Clear out the cobwebs of your life. It will be worth it. You’ll travel the rest of your journey much lighter, and you’ll definitely go much farther.
We feel happiest when we are on the grow, and striving for something more. Whether we are striving for better physical health, financial health, emotional health, or healthier relationships – it just feels good to improve.
And although we should certainly practice gratitude for all we already have, if we’re not also reaching for SOMEthing else, we stop growing and start regressing. There is no standing still.
But sometimes when we set out to embark on our next journey, we do it with too much in our backpack.
If there’s ‘junk’ from your past that is affecting your self-confidence, it can feel like carrying a bag full of rocks, which only makes your journey more difficult.
No, I’m not going to define ‘junk’. If you have some, you probably already know what I’m talking about. I’m not talking about times when you’ve been a victim… that’s not the kind of junk I’m talking about. (Although holding grudges can count for some seriously heavy rocks, and emotional trauma can really be debilitating.)
For this post, I’m talking about the kind of junk that you are personally responsible for, and over which you have some immediate control.
If you’ve done something you regret, and have not ‘taken care of it’, then your self-confidence will be affected and your ability to have faith in reaching your goals may be adversely affected, too.
If you are a ‘perfectionist’, stop here and read this instead.
You may or may not be a religious person, but I believe it’s important to get your heart lined up with your Creator before you launch an all-out quest for the abundant life. If there are ‘things undone’ in your life that need repair, your conscience knows it, and it’s liberating to make things right to the best of your ability, first.
By doing so, you become more confident that your purpose for seeking abundance is for a good and worthy reason. As it says in Matthew 6:33: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things (might I say: everything you need) shall be added unto you.’
With the self-confidence that results, your faith in yourself, and in God who helps you, will be stronger than ever.
I picked this topic today because of a great lesson I heard on Sunday. It posed the question: when we make a mistake, do we try to excuse it and cover it up? Or do we take responsibility, confess it completely where needed, and face the consequences?
To answer that, imagine this:
If you had a pile of dirt, and you wanted to hide it, would covering it up with more dirt take care of it? No. It only makes the pile bigger and more conspicuous. While it appears you’ve successfully covered it up, you’ve only turned it into a bigger pile.
A wonderful speaker by the name of Richard G. Scott said it this way:
“Do not take comfort in the fact that your transgressions are not known by others. That is like an ostrich with his head buried in the sand. He sees only darkness and feels comfortably hidden. In reality he is ridiculously conspicuous.”
God knows, the ‘Universe’ knows, and so do YOU.
A person’s confidence only grows when s/he seeks courage to face the music, make things right as best they can, and restore the confidence that comes only with a clear conscience and heart aligned with God.
Life on the other side of it is full of light. It is free, it is liberating, and worth whatever price it takes to finally address those ‘things left undone’. It is even worth risking one’s relationship with another human being to make things right with one’s Creator. In fact, our relationships with those we love may actually be strengthened in the long run when we do our best to set ourselves right with God. After all, being in the right with God is the only thing that really matters anyway. If you’re not religious, you can call it being true to your conscience.
I want you to succeed. I want you to experience abundance in all areas of your life, including financially. I think many of my readers are Christian (not all, but many), so I’m also going to include another passage: ‘And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good.’ (Jacob 2:19)
Now, this is an unusual topic for my newsletter, I know. I also realize this message is not for everybody right now, but it may be for somebody. To embark on a quest with a backpack full of stones can be exhausting and frustrating. Let’s keep our loads as light as we can along the way by identifying each stone we carry, taking it out, putting it down, and leaving it behind.
And WHAT IF someone finds out you have stones in your backpack?! How mortifying that could be!!!
Realize this: EVERYONE has stones in their backpack at one time or another in their life. And in truth, there is more shame in carrying them around in secret than there is to taking them out and putting them down, even if those around you get a glimpse. In fact, doing so just might inspire someone else to have enough courage to do the same.
There are amazing, wonderful, abundant blessings awaiting you. Take care of things undone, so you can move forward and claim all there is to enjoy out of life. If there’s fear associated with considering such a step, understanding the “stickman” illustration can be REALLY helpful. To understand fear and how to deal with it, watch my full length video about the stickman concept here.
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