YOUR LIFE COACHING WV

When I started this blog, I was under a "storm".  I could not explain it because truth be told, I didn't understand it myself.  Now that I made it through several life changes, I can say without a doubt that God has been there for me through it all and that I am a stronger person because of these changes.  Most of us cannot grasp the concept that someone can experience abundance while living in decrease.  I guess it could be paralleled to the pruning process:  cut away the excess which results in better productivity. As a Christian who is not particularly fond of religion, I know that my personal relationship with Jesus Christ has made all the difference in my journey to this point.  Once again, the difference is that my experience with Jesus is personal, from the heart, not just from my head. We talk, He hears me, I listen, I obey, He provides, and I give thanks even when He tells me no.  I wish I could explain how it feels to have a per...

As I sat down to write this morning, I thought about conversations I had with two of my four kids, namely Taryn and Anthony.   I was talking to them about how I've been feeling lately, questioning my support system, questioning why I'm doing this writing thing. Is it useful, is it helping anyone, is it God inspired or just me writing from my head? Taryn, always my voice of reason, told me that I was letting Satan into my head. And then I remembered  what Anthony had said to me when I told him my book was out and that I hoped it would sell well. He looked at me and said: " Mammy, if you only sell one book - maybe it was written just for that person." Is this kid really only 14?  In my heart, I know that I need to apply self-control to my own soul, to unleash the Holy Spirit whenever I start to doubt myself, whenever I need encouraged. To on purpose use God's Word that I have hidden in my heart, brought to my mind by Him, to see beyond my assessment of th...

I'm not saying He was too, but I can relate to Jesus right here:  " Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth..." (Matthew 5, ESV). Just a little something to think about on this rainy Monday: My Reflection: "No, I am NOT shy and I sure as heck ain't no snob...I'm just...me."  No....don't go there Dreama. You know better and for crying out loud you are a counselor, you know what makes people, especially yourself, tick. So just...no!  And then, instead of following my emotions which were screaming for me to fight back, retaliate, say something, it was  with a confidence I no longer felt that I finished the task at hand and as soon as was socially...

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11, NKJV). MY REFLECTION: I opened the door and they ran.  White tails flying high as they leaped across the dirt road and into the woods. I watched them retreat and felt a pang of regret. Regret that I hadn’t sensed their presence before going for more coffee. Regret that I hadn’t been able to watch them from the window as they ate. Regret that my camera was charging instead of in my hand. They had been standing near the fence line around Justin’s Hole, a family of four eating garden leftovers tossed there just for them. And they ran from the person feeding them. Their fear outweighed the enjoyment of an easy meal. + + + I don’t know about y’all, but from time to time, fear cripples me. It makes me stop what I am doing and hold the sharp, noisy breath I jerked in. And then I have a choice to make: run or stand my ground...

My Reflection: "OMGosh!  Stop.  Just. G o. Away."  This was me yelling at my gadgets on Monday.   Smart phone. iPad. Computer. Landline. You name it, it was going off with a ding here and a beep there.  My ADD kicked in and  I was on sensory overload;  it was about to get ugly up in my head...and why not? My gut had been screaming for everything to just stop for a while now so my head was bound to follow. And then I saw my husband's morning e-mail come through - and by that time, I was ready to jump out of my skin. I replied and explained my anxiety level to one of the folks who understand how I tick. Finally, t hrough his solid advice  the light bulb came on.   "Just turn everything off and work on the presentation."   Maybe he listens to my coaching tips after all and I heeded his advice to take a time out. So for the next two days I broke out the old slider phone for emergencies and fasted. I fasted from smart phones and so...

"He who made the Pleiades and Orion And changes deep darkness into morning, Who also darkens day into night, Who calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out on the surface of the earth, The LORD is His name" (Amos 5:8, CEB). Photo Credits: D. Kelly, Petersburg WV My Reflection: Life in the Mountain State has a lot of simple pleasures. One of my favorites is how we can build and sit around a campfire in our own backyards under those same stars Amos speaks about. And then, many-many times over, Mountain hospitality kicks in and we'll add a little food, neighbors show up, and before long we have ourselves a full fledged unplanned get together. From my experience, these are often the best kind of neighborhood gatherings! Evenings like these can't easily be topped. Maybe this is why one of my all time favorite Bible stories comes from John 21 . Woven into the fabric of this chapter, is a story about the resurrected Christ fixing breakfast for th...

47 Whoever comes to Me and hears My words and does them, I will show whom he is like: 48 He is like a man who built a house, and dug deep, and laid the foundation on rock. When the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, but could not shake it, for it was founded on rock.” Photo Credits: D. Kelly, Petersburg, WV + + + My Reflection It happens to everyone. Nobody is exempt from being offended. The why, how, and when list is as diverse as the offended individuals themselves. But the primary  source of all offense is pretty much Satan. He is very observant; and in his quest to create schisms, he can be disguised as anything or anyone. He is merely biding his time and when it is right, he strikes. The Kelly residence, a home where Christ is an honored guest, a home full of love, joy, peace, and people, is no exception. Satan shows up here from time to time but we don't let him take up residence, we literally open the door and shoo him out ...

" You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy;  at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." Photo Credits: Jillian Taylor, Winchester, VA My Reflection: "Mom! Your other right!" My family, and recently my friend Pam, can attest to the fact that I  don't immediately know my left from my right. I often wonder if I was absent from Kindergarten the day this elementary lesson was taught or if it is indicative of a bigger deficit. Either way, it makes riding with me interesting. Most of the time I can use a little trick I learned as a reminder to keep me on track, but sometimes when I'm talking with or listening to my passengers, I go into auto-pilot and all turns are right...even when our friendly GPS navigator specifically says "In 100 feet turn left."  I swear she sighs when she says "Recalculating...."   + + + Picture This : I don't know about y'all, but when I ask...