Loving Progress Not Perfection

I have to be honest, Mondays are a real test for me because the weekend is such a precious time of really connecting fully with my husband and my son. Monday morning is a reminder of a new week beginning, but also an end to enjoying quality time with my favorites. The hardest Mondays are especially those Mondays after I’ve had a busy week of serving others. At this time in my life, my schedule happens to have two of these “busy” weeks a month. I know exactly when these weeks happen, and it’s been consistent that by the time Monday comes around, I’m whipped in every way. I’ve also learned—the hard way—that on these busy weeks I have to be careful what other things I add to my schedule. I have to be self aware by asking, “Will that recharge me, or is it pouring out?” If I’m not careful, I can end up giving myself to everyone else and then I’m empty. Have you heard the most recent Jonny Diaz song, “Just Breathe”—yeah, I kind of feel like I need to tell myself that—a lot!

This past week Monday, was one of those days. It came as I expected it and it was by far a hard one to say the least. I was struggling for motivation and I felt completely overwhelmed. I started my day with my usual two chair time. As I began, my own thoughts seemed to assault me as I tried desperately to tune my ear to hear the Father’s heart. I sensed the Lord in a still small whisper. He gently gave me direction, “Sonya, just start putting together a plan. It will give you some goals and pull you out of that feeling of being overwhelmed.”

At this point, many wise people who I love and respect for certain would give me wise words and “this is what you should do instructions” to fill myself up. All of these would have been great advice and godly wisdom—and God graciously uses people to speak into my life. It is good, but there is always something better and it’s what I really need in the moment. Does God know my situation? Can God can handle it? Does God have a plan? These three questions are the basis of Two Chairs. This. Only this. God’s voice is the most important thing in my life. When it seems like the answer is obvious as to what I need, God knows and He wants to share that with me. All I have to do is ask and then listen. This is one thing I do daily. You can read more about my routine for sparking positive thinking in The 1 Thing You Need—To Be The Best You.

 

I immediately started pulling together some goals and vision for something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately—creating a legacy of consistency. I’ll write about that a little later, but the point is that God knew what I needed and it did in fact give me the motivation I needed to just get me moving! I also was reminded of a quote by Frank Tibolt, “Action generates inspiration. Seldom does inspiration generate action.” This quote reiterates the fact that I just need to take one step. I can love the progress, instead of demanding perfection. In fact even as I created the image for the quote, I didn’t come out perfect. I made some mistakes, but I purposefully decided to leave them as is. If you know me at all, you know that this isn’t easy for me to do, but it’s a testimony of progress, not perfection.

As the hard Mondays come, and I know that they will, I can be better prepared knowing that I’m continuing to build my mental and emotional fitness. Each hard Monday I put in the book, I learn something. I gain experience and self awareness to help me make better decisions. It’s out of this place that, “Just Get Movin’ Mondays” started. It gave me something to look forward to rather than dread. My hope is to inspire you to “Just Get Movin’” in regards to healthy living by reminding you to do something today that your future self will thank you for.

Are Mondays ever hard for you?