Finding A New Normal – 5 Keys For Adapting To Change

What’s normal anyway?  For those of you who know me, you probably know I’m not a big fan of change.  I like things the way they are.  This can be a problem though.  Life requires us to stretch and grow.  Change is inevitable.  Kari Scare provides some great insights today to help you adapt to life’s changes.  After you read the post and answer her questions in the comments, I hope you’ll head over to her blog and see more great writing.  For more information about Kari including her blog link, see her bio at the end of the post.

Finding A New Normal

A while back right after an uneventful 3-mile run, I experienced sudden and severe pain in my hip accompanied by a knotted muscle and a limp.

In response, I did what I normally do (and what usually works) when experiencing pain and discomfort after exercise… rested, iced, medicated and stretched. Unfortunately, my normal approach didn’t work. Several months later, I finally admitted I needed to try a new approach.

After consulting my doctor and doing some research, I added the use of a foam roller to my normal routine. While more uncomfortable than stretching (it was somewhat painful, actually), the foam roller got directly at and finally resolved the knot. Hip pain no longer plagues me.

Only when I got outside of my normal routine, when I decided to try something new, did I not only find resolution to the cause of my pain, but also discovered a new and improved normal.

When Normal Fails to Work

Ever find yourself in a place where what normally works fails to work? It’s that place where usual patterns of thinking and approaches to working through life’s struggles simply no longer produce expected results.

All of a sudden, effectiveness becomes illusive. You may still move through normal routines, but they feel flat, maybe even pointless and possibly painful.

I’ve been to this place physically, mentally and spiritually on more than one occasion and each time found the only way out existed only through finding a new normal.

How to Find a New Normal

The frustration of hip pain only resolved after pushing through the limits of my normal routine to discover a new normal. Using a foam roller now exists as a regular part of my exercise routine and also provides a constant reminder of the need to adapt to life’s changing seasons, even if doing so involves pain and discomfort.

If we always do what we’ve always done even though the circumstances around us change, we’ll eventually fail to experience effectiveness. Instead, we must continually look at what’s working and not working and be willing to find a new normal allowing us to operate at our best.

Finding a new normal requires adapting to life’s changing seasons, and this means…

1. Admitting the need. Refuse to get stuck in a normal routine. Realize and then admit when normal no longer works in order to open the door for stretching that leads to growth.
2. Getting outside help. Avoid getting so ingrained in habits and routines that seeing needed changes is impossible. Talk to others, objectively getting ideas for change, and receive the input required for future effectiveness.
3. Being teachable. Realizing the need for change and knowing what needs changed remains useless when a person remains unwilling to change. Being teachable involves a willingness to find a new normal and to adapt to life’s inevitable changing seasons.
4. Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable. All too often, we know we need to change and we even know what needs changed, but we still fail to make the changes. Why? We’re too comfortable in our habits. Be willing to let go of the old normal to find a more effective one.
5. Staying aware of changing seasons. Find ways to continually stay aware of what’s not working and what is working. Look for ways to stay challenged and to confront any ineffective normals preventing effectiveness.

At first I resisted changing my normal routine, even when it wasn’t working, but chronic pain forced me to see my need for a new normal. Unfortunately, only after months of my body screaming desperately for change did I become teachable and willing to change.

Discomfort does sometimes indicate a need to pull back and rest. Sometimes, though, it indicates a need to seek a new normal, to adjust to the changing seasons of life. As we push through the discomfort (and sometimes pain) of finding this new normal, we will discover the benefits of increased effectiveness and productivity too.

How do you adjust to life’s changing seasons? How do you stay aware of those changing seasons?

Kari Scare blogs about ways to live in victory while still struggling on this side of Heaven.  Her blog, Struggle to Victory, will challenge you and inspire you to make small changes which will lead to a big difference, to be perfected through Biblical principles, to live life with determination, curiosity, intentionality, simplicity, and balance.  She has a story worth reading and sharing with others.  Go check it out!

Living In Our Sacred Spaces

What do you consider sacred?  Aidan Rogers shares a story which will have you stretching and thinking about what it means to be sacred.  Her story telling is beautiful.  I hope you’ll read her post, answer her questions in the comments, and head over to visit her blog.  For more information about Aidan, see the bio at the end of the post.

