Category: God

God, journey, purpose, vision

The Vision Will Come

livingwholecoaching

In our microwave society, we want everything yesterday.  Time is of essence and we can’t waste a minute of it.  Work harder, move faster, get it done all in one step.  That’s what I was allowing to happen to me.  God showed me my purpose and the vision for the ministry and I want to hurry to get there.

But a good friend reminded me today to enjoy the journey.  Wow, my mother told me that about 3 years ago when I first started dating my now fiance.  I listened to her for the most part, but now I find myself doing the same thing with my ministry.  Perhaps it is because I finally found out what my purpose was so late in my life that I feel I have little time to see its manifestation.

But wait a minute, I can’t get in front of God!  I don’t even want to because that my friend that will be disastrous to say the least.

I need to learn to enjoy this journey that He has me on, every aspect is wonderful and a learning experience for me.  I need to take a step back and marvel at the awesomeness that He is revealing to me.  I need to slow down, because if I don’t I feel the whole thing could just fail.  I don’t want to get weary, because I am doing things in my own strength.  I don’t want to miss an opportunity to draw closer to God.  I want to be obedient with every step of faith that I take.

So thank you Lord for using my friend to tell me to slow down and enjoy the journey, because you are faithful and the vision will come.

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

coach, God, Life Coach, Next Step

The Next Step

livingwholecoaching

I was just sitting here thinking about how different my life would look if I had made different choices in life a long time ago.  But I realize that I can’t go back and change my past.  When I really think about it I really don’t want to because my past experiences have molded me into the person that I am today!

I can however, take steps to change where I am today to where I want to be in life with the help of God.  Like most people, I look over my life and get overwhelmed with where to start.  What is the next step?

As I have been studying for my certification as a Christian Life Coach, the one thing that the instructors told us was if you are going to be coaching people into their destiny, then you yourself need to have a life coach too!  Wow, that made a whole lot of sense.  So I reached out to a Life Coach that I had met over 2 years ago that had a very unique effect on me.

At that time in my life I was smack dab in the middle of a life crisis, I was in full swing of my depression.  When I met her at a workshop about Life Coaching, she asked me a simple question; “where are you in your life?”  And I burst into tears!  Needless to say at that point I really needed something or someone to help me through my mess, but the timing was not right.  But when I heard the instructors say get a life coach, she was the first person I thought about and I made strides to find her again.

I did find her and we met for lunch one day to begin the process of starting a coaching relationship.  God is never wrong and is always on time!  That meeting went so well and we connected so well spiritually that all we could say was we must make this work!

The thing that I am trying to say is don’t just sit still and not decide to take the next step in your life, even if you don’t know what that step looks like.  You can reach out to God for answers and if a Life Coach is something that you want to pursue to help you get from point A to point B, we can help!  My mother always says: “how do you eat an elephant?” One bite at a  time!

If you are ready to get started, check out our introductory Life Coaching sessions (6 weeks) for only $150 with a payment plan that can work for every budget. www.thebutterflyjourney.com  Hurry this price will only last until July 31!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

 

 

 

God, the butterfly journey, unplug, wellness

Get Unplugged

livingwholecoaching

I can honestly say that my life looks so much different from 4 years ago.  I am grateful that it is for the better and not the worse.  When I was stuck in my depressive state I had nothing to look forward to, no purpose, no dreams, just a dark hole of emptiness.

But today I am thriving, working out my life’s purpose and I have more zeal and joy with the Lord than I have ever had.  With that has come an overwhelming feeling of too much.  I long to work full-time in the ministry/business that God has revealed to me as my calling, but in reality I have to pay the bills and so I continue to work a job.  It is very taxing at times trying to balance all the things that I want to accomplish within the limited time of only 24 hours in a day!

Sometimes my days look like this: 2 hours on the road, 8 hours at work, 2 hours to check-in with family, friends, and clients, I try to get at least 5 hours of sleep (I have insomnia so that doesn’t always work), an hour to eat, an hour for daily errands and that only leaves me with 5 hours to work in my purpose!  I try to multi-task, pray while walking the dog, research while eating, posting, blogging and tweeting while on the phone with loved ones, running errands while on my lunch break and whew, I am tired!  And I don’t even have little children running around, thank God, because I probably would need to run away to an island for a week if I did! And I have no time to even pamper myself and I need it, everyone needs it once in a while.

How do I get this all in?  How do people do the amazing things they accomplish while doing life in general?  I am searching for the answers, asking God for clarity and direction.  I am leaning heavily on going unplugged for a period of time.  How much time?  I don’t know I feel that I don’t have a minute or second to waste.  But is it really a waste to take some time to reflect, relax, and refresh yourself?  Or will it give me more energy to find a creative way to get it all in and not lose my composure?

