Enjoy the Walk

     You are living someone else's dream. I'm almost positive of it. So don't take where you are for granted. I am the absolute worst at this. I am a dreamer. I am constantly thinking about the next thing. But- someone is wanting to be where I'm at, and I bet where you are. They want to work at the coolest coffeeshop in town and be a badbooty barista. And when I start school- there is someone that is going to want to be pursuing their passion at the Art Institute.
     If you are a mom- and you feel disgusting and think all you ever do is wipe snotty noses and poopy bootys- I want to be you! :) And I'm sure someone else does to. Or if you are a wife- and you are walking all over your husband..... step back. Because someone else is wanting to be you. They want a husband to love and cherish. Even if you are eating out of a garbage can behind a restraunt. I bet someone just wants a trashcan with food in it. Or someone wants a trashcan. It's so simple.... but it's so true.
     So- do whatever you are doing right now- with your whole heart. Do it with excellence.

   God has totally been dealing with me about it. He wants me to dream. He wants me to go after my passion. He wants me to be fulfilled... but he also wants me to be thankful and to enjoy where I'm at.

God spoke this to me tonight and I want to share it with you:
"Daughter- [son]. I see you. I see your hard work. It doesn't go unnoticed. I love you. I want you to have an upgrade, I want you to have that promotion. But don't rush it. In due time. I promise- I'm never late... I'm on time. Pursue your passions.... walk into the things I'm giving you, but please, beloved, enjoy the walk."

Enjoy today. It's so easy to get caught up in the little things. Trust me, that is what brought me to the point of writing this. I'm a mess... I get so caught up in the things that mean nothing... and all God wants me to do is enjoy today. To look at today's blessings... and move forward.

My Top 5 Ways of "Enjoying the Walk":
1. Stay thankful. Thank God throughout the day for the little things. Ex: a front row parking spot, a cold Coca Cola, or that you are alive.
2. Find beauty. In everything- there is something beautiful. If there isn't- you probably shouldn't be in that place anyways. But- in most every place/ situation there is something that is beautiful. Find it and enjoy it.
3. Smile. It's contagious.
4. Look forward to tomorrow. Set goals- and achieve them. Move forward.
5. Help someone else enjoy their walk, or to step into their calling. It's not all about "me" all the time. Do something little or something big for someone. They will appreciate it.

Generations.

     I love it when God refreshes me. Especially when he revives a passion that I have forgotten about. He chose this week to do it once again. I have this vision/dream of several generations of people coming together to pour into each others lives. Like a line of mentors and mentorees.
     Here's why I love this idea. Everyone wants someone to believe in them. If you say that you don't, I bet you're lying. We all desire and crave people to tell us we are on the right track, encourage us to push forward, and someone to believe our wildest dreams/goals with us.
     With that being said- I also believe that Godly wisdom is so key in this process. I have a young girl that I mentor. (I have not been doing a good job at all lately. Lili- coffee date asap) But- what I have found is that when Lili and I go to have coffee- I end up learning much more than I could ever teach her. She is 15 (maybe 14) years old, beautiful inside and out, full of life, and has a knock out voice. And as she tells me her struggles, her goals, her strengths- I learn from her. I absolutely love her pureness of heart. She is not jaded. She's true to herself and to others. And she lives her life like that.
     But- there are some things that come up (or that will come up) that I don't know the answer to- and that's where my vision gets it heartbeat. If you have a set of women or men at these ages: 15, 25,  35, 45, 55, 65, 75, 85, etc. Think of everything that you could learn just talking about one subject. It's amazing!
     I believe that some time in my life I will see this plan in action. And I hope to be right in the middle of it- at any of those ages! We can all learn from each other. At the age of 20- I need some wisdom on how to handle my finances from someone in their 80's.... and I can learn about the newest technological way to do them with someone in their 20's. I want to learn from people that are older and younger than me. I want to teach people that are older and people that are younger than me things so they don't have to go through them.

     Ultimately, I just want someone to believe in me. Someone to think I can do it. Someone to kick my butt when I'm slacking. And someone to drink coffee with  every now and then. ;)

Fun Alone.

     Snow day bliss. I'm not even in school- but I did get a snow day today. We closed the coffeeshop so I have been enjoying a day of nothing. Literally. I'll be totally honest- It's 4:30pm and I'm still in my pajamas. I've watched 2 movies and some tv. And have had a coca cola classic by my side. (I'm horrible at not drinking cokes when I say I'm not going to do it.)  It's been great. When I first woke up and realized that I didn't have anything to do- I started getting a little sad- because I wanted to do something. I wanted to be with friends- playing in the snow. But then I changed my mind. I decided it was time I had fun by myself.
     Yep, it is possible to do it. And I have had a BLAST today all by myself. After the second movie- I started craving ChexMix.... not the kind you get out of the bag- but the real deal- baked in my own oven Chex Mix. So that's what I did. I documented the entire process with my cool camera app:

 

 

Not only did I make Chex Mix.... but I also made "Muddy Buddies" Looking at the recipes on the box- I decided to try it out.... YUMMMMMY. 