Sacred Spaces

“Would you provide a benediction on the 5^th?”

It was a simple question my mother asked me, and I responded without hesitation.

“No.”

She shook her head and walked away, and I reached over to grab the television remote. I had been working on the 5^th in my head for at least a month. It was our first big family reunion since the matriarch of our family, my great-grandmother, had us all down on the farm twenty years ago. Back then, I was just a little girl. Today, not so much.

I had planned to spend the 5^th just staying out of trouble. Trying to be a better, more grown-up version of myself. Trying to establish myself as a strong, but fun, young woman, a good friend, an enjoyable presence. I had planned to spend the 5^th trying to relax and just be myself. To let my family, who I don’t get to see as often as I like, see who I really am.

The irony is that who I really am is a newly-ordained Masters of Divinity student working her way toward board certification as a chaplain, all because God has called me to share life’s sacred moments with people.

I regretted my “no” as soon as I said it.

I think sometimes, the difficulty of having people close to you is that you start to relax around them. They get to see your good and your bad, who you are when you’re relaxing and not trying to really be anything. They get to know sort of your baseline and how you operate. They see you in your natural state.

The people you share your space with know so many of your secrets, it’s hard to remember to show them your sanctified side, too. It’s hard to remember they need to see you in more than your natural state; they need to see you in your created state, as you were really intended to be.

So often when we’re trying to make an impression on this world, at least for me, we’re tempted to stretch ourselves ever thinner. We push out into wider circles, step out into bigger spaces. We reach for the horizon and, if we’re lucky, we touch it, for however brief a moment. But I think sometimes we’d be better off digging deeper instead of reaching broader. Putting down roots instead of growing branches. Standing firm on our own two feet and declaring who we were meant to be.

There’s a trick to this, and it sounds a bit callous. We have to stop living for those around us. The people we share our sacred space with, those closest to us, they have a front row seat to our growing process. They see clearly our hypocrisy, our fallen moments, our weaknesses. They know all our secrets, and it’s too easy to live a shallow life hoping they won’t call us on it. If we don’t profess a bigger thing for ourselves, nobody really notices our little things. But we can’t let this keep us from the depth of all we are.

We have to live, particularly in our sacred spaces, for the God who calls us. We have to live listening to His whisper. We have to live knowing who He’s created us to be and claiming that, even if we don’t get it perfectly right. Our families, our friends, our loved ones need to see us not just reaching out to our world but reaching into our hearts.

The 5^th came and went, and you know? It was pretty nice. I spent the day serving, laughing, and loving. I spent the day owning my weaknesses and stepping into my insecurities, taking every opportunity to immerse myself in the beauty of family, a treasure I am just coming to understand in my young life. And just as we all gathered round to start to eat, I prayed a benediction over my family like it was something I was called to do.

I barely remember what I was so worried that people might say if I dared to pray in front of them. But almost to a man, my family gathered ’round me said what I had hoped they would say:

What would it mean for you to touch your heart instead of just touching your world? What if you stretched down deep? Who needs to see that from you?

Pondering Prayer

Leah Adams shares about some thoughts on prayer today.  This post should stretch you to consider your prayer life.  You can read more about Leah in the bio at the end of the post.  After you answer Leah’s question in the comments, I would appreciate it if you would pay her a visit over at her blog.

…..

I want to thank Jon for the privilege of guest posting here at The Stretched Blog. Jon does a great job providing meaningful, engaging posts here, and I hope to do the same in my post today. Hope you are having a great vacation, Jon.

Pondering Prayer

Today I want us to ponder for a bit on prayer. How is your prayer life? Are your spiritual knees calloused from time spent on them before the throne, or has it been a while since you gazed at the Father from your knees? Do your prayers feel fervent and effective, or like they hit the ceiling and smack you on the head on the way back down? I know at different times in my life I could fit into all of these categories. Sometimes in the same day!!!!

I have spent a bit of time in recent weeks examining some of the prayers recorded for us in Scripture. It has been a blessed time of study that has opened my eyes to a few pearls with regard to prayer. I’d love to share them with you, and hopefully make application to my life and yours.