As we are talking about physical wellness during our life makeover,  I think it is a good idea to think about our emotional and mental wellness as well.  We can be super fit physically and emotionally a mess and that is not good.

I want a huge commitment from you to balance your life and manage it with the direction of God.  Make the important things count and never take anything for granted.  Prioritize the things in your life that matter most and if the dishes aren’t washed tonight so what, kiss your husband and spend time with your kids.  Do the things that make an eternal impact.  I am learning!

So I am praying about going unplugged and I will let you know when I do, but in the meantime, think about your own life and see if you need to unplug for a period of time so that you can focus on the things that really matter.

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

give, God, Harvest, reap, sow

Give!

livingwholecoaching

Since we are on a roll with facing debt and talking about money let’s just dive right into the other aspects that we need to know and do in order to change the course of our relationship with money.  Let’s really get free!

If you are a believer I trust that you understand the principle of tithing.  If not please get wisdom from your spiritual leader.  But we will give you a basic understanding today.  God asks that we give back to Him 10% of our gross income.  He asks that we sow this tithe into the church (storehouse) that we attend.  Malachi 3:10 says – “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house.  Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” It helps to advance the ministry in reaching people for God.  It also teaches us to be obedient to His principles, for our very own good.  You see when we give back what God asks of us, he promises to provide for our every need.

The principle of sowing and reaping can be understood by anyone.  When you plant something you will reap something.  If you plant a pumpkin seed you will get a pumpkin.  If you plant a thorn-bush, guess what you will not get a cherry tree.  It is the same concept with tithing, if you plant your tithe in obedience back to God, He will give you a harvest of abundance.  I know it may sound weird, but from experience I can tell you that I have never had a lack whenever I have been obedient in giving of my tithes.

I have tithed when I didn’t really know if I would have enough money to pay my bills, but I trusted God’s word and sure enough I would have what I needed when I needed it.

Now I am not trying to a theologian with all the correct words etc, but I am speaking from my heart.  If you don’t have a church home to tithe to and you’re not quite ready to move in that direction, try giving back to your community, a charity of a good cause, and see how it feels to help someone or something other than yourself.  It is a great feeling.

Day 4 Action Step – Decide today to begin to tithe your 10% into your place of worship and watch what God will do in the midst of you trusting Him!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

 

Challenges, change, God, hope, Life Coach

Start from Square One

livingwholecoaching

Well today marks the first day of our 6-month life makeover challenge!  Woo hoo! I am super excited about all the new beginnings and possibilities to change my life from the place that I am right now into the place that I desire to be in every area of my life! It’s not going to be easy that is why we called it a challenge.  There are some parts of our lives that we will breeze right through, other parts not so much.  But I am committed to seeing the process to the end of the 6-months just to see how strong I really am.

I prayed and thought and thought and prayed about what the first action step should be on this challenge and it dawned on me that in order to begin to change the fabric of our lives we need to really have a clear picture of where we are.  Make sense?  How can we challenge ourselves to makeover areas in our lives if we don’t really focus on where we currently are.

So the first action step is going to be internal.  What do I mean?  Well I mean in your heart; I need you to focus on the inner being of who you are right now.  Look at yourself in your spiritual mirror and take an honest look at yourself.  Where are you?  Reflection on oneself is not something that we do everyday or even at all, but in order for us to move into a new dimension of who we really are supposed to be we must figure out who we are right now!  Are you following me?

I know that I shared this part of my journey with  you many times before, but it stand telling again so you get exactly where I am coming from for this action step.  When I was depressed and started to heal (with the love of God), I asked God why did I end up in this place that I was in?  His response to me was simple, “look in the mirror of your soul and take a close look at your life”.  My life had become a jumbled mess of compromising who I really was, what I believed and my values.  For many reasons I found myself compromising to be liked, to be loved, to fit in, and to please people. But that portrayal of who I thought people wanted me to be was false,it was taxing on the real me. For me it was bittersweet to finally realize what was going on with me; on one hand I could finally make a decision to change and become the real Lisa, on the other hand, I had to face that I had let God down.  And that my friend was the bitter part.

Day 1 Action Step – Find a quiet place and begin to focus on your life, every part of it, the good, the bad and the ugly.  Listen to what your heart is telling you about what your life really looks like.  Some of it may hurt, some may make you proud, but remember there is hope for a brighter future.  Now one thing that I want to make clear is that it all begins and ends with you.  You can’t do this exercise and include others in the process.  If you have deep embedded hurt and unforgiveness that you need to deal with please seek a professional therapist to work those issues out.  One thing that God showed me in my process was ME, no one else, only me, I was responsible for myself – period.  After you have gotten a clear picture of where you are now is the time to begin to vision where you want to be in the next 6-months.  Have a set goal for every area of your life that you want to change.  This will give us a clear measurement of your progress.  If you haven’t purchased a journal to record this journey I suggest that you so today. You are going to be wowed at the end of the challenge about how far you have come and accomplished!

