INFLUENCE

INFLUENCE...

This one word will never mean the same thing to me again.  What a powerful world it already is, but now- for me, there is so much more meaning behind it.  I was able to attend (kind of on a whim) this year's "Influence Conference" in Indianapolis for three short days.  My siesta sister KK 

has pretty much everything to do with how I got here but there are actually a lot of spokes in the wheel of why I ended up at this conference.  However, I don't think I can transpose all of that into words right now...maybe for another day.  I have learned I actually don't love blogging- it doesn't come easy to me.  With that said, sorry I never finished my Luke series ;) The Influence Network puts on this conference- and let me tell you, they do it well!  I took many notes for my own mini retreat I do here in Michigan every year with my local community.  Read more about Ripple Retreat here!  One common thread I noticed over the weekend is that women were made for community. (scripture even tells us so in Gen 28:3, Heb 10:24, Rom 12:3-13)

I am SO Blessed I have a great local community with like minded women right here in my town via the Princess Posse, MOPS at my church, my on-campus women's ministry bible study group, and my HUGE church family that feels very small b/c I know many of them on a deep level :-)  I never take for granted that I am blessed to have such great women right at my fingertips, but it was also GREAT to walk with women from all over the country who share similar hopes & hearts with all different backgrounds.

Towards the beginning of September, I posed a FB status with something along the lines of "whoa, I was exposed to a new world today.  I need to find time to invest in this world- something will have to give."  That is truly where this all began.  I was exposed to the online community of HUNDREDS of like-minded woman who were blogging about so many different things that were SO relateable to me.  First and foremost, these women LOVE Jesus more than anything.  Next, many of them are moms and LOTS of them are hilarious sharing mom stories.  

Here are a few of their info cards (first of all- this idea is brilliant for this community, just sayin...)

and here is a copy of mine- thank you again KK for the digital help creating this (sooo not my talent)

 

(oh, and you may notice this matches the new design of my blog...again, hats off to my KK! My head was literally SPINNING as she coppied this code here, and that code there.  She did teach me how to do a lot, but will I remember is the question, lol)

Some of these women have passion to give back to their local community or communities over seas that so badly need help.  What a fresh reminder that we, as Americans, are sooooo freakin' spoiled we are often oblivious to what is going on NOT in our own backyard.  < I'm sure that sentence is not grammatically correct, roll with it anyway...

Here is a quick pic of just a few of the oganizations we were exposed to over the weekend.  My heart pounded for every single one of them:

 

 Here are their links if you have some extra time on your hands and want to see how you can HELP make a difference in this giant world:

• UMBA
• Two Little Fish Baby/Toddler bedding
• MOCHA CLUB
• Center for Global Impact (CGI)
• adie's lovelies 

 just to name a few...

But one that literally brought me to tears was Sole Hope.  You may have heard of them before, their mission is to create shoes which are shipped to communities in Africa.  Many children here get jiggers in their feet which lead to so many issues, this is one easy and simple way we can help.  Check out their link above to learn more.  I also bought a shoe making kit (for only $10 ya'll...) for my family to participate in at Christmas- what a great way we can serve others during a time of year where we will receive so much.  Lord, let me have a servants heart all year round!

This is KK and I on night one at the welcome party where we got to meet the founder of Sole Hope, actually participate in a shoe making party and watch videos of the entire process from start-finish.  A-MAZE-ING.

we were making shoes out of jean fabric. Recycling at it's finest=awesome!

 

You can get involved by having a party with a purpose too if you want, more deets here

I have been exposed to serving the less fortunate first hand on two separate global mission trips- you can read about those here.  SO right away my heart started to beat loudly at the desire to do.  Before I type one more sentence let me be very clear that I have been learning lately that we can NOT do 1000 things well.  We are not created to be superwoman or superman.  So don't sink down in your chair right now thinking this is going to be one of those posts where I try to inspire you to do more.  In fact, I am at a place in my journey where I need to start doing less.  I need to do less so that I can do what is on my plate VERY well.  But more importantly- I need to do what I am led to do.  I learned this weekend that no where in the Bible do we hear "follow your dreams" in fact, that is very self centered and the exact opposite of how we are taught in the word.  There are MANY scriptures that direct us to just simply follow Him.  I'm sorry if you are super bummed out right now, but that is the truth.  Culture tells us to do more for our self all the time so that is ultimately why we have that mindset, and of course because we are living in the flesh and have a natural tendency to be self focused.  All of us.  Let me also throw out a little disclaimer before I get any hate mail, that I am a believer in taking care of yourself SO THAT you can take care of others.  There is just certainly a distinction between taking care of yourself (mentally, physically & spiritually) and being self centered.  I am not perfect, I have a very bumpy past but one thing is for sure- I strive to be a better person daily.   

Alright, let's get to the fun stuff...

