Ever since I posted about her a couple of weeks ago, I’ve had Dory on the brain.
I’ve been thinking about her motto, “Just Keep Swimming” when it comes to almost every aspect of my life.
My ministry.
My marriage.
My parenting.
My writing.
And it seems that some of you have Dory on the brain as well – I’ve heard from several of you that the motto, “Just keep swimming,” has been a theme for you as well.
So it seemed natural that when I was at World of Disney on Saturday, I bought up all the stuffed Dorys they had.
(OK, it seemed natural to everyone except Darla from Oklahoma who was cashing me out, “What do you need with all those fish?!?)
Here is what I need with all those fish.
Once a month, I want you to tell me, in the comments, a time this month when you just kept swimming. A time when you were working towards something, a goal you have, a dream you want, and when something came up, you just kept swimming.
I will put all your names in a hat, pick one, and will send you one of my 13 stuffed Dorys.
I want to do this because it ties in so beautifully with my new book, THE ME PROJECT.
I want to do this because it’s important to let the world know that you did something huge, (even if huge is walking 4 blocks instead of the 3 you walked last week.)
I want to do this because it’s important that I get to cheer you on to be all that God created you to be.
So tell me – when did you keep swimming?
(I will pick a winner on Thursday at noon PST and announce it on Friday’s blog post.)
Excited to read the above posts! Way to go all of you for swimming, swimming, and swimming! I finally completed a 5 day Bible Study for Pam Farrel to use at a speaking engagement on February 3! Every obstacle, attack, and emotion ulnder the sky rained down on me as I struggled for weeks to write the assignment for Pam. We edited it for the last time today and I pressed send with a huge sigh of relief. Now it’s in the hands of the Bible Study class staff to disperse on Thursday. God continued to whisper, “Swim, Sharon, Swim!” I needed floaties and everything to get to the other side! What a great feeling to look back at the beginning knowing I made it! Praise God!
Two of my daughters-in-law are inspiring Dorys. One is mother to my grandson who had a heart transplant 5 years ago. The other is mother to my granddaughter who has Sensory Processing Disorder and was just diagnosed with Aspergers. The past five years have been amazingly stressful, for the whole family.
These two young women just keep swimming and the blessings of these precious children are even more amazing..
“just keep swimming”…..i like that, kathi! and reading everyone else’s comments is inspiring!
for more than a year, i’ve had it in mind to create a faith-based line of jewelry at a price point everyone can afford. God laid that on my heart but i wasn’t yet seeing the design. i’ve been jotting down ideas, waiting for Him to clarify my vision. little by little, that vision became sharper but i’ve had one setback after another – materials that just wouldn’t cooperate, a broken kiln, lack of time, illness after illness – mine, my husband, my son and i’ve just found out that my mother has been diagnosed with cancer. but i’m determined to see this line through. the designs are now sketched out and new materials on the way! i’m going to keep trying until i get this right. it’s my intention that my business glorifies the Lord! amen!
This is certainly my theme this year. I’ve been managing my mom’s medical care from 4 hours away for several years. While she’s still independent, I stay on top of her medical, emotional, and financial needs daily. Then this past summer my husband was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, ADD, sleep apnea, and an anxiety disorder. He’s pretty much ignoring it, so I’m researching, trying to figure out where we go from here. Meanwhile, I’m in grad school — seminary — and taking GREEK! I’ve been in way over my head all year. Oh, and I have a business/ministry that I’m trying to run, conferences to prepare for, and oh yes, a home to manage and my own health issues — all of which mostly get ignored. But God is good and I am still swimming, still swimming, still swimming…
This is the year of NO for us. We are saying NO to everything… so that we can get out of debt. Sometimes it feels like we are drowning, and ever since we met Dave Ramsey through financial peace I’ve been singing “Just keep Swimming”. We now have rocks that represent our debt and with each $100 we pay off, we remove one rock. It’s helpful to see our progress in such an upfront way. But it’s still hard…
I’ll be blogging our progress along the way, and we should be able to be out of debt except for the house by November of this year! Just Keep Swimming… and we’ll remove one rock at a time!
http://spergerswoman.blogspot.com/2011/01/year-of-no.html
Hello Kathy!
I have been swimming since Thanksgiving 2010. The day before we found out my mom had breast cancer. It was bomb shell that hit. She does not know the Lord or my Dad. I keep praying that they will through this whole process. This is a process. I have been there every step of the way with her. Almost to point of loosing myself in it. My husband has been great through this as well as God. Both my husband and God have told me to take one day at time instead of thinking months in future with treatment options with my mom. I have to tell you it has been hard emotionally and physically. I know that God will be there every step of the way swimming right alone with me, as long as I stay focused on him and the swimming lesson that he is teaching me through this. For now I swimming in deep waters but one breast stroke at a time with God.
This is my motto when life gets hard…I have two toddlers, so challenging is often the theme for my life! Right now we are trying to move, but wont know for a couple days if we got the place we are trying to rent. I really cant stand moving, so I just want to know if we got it or not, so I can start planning. But until I know, I must just keep swimming!
