1/2 cup ground flax seed (found a kind at Trader Joe with blue berries in them)
1/2 cup chocolate chips or Cacao Nibs
1/3 cup honey or agave nectar
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Stir all ingredients together, then let chill in the fridge for 30 minutes before rolling them into a ball, approx an inch in diameter (or you can press them into a pan and cut them like a granola bar if you prefer.) Put in an airtight container and store in the fridge up to a week. (good luck getting them to last that long! They are delicious!)
Being involved in Young Living, you hear a lot of talk about Wellness, Purpose and Abundance.
The first part, wellness, has been my goal from the start....the whole reason I started this journey.
The second part, purpose, fell into my lap with the business side...I absolutely connected with having purpose sharing the oils because I have seen them work to change lives.
The third part, abundance, wasn't really on my radar...I didn't start this journey with any kind of income goals. My husband has a great job and our needs are met. Now that I have been doing it for just shy of 2 years and my paychecks are pretty big, it's starting to be something I think about more. My husband's job doesn't come without a cost, being married to a pilot who travels and is gone a lot...well, it's hard. But I didn't want for my needs being met. I have to hit a few more ranks in YL before my paychecks would even rival my husbands. It is just a matter of time though....when I can, I want to make it so that my husband can stay home and only fly his line. He's been flying extra for so long, it is our normal. But if he didn't have to pick up any trips, it would mean more time for him to be home with our kids and for us to be living our lives together instead of separate. Now, some days, I like the separate and so does he. But that's a whole other ball o wax ;) lol
Anyhow...abundance for me doesn't really look like what it does for some people in regards to my business. I actually latched onto the idea of abundance on behalf of my team. I have people who have signed up with me or with someone on my team who the type of paycheck I am making now....could make a significant change to their lifestyles for the better. So how can I help make that happen for more of them? That is what I think about a lot. Who on my team is dying to quit their job and become a stay at home mom? Who has a mountain of debt that is crushing them and a paycheck like this could give them room to breathe? Who has dreams they have given up on because they don't see how they can ever finance them? What good could be done with money in the right people's hands.
Well. When I start looking at abundance through that lens, I work harder.
But when you take money out of the talking about abundance, that is when this gets really interesting for me.
I do desire abundance. But a different kind....I want God to pour out on my life in abundance...not money....but his presence. I want my heart to overflow and the words that come out of my mouth to reflect a heart of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, patience, self control....all that fruit the Bible talks about.
2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
How cool is that verse!?!! abound in every good work?! yes, please!
Check out this really fun video of a worship song about the Abundance of Heavenly Rain....It is definitely a favorite of mine to listen to right now :) Go ahead and enjoy it with me!
Sometimes I feel this pressure to make and create big huge amazing things....from photography, to business decisions, to meals, to birthdays, to being a fun mom....you name it.
But I was thinking today. Wouldn't you rather eat every day, 3x a day, something....than to not ever eat unless someone made a gourmet meal? And what if someone's gourmet meals were only possible to make 4x a year? You would die from hunger! quite literally.
I think we need to put less pressure on ourselves to do these big amazing crazy off the charts things...and instead, be consistent in the small things. The daily things. And you know what? When your kids are growing up big and strong because of those daily meals, when your photo albums are full of moments that you cherish, when your business grows steady, when your online presence is consistent, when birthdays are fun no matter how they are celebrated, when your kids love you even though you plan nothing for them to do for days on end....I call that winning. Huge success actually. The kind that is sustainable and the kind you can recreate day in and day out. The kind you can look back on and know matters.
I have been noodling what I want to do over here on this fabulous little corner of the internet. It felt good to catalog the big things that have happened with our health and wellness and positive changes we have made as a family...but now that those stories are told...it's time to get current!
So my goal is to share the ways we are #joyfullyliving and I hope that you follow along! I will be tying in my instagram posts but elaborating on them over here. I really love instagram, it is such a lovely place. The photos, the people, all of it.
If these themes speak to your heart, would you start using the hashtag #joyfullyliving along with me? I'd love to connect on instagram (@joyfullyjamie is my name!) and create a community together. I think the impact of joy speaks to the small things and the happy moments, but it is also about persevering through the hard times with grace.
