James 1:22 – Robyn Mulder

I was going to call this week’s post “Let’s Focus on Following Through,” but then I did a search and realized that I used that for a title in April of 2022 when I was feeling nervous about my first Masters swim meet. (You can read that post if you click here.)

How funny that I thought about using that title today, because I’m psyching myself up for my second Masters swim meet tomorrow in Sioux Falls.

I’m not quite as nervous this time. I haven’t shed a single tear about it, but I did experience some normal signs of stress when I read through the list of events and checked out my competition on Thursday. Seeing everyone’s ages and times made my heart race and caused my stomach to do a few flip-flops.

I’m trying to think positively. I want to enjoy the day as I spend time with other adults who love to swim. But I have to admit that I did wish for a couple of minutes that I hadn’t signed up for the meet.

I entertained several of the negative thoughts that kept me waffling about whether to sign up until the very last day:

I could be in better shape.

I’m not sure if I can swim any faster than I did at the first meet.

Maybe I should just wait until next spring and make sure I train harder so I’m really ready.

Thankfully, I didn’t let myself ruminate on any of those thoughts for very long. Instead, I reminded myself of the reasons I finally signed up:

I love to swim.

I want to talk to other swimmers and find out how they stay motivated as they train.

I want to challenge myself and see if I’ve improved since April 2022.

I’m kind of proud of myself already, even if I don’t win a single race. I can see improvements in the way I catch my thoughts. That’s something I try to practice (and encourage others to do it, too) in my free private Facebook group: Catch Your Thoughts with Robyn Mulder.

Most of all, I want to show up for this swim meet because I want to honor my intentions. I haven’t always done that, but I’m trying to be more consistent in that area.

I don’t want to miss all of the exciting opportunities in this world just because I’m scared. I found a quote a while back by author Katherine Center:

You have to be brave with your life so that others can be brave with theirs.*

That’s the way I want to live my life. Brave. Hopeful. Honoring my intentions and commitments. That’s why I’m going to go swim my heart out tomorrow.

I’ll report back next week.

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22 NIV)

Do you honor your intentions? How can focusing on God help you follow through when you say you’re going to do something?

*(Check out her quote in this video: https://katherinecenter.com/defining-a-movement/)

When I was in 5th or 6th grade, I was a “safety” at East Elementary School. We went through special training and then we were assigned to help kids cross the streets on the way to and from school.

We wore bright orange belts and enjoyed a special degree of respect from the little kids who waited behind our outstretched arms until we determined that it was safe to cross. Then we would step to the side, hold one arm out toward the street, and motion them forward by swinging the other arm while we chanted “Walk” and watched as they made their way to the other side of the street.

We also had the authority to “report” kids who disobeyed our directions or did unforgivable things like walking on the grass.

One day our “safety” group walked down the steps and headed to the intersection of Burlingame and 36th Street. A couple of us decided to take a short cut, until we heard another kid warn, “Hey! Practice what you preach!”

Sure enough, we were walking on the grass. How could we tell younger kids not to do that and then do it ourselves? Especially at that time in my life, it made a big impact on me (oh, the guilt!).

I thought of it again this week because I’ve been wrestling with my emotions.

I’ve wanted to wallow in negative thoughts and bad habits that are not contributing to my health and happiness.

When I got pretty deep in my distress, my old “safety” experience came back to me and I thought: “Practice what you preach.”

What would I tell someone who was feeling the way I was?

Write down your thoughts. Recognize the ones that are negative or lies and replace them with positive thoughts and truth from the Bible.

Show yourself some grace. Take a break and do something nice for yourself instead of focusing on every single responsibility you have and stressing about it.

Talk to someone about how you’re feeling. Feeling supported could help you get to a better place emotionally.

I did some of those things once in a while, but most of the week I let the negative thoughts run amok in my mind.

It’s time to stretch out my arms and say, “Stop!”

It’s time to look around, identify the dangers, and wait until the coast is clear.

Then I can point ahead, motion my thoughts forward, and chant “Walk” as I choose safe paths of thinking.

Whether it’s mental health or some other area of our lives, let’s be careful to always practice what we preach.

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22 NIV)

Do you say one thing and do another? How can focusing on God help you to live out what you say you believe?

Tag: James 1:22

Focus Friday: Let’s Focus on Honoring Our Intentions

Focus Friday: Let’s Focus on Practicing What You Preach