Thus far, I have studied three prayers prayed by three different individuals in the Scriptures….all from the Old Testament. Each prayer has a different purpose and style, but many of the same elements. Here they are:

• 2 Samuel 7:18-29 – the prayer of King David after the pronouncement of the Davidic Covenant
• 2 Chronicles 20:1-12 – the prayer of King Nebuchadnezzar when he learned of his enemies coming against Israel
• Daniel 2:20-23 – the prayer of Daniel in thanksgiving for answered prayer from God

The first thing the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to from each of these prayers was the humility of the person uttering the prayer. They went to God first, and they saw Him as their leader, provider, and protector. They acknowledged Him as the source of their strength and wisdom. They didn’t call a committee meeting, or text a friend. They turned immediately to God, and acknowledged their need of Him. Each pray-er saw himself as he truly was, needy and sinful, against the back drop of God’s holiness and majesty. I’m not sure we get that today.

Absolutely, we are told to come boldly to the throne of God with our prayers, but ‘boldly’ in no way means we approach God flippantly, as if we were doing Him a favor by talking to Him. We must come humbly and reverently, acknowledging that HE IS GOD, and we are not.

Next, I was stunned to realize that the actual request they brought to God was only a small part of their prayers. The vast majority of their prayer was spent remembering God’s faithfulness, and acknowledging Him as God. In essence, they fixed their eyes on God rather than their circumstance or need.

As I thought about my own prayer life, I recognized that there might be just a teeny bit of work that I need to do. I want to come to Him more reverently and humbly, (read that, face-to-the-floor figuratively, and maybe literally) with my mouth full of praise for Him. ‘He must increase, I must decrease’ (John 3:30) would be a good motto to structure our prayers around, perhaps.

So, what about your prayer life? I would love to hear how you pray, when you pray, is there a structure to your prayer, and whether you feel you are doing pretty well with your prayer life or if it could use a bit of work.

“Prayer does not fit us for the greater works; prayer is the greater work.”

Oswald Chambers

BIO

Leah describes herself as the “prodigal son’s sister” after spending several years walking far from the Lord in her twenties. Helping others understand the grace that is offered by Jesus to anyone who will accept it is the passion of Leah’s heart. In a works-based and failure-prone society, grace is a concept that many people have difficulty grasping and Leah’s speaking and writing ministry, called The Point Ministries, seeks to point others straight to Jesus and his amazing grace.

A speaker and communicator, Leah lives in northern Georgia with her husband, Greg, who is also her dentist. She holds a Doctor of Pharmacy Degree from Mercer University School of Pharmacy. Leah is a CLASS certified speaker and is the author of a Bible study for ladies entitled, From the Trash Pile to the Treasure Chest: Creating a Godly Legacy. She recently released another book entitled, HeBrews A Better Blend.  She writes for Internet Café Devotions, CBN.com and Christianparenting.org. Visit Leah at her ministry website at www.leahadams.org. Find Leah on Facebook at Leah Colwell Adams and on Twitter (@PointMinistries).

Marketing for the Humble-Hearted

Flikr Image by Florin Gorgan.

I am honored to share a post by Carol Peterson today.  Her bio appears at the end of the post, and I’d appreciate if you could pay her a visit after you answer the question at the end of the post.  I really resonate with what Carol has to share as it is something I have struggled with recently in releasing my first book.  Whether you are a writer, a musician, a pastor, or something else.  We all have something worth sharing.  Carol’s words today address an important aspect of releasing what you have to share.

Marketing for the Humble-Hearted

Scripture reminds us to be humble. It tells us that pride is a “deadly sin.” We are taught to have the attitude of a servant.

Writers hope our books bring value or at least a joyful respite to our readers. But despite the buckets of sweat, the gallons of coffee and the trash bags of shredded revisions that went into completing our books, writing them remains the easy part of this business.

The hard part of being a writer is getting our books into the hands of readers so they can be helped or brought joy. It’s that marketing and promotion thing where Christian writers often stumble. How can we be humble while striving to promote our books?

The key is in the value we bring. If our books have no value, then strutting our stuff and marketing our books is indeed prideful. But if what we have written has the possibility of helping even one person, then we have the responsibility to do what we can to help that one person find our book.

