The other day, Holly and I were standing at the end of her very long street. It was mid-morning. Everyone was well underway with their busy days.
Holly placed a letter in her mailbox and pulled up the red flag.
The postman would soon be there.
As we chatted my eyes followed the long line of black mailboxes along her street. And suddenly it hit me. Not one other red flag was up.
All those people. With all those loved ones. And not one other person was sending a letter that day. Since Holly and I run together most mornings, I started making it a habit to check for red flags in the days that followed.
Now granted, there are other ways to mail letters than just from our home mailboxes. But I have a suspicion old fashioned letters are becoming a dying form of expressing our love.
Weeks went by and I didn’t see a single other red flag.
So, I came home, dusted off my own stack of good intentions and wrote a letter.
It felt so personal. I brushed my hand across my little note and prayed God would use my simple words to touch this person in a tender place of their heart.
Now, I’ve made letter writing part of my devotion time with God. I don’t write one everyday. Maybe one or two a week. But since I’ve told God I’m willing, He’s been faithful to put people on my heart.
And each time I pull up that little red flag, I smile and secretly hope it will inspire other letter writers as well.
What might happen if your red flag started going up on a more regular basis? I dare you to see. Who is willing to take my challenge and just write one letter today?
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Here are the five winners of the on-line “A Woman Inspired Conference.” Remember, if you didn’t win, today is the last day to get tickets for only $12.95— what a deal!
Angie (Blessed as a mess)
Martie
Mags01
Jenn
Lindsay
Tuesday, March 31
A little red flag
Monday, March 30
Embracing who I am
Ten years ago I sat in a seminar listening to a very organized mom talking about how she parented her kids.
She was amazing.
A super-mom in my eyes.
I held up my feeble efforts with my three toddlers and determined I stunk as a mother. I thought that maybe if I went home and imitated her, I could enter into the world of super moms.
I mentally listed out what I discerned must be her secret to success and set about to be just like her.
But it didn’t take long to become absolutely miserable. I mentally beat myself up for not having what it obviously took to be a great mom. What was wrong with me?
I begged God to make me just like her- that really good Mom.
And then one day in Bible study I read the story of Mary, the teenage mother of Jesus. My heart beat fast as I realized she didn’t meet the standard of super mom I’d set for myself.
Somehow, just as she was, God chose her to be Jesus’ mother. And the only qualification that she seemed to have was her willingness.
I made the choice to try and let go of all those expectations I had for myself as a mom. I let go of the comparisons to other moms. I laid down the measuring stick of perfection. And I simply bowed my head and gave God my willingness.
Nothing more.
Slowly, I started to see my own unique qualities as a mom instead of always focusing on the places I felt I fell so short.
I may not be the most organized mom, but I’m a fun mom willing to drop my to do list in the name of spontaneity.
I may not do sit down devotions with my kids every morning, but I’m good at helping my kids see God working in situations all throughout our days.
I may not sew a lick, but I know where to find an alterationist that is the bomb.
I may not always keep my cool in the everyday aggravations of life, but throw something big at me and somehow I’ll be the most calm person in the room.
Sure, I have a lot of room for growth in my mothering. God and I work on things daily. But over the past ten years I’ve learned how to embrace who I am and the beauty of living fully as me.
And while I still fall short at times, I’ve finally learned that being fully me is so much better than an imitation version of someone else.
I have the exact qualities God knew my kids would need in a mother. So, each day I hold up my willingness and ask God to make me the best version of me I can be.
Have you ever struggled with this? Whether it’s in the arena of motherhood or your workplace or one of the many places we unfairly compare ourselves to others- realize your great qualities and be fully you.
Oh and speaking of tossing aside my to do list to be very spontaneous— well, there was plenty of that this weekend and the winners of the “A Woman Inspired” tickets, didn’t get chosen.
I’ll post the five winners tomorrow, pinky promise!
Friday, March 27
Like whatever— and WINNERS!
Okay, I totally thought my kids would think yesterday’s post was funny. So, I made them sit down at the kitchen table as I read it allowed.
They just sat their and stared at me.
Seriously, not even a snicker.
After a few seconds one of my girls quipped, “I don’t get why people think that’s funny.”
So you know what I did?!?
I ROLLED MY EYES and said, “WHATEVER!” And then I broke out into a hysteria of laughter. Oh yes I did. That’s how us mature mamas roll. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em…. and then beat ‘em at their own game y’all.
I love when my bloggy sisters say, “Me too!” “Amen sister.” “Preach it girl.” “I’m printing this on off and putting it on my fridge.”
But I’m warning you- your kids won’t think I’m funny. Not at all. Not in the least. They will say, “That lady is not right.”
Then you will smile and ROLL YOUR EYES while saying, “Whatever!” It will feel so good.
Yesterday, after my little hysterical laughing fit, my kids acted like angels shining their halos the rest of the day. I think they are afraid they have finally driven me to the place where I am one fry short of a happy meal.
And maybe that’s where most of are living. That’s why we women need each other. It’s so comforting to share those crazy things we think about and have another person of the female variety “get us.”
So, if you like this kind of bonding, you’ll love the “A Woman Inspired Conference” coming up in just a couple of weeks!
I’ll be speaking on “What Happens When Women Say Yes to God,” and I’ll try to be a little more serious than I have been this week on the ol’ blog. But I’ll warn you, my craziness runs deep and is sure to sneak out some time during my seminar.
Many of you told me this week on my conference post that location and cost were big factors when determining whether or not you could attend a conference. Well, between now and April 1st, tickets to A Woman Inspired are only $12.95 !!! And the location couldn’t be more convenient— your computer!
That’s right. You can even wear your pj’s and have three day old hair if you’d like. Does it get any better than that?
Five of you have already won tickets… but guess what I’m giving 5 MORE TICKETS AWAY from today’s comments.
So, a total of ten of you are attending free. Last I checked, you can’t get a better deal than that!
Here are the five winners from earlier this week:
Congrats! Now, are you ready for your chance to win? Leave a comment OR ask a question about the conference in my comments below and you’ll be entered to win— FIVE MORE CHANCES!
I’ll announce the winners on Monday.
But, between now and then Amy and Amy will be hanging out around my blog today and through the weekend to answer any all questions you have about this live audio feed conference that will come straight to your computer.
I can’t wait to chat live with you soon!
