and I experienced such peace and contentment during both of our trips to the beach this year ... and we keep reminding each other of that time together when things are less than peaceful back in the real world. We’d love to experience that kind of peace all of the time. But peace just didn’t feel like it was quite right for my one word. I guess it doesn’t encompass enough areas of my life to bring about growth and positive change. It finally hit me this morning while I was brushing my teeth. Yes, profound thoughts hit me at some of the most non-profound moments. Actually, two words came to mind. The first was the word truth ... I have grown weary of allowing the perpetuation of things that are simply untrue. We live in a world where the goal is to “get along” no matter the cost. It seems like a wonderful idea ... but it is not based in reality. It seems to be what’s wrong in today’s world. The thought that we should all just “get along” and never have a difference of opinion or a disagreement is what has created a generation of people that don’t know how to cope when these things arise. I have always been a brutally honest person. I realized several years ago that the honesty is a good thing, but I also need to deliver the honesty with an attitude of love. Sadly, I am guilty of not always having that attitude. I am working on it. Political correctness has thwarted our ability to have an open dialogue with one another. We communicate with the fear of offending someone … of offending everyone. In response to that fear, I believe I have stopped communicating nearly altogether. I crave honesty, an open dialogue, and straightforwardness. I crave the truth. It occurs to me that I am likely not alone in feeling this way. On a personal level, this past year has been characterized by my loss of a voice – an inability to speak out on things I feel strongly about. I have been very quiet ... deafeningly quiet. This stems from two things. First, I don’t want to say something or respond to the negativity of others in a way that would not please the Lord. This requires that I think long and hard before opening my mouth so that I am sure that what I am about to say is appropriate and stems from the right motives. Second, I recognize now that the quiet also stems from fear. Fear of rejection, conflict and abandonment – boiled down, this truthfully means the fear stems from manipulation by others. This loss of voice is what needs to change. Since the loss of voice stems from so many things, my one word needs to encompass ways to address each one. I am finding my voice, and I plan to use it. It will be in a spirit of love, and I will examine my motives prior to speaking. I will speak the truth ... and to those who have contributed to the loss of my voice ... it will likely sting.
As I thought these things through, the word I finally settled on came to mind. My word for 2013 will remind me that regardless of the cost, I need to speak the truth. By not speaking, I am allowing the perpetuation of untruths. My one word will be COURAGE.
QUOTE: Courage is not the absence of fear, but the capacity to act in the presence of fear. (Mary Harvey)
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