It's been a while. In fact, it's 7 months since I sent an email. There have been lots of other things vying for my attention, lots of things to adjust to... and I know I'm not alone in that.

If you'd appreciate more regular updates and being able to chat with me, I invite you to join in the conversation on my Facebook page. You'll find lots of encouragement and inspiration there.

At the start of 2020 I had big plans and lots of thoughts about what was going to happen that year, and much of it didn’t happen because life as we knew it came to a screeching halt. It was a year filled with uncertainty and so many unknowns. Everyone's life changed to some degree... there were losses of so many kinds and still are. And 2021 is full of uncertainties too.

It's hard to thrive in the midst of uncertainty and calamity. When everything is uncertain and the sand is constantly shifting, people easily forget what they know and get freaked out because they don't know what to hang on to.

I've discovered that when there's a lot of uncertainty one of the most helpful things to do is to go to what IS certain and unchanging. To focus on the things that I know, go back to basics, and think about what IS within my control.

To ask,

• What CAN I control? (You have control of more than you think you do)
• What CAN I change?
• What CAN I do to make life work better?

What doesn't help is to keep on talking about all the negative things that are going on because that doesn’t change anything, and it takes your thoughts to unhelpful places.

It's more helpful to think about the things you have control over and what adjustments will make situations easier. To focus on life giving things that are in your control and be willing to adapt and be flexible.

Instead of asking why something is happening, ask God for grace and wisdom to deal with things. Ask Him to lead you through.

Often God doesn't let us in on the why, so maybe it would be more helpful to ask, “What's the best thing to do now?”

The key to thriving in difficult times is to take a solution focused approach

It's easy to focus on the problems, we all do it from time to time, it's our default mode... But the problem with that is that you sometimes get so bogged down with the problem that you can't see a way forward.

Sometimes setbacks are setups for creativity that we didn't know we had, amazing things can happen as a result of something that isn't good, and that we didn't invite.

Are you solution minded or problem focused?

Maybe what's happening isn't what you wanted, but it's an opportunity for God to do something new, something that you hadn't considered before or maybe even been open to.

When you focus on something for long enough, it eventually occupies your thoughts and begins to shape your perspective about things.

When you focus on all the things that are wrong about your life, or not working, or lacking, it takes you to really unhelpful places. Scripture tells us to think about things that are good, and lovely, and of good report. When we do that it shifts our thinking and leads to peace.

What you give your energy, and time and attention to shapes your thinking and affects how you feel about things.

Ask God to help you see possibilities.

If you're struggling, turn your thoughts to more helpful places.

• Consider some things that are good right now, or going well
• Think about things you are grateful for even if you're suffering a lot of loss.

The reason gratitude is so powerful is that you can't be grateful and down at the same time, they can't coexist. Your brain either goes on one track or the other. Sometimes the solution is simply shifting the conversation you're having with yourself about things.

Action Steps

Start a gratitude journal. Every day write about three to five things you're grateful for.

Being thankful is a mindset shifter. When you do that you'll start noticing other things that you're grateful for.

When you're going through difficult circumstances, and find yourself complaining and having a pity party, start to look for the good.

• What's good about my life right now?
• What am I thankful for today?

When you start thinking about the good things, and the things you're thankful for, and remind yourself of God's promises, it will start to shift you out of negate mode. When you add to that smiling whether or not you feel like smiling... the shift will happen even quicker... Try it and see.

Your brain works with whatever you give it when you hit the play button. If you focus on negative things and what's missing and lacking and broken, you'll start noticing and finding other negative things and before you know it you'll be heading down a slippery slope.

If you want to change the way you're feeling about things, you need to be intentional about going in the opposite direction and start thinking about the things that bring a smile to your face, things that are working that you can be grateful for.

When you shift your focus it shifts your mood, and it shifts your attitude. And when your attitude shifts, life gets better because you find more things to be grateful for. Optimism starts to rise, and hope returns. You start to see possibilities that you didn't see before, because you were so fixated on paying attention to all the negative stuff.

Try reframing things in terms of possibilities and see what a difference it makes.

Maybe now is a good time to equip yourself with coaching strategies that will

• Lead to a whole new world of breakthrough for yourself and other people.

• Help you to deepen your relationship with God as you stop and reflect and invite Him to show you what He's highlighting and what He wants you to see.

• Open your eyes to possibilities you haven't seen before.

NOBODY who does Life Breakthrough Training stays the same.

Everybody is transformed from the inside out as they apply what they're learning to their own lives and use the coaching skills they learn in every day situations.

Seriously consider taking a leap of faith and joining us. God has gathered an amazing community of wonderful, supportive people.

If you're

• Sensing that it's time to do something different
• Feel like you're going through the motions and not getting very far
• Seriously hoping there's more to life than you're experiencing right now but don't know what it is...

You'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies. Phil 4:8 MSG

Be blessed to be a blessing,

Lynne

You can help me to help others by PRAYING as the Lord leads. I need wisdom, support, and encouragement to be able to continue serving the many people from all over the world who benefit from the resources they find on my coaching site.

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Lynne Lee is a life breakthrough coach, spiritual mentor and writer who partners with people just like you to help them to develop a closer walk with God and design their life around what matters most to them.