My favorite movie of all time???
The Wizard of Oz!!
I assume it's yours too. But, just in case you live under a rock...here's my summary.
The Wizard of Oz is a metaphorical & magical tale of a beautiful RED HEAD, Dorothy, with a great singing voice. She got caught up in a storm that set her on an incredible journey...from a place where everything was black & white...to a place of color - over the rainbow. The moment Dorothy stepped from her farmhouse, she knew (and her little dog too) she was not where she was suppose to be. She met a woman, Glinda (who probably owned a BEDAZZLER) Glinda had a lot of friends who looked up to her & she gave Dorothy vague directions to a man who was known to fix problems. Along the way Dorothy gathered some friends with special needs. She accidentally killed 2 evil witches and found out the man who was supposed fix her problems - was full of hot air. She woke up & realized she didn't need anyone to find her way back...because she had the power all along .
She did all this while singing & dancing on streets of GOLD while wearing FABULOUS SHOES!!
The Wizard of Oz!!
I assume it's yours too. But, just in case you live under a rock...here's my summary.
The Wizard of Oz is a metaphorical & magical tale of a beautiful RED HEAD, Dorothy, with a great singing voice. She got caught up in a storm that set her on an incredible journey...from a place where everything was black & white...to a place of color - over the rainbow. The moment Dorothy stepped from her farmhouse, she knew (and her little dog too) she was not where she was suppose to be. She met a woman, Glinda (who probably owned a BEDAZZLER) Glinda had a lot of friends who looked up to her & she gave Dorothy vague directions to a man who was known to fix problems. Along the way Dorothy gathered some friends with special needs. She accidentally killed 2 evil witches and found out the man who was supposed fix her problems - was full of hot air. She woke up & realized she didn't need anyone to find her way back...because she had the power all along .
She did all this while singing & dancing on streets of GOLD while wearing FABULOUS SHOES!!
| I relate to Dorothy. I am a SEEKER. I've been in storms that have me landed in places I didn't belong. I'm on a colorful journey to find my purpose. |
I've spent my whole life in the church. I've heard (and said) all of the clever religious cliches. Cliches' are like vague directions - "FOLLOW THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD" or "TURN IT OVER TO JESUS", "LET GO AND LET GOD." Stuff we say, when we don't know what to say.
Especially when FEELINGS are involved. But, first we categorize feelings into 'GOOD' or 'BAD'. The "GOOD" ones are allowed & encouraged...but not to extreme! When it comes to the "BAD" ones we are told to "PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE FEELINGS BEHIND THE CURTAIN"
But, I have also been blessed with people along the way who have challenged me to look behind the curtain. To go past the obvious, the surface stuff for deeper understanding (revelations). Sometimes the stuff we see isn't the real issue.
We are rarely reacting to what we think we are. Remember...the ONION. Layers, BABY.
I remember when my son, Caleb died. I didn't even hear from many of the people I had been in ministry with for years. I understand...it's hard to know what to say. Grief is one of those funny emotions. You are allowed to grieve - but just not too long!! Folks want you to "move on" because they don't want your emotions to make them feel uncomfortable. Hopefully, we as a people will learn that most of the time grieving people don't need you to SAY anything...they just need you to BE.
My son, Josh, helped me in my grieving process. He hadn't read books or taken classes or learned from a counselor. He was just Josh. He didn't have that tone of pity in his voice. We went for walks, to the movies...he was just THERE. His presence was what I needed. His honest presence helped heal me. Thank you, Josh!!
My friend, Judy Brown, brought me to her house in California. If i needed to cry...she let me. If I needed to sleep, she let me. Sometimes I just sat & starred out the window. Her husband, Rev, let me take his prized possession, his JEEP, out for a ride, by myself. I drove for hours along the vineyards around Manteca, CA. Then, we all went for drives...never saying a word. Just being present! Thanks Judy...(miss you Rev)
With the recent news of Robin Williams and his struggle there has been much attention drawn to depression. It's made me ask, what would I say if someone came to me and said, "I'm depressed". We must remember...few people will say, I AM DEPRESSED. Depression carries a lot of shame. You have to pull back the curtain. Be present...and pay attention.Would I tell them to "Follow the Yellow brick Road"? I think we should be more prepared to pull back curtains.
We all need help along our journey. A fever tells you when something is off in your body...your feelings are telling you what's going on inward.We have become experts in how to mask, medicate or manipulate our emotions.
I love so many things Iyanla Vanzant says . She said P.A.I.N. means:
Pay Attention Inward Now
To stop and Investigate....PULL BACK THE CURTAIN!!
The storm (the hurt, the betrayal, the disappointment, the abandonment, etc) can cause a POWER OUTAGE -- a dis-connect between us and our Power Source. When we get disconnected from our Power Source it gets dark and we have to FEEL our way around. We lose sight of our POWER & our PURPOSE. We start believing all we have is our own power, strength, intellect, ability...our humanity. That's: THE LIE. Same ol' LIE!
When our lives become mundane, or our health gets weak, when we suffer loss, when we get off balance we begin to question our purpose. Why am I here? I struggle with this too. I spiral down the same ol' rabbit hole. (nobody loves me, everybody hates me, I'm gonna go home and eat worms! blah, blah, blah) But, I've learned a little something. Something very basic. When you read it you'll probably say, DUH, T! We learned that in Sunday School when we were 4? Well, hearing something and applying something are two different things. Holla back....AMEN???
Especially when FEELINGS are involved. But, first we categorize feelings into 'GOOD' or 'BAD'. The "GOOD" ones are allowed & encouraged...but not to extreme! When it comes to the "BAD" ones we are told to "PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE FEELINGS BEHIND THE CURTAIN"
But, I have also been blessed with people along the way who have challenged me to look behind the curtain. To go past the obvious, the surface stuff for deeper understanding (revelations). Sometimes the stuff we see isn't the real issue.
