Hey there. Today we're going to do something a little different on the podcast. Since it's my birthday week, I decided to share a few life lessons, things that I've discovered throughout the decades of life. I'm not going to say my age, but in any event, in order to do this, I went to my Instagram feed and I looked at all my posts and I decided to choose five of the top quotes because they were inspired by some of these life lessons. So that's what we're going to talk about today on the Resilient Faith Online podcast, episode 23, the stories behind my top five Instagram quotes. Welcome. I'm Arissa Shadrick, host of the Resilient Faith Online Show. I'm an online marketing coach and certified copywriter. In this podcast, you'll find a different perspective to the external and internal challenges we face as online content creators. Join me for some inspiration and practical tips as we create positive change online. To connect with me in my private Facebook group, go to MarissaShadrick.com forward slash community. Hello, hello to this very special podcast. Another year of life for me this week. Yes, September 29th. After you hear this podcast, um, the following couple of days later, it'll be my birthday. And I'm excited because I'm thankful. I'm thankful that I am up there in years. And I feel good, I'm healthy, I've got a business that I love, I've got a family that I love, I've got a husband that I absolutely adore, and I am good. I am just good. And if a person can say that when they're in their 60s, life is good, my friend. Life is good. So today I wanted to share my top five Instagram quotes, little life lessons, because most of these quotes are written from personal experience. I write them down because I journal all the time. And so I decided to share some of those with you. And I chose these because this is what the public liked. So this is what I'll share. So the first quote is although our prayers are often short-sighted, God's answers are far-sighted. Now, what inspired this? I have noticed throughout my many years of life that my prayers are often so small compared to the way God wants to bless. He sees everything, and I only see just a little smidgen of what the possibilities can be. So aren't we glad that God doesn't often answer our prayers? Because if he did, I seriously think we would have less, we wouldn't grow as much. We only see a glimpse of what's possible. But God sees it all. He sees our future, he sees our shortcomings, he sees our strengths, he sees our gifts, he sees our blind spots, he sees our desires, he sees our imperfect faith. And yet when he answers, it's abundant. We don't have to pray these perfect prayers. The power of prayer comes in the one that we pray to, not in the way that we pray. So that's where that quote came from. So number four is success means you continue to show up when you're tired or discouraged. This separates the amateurs from the pros. So true, right? If you're an online entrepreneur, you know what I'm talking about, right? We're talking the same language. Sometimes it feels when we're growing our business like we're driving through a storm with heavy rain. You have you ever driven when there's a rainstorm and the water's just beating down on the windshield and you can barely see, and your wipers are going really, really fast, and it's really hard to see. And then on top of that, if there's any bit of fog or mist, it makes it so hard to see, but we move ahead, maybe a little slower and more cautiously, but we're moving ahead. Sometimes growing an online business can feel that way. We're moving forward, we don't see everything really clearly yet, and we're moving forward, and we're going maybe a little slower and cautiously and fearfully, but we're showing up, we're moving ahead, and we're making progress. So this quote was just really trying to encapsulate the fact that sometimes we don't see what's coming up. Entrepreneurs take a lot of risks, and yet as we move forward through the fog and we continue to move toward the direction where we want to go, we begin to see things a little clearer. It's like the storm's over and there's blue sky, and we know exactly what we're supposed to be doing. We know exactly who it is that we serve, and we just keep moving forward and with clarity, we can move with momentum. So that's where that quote came from. It was inspired by my own journey through the ups and downs of building my business. I wrote that quote. So now, next quote number, and this one's a number three. Don't be busy, be intentional. And I actually talked about this in episode number 14, and this one ranked really high. It seemed like the Instagrammers like this quote too. And it was really about not feeling like a prisoner of circumstances and being so busy like we have no control. Busy implies that, at least to me, it implied that I have no control over my day or over my life, that things were just being thrown at me and I was just in this cycle of putting out fires and doing these things that I needed to do and I had no control. But by saying that you're choosing to do something, it affirms that you're being intentional, that you have clear direction, that you're determining what needs to be worked on and what doesn't have to be worked on. You're prioritizing. And that requires a different degree of energy. So when we're working on something, sometimes it's not that we're busy, it's that we are investing a lot of energy into something because we've chosen to do that. And you and I both know if you're an online entrepreneur, if you're launching something, if you're creating a webinar, if you're creating a course, there are times when you're going to invest a lot of energy. It's not that you're busy, at least the way I see busy, and this is all my perspective on busy being out of control, but rather I am investing energy into this because it's important to me and I'm living a very