 

     And I have had so much fun. I found myself smiling and enjoying myself. I even cleaned up after myself ( mom, aren't you proud). I found myself lost in Brennen land and loving every bit of it. And I think it was a healthy- good- and needed day. We all need time where we enjoy ourselves. We have to do something that makes us come alive. Or if we are so busy- and have lots on our minds- then we need to escape and get lost in a movie. (or 2, and I'm sure 2 more later tonight). 

     The thing is, God is soo good. After I made all of this yummy snack food I found myself in the Word. Soaking up who God is and realizing his love for me. He delights in me. He is enthralled by my beauty. He honors me. He LOVES me.  And He loves YOU as well. God will do the things that he has promised you. He wants you to be happy and fulfilled. He wants your desires to be filled- and he wants your love. He gets jealous when you don't love Him. He paints the most beautiful pictures for you. He has the bestest plan out there for you. And He wants you to be the best you out there. If your name is John- then be the best John. If your name is Suzy- then be the best Suzy. My name is Brennen and I want to be the best Brennen. And today- I've enjoyed me, myself and Brennen. 

Brennen, It's Time for a Pep Talk!

     I am a note taker. I have to write stuff down to remember it. I have to write stuff down to process it. If I don't write it down.... it's trouble. Pastor Jeff has some powerful messages... the revelations God downloads into him are noteworthy. But the note that I have written on top of my papers these past few weeks during the sermon has been this: Brennen- Get your stuff together!
     What's funny is that a couple of months ago I was telling my mom I wanted to slap some people and them them to get their crap together. And now- I want to slap myself and say, "Get it together!" But in reality, it's tough getting it together. It's a conscious decision that has to be made. And you have to continue to make it until it becomes a habit.
     I struggle with time management and prioritizing. Sometimes I put sleep, myself, my fleshly desires to come before God. I'd rather get the extra 30/45 minutes of sleep instead of getting up and getting my mind renewed with God. Or, I'd rather do absolutely nothing on facebook at night than get things accomplished. So, Brennen- it's time to get your time management together!
     I also have a dominating personality. I absolutely hate it when I come home from hanging out with people and thinking, "You dominated that whole conversation, you didn't even let anyone speak." So Brennen, it's time to get your listening skills on and let some people talk.
     Pastor Jeff gave a message tonight that spoke directly to my heart. It was all about getting your stuff together. He had great points. (Godly spin on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People). You have to be deliberate about it. You have to live intentionally or life will pass right by you and before you know it- you have gray hair and your sitting on a rocking chair saying "what the heck did I do with my life!?" I have NO desire to do that! I want to have gray hair, sit on a rocking chair (with my smokin' hot [old] husband, talking about how great God moved in my life and how He is still moving.
     So Brennen, it's time to get intentional. I have to give myself pep talks. I'm glad you could join this one. :)

Whispers.

I love when God whispers to the very depths of my hearts. It's not audible... but I like that it isn't audible. It's spoken straight to my heart so my ears don't even have to hear it. It's just a knowing voice. When God whispers into my heart I know it's Him. And tonight He whispered one of the sweetest, life altering things to me.
     Tonight at Metro our worship came to a point where we could feel the love of God. Adam told us to ask God two questions: 1. What were You thinking when You made me? and How much do You love me? God answered me very quickly with, "You are worthy." The reality of what God spoke to me didn't hit me until I was getting ready for bed. When God spoke it to me, I questioned it and thought that I was praying it to God.... but no. God was/is telling me that I am worth it. That YOU are worth it. He loves me and He loves you more than we can comprehend.
     In Matthew 10:31 He tells us that we are worth more than many sparrows. Our God is so in love with us. He absolutely, positively, head over heals in love with us. Know what YOU are worth to God. Know how much He loves you, how proud He is of you, how beautiful He thinks you are. [Shabbbba!]
     God sings a new song over me and over you. His mercies are new every morning.... so if you messed up last night- it's all good, you're covered for tomorrow! :) (And covered for tonight...) God's grace and love is so BIG. He's not mad at you. He LOVES you. HE LOVES ME!

