Living Her Vision

Normally when I hear the word “anchor,” I think of something strong and steadfast. The word itself means to fix, fasten and support. And all those words have positive connotations.

But what if an anchor is actually a negative thing? What if instead of supporting and being our rock, an anchor is actually something that holds us back and keeps us stagnant? Something that ties us to a past filled with worry, regret, anger, mistakes, and failures? Deadweight that we need to shake off.

So many of us, myself included, want to be successful, happy individuals living our best lives. In fact, I haven’t heard too many people say that they don’t want to be successful or that they don’t desire to lead a happy life filled with love.

Part of being successful is being able to envision what you want out of life. Without vision and purpose, you’re just coasting through hoping that things will come together and finally make sense.

And many of us know the value of having a clear vision. So we set goals, create vision boards and speak confidently about our bright future ahead. About where we will be five months from now. A year from now and so on.

One minute everything is fine, and we are running full speed ahead toward our goals.  Then SMACK! We are stopped in our tracks by that pesky anchor. You know – the one that we thought we released.

For me, my anchor is unforgiveness of myself. I have a nasty little habit of dwelling on my past mistakes and failures. If I allow myself to get in and stay in that mood, I can beat myself up over things that happened in the past.

I begin to rehearse the same tired scenario over and over. I should have – would have– could have so much that by the time I realize it, I have ventured far down a road with potholes that only leads to dead ends.

Sometimes we have a tendency to look in the rearview mirror of life. And though it is important to know where you came from, you can’t just look in the rearview mirror because you will end up either staying stagnant or worse going in reverse instead of going forward into your future.

You can’t focus on your future if you are constantly looking backward. When I get into one of my moments, I have to quickly talk myself out of it because if not, I will be dragging around that anchor for a while.

I was watching a recent rerun of Sex and the City, and in the episode, Carrie says “Maybe the Past is like an anchor holding us back. Maybe you have to let go of who you were to become who you will be.”

For me, I know that I cannot become the woman I want to be if I keep focusing on the broken person I used to be. I have to release that anchor of self-condemnation if I want to live my best life.

There is a reason why God says in His word:

Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. 

Behold, I will do a new thing… (Isaiah 48:18-19)

Points to consider:

What’s your anchor?

What’s stopping you in your tracks?

What chains do you need to release or even break?

Maybe your anchor is the hurt from a past relationship. Maybe it’s a lack of confidence or a pessimistic attitude. Maybe it’s even a friend whose friendship is toxic. Whatever (or whoever) it is, I challenge you to spend a little time this week reflecting on what’s holding you back from becoming the phenomenal person you are meant to be.