showing up

at least try to be real.

I believe that the fact that you have breath in your lungs, is a rare gift. Every heart beat declaring, “I’m alive.” I want to live and take advantage of every day I get to be on earth. Since our time on earth is so short we must learn to live the fullest. I do not want to live my life looking back, wishing I had done more, been more. I want no regrets. But how do I live a full abundant life? How do I truly live BIG? After reading many books blog posts, and watching videos, I’ve tried to learn to live. And these are the things I believe make an abundant life.

1. To love.
You have to first love your Creator. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” Mark 12:30
To love God, to know God — is, in my opinion, the most important thing you could ever do. Then you have to realize that God loves you, relentlessly and recklessly.
Then, you have to love yourself, self-love is so so important. “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Psalm 139:14
If you can’t first love yourself you won’t be able to love people very well. You have to realize that you are beautiful and bright. After you acknowledge that you are worthy of love, you can see that every human being is worthy of love. “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8
Loving people is what we are called to do. Loving people is dang messy and hard though. But if you want to live an abundant life, you have to love abundantly. You are a broken being and the only way to heal is: to love.

2. To be vulnerable.
If you want success, change, creativity, or fulfillment – “Vulnerability is the birthplace of all of that.” Brené Brown
Vulnerability is letting ourselves be seen, deeply, openly, and courageously. You have to let yourself say “I love you”, “I messed up”, “I need help.” You must be real. You are human, you are imperfect, and you have to love yourself (and other people) through it.

3. To try.
All I have to say is this: wouldn’t you rather try and fail, and live, and succeed, than look back at your life and wonder what would have happened if you had shown up? What would’ve happened if you loved bigger? What would’ve happened if you had worked your hardest at something you loved doing? Showing up, working hard, failing, and getting back up, is the bravest thing you could ever do. But when you try, know you will inevitably fail. You will fall. You have to learn to rise. “The only thing I know for sure about being courageous with my life, if you are brave enough, often enough, you are going to fall. I want to be brave with my life, to live my life in the arena.” Brené Brown

Hurt will happen. But brave vulnerable people live the fullest lives. They are unafraid of the hurt. Trying, loving, even authenticity is a risk.
These are the steps to abundant living, whole-hearted living.

“How many of us really want life, life more abundant, life which does not promise any fringe benefits or early retirement plans? Life which does not promise the absence of pain, or love which is not vulnerable and open to hurt? How many of us dare to open ourselves to that truth which would make us free? Free to feast at the Lord’s table with those whose understanding of the body and the blood, may be a little different from ours. Free to listen to angels. Free to run across the lake when we are called.” Walking on Water, Madeleine L’Engle

Love, be vulnerable, & try.
Though you will be heart-broken, though you will fall, you will rise.