Faith and Spirituality Archives - Page 2 of 2

Experience Your Deeper Joy Instincts

Instincts help you out. You’ve probably heard of the Joy of Missing Out (JOMO).

During the global lockdown, we went with our better instincts to make decisions, as no one knew for sure immediately what next steps to take.

Deeper joy is unleashed here in my Sunday brunch experience. Onion pizza recipe below 👇

watermelon mint salad.

Some healthy outcomes during that time were that a lot of people grew, became more resilient, and today are still reaping the benefit of becoming better versions of themselves. That’s something to celebrate! 🎂

Even though “missing out” wasn’t something we chose, that’s what most of us did to stay safe and healthy in the world.

But tell that same story logic to a child or a teenager (…or the child still in us 🧸), and missing out on events can be devastating. But it doesn’t have to be!… and below I share two ways that “missing out” can be the biggest blessing for you and us all.

If our happiness is based on external situations, and not on ourselves, we can suffer sadness and disappointment.

Instead, inside us, we have the peaceful joy instincts built-in that today we may or may not have developed fully yet like we would in learning a skill.

…Wherever you are on your journey now is great. You are exactly where you’re meant to be, and you have a choice to replace what doesn’t work best.

And from what I’ve experienced, I know those deeper instincts are there to help us if we’re ready. They give us more peace and steer us to our best life. And I wish I tapped into my inner joy instincts sooner in life.

Feeling inner joy gives us better control over our lives and our feelings in situations we can’t always control dealing with specific people, places, and things we encounter.

And with practice, we can bring out our inner joy and turn it into a daily healthy habit we apply (replacing our original “happy” lens that doesn’t always help us).

I know this all too well from my younger days when I got excited about going to parties that sometimes got out-of-hand… a little too many Animal House-type parties that I wish I could take back now (…and go figure I became a professional party food event planner as my first career to round it all out).

During those immature pre-school graduation days, I wasn’t in control of my life on the inside. I lived for the outward happiness feelings that put me on an emotional roller coaster when situations didn’t go as planned.

And as I grew up… and as you and I are growing now, we naturally grow out of what we already experienced that wasn’t good for us whatever that looked like… and maybe even a bit relieved that we’re past those years and times… grateful we’ve “been there, done that” and not going backward.

For me today and maybe you too… happy fun is re-defined from a new lens of daily joy.

Inner joy is more freeing than external happiness that’s fleeting.

It doesn’t mean giving up on fun because that would be no fun! But coming up with new ways… that’s what I do anyway to please my Enneagram 7. We tend to get our enthusiasm from fun. That’s one thing I hope to never change.

…And that motivated me to set out a fun day (Sunday) anti-inflammatory donut table while Nadal showed his sustainable match win, and the Queen her Jubilee and longevity.

You don’t usually see donuts on an anti-inflammatory menu, but these ACV cinnamon honey ones are without added sugars.

…While creating a menu and daily food joy like this is nice, it doesn’t make or break the day. That’s an example of finding joy in the moment and then movin’ on.

And that keeps the inner peace, and naturally feeling good in daily calm living. Good grows. And I don’t mess with good growth! 🌱

And if you’re into growing, want new experiences, and are ready to tap more into your deeper sides and joy instincts if you’re not already… or still wondering why that matters or how it’s different than what you could be doing…

Here are a few more differences…

By developing your joy instinct by filling up your moments with your peaceful and calmer desires, you feel less disappointed moment-to-moment (or not disappointed at all) when events don’t happen and situations don’t pan out.

And ultimately, you’re in deeper control of yourself, thoughts, and feelings… and that’s super powerful to your life. Finding deeper instincts feels like a superpower when you discover it later in life.

Finding that life-giving abundant space inside is a gift. I think so, anyway.

And experiencing that chosen path opens you to a whole bunch of other great things you pick up along the way.

…Like, I rid of the worry habit. Worry is helpful until it isn’t. It helps when it gets you to think, and those thoughts help you to initiate solutions or a new way to look at a solution.

