One thing I never thought I’d be is a writer. I’ve been told my whole life to write a book, mostly because the craziest things happen to me! Maybe one day I will start a Wild and Wacky section of some hilarious recaps of my wild and crazy life! But for now, I’m writing from my own overflow. Sharing my heart with others. Hoping to inspire the world, one beautiful thought at a time.
You see, I have served others with all my heart my entire life. But it began to become a burden, I blamed people for taking advantage, I blamed the world for not helping back, I became burned out and bitter. But truth is, the only one I could blame was myself. I forgot to serve me. I forgot to refill my cup. I forgot to rest as the Bible commands. I forgot that if I wanted to take care of others, I had to refill my tank. It took me completely depleting myself to realize some really amazing and beautiful lessons in my life that I hope to share with others so that they do not grow weary.
Take Time to Recharge, Take time to Refill, Take time to Refuel,
and then… Take off again! ~A. Radford
One of the most amazing things you can do to sort the crazy in your brain is to write. It doesn’t have to make sense, it doesn’t have to be grammatically correct, spelled right, or even seen by anyone else. JUST WRITE. Get it out. It is the most therapeutic thing you can do in your whole life, other than pray and meditate of course… But writing them is even more powerful than just saying or thinking them.
I always told myself I wasn’t a good writer, I made so many excuses, of why I couldn’t do it before I even tried. Why do we do that? Why do we talk ourselves out of things that may become the most amazing things without even trying to do them!! CRAZINESS!!! Start saying yes. JUST START SAYING YES! Yes… to new adventures, Yes… to the things that people see in you that you don’t allow to see in yourself.
SAY YES TO YOU!
I’m not talking about some dear diary kind of writing, or a boring recap of your day. I’m talking about the music of your mind and soul pouring out into the pages. I know.. your first excuse is.. I don’t know what to write about, second is I don’t have anything to say, third is that no one will care about what I’m writing, shall I go on? I’ve heard it all before. In fact those are the same lies I told myself, The same excuses I get from others when I ask them to write something for me. My other excuse was that my country girl accent doesn’t come out in text so the delivery wouldn’t be the same, and maybe one day I’ll speak it all! But for now, I will tell you the same beautiful words that someone told me… and that I tell others….
Just start writing and the heart will flow.
You see, my friend, you have a beautiful mind. One unlike any other. One that needs to be let out of its cage. Free your mind and the words will follow. Just begin. Just start. The hardest part is getting that pen onto the paper and getting that first sentence down, but just like when you take off on a bike, that first shove is the hardest and then you just go, and it get easier and easier, and it feels free and simply wonderful! Ready to give it a go? Start with 1 page a day, if your flowing keep going!
Here are some ideas you can start with…
A Prayer Journal: Start writing down your prayers, add a date, mark how many times you prayed for them and then leave plenty of room for the answers, like 2-3 times the space of the prayer. Big prayers, bring big answers! We may think this or that was the answer, but God and His crazy almighty awesomeness will answer prayers in ways that our teeny little brains can’t possibly comprehend all of the things that He moved around and puts into place for our benefits! Or how this prayer will still be being answered 10 years from now. Leave room for the big answers, that is all I’m saying!
A Gratitude Journal: Just start with a list…100 things I am grateful for, I know… it sounds like alot.. .but it isn’t, not at all, once you start you won’t be able to stop. Then keep adding to the list every day. You will start looking for things to be grateful for in your every day so that you can write it down that night and it will shift your entire perspective. You will be wearing gratitude goggles before you know it! Use this journal to keep you in check on a bad day. Use it to say some thankful prayers, meditations, or to do the gratitude song. You can use this journal as well to write thank you letters to people who have done amazing things in your life, even if you never send it, even if they have long gone from your life or from this world. Even if your letter is to your God, Just Write. Gratitude is the cure to all bad feelings in your life. Use it to write down all the people that you thanked each day, for little or big things, find a way to thank others.
