Live out Loud!!!

I once went to a convention (actually it was a SLaHOME convention) that spoke volumes to me.....well, the theme of it did. It's pictured above just in case somehow you haven't had enough coffee and didn't see it! I didn't want you to miss it!

At the time my husband and I were struggling through some decisions that would mean some changes for our family. Decisions that would mean going outside the comfort zone for the ultimate good of our family. And they were changes that might prove difficult. You've probably been there before, right?

The woman who spoke had been through breast cancer, and was a survivor. TWICE. Don't you know those were difficult days for her!....but through it she had learned to seize what opportunities came her way, to choose the best for her life, to make a difference and to live each moment OUT LOUD. She made choices that were not always in her comfort zone, yet allowed herself to be stretched to follow out the steps that were needed to live in those choices. She is a TRUE "southern inspiration"!

So I came home, not only jazzed about my business, but ready to take on the challenge with my husband of moving in a different direction for our family. I came home ready to STOP being frustrated about being stuck in a rut, ready to take on with vigor what was truly going to be a hard choice, and even though it held some uncertainties, ready to face it. With prayer and the help of God, we made some choices and changes that proved to be good for our family. Hmmmm, imagine that!

I will be the first to admit that I move slowly. It is painful to make decisions sometimes, and takes a lot of work.......ummm, I go for the easiest, fastest, least painful route, if given a choice! But we all know that life is hard, and that what we work hardest for often is what we enjoy the most. After all, hard work can be fun, too, right?

So in my retrospective thinking today, I have been questioning whether I am indeed living out loud. Or have I slipped back into survival mode of one foot in front of the other? Those two can coexist, but I think I have grown weary. I need to be reminded of that vigor I felt when challenged to live out loud. I need to live with more intention. (I tend to be a "phlegmatic" type of personality.......laid back, a follower, a whatever works for the moment kind of girl.) But that also means that unless I have a purpose and a set of goals, I am a slug. Yes, a slug...and I don't like slugs. So every now and again, I have to have a little talk with myself, and say "Self, you need to get going again...." We had this talk this morning......it pinches, it hurts, but it's necessary.

I have several goals in mind, and they really are not resolutions, they are more like reminders. Remember you wanted to _____. Fill in the blank.
I have numerous ones to fill in the blank. But I quake to write them down because I have a fear of failure and a fear of being a hypocrite. I don't want to come back and see what I wrote and feel like myself or someone else can say, "But you said you were going to ____". So what do YOU do to combat that? What I need to do is take some baby steps toward a few of these goals and make some progress. Progress begets more progress, right?

Where in the world am I going with all of this? Mostly it's a self-reminder to get myself in gear, but it's also to encourage you that if you have ideas in the back of your mind, let some of them out!! Write them down, consider them, write down the steps toward making them a reality. Don't wallow in doubt, make it happen. Live with intention, live OUT LOUD.

We are not promised tomorrow, only today. In fact, the Bible says that "tomorrow has enough trouble of its own" so live in today. Make your moments count and be intentional. Let this truth be in the fabric of your being a little while today and see how and if it changes your perspective....
and LIVE OUT LOUD.
What does that mean for YOU?


Edited to add, that I don't think Living Out Loud really is a choice about noise, rather of choices and intentions, and living actively rather than passively, which is really what I am prone to want to do. Thanks for all the fabulous comments, my friends!!