But staying in the habit of worry is not helpful or healthy. So one day in the bookstore (…remember those?), I picked up The Power of Positive Thinking written by the late-Norman Vincent Peale, and read the “Worry” chapter in the self-help book.

It starts like this… “Worry is just a very bad mental habit. And I can change any habit with God’s help.”

I read that chapter over and over again and practiced the 10-point steps that literally transformed my life of worry in less than a decade. That sounds like a long time, but most great things take time.

And at the time, I loved it so much that I went out and bought a few additional book copies and gave them to my co-workers around me. And I’m passing it on to you here. Hopefully, you can read it…

How to Stop Worrying Chapter (Steps 1-6)

The Power of Positive Thinking Book — How to Stop Worrying Chapter Continued (Steps 7-10)

So then I carried less unhealthy worry turmoil, and I worried less about my workers as they knew what to do. 😉

So leaning into joy has perks and side benefits.

…I hear myself talking about joy like it needs to be sold as a natural drug, haha. And sometimes it does feel that way in a good way!

Two cool perks about stepping into your inner joy are:

Feeling contentment – and not getting emotional when things pan out or don’t. Being free of this feels relaxing, stress-free, and breathes in more joy. Back in the day, when we didn’t know any better, we would describe this as, “you’re so mellow.”

With contentment, you feel more peace and get more done without the thought-feeling drama.

Your creativity – is the gateway to your highest purpose, second or next act, and clarity with what you want to do with your life if you’re not feeling fulfilled with the one you’re in. You can unleash greater imagination, gifts, and buried talents. There’s a treasure trove in you. And it costs nothing to discover what’s inside. Not only can it bring new ideas and save you from spending money, but also save you from losing time and unnecessary headaches.

The two C’s can be a ticket to your best life today. They can make the difference or be your launching pads to a “new life” in a world of uncertainty and give you a peaceful escape from your job, especially if you’re not happy there.

If you’re looking for more joy in your life, be encouraged that the way you started out and the path you’re on doesn’t have to be the one you stay on.

And choosing to trust and lean into your healthy natural instincts is easy, light, and aligned when you pick the channels meant for you.

Whole Wheat Onion Pizza

Course lunch

Cuisine American

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

whole wheat flour
red onions
white or light cheese (optional)

Instructions

Make the pizza crust.
Bake the onions beside the crust about half way through.
Add the cheese to pizza crust and add onions on top.

Where to Find Joy, Hope, and Faith Sources

Looking forward to the peony bush that usually only blooms for a few weeks in May.

Earth laughs in flowers.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Easter just weeks away is a reminder that we’re embarking on a new spring season and wild ride that this life is. Easter is a symbol of hope and a sign of life. It’s a time of celebration and joy. It’s one I look forward to, despite all the world’s turmoil.

I made this imprime (imprinted) cherry blossom jelly sponge roll over the weekend to take a break from all that’s going on.

I cut it in the shape of a letter and added cherries.

On that note and when life doesn’t feel like a bowl of cherries–when you feel hope is missing in this life–it’s important to reset on the hopeful. That’s a good time to evaluate your thoughts and hear uplifting messages of faith. That’s what I do and is one way to restore your joy and get out of self-sabotage moods.

Here are 3 other effective ways:

✔️ Feel compassion for others less fortunate than you. There are always people who fall into those categories. You don’t have to go far to hear about the needs. You can turn on the news to feel.

✔️ Answer the question: what is the worst that can happen? Come up with options from your current standpoint and knowledge. Doing this helps put your mind at ease with plan options. And so does knowing you’re never alone in this world (that’s never-ending evolving). If you stay in the belief that things will be better on the other side, then you stay hopeful.

✔️ Bring curiosity back. Reflect on daily unique coincidences in your life and try to discern the meaning. Maybe you keep running into the same good situation… like you’re the first in line or there’s one item left for you. Do you see these as blessings or nothing out of the ordinary luck?

Children are in awe over common things so much easier than adults. They get excited and wonder about the things we glance over. Things like nature, butterflies, and ladybugs. Children and growing living things give us hope.

You can also borrow hope from others who believe there is life after passing through this life… another form of hope.

