Author: Geri Mason

Stick with the enemy you know, because you know what their tactics will be.  You know how they are going to come at you.  You have been there and done that, and got the T-shirt to show for it.  It’s very familiar ground, therefore, it may be less stressful than the unknown.  Many times in life, as soon as you start doing well, the enemy peeps its ugly head in to see where he can stir up some mess.  Where can he shower some doubt and disbelief?  So, be careful when making changes, because you could end up jumping out the frying pan into the fire.  At least with the frying pan there’s a cushion between you and the fire, which means you might have a chance of not burning up completely, but once you get into the fire, there’s no return.  We always think that the grass is greener on the other side until we get over there and realize that it’s artificial turf.  The grass is really greener on the side that is watered properly!

When I tell you that life has been life-ing, this is no understatement!  God’s got me all twisted up like a pretzel wondering which end is truly up.  I’m sure some of you are in the same boat.  My only recourse is to trust Him by sticking with the enemy I know.

 

There are days when I know what I’m doing, and then there are days when I wonder what I’m doing.  Although I love my newfound freedom of not having to plan or execute anything, I must say that I feel like an empty nester. You know those feelings you have when you have spent your whole life nurturing and raising a child into adulthood and they go off to college or they step out and build a life of their own, and you wake up and realize that your whole world revolved around them.  That’s kind of what I feel occasionally when it comes to “Geri Speak.”  I miss writing speeches and sharing my stories of trials and triumphs, and I miss having something to look forward to that excites me, because nothing gets me more excited than preparing for and presenting a speech.

I am keenly aware that this is a new phase of life for me and I firmly believe that I have taken it in stride with no real complaints, however I must be honest and admit that a part of me is slowly dying inside.  “Geri Speak” has been my life since I was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 30 and shared my story in a local magazine, thus opening a door for my speaking career.  Now at age 69, after stepping away from promoting “Geri Speak,” I’m able to fill my time with other enjoyable endeavors, but the speaker in me is oh so lonely!  I know God has other plans moving forward and I’m putting forth my best effort to hear clearly what that might be as I continue to enjoy the new doors that have opened so far.

The other day I was talking to a friend and she shared with me how someone told her that she was operating from a place of entitlement, because she told them that she had been waiting on God for so long for one particular thing, and now she’s at a point where she decided she’s not going to really pray about it anymore.  My friend admitted that she was thinking, “God I did all of this. I said all the right things. You bless me with all of these other things, but the main thing that I want you have not even given me yet, so I’m going to stop asking for it.”

After hearing her say this, it made me take a look at my actions over the past few months and I had to admit that I’ve had that same attitude as well. Even though I didn’t say it in those words, once I heard her explain the conversation that she had had with a friend, I realized that I had been feeling kind of entitled also. But it wasn’t so much about what I had asked God for, rather it was the fact that I had done so much and given so much and followed these guidelines, and did this thing right and that thing right. My blessings were starting to pour and overflow to be a blessing for others. And then unexpected negative things started happening in my life and I was like, “but God, I did all this. I made all this happen. I’ve been following all these rules and thought I was doing all the right things for all the right reasons. So how dare you God!”  Yes. I was beginning to feel entitled as well.

So we have to be careful with our thoughts because He hears! You might not have told anyone how you were feeling about the fact that God didn’t do this or that, but you did say it in your mind. You don’t understand why this happened and how dare life send you this thing after all the effort you put into doing the right thing. So let’s check ourselves. OK?

As I gradually take down the holiday decorations and gently brace myself for the New Year, I realize that I got everything that I wanted and nothing that I asked for, because I didn’t ask for anything!  How awesome is it when God shows up and shows out beyond your wildest dreams.  Yes, I had some things on my mind that would be nice, but I had not really put them on my vision board or announced it to the universe.  It was sort of my private little wish list.  Then one day I said to myself, “Why not check into a couple of those things that have been on the back burner and bring them to the forefront?”  And low and behold, once I spoke to the universe, things happened so fast it scared me.  I literally had to sit down for a moment and take it all in just to make sure that I wasn’t rushing into something that was my choice and not God’s choice.  Part of what made it so scary is the fact that it all happened in late December.  I kept seeing and hearing stuff about how God still has time to do a miracle before the New Year, but since I don’t make New Year resolutions, and I hadn’t really asked for anything, I kinda chalked it up to folks simply sharing their belief system for those who were still waiting on God to do something.

Although my cataract surgery naturally had to be planned (New Vision – Dec. 19^th), however, getting a (New Vehicle – Dec. 23^rd), and starting a (New Job – Dec. 26^th), was totally an end of year decision that God made so easy I knew it was nobody but Him!  After being approved for my vehicle I sat on the offer for 30 days before acting upon it, and in reference to my part-time job at Chic-Fil-A, I had randomly applied on Indeed back in September and I literally forgot about it when I didn’t receive a call or email.  How about I pop back on the site in December and see that they have requested a 15 minute interview and I get hired on the spot!  Yes!  God still has time to work a miracle no matter how late we think it is in the game.  Never give up.  Go for the goal even if it looks like a last minute decision.  Sometimes the last shot is the one that saves the team.  My wins this past month has been a win for so many others.  As I move forward in 2024, all I want to do is give God the honor, the glory, and the praise for what He has already done and ask Him to help me be a good steward through my gifts, my time, my talent, and my tithes!  Don’t ask and you shall receive!

