Let Go / Grab Hold

Grabbing hold of our mission happens in between letting go.

Letting go of past failures haunting our dreams. Letting go of hurts that poison the well and weaknesses that don't define us.

But also...

Letting go of future outcomes, unhealthy and unhelpful expectations and all the hand-wringing we do about what could be.

In between letting go of the past and the future is that divine sweet spot in the here and now. This is where God has us. And this is where we hold on for dear life because it's a wild and bumpy ride!

Scheduled Inspiration

Connecting with and studying the habits of creatives (artists, songwriters, chefs, designers, speaking pastors and makers and shakers of all stripes), two aspects of creating continue to stand out:

1. They schedule time every week, every day if possible, for creating. Whichever part of the creative process they're in - studying, researching, writing, sketching, drafting, brainstorming, shipping - they do it routinely and systematically.

2. When inspiration strikes beyond scheduled creative routines... they run with it!

What does this mean? If we don't bake the creative process into our schedule, we may never actually produce anything. At least, not as much as we'd like.

On the other hand, daily creative habits (wake, cold water on the face, write for hours - V. Hugo OR hot tea and writing in the morning - C.S. Lewis) inevitably produce fruit in between bolts of divine inspiration. The routine keeps us limber, oiled up and ready to run with a great idea at a moments notice, planned or unplanned.

So, when are you most clear-minded and jazzed to create during the day (or night)? How much entertainment, distraction or sideways energy do you need to clear from your schedule in order to plant, grow and ship your own fruit?

Schedule and inspiration, two sides of the same creative coin.

Value Shift

Shift happens.

Values shift over time. I value each hour in the day much more highly than I did twenty years ago.

I value my wife and her opinions and her divine purpose here in the dirt more than I did those first few years at the start.

I used to value, to an unhealthy degree, others opinions of my risks and dreams and action steps much more than I do now.

Yet I still value creativity, God’s Story, serving others, time alone, and putting my hands in the dirt. In fact, these values have also shifted. They've developed and matured and added depth of insight and engagement.

So the question is, what do you value in this season?

What values have shifted? What values need to shift in order to experience more and more of the greatest version of who you're designed to be so you can serve the people you want to serve?

We all place value on some things and some people, but the right values in the right season change everything.