If you are (or become) a believer, then your outlook and outcomes are very different than if you aren’t sure or don’t know. No one is born a believer even if they’re given guidance. It’s a deliberate choice that each person has the right to.

Believers know what’s at the end. That’s why they can walk around with a smile on their face even when they are going through chaos. Because they know in the end, good wins. But they too have to feed daily their healthy mind-body with the hopeful fuel to keep growing.

And they know who’s in charge at the end of the day and where to turn to, that’s not other people. And when they see other like-minded believers, they know they will see them again.

With a deeper perspective, there is a greater purpose in life. What if you could feel this way if you don’t already? You get to choose what you believe in almost any situation.

Seeing the writing on the wall happens from a change of heart, baby step actions towards a want, and often many failed attempts. Fail forward and fast is a much better belief than the one I grew up with of “don’t fail.” That was just a setup for failure. So glad that the world has wised up in its beliefs.

When I was younger, I didn’t know there was a free will choice to live a life other than the one I was living. But before knowing this as a young adult, I knew I didn’t like the course of life I had or the limited resources I carried. Or the problems that I was burdened with. I felt like I was missing something even though everything seemed to run okay on the outside. So I looked for other possibilities that I couldn’t see.

Having this why of wanting better led me to try to find formal mentors or professional help like therapy that turned into failed attempts that eventually steered me to the right places.

I also read self-help and expert-led books, getting knowledgeable through words and not just guessing. Authors I didn’t know were my mentors and I was my self-therapist. 😉

I also read Scripture and certain words jumped off the page. The comforting ones like “do not worry…” and “If God is for us, who can be against us”… which sometimes can be ourselves getting in our own way. (Amen?).

In the beginning, I thought the fun side of life I had would end. And for an Enneagram 7, that’s hard to swallow as one of our motivators. I thought I’d have to start living a stricter life and had no idea how that would work.

But gradually, I learned the keys to daily peace, enjoyment, and guilt-free living. I went to Bible Study and church and then church again in the same week because I wanted to. My soul was fed and my spirit grew. The people were nice and liked to have fun, and we listened to the same types of rock music. And I felt safe.

All the things I wanted to change, gradually changed on their own with the desires in the back of my mind. It was an inside job that I can’t credit myself for.

And if you can relate or already live in a similar way, are you happy and healthy? Are you taking care of yourself (body, mind, and soul)? Are you living your “highest and best use”? This is a phrase I learned in business school that pertains to living out an optimal life in every area.

Pleasing others or playing it safe may not be your best life. The biggest rewards are from taking chances and having faith. Because I do think it’s a test and how you live here matters.

But if you’re unhappy (or know others who are), there’s a good chance that your (or their) gifts and talents are getting buried. You would know this because you’re not as creative or productive as you’re capable of or once were. And if you’re possibly feeling stuck or spinning wheels. I know this because that’s how I felt a lot when I knew it was time to move on.

Do you know or remember the parable of the gifts and talents? It’s a good reminder that the more you use your talents, the more you will get. We want to see your gifts in the world. Give and you will get more.

That’s how I believe I discovered hidden talents I didn’t even know I had inside me, as a mature adult. I started using gifts blindly not knowing what was ahead.

…Which btw reminds me of the idea of blind baking where there’s no real risk. But you do wonder if you’ll have an amazing bake, and if nothing else you learn something new in your repertoire to build on.

That’s how I see blind people in the news who better use their talents without sight, and who are both amazing and constantly learning. Now that’s hope. 🙏

From Burnout to Sabbatical: Recharge and Change Your Life

sabbatical rainbow

Retirement financial guru David Bach is known for “The Latte Factor” on how to save money. Maybe you saw him on Oprah as I did back in the day?

Fast forward years later, he went from burnout to sabbatical living. In hindsight, he now calls a sabbatical “the magic pill” to happiness.

He mentioned in interviews that it all began when his wife asked him what he wanted for one of his birthdays, and he expressed a desire for full-time off from work.

And so that’s just what he did, although he still had to convince himself to get off his busy work train.