Ready?  Let’s go!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

God, Life Coach, purpose, reflection, the butterfly journey

Reflection

livingwholecoaching

I love the picture of the young lady that I have on my blog.  When I saw those pictures of the young lady with the butterfly I knew I had to use it as a part of The Butterfly Journey Ministry.

It was her eyes that captured me.  In them I see her reflecting over her life.  She seems to be pondering the thought that there has to be “more to life” than where I am right now or where I have been.   She is wondering perhaps why did God place her in this world?  What is her purpose?

I imagine that she’s daydreaming about the impact that she would like to leave on the earth.  If you look deeper into her eyes, you can begin to see some pain that she had to endure, some disappointments that have left her a little sad.  If you continue just to stare into her eyes you may start to see yourself.  It may take you to a place within yourself that is asking the same questions or searching for similar answers.

I can tell you I see myself in her a lot and that is why I was drawn to her image.  It was something deeper than just a pretty picture with vibrant colors.  It was a symbol of where my heart was many years ago, reflecting on my life.  Wondering if I had wasted it all away or was there still time to figure out the real me.

Over the course of my journey, I have done a lot of wondering and reflecting, but I don’t waste too much time there, only enough time to allow me to make a decision to make changes.  Just enough time to say, “God, I am ready to be who you created me to be.”  “I want to give back my gifts by using them to make a difference in someone’s life.”  I don’t want to leave this world without touching someone who needs to hear that they are wonderful, beautiful and that you (God) love them with an undying and unconditional love!

If you continue to move around in this life at the speed of light, you will never get to a place of being who you are supposed to be.  You will never experience the joys that God wants to give you.  You will never know the “real” you.  And worse yet you will never be able to impact the world around you with the uniqueness that God created you to be.  Seriously, what is holding you back?

Find a quiet place and reflect on where your life is right now.  The world is waiting for YOU and more importantly, God is waiting for YOU to take your rightful place in the world and make an impact that only you can!  Let The Butterfly Journey help you get to that place!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

 

God, Life Coach, purpose, zeal

What’s Your Zeal Level?

livingwholecoaching

I watched as my vibrant mother (76 years young) deal with her deterring health.  Since October of 2012 she has suffered with synosis of the back with terrible pain in her leg and foot.  She went from an active woman to a woman who had to walk with the aid of cane and even then every movement proved to be a huge challenge for her.

But she kept going, with a resolve that if she could be healed God would be the one to do it.  Her spirit dipped low at points and I saw depression begin to set in.  But one day at her kitchen sink be began to pray and the spirit of the Lord fell upon us and she knew at that time that whatever her state she would continue to live her life on purpose for God.

She believes and trusts God so much that even in the midst of her storm she still had the zeal to make a difference in the world for Christ!

Yesterday was a turning point for her as she successfully underwent surgery on her back.  She is going to have a long road to become the active woman that I once knew, but she is willing to do whatever it takes to receive her full healing and continue to fulfill her purpose.  I admire my mother all the time, she is a pure example of how the love of God can carry you even when things around you begin to change.  God is consistent in who He is!

I see people everyday that have no health problems and in essence their life is really not that bad, but yet they will not resolve to live their life on purpose.  Their zeal for life is nowhere to be found.  I had to look at my own life to measure my level of zeal for the things that God has entrusted me with.  Will I continue to live on purpose and fulfill my destiny?  Even in the midst of adversity would I continue to seek God for everything I need?  Tough questions to ponder but as I watched my mother continue to have faith in a faithful God, I decided too that I would live each day to the fullest.

Don’t you think that you could muster up some zeal for life.  Just take a look around at the people that have less than you and yet they live a life that is full of zeal for purpose.  What is holding you back from wanting to be all that God created you to be?

If you don’t know what you are destined to be, then why not allow a life coach help you get to the place that you want to be?  Because we feel so strongly in helping women everywhere find their true worth and walk in their destiny, we are offering our new life coaching program for only $150 for 5 weeks of intense, action-packed coaching.  We have special payment options so that you don’t even have to pay everything up front!  And for some we will even waive the price, just because our mission in life is to help catapult women into purpose.  God wants us all to live a life with zeal!  Our gifts are presents from God and our use of those gifts are presents to Him.

Contact us today to begin your journey! lisa@thebutterflyjourney.net

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

Faith, God, Joy, the butterfly journey

Can’t Steal My Joy!

livingwholecoaching

Trying to remain in a positive state everyday is challenging to say the least.  We are often faced with bad vibes, bad attitudes and just plain unruly people and situations.  But I am learning to be patient with myself and with others.  It is hard sometimes!

