I’ve adopted a practice of posting something positive each day to my social media accounts. So much is happening in our world right now and while I’m certainly attentive to those things, I know that I personally cannot let them dominate my day.

So each morning, I find an affirmation and share it. And I’ve noticed others doing something similar- and because our attention and intention bring about manifestation – it truly makes my day begin on an upbeat note. There is a vast difference in my days that begin focused on something positive and those times I get caught up in the negative stuff.

Recently, I ran across the quote, "A bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking, because her trust is not on the branch but on her own wings. Always believe in yourself."
I’ve shared this quote not only on social media but in a couple of sessions I facilitated at a conference for volunteer managers. The session was about “Being Your Own Advocate” and I found myself having to apply the words to my own thinking.

Because this was a new group for me, I didn’t feel that confident that the information I had prepared was going to be adequate or well-received. This anxiety led to me being up very late the night before my session. I was nervous; I couldn’t concentrate and kept searching for more and more information. My mind kept racing and worrying about things. I’m not the right one for the task, etc.

Around 2 AM the power of this quote came to me. Suddenly I realized, it wasn’t the information nor the quality of my slides that would be the difference but my belief in myself. A shift happened inside and I realized that divine connection I’m always talking about- the full presence of God right then and there. I went to bed and rested in that knowing and woke up ready.

And it was a good thing because when I arrived at the conference site, I learned they were having problems with the technology and a couple of other things I was counting on to be in place weren’t.
You might say the “branch” was showing signs of breaking but by that time it didn’t matter. I was ready. My trust in my “own wings” was solidified.

In that moment, I knew that Divine Intelligence was expressing as me and everything went well. People kept coming up to me saying, you really know what our jobs are like. That was so powerful. It felt great.

It all came down to not just reading a nice quote but living it. The situation called for me having to trust in my own wings. And when I did, it made all the difference.

What truth are you being called to live today?

-John Gilmore
Minister/Spiritual Director