I just said this last night to my best friend Jen. She is in her last year of her Masters program, is a stay-at-home mom to two little girls, and is eager to go back to her own classroom. She is getting a little burnt out. I had to remind her that she is moving forward even if it doesn’t feel like it.
First of all, I am just thankful that to “just keep swimming” does not involve a swimsuit… 🙂
Swimming DOES however involve: stretching, moving forward, and breathing – all things that are easier said than done.
It has been a challenge as God has stretched me as we struggle with finances and the rigors of balancing a speaking ministry with those “opportunities” of ever day life.
It has been a joy to watch Him move my family forward, closer to Him.
It has been a challenge for me to take time to breathe, relax, and trust.
Thank you for the reminder, Kathi…
And keep one of those fish for yourself to remind you that He is not “FIN”ished with you yet.
So, for me, “Just Keep Swimming” has been my motto for the past couple months…. but this last MOPS meeting was definitely one of those do or die kind of days, and here’s what I shared…
Winter Blues? Or something more Serious?
There’s no such thing as Super Mom, the truth is we can’t do it all. No one learned this lesson more than I recently have! If I’ve given anyone the impression that I’ve got it all together, then you are sadly mistaken. I’m not perfect; in fact I’m the opposite. I think in order to be a good leader; I need to be open and honest. Sharing with my peers the bad with the good. Of course, this does put me in a vulnerable position for ridicule and judgment, but I’m hoping for compassion and understanding.
Anything I’ve ever done that ultimately was worthwhile… initially scared me to death. And sharing what I’m going through definitely scares me. I can’t pinpoint the initial cause… holiday stress, losing a friend, helping a friend going through a nasty divorce, getting sick, genetics, or taking on too much… But it all added up to a Nervous Breakdown.
If I haven’t seemed quite right the past two months, don’t take it personally, because in fact I haven’t been. Hiding is something I managed to do well for a little while. I was afraid to leave the house and hadn’t for weeks. I was having frequent panic attacks, even waking up in the middle of the night with them. I guess I hit rock bottom a few days after New Year’s. I was basically catatonic, unable to move or catch my breath… I almost ended up in the hospital.
I had become totally dependent on family and friends. The love and support that surrounded me helped me to not feel ashamed and to seek help. So, on Monday the 10th, I called my doctor first thing in the morning and got the help I needed. I’m slowing coming back to myself. My first venture back into the real world was a 4 year olds birthday party, and it was great to feel human again. I’m beginning to forgive myself for falling apart and all the guilt I feel for not being a good mommy during all this. I’ve turned to God’s word and found comfort… When I know myself to be at the end of my strength, I know my Lord to be at the front of the battle. “The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still.” Exodus 14:14. I take comfort in knowing that He’s fighting for me.
The ultimate measure of a person is not where they stand in moments of comfort, but where they stand at times of challenge and controversy. I stand before you raw and exposed. Our greatest glory consists not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall. We all need to know that we’re not alone, that we can help each when we fall!
This has been a tough emotional month. My husband’s mom passed away Dec 29th, then his dad died 12 days later. (They had been divorced for many years, so it was unrelated.) Obviously there are all the arrangements to make and living places to empty, but also dealing with the emotions and supporting my wonderful husband during this difficult time has been a big drain. Just keep swimming – it must get better!
The four times in my life that I’ve had to fight the urge to stop swimming are during my pregnancies. And this time has been the worst… I’ve so badly wanted to stop swimming over and over and over– especially when days in the hospital outnumber days at home, when bad reports outnumber the good, when bad days outnumber the bad– but I’ve had to keep swimming. Mostly for my sweet kids who need their mommy.
E-S-C-A-P-E…ess-KA-pay! You know, it’s spelled just like…
Actually, that’s how I kept swimming this week. I resisted urges to escape. Instead, I moved a variety of playing pieces on the game board of my life forward. Many of them just moved one square, but it was motion! I broke tasks down to ridiculously small babier-than-baby steps and took those teensie tiny steps one at a time.
When I do SOMEthing instead of NOthing, I find that the biggest victory is over that paralyzing beast: FEAR. When I escape, fear wins. When I move forward in faith, fear falls.
The leadership of our church has recently been acting outside the outlines of our denomination’s polity–appointing leaders without congregational approval and the like. It’s wrong, and in past years it would have caused me to raise my dukes…and distracted me from ministry. I did have coffee with one of our elders and share my concerns with her, as I felt was my responsibility. She listened politely, but nothing changed. But God has called me to serve at this church, so this year I will just keep serving, serving, serving…..
Loving these comments!! And, um, 13 stuffed Dorys?? You’re awesome.
The summer of 2008 I decided I wanted to visit 52 Zoos in 52 Weeks with my hubby and 3 young daughters. CRAZY. Somehow, some way, through hell and high water and financial hardship and all of that, WE DID IT. From August 1, 2008 to August 1, 2009. And ever since then I’ve been trying to get it all into book form. So I’m still swimming!