Taking time off in a restful sabbatical isn’t a common practice for Americans. There aren’t too many role models to follow. Retirement after 60 and beyond is still the American norm.

Like David Bach, more go-getters in the prime of their career are opening up to this approach to a healthier lifestyle to recharge somewhere in the middle, make life impact changes, and gain clarity about their remaining life’s path.

We all want to live our Best Life, but not all of us do what we need to fully live because we’re not given a road map so we end up playing it safe… staying in the same career or corporate work path with golden handcuffs and benefits, despite being miserable.

Future uncertainty can be uncomfortable to those who want their lives fully planned out, but as I (and you too probably at least in this past year) experienced, life throws monkey wrenches in the mix if you’ve been around long enough, and you can question what this life is really all about.

…and maybe you’ve had those types of questions swirling in your mind lately that you’ve been wrestling with?

If so, you should consider taking a sabbatical if you’re in a place where you can or you all of a sudden, find that you deeply need one to restore your mind-body. It’s not a cop-out, it’s a smart move in case you need to wrestle the idea with the logical side of your mind.

The trend is moving this way. Kids who are just becoming adults are acceptably taking gap years from college. And if you worked in corporate in 2008 with the economy dip, you most likely made a work change, maybe entered a different industry as in 2020 and the aftermath, where we all had our work changed and life turned upside down.

Someone wise ahead of me ingrained this idea that never left me: “Your entire life is a transition.”

So then with that lens, I’m happily entering my fourth act. And depending on your age, you’re probably at least entering or considering your second one (along with almost half the women in the workforce according to survey data).

When I was in college, and it took me 5 years to graduate, that was a big deal in my mind. I questioned why I took a year off after a few semesters of working and attending business school full-time.

During my gap year that wasn’t the usual way, I stopped and learned how to create a business (the reason that you would think you go to business school but most like I did, graduated and entered the corporate workforce).

What I wanted most that I didn’t want to admit to anyone including myself was I wanted deep rest. And that semester off test-taking I got off sleeping aid pills. I got off the hamster wheel and avoided burning out.

Back then, I was already creating a different way of life of taking breaks because my body was calling for it. And now in more aware times, my mind was too.

Similarly, a mid-life sabbatical idea is a pretty darn good idea for recuperating. It can be a lifeline even though it still has a bad wrap. If you’re a well-known author and speaker like David Bach, you can do it because you’ve earned it. But if you’re like most of us or the person trying to make ends meet, then you’re still justifying, like I had to.

I had to lean in and switch into abundant thinking and what I would gain over what I would lose.

And when the call inside you grows louder, the idea can grow more intriguing, and that’s when you know you have to seriously investigate!

You may just need some little sign or nudge to get you to take the step. Or you may just need the right timing or feeling to show up again. In my case, I knew I had more to lose if I didn’t.

You are where you are because of your choices made.

And because of my sabbatical choice, I wouldn’t have traveled to so many great places and countries before 2020. And I wouldn’t have discovered my real passions and purposeful direction in this life that isn’t the corporate path I started on.

I’m not suggesting that’s what you have to do or to be irresponsible. I would never say that as I believe in accountability and personal responsibility. I’m super practical. I’m also led by what I feel is happening in my mind-body-spirit. You get to discern and decide if that’s what is right for you.

From my sabbatical journey, I can tell you, if you follow your internal loving (and not fearful) guides, you won’t be led wrong. Any short-term losses you think you may take, you will gain so much more for your life. Because you’ll pivot into something greater that you would not have uncovered without taking the time off. Your perspective will change and you’ll want to re-strategize your life.

Plus you’ll have all the great memories that you can relive for more years than starting in retirement. (I love looking at sabbatical photos and reminiscing about my vacation and time-off).

But besides good memories, you will gain productivity from resting. You won’t know the individual rewards you’ll gain until you take the bold leap.

When should you do it?

I think I described it above, but the short answer I would give is: when you can. You’ll know when you can’t!

