Touching Your Heart

You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith.   

 ~Mary Manin Morrissey 

  Dreams, fear and faith….boy, I couldn’t have found a better quote to sum up what I have been thinking, feeling and living the last month or so.  As you all know, I took a huge leap of faith and have started following my dreams by starting my own virtual assistant business.  GULP!  (yep, still using that word A LOT!)  It has definitely been quite the roller coaster ride and I don’t forsee that changing any time soon.  Just seems to be the way of this business…either a very busy week, or nothing at all lined up.  There does not seem to be a happy medium.  And that my friends, definitely takes some getting used to.  

 Trying to find a routine in a very nonroutine working world is not possible! LOL  And…the no-guarantee paycheck is still freaking me out.  Yep, I am still worried about how to pay the bills when the time comes and I am still scared and wondering, “What the heck am I doing?”  I have been praying LOTS and finding it hard at times to put it all in God’s hands.  I know that is what we are supposed to do, but we all know it’s not that easy.  We are human after all!  I find myself doubting that I am doing the right thing and starting to wonder if maybe it’s time to throw in the towel before I get too far down financially and then find myself doubting my abilities, my confidence, etc.  BUT….each and every time I have gotten down and have been about ready to give up….opportunities start knocking and coming through.  I kid you not.  They maybe aren’t helping me out today, at this minute, or with this bill, but there are opportunities coming…I just need to be patient and have faith that they will work out.  (I hear ya, God!~Thank you!) 

Now, did you notice I didn’t say I have started to doubt God and His plan for me?  That’s because I haven’t…I honestly haven’t.  I keep praying for Him to guide me and I keep trying to give it all to him…the worry, the fear, the finances….the path…and the time it is going to take to get there.  It is myself I am doubting, not Him.  It is the ability to pay the bills RIGHT NOW, that I am doubting.  I know my path that He has planned for me and I can see that clearly…for the future….it is the NOW that is holding me back and I can’t get past.  It is giving up the control of the NOW that I can’t give over to Him.  Why is it so hard for us to give up that control?  Why do we fight it?  Maybe it’s the thought of  being vulnerable, or…maybe it’s admitting that some things we just simply can’t do on our own…and to be honest…maybe it’s the simple fact that putting ourselves out there, moving out of our comfort zone and learning to trust Him with our dreams, fears and faith is truly scary…simply scary!  And…maybe we need to learn to trust in ourselves!  (Again, I hear ya, God!~Thank you!) 

Whatever the reasons may be…I am choosing to continue to follow my dreams, the path that I know is out there for me and I am choosing to continue to trust Him with my dreams, fears and faith.   Why?  Because  although I have my doubts and fears at moments….there have been so many more blessings and positive things happening in my life.  I was blessed to work at Eat’s N Treats with Joyce and Nicole for a little extra cash and in turn they needed the help and it was great getting back out in the public after working from home for 10 plus years.  I am going out of my comfort zone and pushing my own boundaries and putting myself out there in so many different ways.   I am taking control of my wants, needs and desires…to a point of course…and learning that I can’t control all aspects of my life.  (Again, I hear ya, God!~Thank you!)  

And most importantly, I still have no regrets for quitting my full-time guaranteed paycheck job. I was miserable…crabby, sad, bored, hopeless…not challenged.  That isn’t the life I wanted to be living.  There are so many different things coming my way that I never imagined I would be interested in, or would have thought of to try.  I am so much happier and so much more easy going despite the down times.   Though the money may not be there RIGHT NOW, I know it will be…I just need to keep following my dream and not let fear get in the way, but instead let the fear help me to continue trying to give the NOW over to God. And how am I going to do this?  By continuing to Have Faith and by Believing…believing when it’s beyond reason to believe.  (quote taken from a very special gift from one of our GAAWs when I took my leap!)   

May God bless you all on your leaps….don’t give up on your dreams, continue to have faith in yourself…and do NOT let fear get in your way! 

~with all my love~jodi 

Anything big enough to occupy our minds is big enough to hang a prayer on. ~George MacDonald

~ A Personal Message from Jodi~

Hi everyone! So often we get caught up in those little voices in our heads that seem to go nonstop…they take up all of our thoughts and yet we know that those so-called little things that are worrying us are nothing compared to what some of our loved ones/friends are going through. We then start to feel guilty for fretting over our silly little problems and feel that they aren’t important enough to warrant even a quick bullet prayer. Sound familiar??

