I know it's past 8 pm here in Pennsylvania and most people are done with Easter celebrations and they are now getting ready for the work and/or school week ahead. Why am I posting Easter wishes at the end of the day instead of this morning?

There are a few reasons. On a personal note, I have been caring for a sick child all weekend and didn't get to work on this l earlier today. However, it makes absolute sense for me to send this message now. You see, I wanted to talk about my favorite Easter hymn "Because He lives" and share how much it encourages me throughout the year and not just on Easter day. The phrase "Because He lives, I can face tomorrow" speaks hope to my heart. 

I might not know what you are dealing with tonight or what you might have to face in the morning, but I know this one truth...When we believe in something bigger than ourselves, our fears of the unknown and fears of what tomorrow might hold no longer paralyze us. No matter what tomorrow brings, we can face it because He lives!

I pray that your heart is filled with hope and peace as you trust in Him to fight your battles.

Your friend,
​
Chou
"Because He lives, I can face tomorrow!"

Can you help us help others achieve emotional wellness, reach their full potential, and live fulfilling lives? We have 1,000 brochures to share with the world. If people who visit your business or place of worship could benefit from our services, then please consider sharing our brochures with them.
We can mail or drop them off at your location (if you're in our area). Let us know by emailing chou@graceandhopeconsulting.com. Thanks in advance for helping us reach others! 

​Have you ever worked so hard on something but it didn't turn out the way you expected? 

My last newsletter did not work out too well, at least from my perspective. When I worked it on it, things looked fine on the editor/creator side of things, then I hit submit and I was not happy with the outcome. The layout was not the same and the pictures were larger than intended and crowded the page...It just wasn't how I wanted it to be. Nobody complained about it, but I wasn't satisfied. I actually got a couple emails from people who liked the new logo (thank you for focusing on the positive :)

On my end, everything looked okay; not perfect, but acceptable. The published version did not look like what I saw before hitting "submit". I only viewed the newsletter from one angle (my editor/creator screen) and not what it would look like once displayed on the reader's screen. I did a preview before sending out the newsletter and that was fine as well, perhaps I should have sent out a test email to myself before sending it out to everyone.

Needless to say, I was disappointed with the program that I used to manage my subscribers and send out my newsletter. I was also disappointed in myself for not investigating other options to ensure the quality of the newsletter. I assigned blame...to the system...and to myself.
Blaming technology and blaming myself did not fix the problem. This reminded me that things are not always as they appear. I only have a limited view of things, of the present, of life. Since I can't see it all, then I can't control it all. If I can't control it all, then stressing about it doesn't change a thing!

This newsletter mishap forced me to research other programs that would be more effective in helping me connect with others. If this didn't happen, I would not have looked into programs that offer more features and would allow me to do even more than I did before. I now have more options to enhance my communication system. Sometimes, things don't work out so we can find better options to do better and be better.

After this ordeal, I switched to a different program and this is my first correspondence with the new email system. I would appreciate it if you could let me know that you got this email. With a new system, comes a time of learning and a time of adjustment.  I'm getting the hang of things and I like the additional features that are available in this new system and I can't wait to try them out in the future. But I also realize that it will take some time to get used to doing things a different way and I need to allow myself the time (and grace) to adjust to this transition. When we find that better option, it doesn't necessarily mean that things will be easier at first. It might be a rocky road as we take on those first action steps but if our projected outcome outweighs the difficulties of the present time, then we can rest assured that our path will lead to a safe destination in the future.

What about you?
Is there an area of your life that you need to gain a different perspective on? Instead of blaming yourself or others, consider how limited your view might have been. You probably made the best decision with the information you had at the time. Well, just like I cannot control it all, neither can you. Just like I can't foresee the future, neither can you. So don't be too hard on yourself...

Are you going through something right now that might require you to seek for an alternative route? It's okay to know your options and take advantage of "additional features" that might enhance your life. Just because you've done it a certain way for so long, does not necessarily mean that it was the best way. Maybe it was the only way you knew how to do it, and that's ok, but now you have options. So don't limit yourself...

Have you already decided that you need to change course and steer in a different direction? Deciding is the first step, but an idea without action is only an idea. So act on it...

And when you're turning those action steps into reality, remember it took a long time for you to get where you were and it will take some time to get where you want to go. So be patient with yourself...

I hope this email encourages you to soar toward higher grounds and reach your full potential. 

Here's our April Challenge:
Find one thing that you want to change in your life, write down why you want to change it, and what life will be like after the change occurs.
Write this down somewhere safe, like in a journal. I will send out additional action steps in a few days. 

Until next time... remember, you are worth it!
 
Chou