My heart’s desire is to encourage people everywhere of the rewards found in prayer. My first book, Hurray God! Hope, Pray, Believe, is in the hands of the publishers. Because it is a collection of answered prayer stories, (it includes journal pages for the reader) and anthologies are not well received at the moment, I keep on swimming because the “want to” in my heart won’t let me quit.
Thank you, Kathi, for your encouraging words and with your Dory project! I love it!!!
I’m swimming!
Jeanette 🙂
Dory, Dory, Dory…I just love her! Too many times people have told me I remind them of Dory.
When the hard times come (and they do) you just have to keep on swimming. When the enemy gets in your head and tells you that you can’t do something (and we know he does) you have to fight him off with prayer and keep on swimming. And sometimes, when you just don’t know what God is going to do next, you just have to keep on swimming because you know that He is leading you something so much better than you ever dreamed of.
So thankful for you Kathi and what you are doing with this Dory project…keep on swimming!
xoxo,
Melissa 🙂
I’ve just been swimming (floating a lot) since late August when my husband decided he was atheist. At the end of December, I discovered that I’m expecting our fourth child. Through everything, all I’ve been able to focus on is to just keep swimming. And swimming. And then swimming so more.
I attended the CLASS Writer’s conference in November 2010 and God has kept me swimming towards something new He wants me to do for Him! I am now a published author and am starting a speaking ministry, ArtFully Yours, using my talents as a sculptress to teach Biblical truths through sculpture. The enemy of my soul has used illness, accidents, discouragement, pity parties, rejection, procrastination,the ‘blahs’, and bouts of low self esteem to keep this from taking place. Praising God for my prayer partners, I have been able to “just keep swimming,swimming,swimming” and am progressing toward the goal. I am a visual learner and need things smacking me in the face to keep me on task (hence the sculptures!) A ‘Dory’ would be a fabulous reminder about God’s providing what I need to keep me afloat and moving forward!
Well, first off, I love, love, love that you’ve got Dory as your theme this year. There have been quite a few times the past couple years that my family has quoted our dear Dory as we’ve encountered various trials with finances and health. I’ve had a bit of a slow month in my business but have continued to ‘just keep swimming’ and now, as we enter this last week of the month…I’ve got quite a few good things happening! Yeah! I’ve also taken up running again, and totally hate it, but need to do it to fight the dumb scale. I ran 2 miles on Saturday and did not die! It wasn’t pretty but I did it and I will keep doing it!
For the last year I have been working on a book series. Every time I am able to work steadily on it, I have been held back by trials. I was sitting at a stop light and a car hit the car behind me, which hit me and I hit the car in front of me. It is now 10 months later, doctors say I am 13% permanently disabled. Sitting for too long hurts so my writing is going slower then I would have liked. Followed by major surgery in October, which took a long time to heal from.
I finally got back to the task of the writing and I love where it is going, then 3 new crisis came up to distract me– however I would not let the distraction to take over. I am determined to keep swimming in the direction I am going. I put the crisis’s aside, and stood firm with the task, when I was done with the chapters I was amazed on where we (God and I) went with it. My word for this year is Discipline– God wants me to have more discipline in my life by swimming up stream and following the true path He has for me.
My 12 year old daughter Kate has been sick since before Christmas. It was horrible! 5 weeks of this horrible cough that wouldn’t go away. Everyday I was online searching for remedies we went to the Dr.s 4 times,3rounds of prescription cough medicines, 2rounds of steroids, 2 antibiotics and finally 2 inhalers. It’s 5 weeks of torture knowing that nothing I’m doing is helping my little girl. Finally this weekend we started seeing improvement! PTL!!!! We started counting the hours between coughs we just kept praying and doing everything we knew to do and finally she is ready to go back to school!!! At this point swimming and maintaining is about all I can do but it worked!
This week has been a struggle for me…I found out on Monday that at the age of 31 that I’m pre-diabetic. Everyday since I’ve been telling myself to just keep swimming…that I don’t need a soft drink…a sweet tea…a chocolate cupcake with chocolate icing with chocolate sprinkles.
My scale has been moving ever so slowly downward. 🙂 This year will be about me swimming…figuratively and physically. 🙂 God is my refuge and strength…and I can do all things through CHRIST who gives me strength!
I spent five years pursing my dream of getting my first writing contract, which happened last month. That, however, pales in comparison with the eleven years it took me to work and put myself through college. I ended up with my bachelors. Because I changed schools several times and majors once, though, I ended up with more units than my hubby, who has a master’s. So, my eleven-year four-year degree rates as my top Dory experience.
This has been our family’s motto through good times and bad. I could give you a list of bad times that would for sure out weigh the good but I would rather tell you that no matter what the circumstances, you must always keep swimming. God has blessed us so tremendously this year. Had you of told me a few years ago “just keep swimming” I would have laughed at you and told you that my fins are broken. But God has shown me and helped me understand that no matter what the circumsances are we must and always continue to “Just keep swimming”!
Well, during the midst of a HUGE family problem that started on Christmas day, I’ve been dog paddling… Sinking at times, but-so far, have come ip for air and kept on swimming! This problem is not gonna drown me! God is my “Floatie” and I’m still in there… Swimming:)