I received a wedding invitation this week. It’s the most unique invitation I’ve ever seen. What do you think?
Crazy, isn’t it? I know! I laughed so much and actually thought, so darling, but seriously, so tacky! I then shared it with some of my best girlfriends. And then one girlfriend said something that rocked me. She said, “What a cute invitation, I’ll bet it’s going to be a really fun wedding.” And she’s exactly right. It will be a super fun wedding. The people are great fun and I love them. They have an awesome sense of humor (see above example), and it will be a time of celebration and joy. So what if the invitation is not my preference? (Tiffanys, engraved on cream paper if you really want to know). But thanks to a shift in perspective, that invitation went from tacky to terrific.
What if, when I looked in the mirror, or tried on my clothes, or got ready to leave in the morning, I gave myself a perspective shift. How about a perspective that says thank you God for my sturdy legs that will carry me far. Thank you for a healthy heart that beats with love and excitement for others. Thank you for soft arms that hold my husband and children tightly. Thank you for diligent hands that wash dishes and correct math homework and type encouraging words. Thank you for a full belly that is testimony of your gracious abundance.
When we are thankful, our hearts and minds are full. There’s no room for “not enough” in a mind and heart full of gratitude.
A perspective of discontent comes from focusing on what we don’t have. What’s not enough. Whether it’s our backyards, our bodies or our backgrounds. Not enough outside seating to invite the neighbors for dinner. Not skinny enough to look good in those fancy jeans. Not enough experience to…(fill in the blank.) Not enough is a big, fat, ugly lie. We are all enough. We are all enough. Just. As. We. Are.
And maybe Mother’s Day is a good time to let go of the lie that my own mother was not enough. She was enough. She did the best she could with what she had. She always loved me unconditionally and still tells me I am more than enough. My own ears hearing the not enough from her mouth in regards to herself and others, was my own insecurity rearing it’s ugly head. (I love you Mother!) She is enough. She did enough. More than enough.
And when I realize that, suddenly I’m freed to be enough in my own life. I’m enough of a wife. I’m enough of a mother. I’m enough in all my 186 lb glory. I’m enough because God made me enough.
I’m on this public quest to shed some weight. I don’t know what the end goal is. It’s been almost 15 years since I’ve been at what I deemed my “perfect” weight, so now at age 50 I don’t know what my happy place weight will be. For today, if I can shed 20 lbs, lower my blood sugar and have more energy, I’ll be encouraged.
Can I be enough now and yet get better? Of course! That’s called growth. But we don’t have to wait to be “better” to live life fully enough. Let go of the lies that are telling you you are not enough. You are enough. Today. Right now. You are enough.
Let’s change our perspectives together. Let’s live our lives fully no matter what the number on the scale says. We can focus on gratitude rather than lack. Because when we’re thankful for being enough, and we let go of the ‘not enough’ in others and become thankful for who we are and what our bodies are, then we’re free to focus on others.
Mothers, I don’t have to tell you our lives are full of doing for others. And the paradox is the more we pour out, the more we are filled. It’s beautiful. You’re beautiful. It’s enough. You’re enough. Happy Mother’s Day.
Question: Do you know you are enough? What keeps you from celebrating that? How can you begin celebrating your “enough-ness”? Please leave your comments below.