Big Brother Blog: Light Up the Sky with Your Amazing Power

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Light Up the Sky with Your Amazing Power | The BridgeMaker

Light Up the Sky with Your Amazing Power

Posted: 22 Sep 2010 02:14 PM PDT

The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any. – Alice Walker

The sun waits for you every morning.

Before filling the sky with bursts of orange, yellow and red it looks to see if you are on the way. The sun hovers beneath the horizon until you are ready. Then sensing your presence, it begins to inch its way higher into the sky.

You light up the sky with your amazing power. The sun simply soaks it in for the world to see.

The power in you offers love, provides encouragement, and finds forgiveness. Your power opens doors, takes down walls, and allows access to a beautiful world. Your amazing power changes lives – including your own.

A faithful surrender

My power hasn't felt amazing lately.

The past several weeks have been difficult. The effort behind launching my new eBook while trying to maintain my regular commitments has left me uninspired and worn out. I have put too much on my plate and its fullness has left me feeling dull, unfocused and lethargic.

I hit the wall and rather than going through it, I bounced off of it and landed right on my ass. It has been frustrating going to bed exhausted only to wake up feeling raw and tired. There have even been moments of panic when I thought my power was being destroyed and it would never return to its full strength.

"What if I can't regain my strength, my passion?" I thought. "What if my creativity has vanished forever?' And then the most crippling thought started its taunting:

What if everything I have been working so hard to achieve vanishes in the blink of an eye?

Now in retrospect, I understand when my mind becomes as tired as my body, the first thing that goes is my rational thinking

So, this past weekend I had no choice but to surrender. I knew I had to shut it down and do as little as possible. No matter how hard I resisted, my reserve supply had become depleted and my tank had been emptied.

It was like seeing a truck cross the dividing line in the highway before plowing head first into an unsuspecting car. You see it. You know a crash is about to happen; but you are powerless to stop it from happening.

A faithful surrender became my only choice. Faithful in the sense I wasn't giving up; I was just listening to what my body was telling me. Sometimes surrendering can be the biggest testament to our faith. I didn't know how long it would take me to recover; I just knew I had to yield and then believe my power would come back.

The way to recovery

I spent the weekend not in a writing mode, but in a recuperating mode. Mary Beth and I were able to steal a dinner together Friday night, followed by a weekend that involved catching a movie, knocking out a few home projects and watching plenty of football on Sunday.

The 48 hours brought rest and they brought peace of mind, too. By stepping away from the urgency of getting things down, I was able to find clarity. By Sunday evening, I felt my energy returning. It was reassuring how the negative thoughts were slowly being replaced by more positive ones.

During this period of surrender, I realized there were five important lessons that were helping to restore my power. I hope you find value in these lessons when you are experiencing a power loss, too:

Reflect on what you know
Look at your past. Appreciate what you have accomplished and the power it took to achieve those things. As we grow older our power doesn't diminish, it actually increases because it is fueled by the knowledge gained along the way.
Be still and listen
You can't change what you don't acknowledge. Recognize your fears and their origin. For me, my fears come from a place of self-doubt and insecurity. When I sit in stillness and listen to what's happening inside of me, the truth begins to drown out the fear. Stillness allows me to connect to the part of my mind that is often neglected during busier times. Stillness brings the power of awareness and then healing.
Follow your heart
Passion, love and energy doesn't have to be an all or nothing proposition. When you feel discouraged, try following your passion for just one hour a day. Celebrate what you accomplish in that hour. Before long, you will find the energy to follow your passion longer as your power grows stronger.
Show kindness
Kindness is the great rejuvenator. Kindness heals and covers the ugliness with love and care. Show yourself kindness, first. Agree to be human and leave your superhero cape at the door. Give mercy to the part of you that is feeling weak. Believe that humility in your weakness is a sign of great resolve – and power.
The one truth about power
Power is fleeting. On some days it feels strong and other days it feels like it barely exists. But on all days know this one truth about your power: Only you can give your power away. No one can take it from you. Your weakest moments can generate the greatest amount of power when you make the choice to hold your power close.

The sun also rises – for me

I went to bed Sunday night feeling better. It was like the reset button for my mind and body had been tripped. Though I didn't write a single word over the weekend, I felt peaceful and centered. My faithful surrendering was a sign of my power after all. I was just too tired to realize it sooner.

I closed my eyes and found the stillness once again. My mind was strong enough to ignore the doubts and hear the truth. What I've been working so hard to accomplish isn't going to vanish in the blink of an eye. The truck was able to veer off just in time. The car is safe to continue its journey.

I feel asleep knowing the sun would wait for me in the morning. It watched over me and waited until I opened my eyes. In that moment, I saw love light up the darkness as my amazing power welcomed me back.

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