Ready to throw in the towel on your dream? Voices telling you that you aren’t good enough, that you’re a loser, that you don’t have what it takes to pull it off? Perhaps my story will help encourage those of you suffering from “dream fatigue.”
Blog
Posted on 12.14.2013 by Jody Noland
Posted on 11.21.2013 by Jody Noland
Do you ever feel like George Bailey in It's a Wonderful Life? Defeated by financial struggles, with each step forward offset by two steps backward? With the holidays approaching, the financial pressure continues to mount. Wanting to demonstrate love for our families, we easily succumb to the temptation of spending money we don’t have for gifts our loved ones don’t need.
Posted on 11.07.2013 by Jody Noland
Half empty or half full? Each new day, we have a fresh choice of how we look at our lives, our circumstances, the “hand we’ve been dealt.” What are you choosing?
We all know people that look at life through negative lenses. They see the shortcomings in every situation. Yes, they might make great quality inspectors looking for defects on a manufacturing line. But in terms of life, it’s a draining perspective for everyone in that person’s world. And most of all, it’s a slow emotional death for the person themselves.
Posted on 10.24.2013 by Jody Noland
Let’s face it. A father needs big shoulders. Many responsibilities...pressures...demands. Most men I know seem genetically wired with a tremendous sense of responsibility for protecting and providing for their families.
Are you a dad? Then I’ll bet you know what I mean.
The day to day pressures of life can seem overwhelming. The tyranny of the urgent so often outweighs the longer term, more “important” things. How do you even think about your legacy when you’re not sure if you can pay this month’s bills?
Posted on 9.25.2013 by Jody Noland
“A day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day.” Ever feel that way when it comes to parenting? I know I have.
So much of the early years of child rearing is repetitive. Feeding, diaper changing, naps, more feeding, more diaper changing, more naps. It’s easy to forget that life is moving forward and not in circles. Then, you blink twice and your child is entering kindergarden, middle school, college. And you wonder: “Where did the years go?”
Posted on 9.19.2013 by Jody Noland
I love fall. I love the changing colors of the leaves, the bright blue skies and the cooler weather. I love college football, pumpkins, chyrsanthymums, and the (sadly decreasing) focus on Thanksgiving. And I love the smell and taste of fresh baked pumpkin muffins!
Posted on 9.11.2013 by Jody Noland
It started like just another day. A beautiful, sparking September day. Moms and dads kissed their families goodbye and headed off to the daily “rat race.” The tyranny of the urgent pressed in. Deadlines loomed. Quotas pressured. Legal issues threatened. Personnel problems bubbled. Flights to important meetings summoned. The stuff of life. The stuff that so often occupies our thoughts and our time and pushes out the “big rocks,” the truly important things in life.
Posted on 9.06.2013 by Jody Noland
Yup. I was busted. And the most humbling part is that I was busted by a nine year old! I’m not talking about being handcuffed and hauled off to jail. I’m talking about being hit smack dab in the face with a feeling of total conviction...all of my sugar coating, rationalizing and excuses burned away.
Posted on 8.17.2013 by Jody Noland
Allergy season must have started early this year. Or maybe that’s not the real reason behind all of the red-eyed parents that I’ve seen recently. Yes, the red eyes are the symptom of a changing season...just a season of life, not the weather.
It’s a season of transition for many parents - the time when children are leaving for college.
Posted on 7.25.2013 by Jody Noland
Today marks the fourth anniversary of my husband’s “promotion.” That’s the term I prefer to use instead of “death.” As a Christian, if I believe what the Bible says about Heaven (which I do), then moving from this life to the next really is something to be celebrated.