We are rarely reacting to what we think we are. Remember...the ONION. Layers, BABY.
I remember when my son, Caleb died. I didn't even hear from many of the people I had been in ministry with for years. I understand...it's hard to know what to say. Grief is one of those funny emotions. You are allowed to grieve - but just not too long!! Folks want you to "move on" because they don't want your emotions to make them feel uncomfortable. Hopefully, we as a people will learn that most of the time grieving people don't need you to SAY anything...they just need you to BE.
My son, Josh, helped me in my grieving process. He hadn't read books or taken classes or learned from a counselor. He was just Josh. He didn't have that tone of pity in his voice. We went for walks, to the movies...he was just THERE. His presence was what I needed. His honest presence helped heal me. Thank you, Josh!!
My friend, Judy Brown, brought me to her house in California. If i needed to cry...she let me. If I needed to sleep, she let me. Sometimes I just sat & starred out the window. Her husband, Rev, let me take his prized possession, his JEEP, out for a ride, by myself. I drove for hours along the vineyards around Manteca, CA. Then, we all went for drives...never saying a word. Just being present! Thanks Judy...(miss you Rev)
With the recent news of Robin Williams and his struggle there has been much attention drawn to depression. It's made me ask, what would I say if someone came to me and said, "I'm depressed". We must remember...few people will say, I AM DEPRESSED. Depression carries a lot of shame. You have to pull back the curtain. Be present...and pay attention.Would I tell them to "Follow the Yellow brick Road"? I think we should be more prepared to pull back curtains.
We all need help along our journey. A fever tells you when something is off in your body...your feelings are telling you what's going on inward.We have become experts in how to mask, medicate or manipulate our emotions.
I love so many things Iyanla Vanzant says . She said P.A.I.N. means:
Pay Attention Inward Now
To stop and Investigate....PULL BACK THE CURTAIN!!
- "What is going on inside of me right now?"
- 'Why am I acting this way?"
- "When have I felt this before?"
- "What triggered this emotion in me?"
The storm (the hurt, the betrayal, the disappointment, the abandonment, etc) can cause a POWER OUTAGE -- a dis-connect between us and our Power Source. When we get disconnected from our Power Source it gets dark and we have to FEEL our way around. We lose sight of our POWER & our PURPOSE. We start believing all we have is our own power, strength, intellect, ability...our humanity. That's: THE LIE. Same ol' LIE!
When our lives become mundane, or our health gets weak, when we suffer loss, when we get off balance we begin to question our purpose. Why am I here? I struggle with this too. I spiral down the same ol' rabbit hole. (nobody loves me, everybody hates me, I'm gonna go home and eat worms! blah, blah, blah) But, I've learned a little something. Something very basic. When you read it you'll probably say, DUH, T! We learned that in Sunday School when we were 4? Well, hearing something and applying something are two different things. Holla back....AMEN???
We all have two purposes!
OUTSIDE PURPOSE Everyday purpose This is about DOING! This is HORIZONTAL This is our secondary purpose. Your outer purpose is to arrive at or accomplish what you set out to do. This purpose is limited. Requires interaction with those beside us.
If we believe we only have an outside purpose, we will feel unhappy, lonely, stuck, anxious, surrounded by drama, unfruitful. | INSIDE PURPOSE Eternal Purpose This is about BEING! This is VERTICAL. This is our primary purpose. The understanding that you are an Eternal Being. You were created to exsist in a realm that knows no time or space.
|
HORIZONTAL -- VERTICAL
The challenge is to bring these two purposes into alignment.
Our DOING & our BEING working together. It's been done before, on Calvary! When we get bogged down this will help us stay connected to the Power Source (for those of us who are believers we call Father God.
It's not what I do...It's WHO I BELONG TO!!
Here's something I do ...(please don't tell my boss) SHHHHH!
Sometimes, right between lines of a song, maybe while the guitar solo is playing... I step away from the mic & say to myself: "I'm not this song. I am not just what I can do. I am a divine creation, with a heavenly call and a powerful destiny. Within me abides the power to speak life and death. Within me abides the Creater of the Universe. I AM MORE, I have a higher purpose."
Ecclesiastes 3: 11
"He has made everything beautiful in it's time. He has also set ETERNITY in the HUMAN HEART."
So, the next time the storm is tossing you about, Don't hide behind the curtain...pull it back!! PAY ATTENTION!
TALK TO SOMEBODY!! GET CONNECTED TO THE POWER SOURCE!! You've had the power all along!!!
The challenge is to bring these two purposes into alignment.
Our DOING & our BEING working together. It's been done before, on Calvary! When we get bogged down this will help us stay connected to the Power Source (for those of us who are believers we call Father God.
It's not what I do...It's WHO I BELONG TO!!
Here's something I do ...(please don't tell my boss) SHHHHH!
Sometimes, right between lines of a song, maybe while the guitar solo is playing... I step away from the mic & say to myself: "I'm not this song. I am not just what I can do. I am a divine creation, with a heavenly call and a powerful destiny. Within me abides the power to speak life and death. Within me abides the Creater of the Universe. I AM MORE, I have a higher purpose."
Ecclesiastes 3: 11
"He has made everything beautiful in it's time. He has also set ETERNITY in the HUMAN HEART."
So, the next time the storm is tossing you about, Don't hide behind the curtain...pull it back!! PAY ATTENTION!
TALK TO SOMEBODY!! GET CONNECTED TO THE POWER SOURCE!! You've had the power all along!!!
Wanna talk? This is straight to my email! | |