Well my friends, that is stinkin’ thinkin’. Yes, unfortunately, there are always going to be things going on in the lives of others that are far more serious than what we are going through but that does not mean that our worries don’t deserve a prayer or two also. As the quote says, if it is big enough to occupy our minds, then it is be enough to hang a prayer on.

So, I urge you to stop and think twice the next time you think a worry of yours is too little to warrant a prayer….and give yourself a minute to send up that well-deserved and so-very-important-at-the-time prayer. You ARE worthy and so your worry is worthy of prayer. God has time for ALL of us and you might be surprised at the weight that has been lifted from you if you are able to give it up to God.

~with all my love`jodi

~Thought to Ponder~

Here’s a thought to maybe help you “get it”…

Would you turn your back on a friend or a loved one who had a simple problem or concern they needed to talk to you about just because their problem seemed too insignificant to mess with? Would you tell them you didn’t have the time for their problems?

My guess is that you said, “No, of course not.”

So….why do you think God would turn His back on you or not have the time to listen to your prayers?

“What do you think of God,” the teacher asked.  After a pause, the young pupil replied, “He’s not a think, he’s a feel.”  ~Paul Frost

~A Personal Note from Jodi~

Out of the mouths of babes for sure….so simple, but yet so true.  ‘Nough said.

~Thought to Ponder~

What does God feel like to you?

 Take some time to think about this from either your point of view or your inner child’s point of view! Have some fun with it and if you feel like it, leave a comment to share with others.

You just might get them FEELING God too!

“I can do all things—through prayer and coffee!”

(once again from that sticky note notebook from Robin)

~A Personal Note from Jodi~

Hi everyone….was looking for something a little humorous today and came across this. We all have those days don’t we? Those days where things just don’t seem to go the way we want them to and where we feel we have no control…and sometimes only the simplest things seem to pull us through….like prayers and coffee!!! Or in my case, prayers and fake cappas from the gas station and Diet Coke!! Yep, those three simple things can pretty much help me through the most frustrating day. Okay, so maybe it doesn’t take away the problems of the day, but at least for a few minutes I am able to escape and lose myself in my quick bullet prayers or in that nice hot creamy taste of my cappa…or the nice cold refreshing taste of that Diet Coke. It’s a quick fix for sure. And honestly, if the good Lord put those simple things in our lives, he would want us to enjoy them, right?

~Thought to Ponder~

Humor yourself today:  Fill in the blanks for yourself….

“I can do all things—through ___ and ____!”

And now…if you haven’t had that treat today, rush out and get yourself one!

After all, that IS part of taking care of YOU!

~with all my love ~jodi

“Upload Prayer….Download Peace.”

(quote taken from a notepad dear Robin gave me)

~A personal message from Jodi~

Virtual World: Ping Me

Small Town Girl: Um, what is Ping?

Virtual World: Oh, that’s the chat in the Google Email.

~~~~~

Small Town Girl:  How often should I check my email?

Virtual World: Do you have a Blackberry?

Small Town Girl: Nope, but my daughter does! But, I can text!!

~~~~~

Virtual World:  Do you Facebook and Twitter?