Especially if you’re burned out from your job, have life overwhelm, life underwhelm, considering a career switch, or get laid off, now may be a great time (to eliminate life in burnout to sabbatical living that you didn’t choose on purpose… that can leave you de-motivated instead of feeling excited and energized).

Or maybe you have a deepening desire to explore something new in life and that is winning over any fears you have for taking a risky and unknown bold step towards your future, despite questions from loved ones you may receive.

One other word of nudging encouragement to take the proactive bold step… free yourself from feeling like you have to please others (or be a martyr to do it for others). Your life and mental health are at risk, and if you lose yourself in the process, then you have nothing to give.

A mid-life crisis is a real phenomenon that still exists and can come falling like a ton of bricks. It often sadly ends with regrets and not the way it started.

I didn’t experience that (and maybe that’s because I took a sabbatical) but I’ve seen it in others’ lives and maybe you have or will too.

Sometimes it’s just easier when things happen to you that are out of your control, so you can more easily explain your decisions. You lose a job. You get a divorce or another loss happens.

You can find your lost soul, your higher spirit, or a new mission on a sabbatical.

Personally, I love that the sabbatical idea is catching on in our work-addicted society, especially after a shocking 2020 year where we all had to rethink and redo old ways.

Maybe now is a good time for you and you’re looking for encouraging supporters to take a sabbatical. And maybe I’ve piqued your interest, then you’ll want to keep reading as I share more from my memoir and ideas that can help you… Continue reading “From Burnout to Sabbatical: Recharge and Change Your Life”

Faith Curbs Anxious Thoughts And Delivers You to Authentic Purpose

While having faith doesn’t help your rushed anxiety symptoms from happening, faith curbs anxious thoughts, and your anxious situations.

Many anxiety symptoms come from letting irrational thoughts and incessant worry get the better part of us.

That’s where it starts.

…Like a thief in the night, we don’t see what’s happening unless we are critical observers, looking in our own minds for us to be the solution instead of our own problem.

You can pray to not have those thoughts take a stronghold over you, and replace them with better, positive thoughts that can lead to productivity.

That helps to counteract your hurtful thoughts but doesn’t prevent your moods and emotions.

Believing there’s a better outcome or a bigger picture for why you’re going through your sour grape situations.

Those lemons you receive in life can give you the exact breakthrough you need. That’s what your soul needs to heal and evolve, the purpose of your life.

Hmm… we all thought we were here to achieve and be happy, right?

The better setup is to live authentic, whole, heal, and real. Then you can achieve more and experience happiness from the inside out.

…That can happen when you look through the right lens and go through tough situations, and possibly feelings of temporary stress and anxiety.

Faith Curbs Anxious Thoughts and Brings Joy

“Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up.” (Proverbs 12)

Without daily faith as an undercurrent of your life, you can feel self-pity or go into a lack or victimized mentality, especially if you have fears, phobias were attacked/threatened, or are a PTSD survivor (which is part of my story).

Then later being Born Again and doing shadow work helped to restore me in a way that nothing else could replace

You weren’t meant to do everything on your own. You were meant to get help from outside you, that makes you stronger, and builds your inside. That’s the healthier cycle.

People who stay frustrated can live in a vicious hamster wheel life cycle, letting their minds run them.

Without your pro-activity, your mind on its own is a lazy machine that is meant to protect you from danger.

If you’re tired, you just don’t want to think super hard after a busy day. If you have a foggy mind, that can happen to anyone anytime, then going to your higher place is what you need the most.

At that moment, you need to find wholeness and be healed, to live authentically.

You have a higher intellect that you can tap into to collaborate with and get better answers.

Here’s a better way on how to access your higher self…

Find a daily spiritual practice that has variety, and is 100% yours.

Have a daily silent practice in peace, prayer, or meditation, but don’t make it routine.

Doing this will remind you in your darkest moments, that you need to go back to your higher place.

Maybe not immediately, but if you are consistent, then you will know what wholeness feels like and when it’s missing.

Having a quiet daily practice is different than religion that’s all about regurgitating and memorizing the right things to say and think. Do what feels good for you. And create your own way.

Piece together what works for you like an organized mosaic tile.