To be a Christian is to try to follow Jesus’ example. Jesus didn’t sit in the corner of his house with a few friends and discuss the Ten Commandments. Rather, he traveled the cities and countryside, speaking both to the few and to the multitudes. Often the demands on him necessitated that he escape for quiet moments by himself.

Being God incarnate aside, Jesus did what was tough because what he had to say was important. He did the work of promotion, so to speak, in order to spread the Gospel. Because people needed to hear it.

Doing what is necessary—even if it is difficult and painful—is what having the attitude of a servant is about. A servant seeks to do what is good for someone else and sacrifices his own comfort for the benefit of others. Most of us writers are happiest sitting in a corner and writing. Doing the scary, hard, tedious work of marketing and promotion is all about sacrificing our own comfort.

Many of us Christians write as a ministry—to educate, entertain or inspire others. If we are writing in obedience, part of that obedience involves letting people know about what we have written—because people who need our books can’t be helped by them if they don’t know our books exist.

We come to the writing business to serve others. Part of serving includes promoting so we can reach the people who need to be served. In other words, part of a writing—or any other ministry—involves stepping out into the world. Following the example of Jesus.

Is there something you feel timid about doing? How might looking at it from the point of view of serving others empower you?

CAROL PETERSON writes teacher resources for kids and Bible studies for adults. Her latest series, With Faith Like Hers focuses on individual studies of women in Scripture for lessons modern gals can learn about their own character and circumstances. www.carolpetersonauthor.com

Summertime Blogging – Request For Guest Bloggers

The summer months are a time for vacations and day trips.  I am thankful for this season when things relax a little.

I have seen fellow bloggers handle their vacations in different ways:

• Some bloggers take off the whole summer.  Summer blog reader traffic is typically lower, and many bloggers use this time to be refreshed and to accumulate new ideas for the fall.
• Some bloggers take off for a week or two while they are on vacation.  Michael Hyatt takes off for a month each summer.  He generally does not post during this time with the exception of a few guest posts.  Again, this in an opportunity to recharge.
• Some bloggers write in advance and schedule posts to go live while they are away.  This can lead to a little craziness trying to write and schedule content ahead of time, but it helps keep the blog community active even when the blogger is away.
• Some bloggers simply become more inconsistent with their posting schedule during the summer.  When the fall comes, they become motivated again to be more consistent, and they resume a normal writing/posting routine.

I try to keep the blog going, even while I am away.  Sometimes a re-post popular blog posts from the past.  This provides newer readers the opportunity to catch up on some of my older content.  My preference though is to feature guest bloggers during my vacation time.  This gives me the opportunity to introduce my blogging community to others around the blog world.  It provides fresh perspectives on life’s stretching experiences.  And it keeps my readers engaged as guest bloggers participate in the dialogue that goes on in the comments.

This summer, I am heading back to Guatemala, and I am looking for guest bloggers to help fill the gap while I am away.  Specifically, I need guest bloggers for July 21-25 and July 28th.  If you would be interested in helping out during this time (or at another time), please leave a comment or reach out to me at jon@jonstolpe.com, so we can connect.  (For more about guest posting, click here.)

You have a stretching story worth sharing.  Your stretch story could be the catalyst for significant encouragement for the Stretched Community.  And I’d love to share it here!

If you are a blogger, how do you handle your blog when you are away?

Do you have any vacation plans this summer?

Mary’s Thank You Note Story

“We share our gratitude and that has made all the difference.”  Click to Tweet

 Stories matter.  Today, I’m privileged to share a story from Matt McWilliams’ book, The Power of Gratitude.  The 90 Day Thank You Note Challenge will be over in a few weeks, but the Thank You Revolution will continue.  You have a gratitude story worth sharing.  I hope this story will inspire you to share your story.  Share your thank you note story in the comments.

Mary’s Thank You Note Story

Mary finally shut down her computer and tucked her chair under her desk.  

It was 12:42 A.M. and she was finally leaving the office. She’d be back in less than six hours for the executive team meeting, during which they would likely decide on another round of layoffs, including at least two of her remaining eighteen team members.

She was the Vice President of Sales for a company that at its peak had more than two hundred employees. Today, they had slightly more than two-thirds that many with another round of layoffs on the way.

Times were tough and her team was stressed to the breaking point. Almost half of their co-workers and friends had been laid off. Those remaining had their resumes ready and spent every spare moment looking for jobs. Morale was at an unmanageably low point.

