Most mornings after my “walk and talk”, you can find me right here in this spot enjoying my morning beverage (Coffee, Tea or Breakfast Shake), soaking up nature and thinking about whatever things God has put on my mind.
Getting outside and beginning my day in nature with my Creator is one of the not so secret secrets to my life of blessing. It allows me to clear my mind, exercise my body and align my Spirit with the things that really matter.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” -Romans 8:28
Here are a few benefits to getting outside…
1.) Outside Makes Life Better! Simply getting outside for 20 – 30 minutes make a tremendous difference in you physical, mental and spiritual life. Studies show that you don’t even have to do anything, but that just by getting outside, you experience life benefits.
2.) Soaking Up Some Sun Is Healing! The best source of vitamin D comes from the sun and as much as 40% of people today actually have a vitamin D deficiency. Soaking up a little of the sun will actually make you much healthier physically and mentally…
3.) It’s One Of The Best Remedies For Anxiety, Depression And Stress! Studies actually show that taking the time to casually walk outside in green and growing spaces lowers the stress hormone cortisol, which is in high levels leads to a plethora of health issues.
There are probably thousands of benefits that we can discover from being outside, but we want discover them in the house on the couch, so make and take some time today and everyday to get outside and enjoy your Creator’s Creation, which you are a vital part of…
One of my mentors was talking to me about decision making and he challenged me to think through my values before making any decision. He then challenged me to think through and figure out what my values are, so that I can think through them when I have a decision to make.
Most all of us have values, but if we are put on the spot, we might find it a bit difficult to name them, so it is a good practice to think through what is it that we really value in this life? Once we know our values, it is then a good idea to prioritize them and think through them every now and then to make sure that our life and living is lining up with what we say really matters to us.
I thought I would share my top ten values with you, in the hopes that it might encourage and motivate you to think through your own…
1. LOVE – For me this is where it all begins and ends. God loves me and when I love God back by loving others, it creates a powerful flow of energy in my life and living that makes this life worth living. Without love, life would be meaningless, but with love, it is full of potential and possibility.
2. FAITH – This is about trust and belief and without someone or something to trust and believe in, then we are like a ship with a rudder. Faith is the mechanism that allows our life to go somewhere meaningful. Faith gives us purpose, direction and motivation.
3. BLESSING – Our Creator blesses us, so that we can bless others. This allows divinity to flow to us and through us. This divine energy is what life and eternity are all about. Learning to receive is important and learning to give is important to. Blessing is all about learning to receive and share, which makes us more like the One Who created us.
4. FAMILY AND FRIENDS – Family and friends can be the greatest blessing and the greatest challenge. Sometimes you feel like you can’t live with them and you can’t live without them. The truth is: We need our family and friends and trying to do life without them is not really doing life at all.
5. JOY – We were created to be blessed, happy and fulfilled. We are supposed to have an inward excitement that expresses itself in outward joy. When we learn to embrace and appreciate the things of our Creator, then joy becomes the natural by product, so that we find joy in the blessings and challenges of life.
6. PEACE – This inward contentment, regardless of outward circumstances is one of the great gifts of our Creator. When we begin to align our values with His values, peace is the natural by product that helps us to realize what a special gift this thing we call life really is.
7. MINISTRY – Each of us have been given special gifts and abilities that can be a tremendous blessing to others and when we use these gifts and abilities to serve others, it gives glory to our Creator and brings fulfillment to our created purpose.
8. LEARNING – No matter how old we get, there is always something else to learn and the older I get, the more I realize just how precious a gift we have been given in the ability to learn. A willingness to learn new things helps to keep us young in heart, mind and soul.
9. HEALTH – Life is tough and it is even tougher if we don’t feel good. This is why health and taking care of our physical bodies is so important. Daily exercise, eating right and proper rest have to be on our list of priorities or we are going to miss out on what really matters, because we just don’t feel like it.
10. WISDOM – When I was a little boy, I remember going to Sunday School and hearing about God telling Solomon that he could ask for anything he wanted and Solomon asked for wisdom and God was pleased. Wisdom is not just knowledge. Wisdom is the proper application and use of knowledge. Our would could use a lot more of that and that starts with me.
I challenge you to think about your values, make your own list and then use that list to help you make better decisions in your life and living…
One of the things that really brings me joy is being able to be an encouragement to others, especially when I can help them live their best life. I try to be for others, what I wish someone would be for me. I am not sure that I always get this right, but it is the goal of my life and living and brings me great satisfaction and pleasure when I get it right.
Proverbs 11:25 says: The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be watered himself.
This morning I was thinking about the practical ways that I can accomplish my goal of being an encouragement to others and here are just a few of the ways that I came up with:
SMILE MORE! It is amazing how many people walk around all day long and never smile. I’ve noticed if I smile at others, then often they can’t help but smile back. I try to make it a habit to speak to every person I cross paths with. It’s amazing what a ”Good Morning!”, “Beautiful Day!” Or “How’s Life Treating You?” will wake folks up to realizing that it is more than just them in this world. God has given us one another to be a blessing and encouragement. A smile communicates a thousand positive messages without saying a word.
THINK THROUGH AND TEACH THE SACRED SCRIPTURES! When my “hellos” turn into a conversation, then I need to have something better than my own home spun theories to talk about. This is another reason, that I begin everyday with reading in the Scriptures. God’s Word is God’s Wisdom and it makes me a lot wiser, when I read it, live it and share it with others. Speaking what I am learning from the Scriptures helps me to live it and gives others something meaningful to think about.
WRITE ENCOURAGING NOTES AND POSTS! I decided many years ago, that if I could not keep it positive that I would get off of Social Media. Social Media is a platform that can be used for good of bad, the choice is yours. I choose to use it for good. I can commit on other’s post and share an encouraging word, attaboy or way to go. I can post things I am learning and ways that God is growing me. I can text, email and send encouraging messages with just a few key strokes. The “key”, I have found is just making sure that I actually take the time to do it. Don’t just scroll and casually read. As you scroll, think about how you can be a blessing and be one.
LISTEN AND WHEN YOU DO SPEAK, DON’T WASTE YOUR WORDS! So many conversations now a days have become a big waste, because we do a lot of talk, but nothing much really gets said. There are a couple of easy things we can do to change this: 1.) Listen! Close your mouth, stop thinking about what you are wanting to say and really listen. Listening is an art form and the people that get good at it, can be life changing. 2.) When you do speak, make sure that what you are speaking is EAT = encouraging, applicable and true. The goal of our speaking should always be to leave things better than we found them.
JUST BE YOURSELF – THE YOU THAT GOD MADE YOU TO BE! You really are a special creation of the Most High God. And God created you to be a blessing and encouragement to others. When we get this right, our lives bring God great joy, so just be you, the real you, the fun you, the happy you. As you make life better for others, you will become even more of yourself and you will find that you are blessed in your blessing of others…
Michael Joe Harvell 