A pattern that makes sense will form. It can be a mess at the beginning where you have a lot of distractions and noise in your life.

But the more you stay intentional on peace and joy and living purpose-filled, the more spiritual savvy you become. Like when you’re sharpening a skill.

Then as soon as you get comfortable with your peaceful self, your season will change on you. That’s how life evolves you.

But only when the inner knowing says so. Not when you think you’re ready for the change.

Live in a cycle of going and faith growing.

If you force memorization or model how others progress, then those ideas are prominent in your mind but not the most necessarily the most helpful to you.

Mimicking can be how you start in the beginning when you’re learning, but after you advance and begin to mature in growing, you have what you need to get going and growing and share in your higher calling.

Then you can come back to being a learner and getting ideas.

Being spiritual is allowing your creative flow to come out of you.

Naturally what you have learned in the past will pop up in your mind out of the blue if that information is meant to help you at the moment.

Because the Universe wants to help you at all times.

When a helpful thought, quote, or verse that you haven’t thought of in a while comes to mind impromptu, you know that it’s “meant to be” for you to recall.

When you read a book, it’s not about quantity or hurrying through. Speed reading doesn’t help you grow.

It can make you feel like you accomplished more, but what if you take in a few sentences of growth, stop and think about what you read, and how that can help you or apply to your life today?

So many times, we live in a dreamy world of thinking of how the author we don’t know lived, lives, or was thinking… or how so-and-so can use this help or would love this book.

When in reality, we could grow in our own minds with the information that we were just allowed to enter. We can stay curious with our growth.

It can start with a question like: what is this?

If it’s not for you now, then feel free to put it away. Even if you were excited about picking up or purchasing a book.

If after a few chapters, you find that your mind drifts, this is a sign you’re having a connection block with what you’re reading.

Because there are some books you could read from cover to cover hanging on every word (or a movie reel you could watch where you’re glued to your set because you don’t want to miss a second).

Whatever the case, if you have a book that isn’t intriguing you at this moment, you may find you could need that book years down the road if you hold onto it.

Keep a book for as long as you want or check out from the library another time (for you minimalists!). No harm, no foul. No guilt.

Surprisingly, your higher intellect knew you would need it, otherwise, you wouldn’t have brought it home in the first place.

There’s internal wisdom inside you that knows what you need more than your rational mind reasons.

That takes the mystery out of wonder, as you’re designed to live with a purpose.

We all want things in this life. That makes us human.

The difference is seeing that your timetable of growth to your next calling, project, or venture is a collaborative effort with your faith journey should you decide to accept the mission.

You help yourself by taking steps forward and leaning into busy activity, and knowing when the timing or season is off or has come to an end.

If that’s the case, take your foot off the gas pedal you thought you should be hitting, and go in another direction to live in an authentic flow where you don’t need to know the exact outcome.

Life takes you where you need to go without your need to suffer.

You’ll eliminate anxiety from feelings of overwhelm and underwhelm in your life that doesn’t need to exist for your survival.

Be encouraged that miracles are happening all the time for you. Being in faith curbs anxious thoughts.

If you live in faith, you get to enjoy the process as you connect the dots.

And on your faith journey, you may have many communion opportunities. This isn’t a communion drink but it is a purple drink that symbolizes the king in religion.

It’s made form lychee tropical fruit that you can be curious about and the many natural good things in our world.

Lychee Blueberryade Mocktail Drink

This is a very refreshing day and summertime drink. If you've never had lychee, it tastes like a plum and a grape met. And then when you add blueberry and lemon juice, it's a party!

Course beverage

Cuisine American

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

1 lychee (from can)
blueberry tea, brewed (or frozen blueberries)
lemon juice
Optional: shredded coconut and honey (for zhughing) or an additional lychee with blueberries on a skewer.

Instructions

Add crushed blueberries to the bottom of the glass.
Blend brewed blueberry tea, lychee juice, and lemon juice. Aternatively, you can use blueberry juice.
Refrigerate to cold.
Add blueberries and lychee to drinking glass to decorate, or a honey rim of shredded coconut.