As Mary prepared to step back into the office from the cold winter chill while her car warmed up, she remembered that she had forgotten to do one last thing before she left. So she trudged up to her office, reached into the top left drawer and retrieved a small envelope with the name “Henry” on it. She took the envelope and its contents, a short, handwritten note, to Henry’s office and slid it under the door.

“No one writes handwritten notes anymore,” Mary thought to herself. “He’ll probably think I am after something.”

By morning, Mary had forgotten all about the note. Four restless hours of sleep, a quick shower, and two strong cups of coffee after she left the office last night, she was back. Sure enough, the team decided to lay off another twelve people including two from Mary’s sales team.

As she exhaustedly sunk into her chair, with the weight of two more pink slips crashing into her shoulders, she heard a knock on her door and invited the visitor in. It was Henry, holding the note.

Henry looked the part of an ex-Marine, but Mary had never taken the time to find out if he was. Six-feet tall, clean-shaven head, and noticeably muscular structure, Henry seemed like an impenetrable fortress of manhood. To Mary, he was direct, cold, and all business. He was Mary’s last choice to be the recipient of her first thank you note. Nevertheless, he had helped her immensely earlier that week with next year’s forecast and so it made sense to thank him.

“Mary, I just wanted to thank you so much for writing this and leaving it for me this morning,” Henry opened up. “It means a lot to know that my help was appreciated. If you ever need anything else, just let me know.”

He turned to leave, but before he could reach the door, Mary spoke up.

“I meant it. I could not have gotten through last week without your help. With all of the budget cutbacks, I couldn’t make sense of how to make the conferences fit into the budget.”

“No problem at all,” said Henry. “Anytime.”

And with that, he was gone.

Within a week, Mary had learned more about Henry than she had learned in the previous two years working with him.

He was not a former Marine, but did serve as a Reservist in the National Guard. His two-week vacation every year went to training and his family was fearful that at any moment he would be called to fight overseas.

They were able to help each other with two difference projects. And Mary was able to lend Henry two of her team members to help beta test new software. Henry, in turn, wrote a thank you note to Mary for doing so.

Mary continued to write thank you notes and continued to form closer relationships with all of her colleagues and direct reports. She even began to leave post-it notes on computers and write messages to her team on their white boards.

But it was her handwritten notes that quickly became the talk of the company.

Team morale was noticeably improving. It didn’t take long for others outside the department to notice. When other executives asked why, she reminded them of the notes that they themselves received from her.

“Gratitude,” she said. “We share our gratitude and that has made all the difference.” Click to Tweet

“You know, I got a thank you note from one of my programmers last week,” T.J. told her. “On paper. Paper! I didn’t even know programmers knew how to write with a pen.”

The Thank You Revolution was spreading. The company culture was changing. Morale was skyrocketing.

Now if this was a Hollywood story, what would come next is the sudden resurgence of company profits, the returning of all of those who were laid off, and the promotion of Mary to CEO.

But this isn’t a Hollywood story. In fact, five weeks after Mary’s first note, seven more people were laid off, thankfully none from her department. She only wrote her first note nine weeks before she shared her story with me. We have yet to see what will result financially from the Thank You Revolution taking hold of her company.

It only took nine weeks for a culture of gratitude to institute itself in her company. In the past four weeks, the average person, she estimated, has written ten thank you notes each. And it shows no signs of stopping.

Managers reported more openness with their team members. Customers showed increased satisfaction and one CEO even responded to a thank you note with a referral to a CEO friend of his who was on the board of a large non-profit that is likely to become the company’s largest client.

Team members were arguing less. Married people even reported better relationships with their spouses. The Thank You Revolution was not confined to work.

All in nine weeks.

That is the Power of Gratitude.

That is a story from the Thank You Revolution.

As an added bonus, if you’d like to know the rest of Mary’s story, you can read it here.

Now it’s your turn.  What’s your Thank You Note story?

BIO: Matt McWilliams is a world changer. And so are you. Matt’s goal is to help you to be the world changer God made you to be.  To be clear, Matt will not make you a world changer. You already are. His goal is to help you find that person inside of you.

