Ripples ... One small change can have an enormous impact!

When you toss a stone in the water do you watch what happens next? The water mildly implodes and as it fills back to the surface it ripples into circles, bigger and softer until it's calm again. Envision this ... how does this make you feel? I feel peace. I feel calm. And I feel hope. So I throw another stone, because I want to feel that again and bathe in that serenity.

It's a metaphor for something that happened to me this week. I am making some significant changes in my life. Many of those changes have long standing implications that may only be known to me and my small family. Nevertheless, this change is a huge investment. Moving from one place to another as a military brat prepared me to face change, yet it still comes with anxieties and challenges but there is no room for fear or doubt. They are the opposite of everything I am trying to do. Fear is the opposite of love. Doubt is the opposite of faith.

In some ways I feel like I am standing at the edge of a pristine blue lake, rock in hand, quietly reflecting, meditating, praying. I pick that rock up off the dirt clad ground and adjust it within my hand and fingers just perfectly. I draw my arm back and then thrust it forward releasing the flat, gray stone onto the water ....Splash!

It's begun. The splash is significant of the impacting event. A decision. An announcement. A change. There is an implosion of sorts, from the world around ... doubt, fear, opinion, judgement The ripples on the water begin to grow and spread. As I dig my feet into position, stand tall, shoulders back, chin up, I begin to see those things around me lessen because I have freed my mind and my heart of doubt and fear. I am cleansing my soul of judgement. I deeply breathe in hope and love. I exhale peace and understanding. The ripples begin to fade and then disappear. I can't help but feel the stillness of the water, like glass.

Everyday we are faced with challenges. Everyday we are faced with the opinions of others. Everyday we are being judged. I tell you, stand proudly in your decisions. You did not get to where you are whimsically. No, you may have been on this road for awhile now. Believe in yourself and in your path. Prayerfully consider your responses as others cast doubt and judgement upon you. Breathe in love, exhale understanding. Breathe in hope, exhale peace. One small change can have an enormous impact.

May your day be blessed and may you bless others.