intentional life. So I made that distinction because I didn't like saying that all the time. I'm busy, I'm busy, but rather I'm being intentional about this project or something that I'm working on. It's going to require investing more energy into it, but that's okay because it's just for a season. So I made that distinction there and I created that quote: don't be busy, be intentional. And you can check out episode 14 if you want to hear more about that one. The next quote, number two, is surrender what doesn't need ownership. And oftentimes we, especially leaders, especially people, if you're an entrepreneur online, you're a trailblazer. And oftentimes, if you're a type A like me, and of course, this is, you know, I'm showing some of my vulnerability and some of my shortcomings, you know, we tend to want to control things. If we're very organized, if we're very structured, you know, we tend to structure everything, even God. We often try to control what's not meant to be controlled, right? The only one that we can really control is ourselves, and that's with the grace of God, right? Yet we try to control or hold on to opinions and attitudes and circumstances and people. And at times, like I said, we even try to control the outcome from God, right? We even try to dictate what it is that he needs to do. But we can remember even the words that Jesus said, not my will but yours be done. So this was very freeing for me to really surrender what I shouldn't be an owner of. Surrender what doesn't need ownership, what doesn't have my name on it, surrender it and begin to trust and let go of some things that I have no business holding on to. So that's where that quote came from. Surrender what doesn't need ownership. And then for number one quote, the top quote on my Instagram post was prayer is not a monologue, it is a dialogue. And this quote is just again, it was so much of God reminding me to be still. Communication is so important. You and I both know that. Whether it's communication in our business or communication with our spouse or communication with our children, we know it's key for any relationship, right? Communication is key. Doesn't matter if we're writing or if we're speaking, communication is important. Even our body language is a form of communication. An important part of communication, believe it or not, and take this from a public speaker, right? Communication, the most important thing about communication is listening. Listening. So when we listen, we can dialogue. And that's the piece that I had a hard time with was the listening part. And we think, well, how can you listen to God? That's like crazy. He doesn't talk. There's no audible voice. Correct. There's no audible voice, but there is a dialogue. Think of it this way: have you ever had an aha moment when everything became clear? When something, there was some trigger, something happened, and all of a sudden, something you were wrestling with, you knew exactly what you needed to do. It's kind of like that with prayer. Prayer isn't a monologue where we're just talking to God and dictating and giving him our big long prayer list. It's a dialogue, but we have to listen and we do receive answers. But we have to be still and oftentimes in the word of God, and sometimes even in prayer. And for me, it often happens as I'm waking up in the morning. I think it's because it's the only time I'm not talking that God can get a word in, right? It's those spiritual aha moments that are so packed with truth about ourselves, about our circumstance, that we know without a shadow of a doubt that it's divine intervention. And that's what inspired this quote when I wrote it. Prayer is not a monologue, it is a dialogue. And if we want to have a dialogue with anyone, we begin by listening. We have to listen to be able to know what it is that we need to say or what it is that we need to do. So there you have it. Here's a summary of the five quotes. Number five was although our prayers are often short-sighted, God's answers are far-sighted. Number four was success means you continue to show up when you're tired or discouraged. This separates the amateurs from the pros. Number three was don't be busy, be intentional. Number two was surrender what doesn't need ownership. And number one, the top Instagram quote was prayer is not a monologue, it is a dialogue. So, why did I decide to share these quotes with you? So much of building an online business is mindset. It a lot of it is mindset. Doesn't matter if you're a copywriter, if you're a coach, if you're an author, whatever you are doing online, you first have to get rid of imposter syndrome. You have to believe in the message that God has put in your heart to share. You have to understand that there is a process that you have, yes, you have weaknesses, but you also have strengths, you have gifts, and so much of our head can get in the way of our success. So I decided for my birthday, I would give you this gift of sharing these quotes, sharing a little bit of insight from all these decades of living. Because if you can reframe negative thoughts in your head and you can lean on the positive and learn from every situation and be grateful for every single day, you, my friend, will succeed in your business. It all starts in the mind. So I hope this was an encouragement to you. I'm just really excited to just have another year of life and um have all the blessings that I've had and the wonderful husband that I have and family. And I'm also thankful for you. So thank you so much for being a part of my life, listening to the podcasts, visiting my website. I appreciate you. I'm thankful for you. So until next time, take care. Wait, before you go, if you found this podcast helpful, subscribe so you never miss an episode. Every subscription, review, or rating means so much to me. Remember, cultivate resilient faith online to create positive change in the world.