He blogs about personal growth, business, and leadership at MattMcWilliams.com and tweets about the #ThankYouRevolution and more at @MattMcWilliams2 (don’t forget the 2 or you get an egg).  To get a FREE copy of Matt’s book, The Power of Gratitude, click here.

Visiting Ray Edwards – This Is What Customer Service Looks Like

One of my goals for 2014 is to guest post at least once a month.

Today, I’m sharing 5 Ways To Deliver Customer Service in a post titled This Is What Customer Service Looks Like.  Ray Edwards was gracious enough to accept my guest post submission and I think you’ll like it.  Please head over to the post by clicking here.  While you’re there check out the other stuff Ray’s working on and consider subscribing to his blog.

To get you started, here’s a little blurb from my post:

This is what customer service looks like! Customer service looks like a jar of spiced apple rings? Yes! Let me explain…

I’m Swedish. As a child, I have fond memories of gathering around my grandparents table at Christmas time to feast on the Swedish Christmas culinary traditions. We ate my Grandpa’s Korv – a Swedish potato sausage. We ate my Grandma’s Swedish meatballs. We ate Swedish cheese, pickled herring, and Swedish breads. As part of the meal, I will always remember my Grandma setting out a dish of spiced apple rings.

Honestly, I’m not sure if spiced apple rings are Swedish. For me, the apple rings are part of the tradition.

My Grandpa passed away several years ago. My Grandma is now 93 years old, and she isn’t up to preparing the Swedish feast. Now it’s my turn. I make Korv for my family. My wife makes great Swedish meatballs. And we try to keep as many of the other traditions as possible. This still includes spiced apple rings.

The weekend before Christmas, my wife sent me to the grocery store to pick up a few final items for the feast. I found the pickled herring, the Swedish cheese, and even some lingonberry jam. But I couldn’t find the spiced apple rings. I searched everywhere without success.

Before giving up, I decided to ask an employee of the grocery store. The employee listened to my story about our family’s Swedish traditions. She proceeded to get a couple of her co-workers into the discussion as they tried to determine if the store had spiced apple rings. After searching a few places, checking a couple of lists, and calling some other employees, they informed me they didn’t have any in the store. I thanked them and headed to the checkout line.

This is where the story took a dramatic turn. [Click here to read the rest of the post.]

If you are visiting from Ray’s blog, I hope you stay for a little bit, check out a few of my other posts, and consider subscribing to The Stretched Community.  Here are a couple of posts you may want to read:

• Leap of Faith
• Less Like Scars
• Ten Things Every Small Group Leader Should Know
• The Power of the Next Question
• How To Respond To The Election Results

When you think of customer service, what comes to mind?

Thank You Notes? Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That

It’s the 22nd day of the 90 Day Thank You Note Challenge.  Today (or sometime this week), you should be writing your fourth thank you note to a deserving recipient.  It’s about time I get Matt McWilliams to chime in here on the challenge.  Matt’s bio is at the end of the post, but I’d like to add my two cents.  Matt is the “founder” of the Thank You Revolution.  He blogs daily about life and leadership, and he has a contagious energy and enthusiasm.  After you read this post, leave a comment, and write your thank you note, head over to Matt’s blog for some more encouragement worth reading.

Thank You Notes? Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That

Jon and I keep telling you to write thank you notes.

But you say “I don’t have time for that.”

Excuse me? You don’t have five or ten (or thirty if you really go crazy) minutes a week to completely change your life? Yes, I said that.

IT. WILL. CHANGE. YOUR. LIFE.

And no, that is not an exaggeration.

Want to know what the wealthiest of the wealthy do? They write thank you notes. On paper. With a pen. And they pay for the postage. And they started long before they were wealthy.

Why?

Because that’s what successful people do. They do things that 90% of the population says they don’t have the time to do. Like writing handwritten thank you notes and putting smiles on the faces of others.

Money isn’t the only reason to start this habit. It’s a good one, but far from the only one. This habit also changes you on the inside. Do you know what really happens inside of you when you write a thank you note? Find out here. That post will rock your world.

The Revolution will change you. It will cause you to act differently.

It will cause you to smile more.

It will even change the way you treat people.

I don’t say this because I think it’s true or hope that it happens to you. I say it because it’s happened to me and it’s completely backed by science. I prove it here.

