DIVINE DETOURS

For many years now, and counting, I’ve felt quite lost. It’s not a place of normalcy for me; a woman who always has had a plan and stops and nothing to achieve each goal with flying colors. But in this season of seeking and solitude, I’ve had to learn to let go of the steering wheel and become a passenger in life; figuratively and literally.

I’ve looked back at the past as in a type of live review wondering if I took a wrong turn and wondering why I’ve had to lose so much along the way. The result of these reflections have led me through seasons of self-sabotage, self-blame and even to despair.

But in the beautiful connections of others who’ve went through great trials and seasons of hardship I am uplifted and reminded that all things serve a purpose and God is always working all things for the good (even if it may not seem like the case during the process of change).

I’ve found throughout my journey that the greatest heroes are often not the ones who get their names in lights or have huge followings – mainly because they never desire for such a thing. These are the saints that walk in lowly places and commit their lives to serving something greater and more meaningful than themselves. They live to serve others. And the impacts they make on the hearts, minds and soul paths of the ones they meet are monumental in ways I can only begin to imagine. I know this because these are the people who have touched my life in big ways.

From a powerful and successful businesswoman to a student of life’s greatest lessons I have traveled the skies meeting phenomenal men and women who shine as bright lights even in the darkest moments. They lead by their actions and command authority with their kindness and selflessness. They carry with them the power to heal, to inspire and to spark epiphanies in the paths of others.

I never asked for this mission and not a single person in my life knows of this project as I work to build the foundation today. I have no one cheering me on or giving me ideas or input – only a small voice within nudging me to turn on my webcam and put a microphone in front of these voices who have lit a flame inside of me to share their stories and their wisdom to anyone who will come.

I guess in this moment I’m Kevin Costner in the Field of Dreams listening to a voice in the sky whisper, “If you build it, they will come.” Time will tell.

I began this project in honor of my Granny Mae. She was a woman who never needed her name in lights or her picture in the media. But she helped more strangers & changed more hearts than anyone I’ve ever known… a saint in the silence.

Mae owned a flower shop but never made a profit because she gave away everything she ever earned to help others in need. She loved making people smile, warming hearts and laying her life down daily to be a light in the darkest of situations.

I knew she was different but it wasn’t until she passed into the Heavenly realms on February 23, 2017 did I begin to see the truth of who she was in the gifts she carried and the baton she was passing onto me as she departed this world. Then on the 3rd anniversary of her passing over I found myself standing on the cliffs of Magu Point staring out into the ocean as waves crashed below. The sky was lit up with stars and my heart was lit up with a stirring inside that I couldn’t comprehend.

I had no idea how drastically my life was about to change.

I took a huge leap of faith, giving away everything I’d worked my entire life to achieve and moved to California with a dog and a jeep. Then I found myself alone in a type of wilderness I never knew could exist. It was in the solitude I felt my soul calling; turning away from everything this world has to offer as I searched for something greater and more meaningful.

I took a traveling job just to force myself to get out of the house and there I began meeting amazing people. Ironically, each person who left a mark on me seemed to have similar stories as mine. And every single one of them confirmed a thing within that I need to see, heal and integrate for a purpose that I felt was much greater than little me.

Phillipians 4:8 says, “whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

There is freedom in truth and joy in the journey even when each detour and pit-stop is laced with pain. My Granny suffered more than anyone I’ve ever known and yet she was my hero. Today I find new heroes; sparks in the sky who plant seeds in me to see the world through a different set of lenses and believe that we all have the ability to make an impact in our time here. Even if it’s in a small way, perhaps sharing these stories can do that for someone else.

Love, Jodi

Sent to Serve