Here is one very simple example.
A crazy month
One February, many, many years ago, Carson my middle son had 5 performances in 3 consecutive weekends and we had to travel for 2 of them.
It was easy to get stressed and worried and say,
“It is going to be a crazy few weeks!”
“February is going to be crazy!”
Sheridan – worried, stressed out mom
I was not looking forward to it at all.
Finally Carson said,
“Mom you really should watch your words about this.”
wise child
I love it when my kids listen to me and then teach me what I try to teach them!
I asked, “What should I say?” Because honestly I couldn’t think of any other word but crazy.
An Exciting Month
He said, How about, “February will be exciting!”
I loved it and I tried it, I probably even wrote these things down in an excel spreadsheet, because that is the kind of girl I am. A spreadsheet girl!
“February is going to be Exciting! We are going to have a few exciting weeks. Lots of time together in the car to connect. Lots of time for Carson to be doing something he loves – performing. And lots of opportunities for me to watch him, which I love”
Sheridan – happy, peaceful mom
The feeling completely shifted.
Leading up to February, it was so much more reassuring to think of the next few weeks as exciting, compared to crazy. I actually started looking forward to things.
Guess what, it ended up being a great month!
There are so many other examples too.
Be conscious of the words you are using.
When you notice you are using negative words,
stop and think – What DO I want?
Then change your words right away.
Here are some other simple examples of ways you can change your words.
- ~~~Crazy -VS- exciting.
- ~~~This person frustrates me. -VS- This person helps me to grow.
- ~~~Cooking stresses me out. -VS- Cooking is a way to show love to my family.
- ~~~There is always dirt on the floor from these boys! – VS – I am grateful for healthy boys that like to play outside.
Choose to say and focus on what You DO want!
A powerful experience with words last month
This leads me to an incredibly powerful experience I had a few weeks back at a lovely Disciple Thought Leaders Retreat, I went to with Connie Sokol.
I was going with the intention of getting clarity on what to focus on next. The past year I wrote a book, started a podcast and was thinking I would get clarity on how to share those things more and move forward with that.
The Surprise!
Imagine my surprise when the morning I left for the retreat I got a very clear impression that I needed my focus to be on the book I co-authored called The Gift of Giving Life – exploring the divine nature of pregnancy and birth.
Umm, that wasn’t even on my radar. This is a book that is truly amazing, but the 5 of us have moved on from birth. The book still sells copies without us doing anything. But throughout the retreat I got more and more inspiration that YES God wants this book in more hands and it is important to do.
But I wasn’t happy about it. I tried to get happy while I wrote my purpose statement. I got a download about 5 steps I would need to take to move forward with this focus.
But there was no joy about it.
Just irritation. “Birth is dead for me” I said at one point.
I would work on my purpose statement –
“I am an author and podcaster who inspires faithful pregnant women to find the spirituality in pregnancy and birth so they can draw closer to Christ through this journey to motherhood”
Grumpy Sheridan – who didn’t feel joy about this
and it just felt kind of ugghh… like when I said – “February is going to be crazy”
Everyone else was making these breakthroughs and I was so stuck.
Finally, the last day we were in small group coaching and Connie asked, “What do YOU want to do, what do you love?”
I said,
“I love to teach women how to harness heavenly help!”
Sheridan who got clarity and joy!
Mmm, that felt good. That felt true! I got tears in my eyes.
Then I realized, “WAIT, by focusing on sharing the Gift of Giving Life, I am helping pregnant women learn how to harness heavenly help!”
The goosebumps came and suddenly I felt joy.
I could look at that list of 5 things to do and feel excited about it!
I wrote down “How to Harness Heavenly Help” circled it and then wrote all the books I have written and 4 of the 6 fall under that. The Gift of Giving Life, Power up Your Prayers, Tiny Steps to Meditation Success and The Mexico Miracle.
The classes I teach fall under that, as well as my coaching and clearing sessions I do.
Suddenly my last 10 years consolidated, and I could see how everything fit together.
I worked on my new purpose statement and came up with
I am a best selling author, podcaster and teacher who inspires women how to harness heavenly help so they can find joy through all the seasons of their life.
Sheridan – best selling author, podcaster and teacher
The power of words…. Discovering and saying, “harnessing heavenly help” This was like “February will be exciting” on steroids!
The tool for this week is to pay attention to your words….
Are there words or phrases you say often that don’t make you feel good? Be aware and notice what those words are. Maybe write them down… really stop and ponder.
How can you change those words?
Sometimes it is as simple as making it the opposite – like crazy vs exciting.
Sometimes you need a completely new focus – like harnessing heavenly help through all seasons of life, suddenly reminded me why I love The Gift of Giving Life!
I can’t wait to hear how you change your words and how it helps you feel more joy in your journey!