I woke up this morning having slept through the night peacefully.  I have insomnia and sleep is one thing that I do not get enough of normally.  So you can imagine how relaxed and refreshed I was feeling when I woke up to the sun shining and my body feeling oh so good.  At that very moment nothing could have spoiled my mood.  I was praising God for a good nights sleep and started thanking Him for all the blessing He has given me and others.  I was praying for my friends and family and all was well.

As soon as I got logged onto my workstation to begin my many hours of making calls to clients, an emailed popped up.  Still smiling I opened it up and my whole demeanor changed.  What in the world is this?  I felt myself begin to get tense and my whole body started to feel stressed.  So I closed the email, took a deep breath and walked into my living room.  I started to allow the words in that email take my joy, but I said no wait a minute Lisa, stop right where you are and pray.

And pray I did for about 15 minutes before I went back into my home office to resume the daily tasks before me.  Then after about and hour I decided to address the email, I was positive and professional in every sense.  I started to feel good again, because one thing I know about myself I am a great worker, knowledgeable about what I do and always, always have the client’s best interest in mind.  So I sent the response with confidence in my abilities and hope for a better future.  A future that would allow me to flourish in my own business doing things that I love!

Later in the day the Lord began to show me things in my favor and I had to smile and say; “thank you Father”!  He restored my joy for the rest of the day and only a short moment was I displaced in my spirit.

It just goes to show you that praying in all situations, at all times is important.  But what I think was more important was my realization to my actions right from the start.  I can’t allow every thing that comes my way steal my joy, I have a right to have joy that God gives me even in the little accomplishments.  And the thought that I have learned a valuable lesson is icing on the cake.

Well chalk one up for me that I am one step closer to understanding how to live in a world that is not so nice and still have my joy and faith in God.

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

change, God, Healing, Mirror, self-discovery

Are You Okay?

livingwholecoaching

As we embark on our emotional and spiritual wellness journey, one thing is evident.  We have to recognize that we are not well in some areas of our lives in order to get to a place of wellness.  We have to understand that our life as we know it may not be the best place for us.  During this journey we will need to really lean on God to show us, to reveal to us the areas in which we need help.

I look around at different people, mainly myself because that is who I know the best, and I see so much hurt and pain.  How can I recognize it in others?  Because I have been there myself, maybe not in the same manner but in some way.  It wasn’t until God allowed something to stop me in my busy life to really see where I was (in a pit of hell).

I would admit that I would never have stopped living like I was if something wouldn’t have come along to get my attention to what my life really looked like especially from God’s perspective.  I had to surrender to the idea that my life was very troubled and I needed help.

But my healing didn’t begin until I asked for help.  I wanted to know exactly what was wrong with me and more importantly how I ended up in such a dismal state of being.  If I didn’t know how I got to the place that I had ended up,  I would never know how to avoid going back.  It is easy to place the blame for what others have done to us, but at the end of the day we can only change ourselves.

Let’s decide today that we will ask God to show us ourselves and be willing to make a change.  Michael Jackson said it best in his song: The Man in the Mirror.

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa

 

God, hope, journey, life, perseverance

And We Journey On. . .

livingwholecoaching

Everyday God is showing me new things about life, my life.  I realize now that when He began to show me things about myself that helped to heal me from the dark place of depression it would not be the only lessons that I would learn.

To say the least, it has been a learning experience ever since I opened myself up to Him.  When I decided that my own way of living life was limited and literally a mess, I finally turned wholeheartedly to God.  And when I did the “real” journey began.

It has not been easy!  But everyday as life plays out before me, I try to learn what it has to tell me.  What is it that God wants me to understand about the situation I am dealing with.  Sometimes the answer comes quickly and sometimes not so much.  But I continue to persevere to find out.

More and more I am understanding that we don’t just reach a point in our journey and stop learning.  We continue to evolve with each new challenge, every triumph and even with every failure.  One thing I know is that God is consistent in who He is.  He never changes, His promises are true.  He doesn’t lie.  I can trust Him with everything.

There are a lot of things that still leave me wondering what am I supposed to do with that?  But God always has the answer and if I seek Him, He will reveal it to me in due time.

The reason I blog is to tell my story as it unfolds, not scripted or rehearsed but just like it is.  My prayer is that something that I share will help someone else as they travel the road of life.  With God I can be me, the real me.  He knows me better than anyone and He loves me.  Just knowing that for me is priceless!

I will never stop learning and asking God about my life.  I won’t stop because I need to know in order to live my “best” life on this side of heaven.  I want to please my God with my life, it is all I have to offer back for what He did for me!

So as you continue on your journey of life, keep an open heart and mind toward God.  He will give you everything you need to make it.  Yeah, it may get hard some days, but the reward in the end is greater than the worst day you have to live.  One day we will understand it all.

I love you God and thank you for loving me!

The Butterfly Journey ~ Lisa