Every so often I hear a voice in my head that says, “you really aren’t that great of a writer, Michelle,” and the next thing I know, I find myself questioning this whole blog thing. Last night, Shannon Muruli gave me permission to fire the girl speaking this lie and a host of others.
Shannon is an author, speaker, and the creator of the School of Courage for women. Last night was her Courage in the City: Do it Afraid Dinner. All over the room, there were women from all walks of life who are going through the struggles and triumphs of life and supporting one another in doing it without fear.
The evening began with a time of networking and getting to know one another. We were challenged not to sit for 30 minutes. It started out a tiny bit awkward, but before long, we were making connections, exchanging business cards, and slowly realizing that we actually needed each other. There were several women who came with business needs that were met by other women during this time.
Once we were seated, Shannon selected women to come to the front of the room to share their “wins”. Ladies shared everything from business accomplishments to raising children, to being able to face the day. Listening to these ladies got me thinking about how we truly don’t celebrate our wins enough. Instead, we spend a great deal of time lamenting our mistakes and hiding in fear. My personal wins included launching my blog, moving back to Dallas, leaving my teaching career, leaving a relationship, saying “yes” to God, and learning to say “Yes” to myself. I had to do each of these things afraid. They weren’t easy, but the payoff was and continues to be huge.
There were two featured speakers for the evening. The first was NaTasha Aramis. She is an actress and a realtor “making deals in heals”. She spoke about her past experiences, future goals, and how courage is needed to achieve all of it. Our second speaker was singer/songwriter, Lilian Levite. Her song “413” off of her EP, Journey To… is based on Philippians 4:13 and speaks about the fact that “there’s nothing you cannot do through Christ who strengthens you.” Both of these women reminded me of the power of our testimony and how what we go through and experience is so often not just for us, but for the encouragement of someone else.
One statement that Shannon said during the evening that I had never hear before was that, “sometimes you will have to borrow someone else’s courage.” This convicted me so much. How many times have you been afraid to share your story? When we fail to do so we may be keeping courage away from someone who needs it. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to hold any responsibility in someone not achieving their goals in life. On the contrary, I desire to live in community to share with and learn from others.
Some big takeaways for me included..
- Walk the message you teach.
This is something that is so important to me and that I am constantly working on. As someone with the platform Our Words Have Power, I take it as my responsibility to be conscious of the words I am speaking , whether they be to myself or others. Will I always get it right? No. But that’s where God’s grace comes in along with my ability to get back up when I mess up.
- Ask yourself, “what have I not given myself permission to do”.
What if we were able to live our lives with no regrets? We would be able to go out and pursue our goals and dreams without anything or anyone holding us back. Whatever it is that we have been hindering ourselves from doing, now is the time to take the reins off, and do it big!
- Your “yes” is not a one-time thing
Living without fear isn’t something that only happens once. It has to be a choice each day in the big and small decisions that we make.
If you find yourself living in fear in any way, I want you to keep the following in mind…
- You were made in God’s image (Genesis 1:26)
- You were fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14)
- You are more than a conqueror (Romans 8:37)
- God has not given you a spirit of fear, but a spirt of love, power, and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)