So at the  The Influence Conference I was able to meet some of these women in real life.  Shake their hands, hug their necks, cry with some of them, laugh with a LOT of them, drink lots of coffee (the goodstuff, we had bottomless Starbucks ya'll...) and learn with them.  I learned SOOOOOOO much I am still processing it all.  I took SO many notes- Lord knows I barely remember what I ate for lunch two days ago- I need to keep refreshing my memory with these notes.  

The conference wasn't only about exposure to ways in which we can help, it was about teaching some good truths!  It was about the power of YOUR influence.  Everyone has influence- but what will you do with yours?  My cup was filled up, my heart was broken, my world was changed.  I came home so grateful for not only the opportunity to even attend this conference, but so grateful for my sweet sweet family who was waiting for me at the airport and for a heart that knows my Jesus.  I have learned over the years how to hear his voice.  In fact that is one of my scripture memory cards right now- see:

yes, i'm very aware that I have 3rd grade (at best) handwriting

Yep, I have a direct dial.  So can YOU- message me if you want some tips on how to get started.  Alright, where was I?  I swear sometimes I think I chase shiny objects like a cat....

I roomed up with 2 siesta sisters whom I have NEVER met.  

Jenny from Oklahoma & Amanda from San Diego-

Talk about leaving your comfort zone & walking blindly by faith.... even if we were hardly in our room except to sleep and wash up.  I lucked out, these two ladies were FAB!  We were a perfect blend representing women who come to this conference.  Jenny is a blogger and has a large "following" at http://jennycollier.com/  Amanda is not a blogger and has NO intention of starting one- she just loves reading others :-) and I am somewhere in the middle as far as blogging is concerned...I just love to go anywhere I know Jesus is gonna show up! (Matt 18:20)

Roomin up with strangers is the norm at a conference like this- people are going WAY out of their comfort zone just to get a glimpse into the life He has designed for us.  Whatever that looks like- whether it be how to bring Him into your own business, or the career you already have, into your family and parenting techniques, into your heart, into your marriage...the list is never ending.   I think I sprinkled into all of those buckets as the speakers & ladies I met poured into me.

One of the most profound for me (although I seriously LOVED every single session) was from Hailey- check out her blog here.  Her message 

here she is in action!

spoke to me on SO many levels but if I had to pick just ONE takeaway to share with you it was the illustration of the rope.  I need to get better at trying to bring the rope to myself, instead- let God push me forward towards that rope.  I am a control freak by nature.  Sometimes that makes me win in life- other times, it makes me fail.  I often try to (subconsciously) control myself in or out of situations.  Sometimes this works- other times I just end up creating opposition for myself and/or others.  Hailey described this as pulling the rope towards us.  If we rest and have peace that God will do the work- He will make things happen...according to His great timing!  Note to self: don't pull the rope towards me!

I have a sick baby girl today so I won't have time to write about ALL that I learned but hope that YOU can join me at the conference next year to see first hand how AWESOME this was!  Don't even get me started on the swag bag we received too- so much fun stuff!

A few more quick takeaways in bullet style ...

• Lara Casey of http://laracasey.com/ is amazing and puts on a separate workshop called MAKE THINGS HAPPEN ...this kind of relates to my idea earlier about DO'ing.  She gave us a short version of her intensive workshop and I had a MAJOR breakthrough that I would bet, will get its own post one day as it spoke about my God Size Purpose and relates directly to my adoption story.
• Jeff Goins book "the IN BETWEEN" is amaze so far.  At first, I brushed it off like "oh, this is not where I am in life..." but little did I know this is EXACTLY where I am!  Ck it out here
• Getting to meet Shauna Niequist in person was so cool, I love her book Bread & Wine and am grateful I snagged a free copy at the conference!  http://www.shaunaniequist.com/
• our work can become simple...which means success can become simple too.  WHEN you let the Lord direct your steps.  But, with all that said- nothing in this world that is great is easy.  Simple and easy two separate adjectives.
• Your father does NOT want you to fear at all.  Especially about the gifts he has blessed you with.  One of those gifts being His dream for Your life.
• We can strive to be like the Proverbs 31 girl but know that we are human and all make mistakes...keep striving forward and don't look backwards (unless it is to learn) and don't look sideways to compare (unless you look sideways to pull someone along w/ you)

speaking of Prov 31 girl, I have time to post two more quick pics from Jessi's session which was nothing less than spectacular.  Jessi is HILARIOUS check out here blog here

blowing these up so you can actually see them

blowing these up so you can actually see them

• You never "arrive" at your promise land- life is a constant journey.  Embrace & cherish those in between moments.  Keep living while you wait...
• The more I take in the less I experience.  Be great at some things, not good at many..go ahead and think about that one for a sec
  
• let my core be my compass and keep my eyes on Him
• WE ALL HAVE THE POWER TO INFLUENCE- GO AHEAD AND LET TODAY BE THE START!

ps all photos were taken with my iPhone so don't hate if they aren't that good ;)