     The thing is- before I asked God this- I got scared.... a fear of rejection came over me.... which is crazy. Because I was asking the Lord of creation and I've known and have been taught about God's love for my entire life- so I should KNOW that the Lord is not going to reject me.... but the fear still came over me. The thing is, fear is not from God. Satan does not want you to know how much you are worth. Because when you know how much you are worth you shake things up. You change culture, you change the world. 

     So push through the fear- and ask God... What were you thinking when you made me? and How much do you love me? And then- go watch this video on Kim Walker's encounter with this. 

Embrace Your Greatness: Adam Kees

Here's a FABULOUS blog post from a friend, Adam Kees, click here for more of his blog posts. 

Embrace Your Greatness!

If you have the audacity to embrace the greatness put in you, people are going to mock you.They will scoff, they will laugh. They will tell you that you can’t do it, they will tell you that you are crazy. They will try anything to keep you from pushing past the norm into that magnificent place where your talents and giftings collide with the power of Throneroom blessing.

Your Creator, Our God in Heaven, has put things in you that you are passionate about. It doesn’t matter if that passion is in the vein of the usual “churchy” gifts; i.e. teaching, preaching, music, mission work, etc. It doesn’t matter if it’s something that people haven’t traditionally used to glorify God. Your love for fixing cars, designing clothes, flipping houses, politics, pet grooming, business, fitness, cooking, or whatever else has been put in you by God. If the Bible is not telling you it's sinful, then it's probably from Heaven :)

You know it’s your passion because the way it makes you feel alive, the way it moves your heart in a way hardly anything else can. That feeling is what makes your passion special.You already have an inherent drive and motivation to do these things, and do them well, because it’s what you naturally get pleasure from. It’s easy to do things you enjoy!

It’s also that zeal which will cause people to take notice. Bill Johnson, the lead pastor ofBethel Church in Redding, California, says, “When I live out of discipline, I am admired; when I live out of passion, I am contagious.” Everybody can tell when you are doing something you love. It’s obvious. When you talk about what you’re doing your eyes light up, there is excitement in your voice, and nobody can get you to shut up about it :) It’s infectious. Sometimes I’ll get excited with you just from listening—even when it’s an area I could care less about!

So what is your passion? And why aren’t you living it out? I don’t care how normal (or unorthodox) you think your passion is, if you purpose it in your heart to live it out and line it up with the Word of God to bring glory to the Father, you can be an earth shaker. A business mogul. A fashion icon. A TV fitness guru. A sold-out, Spirit-filled, President of the United States of America.

Don’t let those that laugh at you keep you from your pursuit. Let’s be real: most of them don’t want you to go after your dreams because they are sitting around not pursuing theirs.The prospect of you doing something you love and wildly succeeding at it makes them uncomfortable…and maybe even a little jealous. If they’ve given up on their dreams, or bought into the lie that says they are insignificant and can’t possibly make a difference in this world, then you going after your passions just might get them all kinds of messed up.

You have to be ok with the fact that a lot of people are going to hope you don’t succeed.You have to know from the start that when you embrace the greatness that lies within you that people who have settled for average will oftentimes try to convince you to settle for average as well. On the one hand, as referenced above, your passion is contagious; on the other hand, to some people, you are absolutely scary.

* * * * *

I’ve made up my mind that I’m not going to maintain mediocrity so that I can keep other people feeling comfortable. Does that decision ruffle some feathers? Yes. Does it damage some relationships? Unfortunately, yes. But that decision also unleashes the potential for greatness to flow out of me. It’s a decision that’s well worth the cost. I hope you join me.

Forms=nofun

I really don't want you all to have a heart attack.... but I'm just gonna tell you what's up.... I applied for school. I know! I can't believe it either.... I have no idea if I'll be accepted OR if I'll be able to afford it..... but that brings me to the reason of my post. Forms. I am horrible at filling out fafsa, and scholarships, and things like that.... absolutely horrible. And I despise it on top of that...
     But sometimes, you just have to do what you don't want to do. It may help in the long run. (Fafsa is a bad example- because.... even though I am a "good girl", made good grades, never drank, never had sex, never whatever.... It's difficult for me to get financial aid.. Which is crap and ticks me off... because I'm actually serious about it... not just wasting the governments money.) Okay, ranting aside..... God will provide if this is what He wants me to do.
     I don't know what you've had to do in the past weeks that you haven't enjoyed- but I sympathize with you! I'm sorry you had to do it.... I'm sure it was as dreadful as me filling out Fafsa.... but I'm praying that goodness, favor, and endless opportunities comes from us doing what we don't like to do sometimes.

Life- it's a rollercoaster. I've learned to embrace it. I'm about to post a post from a friend about pursuing your passions.... be sure to check it out. :)