Small Town Girl: Oh, I definitely Facebook, but have never Twittered!

~~~~~

Ping, Blackberry…. MP3 files, email subscriber lists…..Ah….small town girl meets the virtual world!! Those are just a few of the phrases/words I have encountered over the past week in my debut into the virtual world with my new part-time job at Solamar Marketing Agency and with the touchingyourheart.net blog.  My head has been spinning with excitement of learning new things and yes at times I have had feelings of being overwhemed when I encouter something out of my comfort zone.  And, might I add, I am definitely feeling like the ole Ma out here in the virtual world, but I am blessed to have so many great youngens to work with! (And trust me, Ma is not a title I cringe at…it is a term of endearment to me as my hubby started calling me that years ago, and the name just stuck from there throughout couples volleyball, with our friends and family, etc…and Mike and I always referred to his mom as Ma when she was alive.) 

I am so blessed to have two amazing virtual world things going on in my life right now…Solamar Marketing AND touchingyourheart.net. Not too shabby for a small town girl, huh? Some exciting things have happened this last week.  I have been able to work on some transcription/research work for Solamar for a client whose website I follow and love! How neat is that!! Super cool! And, Robin and I figured out how to make automatic updates work for the touchingyourheart.net blog! We have been trying to figure that out for ages and we finally did it!! Babysteps…progress…what a great feeling.

I am truly blessed, in so many ways, and I do not take any of it for granted. I know WHO is helping guide me through these processes and when I start to feel overwhelmed, I take a deep breath…and just remember…upload prayers….download peace!  And that my friends, is something you can do no matter who you are, virtual world or small town girl!

~with all my love~jodi

“Whatever obstacles appear in your path, put your head down and get past them. Those obstacles aren’t real. They’re just God’s way of testing you. He’s asking you, “Do you want to make it or not?”"

~Russell Simmons

~A Personal Message from Jodi~

Yes!! I DO want to make it!! And I have been working towards my goals in more ways than one and I have no doubt whatsoever that my dear Heavenly Father has been there every step of the way, leading me down that path and placing certain obstacles in my way to make me stop and think about what I really want in my life.

What do I want in my life?….

I want to make a difference in the lives of my friends and loved ones. (How has God helped this happen? As you know, Robin and I went “live” with our blog, touchingyourheart.net !!)

I want to make the process of handing our loved ones over to God in Heaven easier for my friends and family.  (How has God helped this happen? Diane P and I are currently working on our project along with the help of all of you!!)

I want a career change, something where I can still work hard but be appreciated for what I do and to feel like I am making a difference. (How has God helped this happen? God brought Chelsea Perkins Moser {former Bowmanite/Scrantonite and possibly your friend/relative} into my life and on a silly but very important note…brought a laptop computer into my life a few months ago from my amazing hubby!! Who would have known how much I would need it when we bought it!)

Yep, I am working slowly with babysteps on a new career! I started the other day very part time for Chelsea with her company Solamar Marketing Agency (Solamarmarketing.com) as an assistant and transcriber.  Chelsea is taking a chance on me in her virtual business world where everything is done via internet/email/phone calls. This small town girl has  a lot to learn about the marketing and virtual office world, but I am so nervously excited!! GULP!! It is happening!! (I am still working my current job and hoping to slowly fade out of that over time, if that is part of God’s plan for me

 I cannot say enough about Chelsea, nor do I have the room, but let me just say, this is one amazing, caring, compassionate,  hard-working gal who has NOT lost site of her ND roots at all! She incorporates them into her business all the while maintaining her beliefs and morals! Please check out her company solamarmarketing.com and also check out her splash page at http://chelseamoser.com/ where you will find links to everything she is involved in. It is amazing. Please take special note of http://helpchelseagive.ning.com/!  They are trying to find ways to help Baby Shay Dschaak and her family!! And if you are in need of some great reading, check out her blog at:  TheNoDak.com. I cannot tell you how much reading her blog inspired me and gave me the confidence to do all of my goals above! Thank you Chelsea, you are truly making a difference!

So, on that note, please keep me in your prayers and send lots of positive thoughts this way as I start my journey in the virtual world!! ~with all my love~jodi

Thought to Ponder~

Has one of YOUR goals been put on the back burner due to obstacles or the inability to see your path? If so, what SPECIFIC thing/person is holding you back? Fear, lack of direction, etc?

Identify your obstacles and work with babysteps to tackle it! You can do it…believe in yourself and in God that He is there to help guide you. He will catch you when you fall….and falling is NOT failure!

~ Easter spells out beauty, the rare beauty of new life.

~ S.D. Gordon

A Personal Message from Jodi~

As I sit here working on today’s Thank the Lord, it is cold, gloomy and rainy with chances of that nasty white stuff!! Normally I would be “fit to be tied” that the sun wasn’t out. We all know the sun just has not been out as much as we would like it to be lately, and I for one am so ready for spring and summer weather! It is time to wash away those winter blues!  The reason I am not sitting here pouting about the weather today is the fact that right away this morning I thought about Sunday being Easter and what Jesus’ resurrection meant…..new life…and the chance for a new start….and I thought to myself that today was a great symbol of just that….the rain is washing away the ugly brown/dirt look that we have right now and despite the fact that we may be getting some snow, that once that snow melts again and our glorious sun comes out again, that things are going to look so new, so fresh and so green and pretty again. And in turn, I can’t help but think that our spirits will lift a bit with the anticipation of spring and summer and our souls will feel awakened.

Wishing you all a blessed Easter!! May you embrace the beauty and new life it brings our way!

~with all my love ~jodi