It’s so easy to get caught up, especially in a time of pandemic, especially in this year when we've spent so much time alone. We can fall into a rut or a pattern of watching life go by, instead of being an active participant in life. And this year has been difficult. It's been heavy.
    We’ve had a lot to grieve. There are a lot of things that we miss. Rates of depression are on the rise. When you spend so much time alone it's easy to fall victim to negative thoughts and negative thinking, and let's face it - there is no shortage of negative thoughts and negative thinking bombarding us every day. I don’t care what kind of news you read or listen to or follow - we hear bad news, bad news, and more bad news, and it's so easy to get caught up in that; especially in 2020.
    All of this makes it easy to get in a pattern of watching life instead of living life. Sometimes we make our lives small. But folks we have been given gifts from God. We have been given a calling and there are things in this world that we care about that we have passion for, and there are people in this world whom we care about and who need what we can provide.
    Live a big, bold life.
   Do you have that one idea that's been in the back of your mind, maybe most of your life, that idea that starts with, “If God dumped a pile of money in front of me and said I could do whatever I want, I would like to…?” That’s the idea. I'm talking about; that one dream, that one thought.
     Why not do it now?
    Why not? We're not doing a lot of anything else. It's time to live boldly. It's time to take those risks and take those challenges and if we fail, so what?
    We worship God because we are passionate about the gospel, about Jesus Christ, and about salvation. So it is time to take that passion and that compassion and that drive and to think big and speak to our community and to our world. 
    Do you have an idea that may seem a little off the wall or seem a little big?
    Do you have some thoughts of how you can serve others in your community that might seem out of the box? Say it out loud to someone. It’s time to be big, to think big, and to live boldly. 

Your Partner In Spiritual Health,
Melissa