Go For It...

My husband and I donned our leathers Saturday, along with 2,000 other bikers, for Fox 43’s Pride and Ride annual event. Our mighty force thundered across 50-miles of rural backcountry in York and Adams County.  People lined the streets of small suburban towns to watch us journey through their townships like a giant, roaring parade.  The winding roads took us over rolling hills where golden cornfields are ready for harvest, orange pumpkins dot the landscape, and roadside stands sell natures bounty.  I love riding.  Being on my Harley relaxes and refreshes me.  However, I can still remember how scared I was when I first learned to ride. My husband referred to our excursions out of our driveway as “the trips of terror.”

Eight years ago, I had absolutely no skills or ability when it came to riding a motorcycle.  I remember the anguish of going to the classes, the discomfort of suiting up in the heat, sweating under my helmet, and going through the course hurdles. Learning to control a 250 Honda and taking it out of first gear was my worst nightmare. After each class, I vowed I was going to quit.  Yet, there was a small part of me that wanted to overcome this fear and do something totally different and outside my comfort zone.  So, I continued.

I can still see myself, in the early days, making a wide left turn and going off road into a ditch, and on the same day stalling in the middle of a busy intersection. My face still turns red when I remember the embarrassment of dropping my new 2003 Heritage Soft Tail in Deadwood, South Dakota, at my first Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. I vividly remember the anxiety of holding the clutch with an aching left hand on a steep incline and rolling backward into the cars that were lined up for miles behind me.

However, I endured the test. My confidence grew as I rode longer distances and skill and ability replaced my fear. Since then I have put about 45,000 miles on my bike. Perseverance has rewarded me with great rides all over the country.

I learned if you want something bad enough you go for it.  You make sacrifices.  Face your fears. Overcome obstacles.  Press in.  Push through.  Don’t stop.  God calls us to persevere in faith.  He wants us to face all of life’s challenges with tenacity, drive, and enthusiasm. 

       We need to hold tight when we want to quit. 
       Pray hard when there seems to be no answer.
       Get back up when we fail. 
       Hope for the best when all seems lost. 
       Rejoice when we go through periods of suffering.
      
       Check out this great video I found on youtube.

“Do not throw away your confidence: it will be richly rewarded.  You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.”  Hebrews 10: 35-36

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The most powerful forces known to man are not nuclear weapons, nor nature’s awesome wonders, such as the might of an earthquake, the power of the sun, or mastery of a hurricane, but the thoughts and ideas of the mind.  There are cases of people dying in their sleep from a frightening dream, along with studies of otherwise healthy men and women who while awake have actually been scared to death! Mental health professionals say many people who are calling their hot lines have reached their breaking point.  Fear is the number one emotion responsible for their feelings of hopelessness.

He will not be afraid of evil tidings.  I admit, reading the news gives me a tight feeling in my chest, family problems push me over the edge, and the economic crisis makes me sick to my stomach. Uncertainty has become a way of life.  Anxiety over current events spills into our daily conversation.  National security, world peace, a sound economy, financial stability, health, and safety are only a few of the headlines that vie for our attention. The clinical experts say I have GAD.  In laymen’s terms; I’m anxious, and fearful.
 
His heart (mind) is firmly fixed.  Fear, like an emotional terrorist, can literally render me its prisoner wreaking havoc on my mind and body. As a believer how can I glorify God when I feel and act like a coward? Spiritually I need to stop fooling around and listen, I mean really listen, to the words of the Great Physician.  Long before we had the availability of mental health clinics, God gave us some great advice.  http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+91&version=NIV However, counsel is only valuable when we use it and take it to heart.

Trusting confidently in the Lord.  I found some great tips for anyone who needs to keep fear from becoming their breaking point.
1. Pay attention to your self-talk.  Flood your mind with positive messages, preferably from the Bible.  Take them to heart, memorize them, and believe they are promises you can count on today.
2. Pray.  Prayer will sooth your mind and calms your soul.
3. Help someone else.  Fear tends to make us shut ourselves in, away from what is truly beneficial to our emotional health.

While writing this post, my grandson’s 10 lb. puppy began barking and growling ferociously at the door.  I followed him outside as he charged fearlessly toward the perceived threat. He looked over his shoulder to make sure I was there and then ran forward like a roaring lion.  I think this is how God wants us to deal with our fear. Believe He is right there with us, so we can run forward with confidence and face our future.

I will not be afraid of evil tidings; my heart and mind are firmly fixed, trusting confidently in the Lord.  Psalm 112:7 (paraphrased by me )



Links
http://www.cbn.com/health/williams_anxiety.aspx
http://www.plim.org/fear.html
http://economiccrisis.us/2010/08/rising-suicide-rate-worldwide-linked-economic-crisis-expert/

Be Optimistic

It has been a little over a month since I attended the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers Conference. All the excitement and hype are receding from the forefront of my mind as real life takes center stage.

   
My plan to start a blog has become a reality along with waiting to hear from the two editors who excitedly asked to see my novel.  I wait anxiously every day for the letter…you know the letter I mean. Will they like what I've spent the last five years of my life working on, or will it be thrown into the slosh pile?  Well, I got it, the infamous REJECTION LETTER.  So the question becomes, how do I handle this news?

Be miserable.
At first, disappointment was a comfortable option.  I could stare at my computer screen, teary eyed and depressed.  I could give the LETTER power to immobilize and devalue me while rejection skillfully played with my emotions.  I could have a full blown pity party.  After all, the LETTER came on my Birthday!  It wasn’t fair.  I worked hard.  I thought this was God’s plan for me.

Or motivate myself.
I believe God allows everything in life for a reason.  I also believe God’s plan for me is far better then the one I have in mind.  So, I have made a decision.  I have decided not to give the LETTER any authority to kill my hopes and dreams.  Does that mean I’m dancing for joy?  No way!  I’m struggling to regain momentum.  I’m deliberately swimming upstream, against the current, to take back my creative flow and bruised ego.

Whatever has to be done is always my choice.
 I need to keep rejection in perspective.  I can let it cripple my forward motion or keep moving ahead.  I have to learn not to take the letters personally.  According to other authors, these one or two sentence dismissals are part of a writer’s life.  Have I arrived at this undisturbed utopia?  Let’s get real!  However, God is teaching me that He is always working for good in our lives.  I choose to give my cares, disappointment, fear, and rejection to God.  It takes some work. I have to keep redirecting my thoughts away from the negative scenarios that bombard my mind.  I must actively keep a positive attitude and look for open doors of opportunity. Each day gets better.

Faith is full of inventions.

Now the hard part, I have to put this lesson to another test.  I have more waiting, praying, and hoping to do.  Two editors wanted to see my book.  I heard from one.  Will I worry about the next letter?  I choose to cross that bridge when the time comes.

“I cast all of my anxieties, all my worries, all my concerns, once and for all on Him, for He cares for me affectionately and cares about me watchfully.”
   1 Peter 5:7

So do a little song and dance with Shirley.....Be Optimistic

*Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done is always your choice.
Quote by Wayne Dyer