The Transformational Power of a Three Letter Word

In early December of 2006, I was reading the newsletter of one of my colleagues. In it, she was discussing a new program she had put together which included interviews with many well-known spiritual and personal growth mentors. As I read about those who would be interviewed, I found myself marveling, as I’d heard of almost all of them, and knew and deeply loved the work of several of these wonderful people. “Wow”, I thought, “what an amazing opportunity these people are getting to share their gifts and their knowledge.”

I had no sooner had that thought than an almost physically tangible voice said in my ear, “Write her!” I was startled. “What?”, I thought. I was sure I had misunderstood this intuitive guidance. “Write her!”, I heard again. “You’re meant to be a part of this program… allow your own gifts and light to shine!”

I found myself overcome with doubt. My colleague was a renowned author, speaker and teacher. I owned her work! I knew it’s quality and how amazing it was. She was well established in her field. And myself? I’d written three ebooks… they were well thought out and were greatly appreciated. But I had only been established for less than two years. I was promoting my services, but was certainly not as well known as my colleague or any of the other people she planned to interview. I felt torn… should I follow my guidance? What was I to do?

It’s so easy to let feelings of unworthiness keep us stuck in our limitations and frustrations. Often, it’s far simpler to give up rather than to move in a direction in which we’re clearly being guided. How often have you found yourself fearing possible success if you take particular action steps? It can be scary to put ourselves out there and really embrace our God-given talents and purposes.

There’s great empowerment and transformation to be found in a seemingly simple, three-letter word. And that word is “yes!” Saying yes to stepping bravely and boldly into the unknown, yes to answering Spirit’s calling, yes to following our hearts and sharing ourselves with those who could richly benefit from hearing our stories and our wisdom.

Each of us, no matter our path in life, has much we can share with others that would make a profound, positive difference in their lives. Though we often know this on some level, it’s another thing entirely to shine our light and open ourselves to others. What if what we have to say isn’t well received? And what if it is? How will that transform others? How will it transform us?

Think about this for a moment. How often have you, for instance, heard someone share a powerful experience from his or her own life that has inspired you? And how often after hearing such a powerful message have you thought, “Would anything in my life inspire others as that inspired me?”

We can all be inspirations to one another. You may have a gift for tutoring school kids, or for sewing beautiful garments to light up the faces of those who are blessed to receive them. Maybe you can cook delicious recipes, or perhaps you have the gift of comforting the sick or those near to transition. Or maybe, as has happened in my life so often, you simply say something one day that, without you knowing it, changes someone’s life for the better.

Saying yes takes courage. It took a great deal of courage before I plucked up enough nerve to write to my colleague, but oh, am I ever glad I did! I can’t even express in words the joy that I’ve been blessed with from saying yes to that calling. I not only shared a delightful and thought-provoking interview, but I also made a new and wonderful friend in my colleague!

Will you take this important step and choose the power of “yes” in your own life? You very well may transform your life, and the lives of others, in amazing ways you can’t even imagine as yet.

In the next Heartsong Lighthouse article, we’ll continue this discussion. If you aren't a Heartsong reader yet, why not join? There's plenty of great info to inspire, empower and uplift you, delivered to your inbox every other Sunday. And the archives are full of goodies, too. Check them out!

Have a wonderful day, everyone!

Much Love,
Kim

Stubbornness can be a good thing!

Okay, I'll admit it..

I am one of the most stubborn people you're likely to meet. I've been called "thick-headed" and "stubborn as a mule" more times than I'd care to recall. Just this morning, as a matter of fact, I felt my sheer stubbornness taking over again. And you want to know something? It paid off!

You may have noticed that I've added a lot of social bookmarks to the site recently. I'm not the most technical person on Earth, so at first, going into my HTML code and trying to figure out how to add everything seemed rather daunting. But, like with everything else, practice really does seem to make perfect, or, if not perfect, at least pretty darn good!

I was struggling with adding a script to my template this morning, and, try as I may, I couldn't get it to show up here on the blog. But I remained persistent. With gritted teeth and a head that was beginning to ache from sitting too long before my screen, I kept at it until... voila! I finally got it to work! My stubborn determination paid off!

The point is that, contrary to what some people may tell you, stubbornness can often be a good trait to have! Look how many wonderful historical figures made a profound difference in the world due to their sheer tanacity! Thomas Edison, Abraham Lincoln, Helen Keller, and Martin Luther King come to mind, as well as many others.

And the moral? Don't give up on your dreams!! We can achieve great things and inspire many people, in ways both big and small. Hold your head high and press forward! You never know what amazing deeds your personal determination will inspire in others!

Much Love,
Kim