![Picture](/uploads/2/5/6/5/25652393/6176401.jpg)
OH... WOW....
I have a whole new perspective on life. I really do.
Let me tell you about it a bit.
This weekend, I went to this thing called The Journey Training. All I can say is it has made a change in me. It is making a change in me. It will continue to make changes in me.
You see, I went in confused, stressed, anxious, and bound up in fear... I had been that way for months. I could not seem to find a way out of all this stuff. A few years ago I had an experience that caused panic attacks and anxiety. I thought I had overcome it, but a few months ago, it hit again full force causing me to quit my job... which in turn caused more panic about what to do financially... which caused more stress, fear, and anxiety... can you see a vicious circle?
My sister and a friend had both been through this training. Afterwards, I saw a true and lasting change in them. I saw peace instead of anger, optimism where pessimism had lived for so long, and joy. So I quit digging in my feet and let them drag me to it. They told me to "play hard." I will be honest, I didn't want to play. I wanted to sit back, watch, listen, and soak up what I could. Looking back, I think I secretly wanted to sit on my high horse and say "HA. For all your talk, it really doesn't help much." It wasn't a conscious thought, just an attitude. But thank God for discerning people who challenged me in just the right way to push me off that high horse in into "playing hard."
I am not going to share what went on in the training. But I am going to say it was hard. It was fun. It was exhausting. Did I mention it was hard? It was wonderful. It was freeing. When I got there, the picture of life in my head was a path. In the middle of the path was a gigantic glass marble ball that was so big it blocked out the sun, sky, and everything. I couldn't see around it. I couldn't get around it. I couldn't move it. I couldn't dig under it. My hope was to get rid of that ball.
As I left, the picture of life in my head doesn't have anything to do with that ball. It is me... dancing... in the rain... in the sun... in the dark... in the light.
You see, at one point, I had an epiphany, a God given revelation. The expression in the picture above... "Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass... It's about learning to dance in the rain," came to my head after a particularly HARD play. I've read it, posted it, and even smiled and said it before. But I didn't really UNDERSTAND it until God whispered it in my ear.
Here is what I now understand... life isn't about problems... overcoming problems... living with problems... solving problems.
Let me say that again... LIFE IS NOT ABOUT PROBLEMS.
Life is about LIVING... PARTICIPATING.
Problems are just a part of the journey. Problems are not the journey. Getting around problems is just a matter of seeing them from a different perspective. Sure you have to do something about them, but they are not life. Life is about Living, Loving, and in my case, Dancing. From the moment God whispered that in my ear, I made a determination to dance... every day... dance. I have never been a dancer. I don't know how to dance. I think it is beautiful and fun to watch... but I am no longer watcher... I am a participant. I am a dancer. Not professional, not public, not for any other reason than to experience the joy of dancing... the joy of participating in life.
Because "Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain."
I have a whole new perspective on life. I really do.
Let me tell you about it a bit.
This weekend, I went to this thing called The Journey Training. All I can say is it has made a change in me. It is making a change in me. It will continue to make changes in me.
You see, I went in confused, stressed, anxious, and bound up in fear... I had been that way for months. I could not seem to find a way out of all this stuff. A few years ago I had an experience that caused panic attacks and anxiety. I thought I had overcome it, but a few months ago, it hit again full force causing me to quit my job... which in turn caused more panic about what to do financially... which caused more stress, fear, and anxiety... can you see a vicious circle?
My sister and a friend had both been through this training. Afterwards, I saw a true and lasting change in them. I saw peace instead of anger, optimism where pessimism had lived for so long, and joy. So I quit digging in my feet and let them drag me to it. They told me to "play hard." I will be honest, I didn't want to play. I wanted to sit back, watch, listen, and soak up what I could. Looking back, I think I secretly wanted to sit on my high horse and say "HA. For all your talk, it really doesn't help much." It wasn't a conscious thought, just an attitude. But thank God for discerning people who challenged me in just the right way to push me off that high horse in into "playing hard."
I am not going to share what went on in the training. But I am going to say it was hard. It was fun. It was exhausting. Did I mention it was hard? It was wonderful. It was freeing. When I got there, the picture of life in my head was a path. In the middle of the path was a gigantic glass marble ball that was so big it blocked out the sun, sky, and everything. I couldn't see around it. I couldn't get around it. I couldn't move it. I couldn't dig under it. My hope was to get rid of that ball.
As I left, the picture of life in my head doesn't have anything to do with that ball. It is me... dancing... in the rain... in the sun... in the dark... in the light.
You see, at one point, I had an epiphany, a God given revelation. The expression in the picture above... "Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass... It's about learning to dance in the rain," came to my head after a particularly HARD play. I've read it, posted it, and even smiled and said it before. But I didn't really UNDERSTAND it until God whispered it in my ear.
Here is what I now understand... life isn't about problems... overcoming problems... living with problems... solving problems.
Let me say that again... LIFE IS NOT ABOUT PROBLEMS.
Life is about LIVING... PARTICIPATING.
Problems are just a part of the journey. Problems are not the journey. Getting around problems is just a matter of seeing them from a different perspective. Sure you have to do something about them, but they are not life. Life is about Living, Loving, and in my case, Dancing. From the moment God whispered that in my ear, I made a determination to dance... every day... dance. I have never been a dancer. I don't know how to dance. I think it is beautiful and fun to watch... but I am no longer watcher... I am a participant. I am a dancer. Not professional, not public, not for any other reason than to experience the joy of dancing... the joy of participating in life.
Because "Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain."