Spontaneous... Sometimes It's Ok To Not Have A Plan!

Spontaneous... Sometimes It's Ok To Not Have A Plan! That one statement is hard for a type A personality like mine to say, let alone do! On Friday at 3:00, a crazy idea crossed my mind and I ran with it. I wanted to surprise my husband with a getaway and I decided that I would do it without a plan. By 4:00 we were packed and on our way to the Cumberland Mountains in east Tennessee.

Honestly, I think my spontaneity impressed my hubby more than the trip but either way, I am glad I did it.

Sometimes in life, we miss out on opportunities to just enjoy living because we focus on having everything figured out before we do anything.  In a lot of life situations, planning is critical, but not in everything. You need to plan a budget, plan for retirement and plan for college or marriage but not everything has to have a plan.

Within one hour of leaving our driveway, I begin to have anxiety about my lack of a plan. I worried about spending money I hadn't planned on. I worried about leaving town without letting my son know we wouldn't be home. (Don't call child protective services, he is not a child. He is 22) I had to remind myself to relax and just enjoy the next couple of days. 

We stayed in a hotel we had never stayed at, in a town we had only driven through 1 time before. I didn't even know if there were good restaurants close! For the record, there were no "good" restaurants but we had the time of our life people watching, while eating the $5.99 breakfast buffet at Shoney's at 10:00pm.

We drove to the top of the highest mountain, we fed llamas and ate lunch with our daughter and her fiance'. The best part of our trip was I had no plan. No plan meant no pressure to meet deadlines and no expectations of how our time should be spent. It was perfect.

As I look back on this spontaneous trip, I realize that my need for a plan feeds my need for control. Can you relate? What can you do to exercise the inner spontaneity in you? Sometimes, it's okay to not have a plan! 

Live life to the fullest because no one is promised tomorrow. Love God and Love people with all your heart. Shake things up every once in awhile. You might even like the freedom you feel in not having to have EVERYTHING figured out!

Love you guys. Please pray for my pastor who had another scan done to make sure he is still cancer free. His results come back Tuesday or Wednesday. Our God and His plans and purposes are bigger than any cancer diagnosis!

Life Is Risky!

Life Is RISKY! Dating, Marrying, Going to School, Not Going to School, Getting a Job, Changing Jobs, Moving, Staying. Not just the obvious parts but ALL parts of life are RISKY.

When I was 18 and saying "I DO" on the altar at my church, to the love of my life, that was RISKY. If I had listened the the majority and believed I was too young or that it would have never last, I would not be celebrating my 23rd anniversary this summer.

Having two kids by the time I was 21 was VERY RISKY, but I knew, for medical reasons beyond my control, I needed to have my kids early. It was a risk well worth taking because I am as close as any parent could be to two amazing adults now.

Trusting a doctor who asked if we believe in miracles, to treat my husband's cancer , when all other doctors said the treatment would never work. They told us life post treatment would be so horrible that just going home and enjoying the days we had left was a much better option. Choosing to fight, was RISKY. 8 years later, I am so grateful we chose to fight!

Switching jobs was RISKY. Moving across the country was RISKY. I have chosen to take many risks in life and sadly, there have been risks that I haven't taken. I was scared. Scared of failing, scared of what others would say, scared of making the wrong choice. FEAR is the enemy of HAPPINESS. Fear grips and and causes us to play it safe, not take risks. When we allow fear or being comfortable to keep us from taking risks, we walk through the same ruts over and over again.

God intended for us to live life not in fear but in hope. Knowing that He is in control. He is here to walk with us as we take risks. Carry us when we can't walk anymore. Yes life is RISKY but God is bigger than all of that! Taking risks is worth it when God is on our side.


Last night I had the privilege to hear Christine Caine bring the house down at a women's event at Long Hollow with over 2500 other ladies. POWERFUL doesn't even begin to describe the night! She challenged us to take RISKS. Not to live in our comfort zone but to take the risks God is calling us to take!

Happy Birthday to My Love

It feels so good to be able to say HAPPY 44th BIRTHDAY to my amazing husband Chris. Those of you who don't know our story may ask, "why is this any different than wishing anyone else happy birthday?".

Wishing Chris happy birthday is different because in May of 2006 all the doctors we spoke to told us Chris won't be around to see his 37th birthday. (Except for one who believed in miracles and said he would give it a shot!) Chris was diagnosed with a horrible terminal cancer in his head, neck and throat.

Numbers like 98% mortality, 6 months to live, .6 white blood cell count are what we heard from everyone. So to say 6.5 years cancer free & 44th birthday sounds awesome to me; would be an understatement!

Chris never said why me. He only said what do I need to do to beat cancer and then did those things!

When questioning the circumstances you may find yourself in, always question with an attitude of WHAT CAN I DO, right here, and right now to make things better.

Maybe you need to Trust God more... Maybe you need to forgive someone who has done you wrong... Maybe you are the one who has done wrong and you need to ask others to forgive you. Maybe you just need to keep doing what you are doing and Wait for God to open doors.

Whatever it is, don't put off tomorrow what you need to do today. None of us can assume that we will have tomorrow. Pick up the phone, pull out your Bible, go visit your family, walk back in to church (the roof will not fall down), The first step is always the hardest. All you have to do is to do it!

Love you all but especially my incredible husband who gets to celebrate his birthday this year with a huge Super Bowl Party!