What’s next with Hot Mess?
I have been wondering and praying about my next steps with the whole “hot mess” gig. This has been a journey that I would have never even considered even five years ago but God made it clear that He wanted me to share my struggles, so I started doing it through my blog and later my books.
I was listening to a podcast this morning where Beth Moore was talking about her recent book. In the book, she shares much of her backstory including an abusive relationship with her father. She has been a mentor and trailblazer for many women as has Joyce Meyer who grew up with similar struggles. I am certainly not comparing myself to these women, but it got me thinking about how they used their mess to mentor others. I am thinking that perhaps I can further my little ministry in a related way.
Channeling Our Difficulties to Help Others
Once you reach 57 (my age), you’ve likely been through a lot of “stuff” (wanted to use another word but Christian blog here). For me, emotional abuse, divorce, job challenges/eliminations, the suicide of a loved one, and parenting challenges of adult children make up the most difficult and painful parts of my personal story. Everyone suffers somehow. This suffering might be as a result of some of the same things I mentioned, or it could be from a whole myriad of issues including chronic pain, mental health issues, cancer, broken relationships, addiction, or marital problems. It’s very challenging to live in a world of futility and brokenness.
We usually don’t understand the why behind these types of experiences, but I believe that God has a master plan where it all works together for good. He uses our struggles to shape and mold us and make us more like Jesus who undoubtedly had more than his share of trials while on this earth. And I believe that He wants us to channel these difficult trials to help others.
Think About This:
- God provides us with hope and comfort during painful times so that we can console others.
- God grants us mercy so that we can be merciful to others.
- God shows us compassion so that we can demonstrate empathy and compassion to others.
- God stands with us in our suffering so that we will stand with others who are suffering.
- God never leaves us alone in our suffering so that we won’t leave others alone in theirs.
When you think about the most difficult times in your life, what comes to mind? Have you thought about ways that you could use these experiences to help and support others?
Join Me to Use Your Mess to Mentor Others!
I’m still not sure what’s next in my journey. I have been fairly consumed with starting an HR Consulting firm this year, but I don’t feel that I’m done with my “hot mess” efforts, and I’d like to expand on this idea of using our messes to mentor others. All this said, I’d like to start a Challenge. The details are below and would love for you to join!
