Ditch Doubt, Define Your Destiny - AuthorCynthiaHerron.com

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As a child, I knew I was different.

When I was about seven, my second grade teacher confirmed it. (“It” not being tangible in terms of a label per se, but more a stark realization than anything else.)

Mrs. K spoke with deliberate, adult-like precision and put it into perspective for my little girl brain. Her words transcended my finite knowledge of a particular concept and breathed life into a pot-of-gold possibility.

Other teachers left indelible imprints:

Mrs. M…the no-nonsense matron. But a hugger.
Mr. D…the hammer that pounded childish creativity. Into submission.
Mr. F…the strict disciplinarian who thought he had a secret. But the whole town knew it.
Mrs. E…the smiling encourager who bluntly assessed. And gave me hope.

It’s hope that fuels my yearning and fans the writing flame.

For writers, it’s that same hope that stirs our hearts and prods us to press on. We have a vision (what we want to happen), a mission (what we are called to do), and a destiny (what God determines).

When our journey meets with juts in the road our vision clouds. We’re thrown off-kilter.

We may grow weary.

Complacent.

And yes. Sometimes jaded.

Our doubt-filled ditches may become trenches of defeat.

All of us have seasons of hardship and discontent (you can read about mine here), but it’s during those seasons that we’re being groomed. For a bigger purpose and a higher calling. In fact, it’s during those very seasons–that period of refinement–that God shapes our destiny and throws the ball back in our court.

I don’t understand how all that works. I do know that He grants us “free will.”

I believe each of us is destined for greatness, but sometimes, we shirk the responsibilities along with the gift. In other words, we decide how we’re going to react, proceed, and distribute all that He gives us. We define our destiny.

Don’t misunderstand. We can’t be Suzy Sunshine all the time, but we can choose ways to limit the clouds. (I wrote a post on that.)

Well, how do we ditch doubt and define our destiny?

Limit negativity. If we’re around naysayers for very long, their downer mindset is bound to rub off. Woulda’s, coulda’s, shoulda’s and can’ts, don’ts, won’ts are deathblows to proactive thinkers. Disengage. (I know. It’s hard.) We’d like to think we can “fix” them, but the truth is while we can empathize to a degree, offer suggestions, and even lend a hand, there comes a time where we must pray for those folks and move on. (And let me just add, I’m certainly not advocating ditching friends who are experiencing hardship, difficulties, or clinical depression. I’m talking about the chronic complainers–the No-No Nancys and Downer Dans.)

Envision success. Written goals–where we can see them on a daily basis–carry weight. They spur us to action. We visualize the steps necessary to achieve our desires and we can then move forward. It’s a heady feeling when we sense progress (even if it’s baby steps) and recognize our efforts are paying off.

Name our mission. As with any ministry, it’s important to verbalize our calling. While speaking it doesn’t necessarily make it so, it does hold us to accountability. Words are powerful. That’s why writers love them!

Accept God’s best. Sometimes, that’s difficult because we may not feel worthy of all He wants to give us. I don’t mind telling you, I’m a work-in-progress on that one myself. When a journey seems particularly long, we may have the tendency to think, “Well, life isn’t fair. This is just what I deserve.” That, however, is dangerous thinking. Life ISN’T fair, but we rarely get what we really deserve. If we did, there would be no journey. Think about it.

Our Heavenly Father controls our destiny, yes. But guess what?

We get to choose how we define it.

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What have you learned during YOUR journey?

How are you defining your destiny?

TWEETABLES:

We can’t be Suzy Sunshine all the time, but we CAN limit the clouds. (Click to Tweet)

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