GOD
I recently watched a broadcast of Your Move with Andy Stanley and learned more about the life of Moses and its impact on the true value of time. It turns out Moses and I have more in common than I imagined. Using his example, Andy pointed out a very important spiritual lesson about ways to more effectively use our time and in the process get even more of it from our day. Both the concept and Moses’ journey resonated with me.
Full disclosure: I never read the bible as a daily practice because I didn’t understand the “thee and thou” old testament passages and couldn’t relate to it’s fire and brimstone “I will smite thee” language. I now read it occasionally, using a plain English or new Living version to get the lessons therein.
Journey to The Promised Land
So Pastor Andy (a really good teacher) explained that the first part of Moses’s life was great! He became a Prince, an adopted grandson of the original Pharaoh of Egypt. But after a catastrophic life event he was forced to leave the palace, run for his life and became a shepherd for the next 40 years. It was considered a lowly job, so much for being born for greatness, right? Not so fast. He did his job with excellence and pride and in the process was prepared for the great life that he would come to experience.
Then as the story goes, God called on Moses to lead his people to the Promised Land but when they arrived, he was told he could not enter and could only look at it.
My Journey To The S.E. Projects
These two examples of Moses’ life experience seemed to be akin to a few of my own. For the first 9 years my life was literally charmed. My mother—the most loving, funny, and kind soul I could have been born to, worked tirelessly to give me a life in which I would “want for nothing” (as she’d put it). She loved me more than life itself, saw to it that I had healthy self-esteem, and used every moment as a teachable moment. Life was great! Then at age 9, she died.
Life after her death wasn’t exactly charmed but I had love from a guardian that couldn’t have loved me more had she birthed me herself. But we moved to the S.E. housing projects in Washington, D. C. and it was one of the worst living experiences I ever had. From rats and roaches taking over our small home to burglaries, robberies, street violence and much more, it was pure HELL.
Without it [and my guardian to guide me] my life today may not be as good as it is. The experience of having to live in the projects fortified me, built my character, and gave me stealth determination never to have to live that way again. I developed an unstoppable work ethic and commitment to excellence that even I didn’t know lived inside of me.
Life On My Terms – A 13-Year-Old’s Decision
Upon leaving for college I vowed never to return to the Garfield projects again. Much later, it was Iyanla Vanzant that helped me to recall a memory that I had buried, yet was living out. She told my husband in a coaching session that I was the 13-year-old girl who stood outside my project home and watched the movers carry our meager belongings inside, while gigantic-sized rats bore holes under its structure (a visual to this day that remains a fixture firmly implanted in my mind), and said to herself, “I’ll take it from here because when adults take over my life it gets effed-up!” And you know she could not have been more accurate. I remember the moment I took responsibility for my life—as that 13-year-old. It felt at once terrifying and empowering.
That move began my Shepherd experience. I’ve had others since then. I’ve also been to the mountaintop and peeked out over it, but like Moses, it wasn’t my time to enter. I’ve also realized that the way I wished to earn my living may not always be consistent with my calling and is just the tip of the iceberg [for what God has called and created me to do]. With deep spiritual diving, I’ve come to understand that Moses, who tended to his sheep with care and excellence, appreciated the opportunity to do so. I too, appreciate every opportunity I’m extended.
US
Sometimes we want the big rewards, money, spotlight, and fame that come with being celebrated. But in God’s eyes our gifts, talents, and earthly flash are rarely the reason for our creation. There are celebrated and gifted people who bring lots to the world to make it and us better. But for those who manage to connect with their purpose, I believe it has little to do with money, even less with fame, and much more to do with the good that can be achieved, using them all.
The Lesson and Getting More TIME
So whatever your time as a “shepherd,” a guide on the side, or sage on the stage – I urge you remember your reason for being— through it all. We each have a finite number of days to be here. But we can choose how we live them, moment by moment and we have the opportunity to use them to live a life of true authenticity.
The bottom line is this…when we live out loud, celebrate what makes us different, rather than blend ourselves into the surface of other peoples’ expectations and comfort zones, we can choose to spend our time, talent and resources on what matters most to us. In this way we can get even more time from our days because we’re not running around spinning our wheels on what the world says we should. In the process we may find our connection to what we came here to offer the world and ourselves. When we can do that there lies the opportunity to leave a world better for our having been here.
With Love and Happiness,
XOX
Rovenia Brock, Ph.D. has contributed to The View, NPR, Meredith Vieira, and served as medical advisory board member and contributor to the “Dr. Oz Show,” where she helped more than a half-million Americans lose more than 5 million pounds. She is the author of Lose Your Final 15 a new book in which she developed the Final 15 Program and is on a mission to help 1 million people lose 15 million pounds. For more tips on health, nutrition, and inspiration join Dr. Ro’s 15 Million Pound Challenge and follow her on social media at www.everythingro.com.