Velvet Elvis

"I am not defined by who I am not. And understanding this truth is a huge part of becoming whole. I had to stop living in reaction and start letting a vision for what lies ahead pull me forward."

What is my vision for what lies ahead?

"My life work is fundamentally creative in nature. And creating has its own rhythms, its own pace. Inspiration comes at strange times when you create. And inspiration comes because of discipline. And discipline comes when you organize your life in specific, intentional ways. It means saying yes to certain things and no to other things. And sticking with it."

1. Organize your life in specific, intentional ways
2. Then comes inspiration
3. Then comes creation

"If we don't know who we are or where we're trying to go, we put the people around us in an uncomfortable position. And when we begin to pursue becoming the people God made us to be, we give them more and more to go on."

Kill your superwhatever.

"I started identifying how much of my life was about making sure the right people were pleased with me. And as this became more and more clear, I realized how less and less pleased I was with myself. What happens is our lives become so heavily oriented around the expectations of others that we become more and more like them and less and less like ourselves. We become split."

"First, no amount of success can heal a person's soul. In fact, success makes it worse. If you have issues surrounding your identity, those issues will not go away if you 'make it.' They will be there until they are hunted down and identified and dealt with. We often live under the illusion that when we reach that goal and complete our mission, those issues that churn on the inside will go away. 'Wherever you go, there you are.' That's why when we talk with people who are just itching to leave town because they 'just need to get out of here,' we know they will be back. Often they find out that whatever it is, it went with them. The problem is not the town. The problem is somewhere inside of them. Success doesn't fix anything. We have the same problems and compulsions and addictions, only now we have more stress and more problems and more pressure. Success and achievement won't fix it. You will be the same person, only you'll have more of everything, and that includes pain. There is always a mystery behind the mystery. There is a reason we do what we do, and often it is the result of something that is the result of something that is the result of something. What happens is we try to fix things, but we stop at the first or second layer. We're stressed and so we make adjustments in time management. But a better question is, why do I take on so much? But an even better question is, why is it so hard for me to say no? Or even, why is that person's approval so important to me? But that's not even the real issue. The deeper you go, the more painful it gets. We have to be willing to drag up everything."

"Can you relate to this feeling? That sense that there is something deep in the fiber of your being that you have to do, and if you don't do it, you will be violating something... or somebody? Better to try and fail, because at least you are being true to yourself. And the worst thing would be to live wondering, What if?"

"I'm learning that a lot of people give up. They settle. And they miss out. Anybody can quit. That's easy. Very few people actually live from their heart. Very few live connected with their soul. And those few who do the difficult work, who stare their junk in the face, who get counsel, who let Jesus into all of the rooms in their soul that no one ever goes in, they make a difference. They are so different; they're coming from such a different place that their voices inevitably get heard above the others. They are pursuing wholeness. They inspire me to keep going."

"Notice how many places in the accounts of Jesus' life he gets frustrated with his disciples. Because they are incapable? No, because of how capable they are. He sees what they could be and could do, and when they fall short, it provokes him to no end. It isn't their failure that's the problem; it's their greatness. They don't realize what they are capable of."