 

 

 

Some of you may have noticed that the most outrageous ideas seem to be the ones that take off.  The minute you say, “Ain’t no way in the world…” that’s when stuff starts to happen.  How many times have you looked at a product or service and thought, how ingenious even though it started from a crazy idea?  Do you realize that everything we see was a thought at one time?  Do you know how many thoughts we have during the day and night that could seriously change the way the world operates?  The problem is our mind.  We spend so much time thinking and over-thinking the ideas that come to us.  Can you imagine what would happen if we went with our first thought and then lost our mind while we continue working on that thought?  I have had the most success with the things that I gave the least amount of thought.  I’ve also succeeded at something and started to over-think it, and the rug got snatched from under my feet. I remember the days when my life was planned down to the hour.  I am so happy that those days are gone.  I still write stuff down, but nothing on the list is mandatory.  It’s a list of things I would like to get done.  Of course I have a regular routine of eating and sleeping, which all of us probably do.  But I don’t get bent out of shape if my day is thrown off by a phone call or an emergency situation.  I just make the necessary adjustments, ex: pack a quick snack, cancel an appointment, wake up a little earlier, or go to sleep a little later.  Whatever it takes to get the job done is what I do.  My mind switches daily to the task at hand.  I don’t overplay situations.  I don’t ask a lot of questions.  I go with the flow.  Life is so much easier when you lose your mind. If you have been following my blogs, then you know my writing style is so outside the box.  Keep checking me out, you never know where it might take you.

 

Photo by William Fitzgibbon on Unsplash

Think about this!  If I tell you something that concerns me and you express an interest in my concern by listening and making suggestions, then it’s obvious that you have a vested interest in the outcome as well.  Does that make sense to you?  I know there are some who will just forget about the matter once the conversation is over unless I bring up the subject again, and there are also people who will check back with me to see how things are going.  However, being the person that I am, I find myself always joining a circus where I have no clowns!  Some of this has to do with the fact that I am extremely organized and want the same for others, in addition to being an over thinker and very caring person.  There are times when I have to remind myself that this is not my fight, my problem to solve, or my cross to bear.  I need to learn how to take information that is given to me and use it for its intended purpose, while allowing others to operate in the way that works for them.  Remember, you cannot expect you from another person.  God made only one!

 

You Won’t Break my Soul – A couple things to consider before you break:

• Look at what you like because some things you like may contribute to your fall.  We have toxic people/places in our lives that keeps us getting defeated.  We also have toxic habits and eventually the player of the game gets played and our falls follow the same pattern over and over.  Let’s consider the places we like to go. The kind of men/women we like might be part of the problem.
• Have a good gauge on your gas and make sure you are not running on empty. Sometimes love is a liability because we start expecting things and entertaining things while ignoring people’s excuses.  Your heart will lie to you!  We do this dangerous dance because God keeps pulling us out each time, but we get tired then we give in, and we create the most trouble for ourselves when we are tired! Thus the weight of carrying too much for far too long hits and we realize we have run out of gas.

Your failure isn’t always final.  Never exchange your power for performance!

-Brief excerpts from a Sunday sermon (some added thoughts from me)

As I’ve gotten older I try to practice what is preached TO me, rather than practicing what I preach.  It’s easy to practice what we preach to ourselves because we can say anything and then follow through on what we believe!  There have been many occasions where I felt the urgency to let go of what I feel or want or believe about a situation, and today I felt it very strongly after listening to the message at church.  Although the message was about how we miss the opportunity to witness because we are so judgmental when it comes to people who don’t live up to our expectations of how we think they should look or act, I found myself feeling guilty of avoiding opportunities, not so much to “witness,” but simply to show that I care.  Today I practiced what was preached TO me because life is not always about me!  It truly made me feel good knowing that I had removed myself from the equation and focused only on how I could help the situation.  Sometimes doing the right thing means doing things you wouldn’t normally do in order to make others happy.  (I know I left out a lot of details, but you can apply this to many circumstances.)  Be blessed.

Sometimes you have to be where you are to get to where you are going.  It is important that we are present in the moment and embracing our current circumstances in order to progress towards our future goals.  In other words, you cannot always skip ahead to your desired destination without first acknowledging and dealing with your current situation.  Every stop along your journey is preparing you for what lies ahead.  No time is wasted if you learn to see your experiences as parts of the final puzzle.  To reach your goals or achieve personal growth, you may need to accept and work through the challenges, lessons, and experiences of your present situation. Use mindfulness, patience, and resilience as you navigate your journey toward your desired future.  The path to success and personal development often involves taking one step at a time, learning from the present, and using those lessons to shape your future. Let’s not rush through life but appreciate and learn from each moment along the way.

 

So often we hear people speak of the “good ole days” and it conjures up feelings of times gone by, when the world was slower, simpler and kinder.  As I read my morning bible study, with an accompanying story, it took me back to my younger years.  Yes, I do miss the country living where you could leave your doors unlocked, people showed up uninvited and all was well with the world, and we were glad to see everyone.  However as a teenager I couldn’t wait to be grown and gone.  Oh how we think we want what we want until we get it!  I vowed never to return permanently because I couldn’t imagine a town with one stop light (I was grown before they got that one), and no pizza shop for miles away.  Don’t get me wrong now, I still have no plans to return but my thoughts this morning gave me a bit of envy for the family and friends, unlike me, who opted to remain in their little hometown.  Every time I visit, which is quite often now that I’m back in Virginia, I’m reminded of the quiet resolve and peace of mind that comes with the lack of busyness found in the city.  So, for some of us the good ole days may be behind us, but for others the good ole days are right now in their little hometown!