So, I’ve told you now that this simple practice is like a magic formula to make you wealthier, healthier, and happier. What are you going to do with that?

You have two choices:

Blow it off.

Join the Revolution.

Broke, unhappy, and less healthy.

Rich, happy, and healthier.

It’s time to decide.

How have hand-written thank you notes impacted your life?

BIO: Matt McWilliams is from the south but reluctantly lives in Fort Wayne, IN. He blogs about personal growth, business, and leadership at MattMcWilliams.com and tweets about the #ThankYouRevolution and more at @MattMcWilliams2 (don’t forget the 2 or you get an egg).

ADVENTure Day 11

Today’s ADVENTure post comes from Bill Grandi.  Bill is a pastor in the great state of Indiana.  He blogs regularly at CycleGuy’s Spin, and he has become a friend over the past couple of years thanks to the wonders of the blogosphere.  Today, he offers a post to get you thinking about your ADVENTure from a different angle.

(If you’re interesting in guest posting as part of the ADVENTure series or in general, please leave me a comment.  I’d love to connect with you.  Thanks!)

It is said everyone has a story. Here is part of my Christmas one.

I grew up in what was commonly known as the projects in West Mifflin, PA. They were nothing more than glorified low income housing units built for the steel workers during the war. My father grew up in Fort Wayne, IN, was the product of an abusive home, and joined the Navy.  After his discharge he attended Findlay College for a year or two for journalism, but dropped out in order to marry my mother. My mother was raised by godly parents and her desire was to be a missionary. We always joked because her mission field wound up being 4 sons (all of whom are serving the Lord today). They moved back to her hometown and found housing in the projects. We moved to the one I remember most because it was while living there that my father lost his job as a yard clerk on the railroad. Times were lean…no make that very lean. Mom went to work in a mom & pop grocery store. Dad was jobless for several years, until my aunt eventually paid for him to go to computer school to learn the growing field of computers. That was the time computers were as big as a house and took huge rooms kept almost frigid to house them.

Through it all my mom’s faith upheld her. My dad was nominal at best, but my mother’s faith was real and deep. She made sure Christmas was special in more ways than one. While they were both conscious of the “material” aspect of Christmas, mom made sure we knew the deeper story of Christmas. Yes, we had Santa Claus. Yes, we had lights and a tree and trains (those was my father’s responsibilities). But I had a mother (and grandparents) who made sure we knew what Christmas was all about. I learned early on that it did not depend on what you did/did not receive, or what others got that you didn’t. I learned how important it was to be grateful for whatever it was I received, whether I asked for it or not. Even after my father found a computer job, that focus never changed.

I have a lot of good memories from Christmas morning-of games being played; of breakfast being eaten before we could even open a gift; of staring in amazement at the sight that greeted my eyes (when we went to bed there was N-O-T-H-I-N-G); but most importantly of loving parents who sacrificed so their children could have a “nice” Christmas.

ADVENTURE Question:  What do you remember from your early years which shaped your impression of Christmas, and is still affecting you today?

ADVENTure Activity: Do you know a family you can reach out to who may have run into some tough times lately? Do they have children whom you can help them with? Can you help them anonymously? Do something.

The Stretched Blog Visits DanErickson.net

You may have noticed that this week’s Ice Breaker was moved to Thursday.  Today, I have the honor of guest posting for my friend Dan Erickson.  Dan lives in the state of Washington, and we had the blessing of meeting each other this summer when he traveled to the east coast with his daughter to visit family and to visit NYC.  In my post titled Connecting Through Writing, I share about the connection I’ve found through my writing.  Here’s a glimpse of my post:

Connecting Through Writing

I never thought I would have a passion for writing.

It’s not that I was terrible at it.  I survived four years of Honors English in high school (I actually did okay).  But my interest was always more towards math and science.  My love for these two subjects led me to a college degree in mechanical engineering and a career in the engineering and construction field.

I had no idea that writing would become such an important part of my life.  Writing has actually become a discipline that I look forward to each day.

I’ve been blogging for over six years.  And I’ve started dreaming and planning to write a book (or two or three someday).

What has amazed me the most about writing is its ability to connect people.  (Click here to read the rest.)

How has writing changed your world?  How has writing resulted in new connections for you?