Updates from Robin Chenault

What do you do when you are scared or uncomfortable 😮?

There is nothing that strikes fear in the heart of this girl and will bring her running for Mama more than a smoke detector beeping 😞.

While it is INCREDIBLY annoying for me, I assume it hurts her ears in ways I cannot even imagine.

She shakes uncontrollably and gets as close to me as possible. 

Most recently, the beeping smoke detector was actually where I was in my office so she heard it from upstairs, came running to me and then was even more freaked out when it kept going off just over her head. 

She thought she was running AWAY from danger and TOWARDS safety, but instead ran right smack dab in the middle of danger. 

👉 I am a people pleaser.

👉 I avoid confrontation.

👉 I am a peacemaker.

👉 I want everything in life to be picture perfect.

👉 I do not like to create friction.

👉 I like to play it safe and NOT put myself out there. 

So, how have I dealt with a difficult situation or person or life circumstance? 

1. Stick my head in the sand - avoid, avoid, avoid at ALL costs. 
2. Run in the opposite direction (see #1).
3. Try to pretend like it doesn’t exist (ummmm… again, see #1).
4. Smooth things over by pretending nothing is wrong (do you see a pattern here?). 

The older I get, the LESS I try to run from danger, from things that are uncomfortable or painful.  

I have learned that facing it HEAD ON takes away its power over me to make me feel scared, ill equipped and small.  Looking it straight in the eye and DEALING with it gives me confidence and strength.

Today, I am learning (we are all a work in progress, am I right?) to handle hard things differently. 

1. NAME the problem, the danger, the person, the crisis, the discomfort, the situation. 
2. PRAY for guidance and discernment. 
3. ACT on what God is saying. 
4. FACE it head on without fear. 
5. Be CONFIDENT and walk through the fire. 
6. LEARN from the experience. 

We will all face challenges in life. It is how we react to them that makes us WHO we are.  

Don’t try to avoid them.  USE them to grow and be a BETTER you.

Have you ever changed direction in life ↩️?

This retainer case represents regret and pivot. 

My hubs has had braces twice in his life... as a teenager and again at age 40. Both times, he was given a retainer. Both times, he stopped wearing that retainer. Both times, his teeth shifted ☹️.

This time around, he saw it happening and is now wearing his retainer faithfully every night... not to fix the shifting that has already happened (because it would take a 3rd round of braces to do that and that ain't happening), but to stop any further shift. 

If only he had worn the retainer all along 😕.

Sometimes, we make poor choices or do things we know are not good for us. 

BUT, there is always time to pivot. 

Maybe it will not undo the damage already done, but it can change the direction we are going so there is no further damage. 

So, what do we do?

It is never too late. 

You can assess your life and if you do not like what we see, you always have the option to pivot.  

You can do this!