Gratitude above all.
The “I am” Journal: Simply Start the journal with I AM… and write all the things you are, DO NOT write all the things you are lacking. Never write anything negative down about yourself or others. For what you write down you give life to. NEVER. You can also write down all the things you are not…. Watch these 2 inspirational videos for some amazing inspiration. 1. Taylor Swift speaks out about your I am’s and I am nots 2. The Power of I AM, Joel Osteen (you’re welcome) Examples: I AM amazing, wonderful, smart, an amazing work in progress, a miracle, enough, worth it, valuable, a daughter of a King. I AM NOT dumb, ugly, fat, a waste, forgettable, useless.
I AM… Two of the most powerful words,
For what you put after them shapes your reality.
~Unknown
Meditation Journal: There are so many ways you can use this baby! You can write some positive thought or quote down and meditate on it for any given time, You can do what I call Mind travel, I focus on a place, and explore it, I try to feel the feelings, smell the smells, feel the sun on my face, hear the water…. there is always water in mine or the top of a mountain… or both. I try to meditate at least 10 min a day, the first 8 min is usually lasso’ng my brain to settle, and then I usually go to 15-20-30 minutes. Turn on calm music and just go for it. This will recharge your battery like nothing else. It’s like going on a daily mini vacation. You can do a gratitude meditation, a positive affirmation meditation, a prayer meditation.
Meditation is something that has been the best thing ever for me. I’ve only just discovered it this year! GASP! You see I have a wildly active mind and meditation calms it down for a bit, it clears my mind and teaches me to focus. It calms me to the core of my soul. It’s simply the most beautiful thing you can do for yourself!
In your journal, write down what you would like to meditate on, then when your done, come back and write where your mind took you, how you feel and what lesson or idea you came out of it. Try some guided meditations at first like the ones Lori Harder gives when you sign up for her email, I use them daily and have shared them with nearly everyone I have helped this year! Sometimes we need to just sit still, in the quiet and think, allow the thoughts to flow like traffic, or a stream. Our world is so cluttered these days that people don’t take time to just think.
Thinkers are winners.
An Affirmation Journal: Positive Affirmations are another win in my world this year, If you hear a good quote, write it down, a good line in a song, write it down, a good verse of scripture, write it down. Keep collecting good thoughts, and they will start coming at you like crazy. What you focus on you find, so start looking. Keep this journal with you always and Fill that sucker up. Share with us any good affirmations you find! Tag us in social media in them if you like @BetterMeTribe or #BetterMeTribe.
The Amazing Journey of Me Journal: (Life stories, lessons and memories, according to me)- This one is special and near and dear to your heart. Imagine this is a book that you are writing stories of your life for your grandkids. This is not a woe is me book, this is a true events, funny stories, lessons learned, all with a positive spin for your family for generations to see. You don’t want them to think you are a whiner right? This book will help you discover lessons in life that you didn’t even know you learned. You may learn something new from writing the story of an event that happened when you were just 10 years old! This is a beauty! Don’t worry about going in chronological order, Don’t worry if the dates are wrong, or if you were really 10 or 11, just write a guess of how old you were in each story and they can sort it out later! Then as things happen in present time write them down also. What you realize is you have had a full and amazingly fun adventurous life and that your stories need to be shared with others. You will be teaching generations to come that it’s the journey that is the best part. Teaching them that…
LIFE, my dear, is the Greatest Adventure of all!
The point is, start writing, start a habit of writing, let your soul sing, get the music of you, out on paper. Let it out! Start with writing 5 minutes a day, or 1 page a day, set a time and a place that you write until it becomes the most beautiful habit that you have ever seen. Pour out all over the place, and if you have something to say, say it! Your mess is your message and your story needs to be heard. Try grabbing our new Quote Cards for inspiration as well. Enjoy your new adventure of writing. Let me know how it goes! <3
Inspired? Let us know! What thoughts did this bring up for you?