Last week at The Tuesday Table, we talked about recognizing what may be hidden beneath the surface in the people we serve. This week, I have been thinking about how easily we can overlook what is still developing within us.
I have spent much of my life encouraging students, educators, and leaders to recognize their potential.
I have reminded people that they are capable of more than they can see in a difficult moment. I have encouraged them to try again, consider another path, and not allow one season to determine what comes next.
Lately, I have been reminded that all of us need to hear those words sometimes.
Life has a way of making us question ourselves.
A plan changes.
An opportunity does not come when we expect it.
A loss shifts the direction of our lives.
We find ourselves in a place we did not anticipate, wondering whether we still have what it takes to move forward.
If that is where you are right now, I want to remind you:
There is still more in you.
There are gifts you may not have fully recognized because you have been busy using them to help everyone else.
There are lessons you learned in one season that may prepare you for something completely different in the next.
There are ideas you have dismissed because they felt unfamiliar, too big, or too far outside what you have always done.
You may be more capable than you realize.
Being capable does not mean knowing how to do everything before you begin. Sometimes capability looks like being willing to learn.
It looks like asking questions.
It looks like adjusting when something does not work.
It looks like taking what you already know and applying it in a new way.
It looks like beginning even when you cannot see every step ahead.
Sometimes we become so connected to one role, title, or version of ourselves that we forget our gifts are not limited to one space.
The patience you developed while caring for someone may help you lead with greater compassion.
The creativity you use at home may become the beginning of a new idea.
The challenges you survived may help you recognize and support someone who is struggling.
The experience you gained in one career may become the foundation for something you have not considered yet.
Nothing is wasted.
Even the seasons that did not happen the way you planned can reveal strengths you did not know you had.
This does not mean you must do everything at once.
You can slow down without giving up.
You can change direction without abandoning your purpose.
You can ask for help instead of always being the person who provides it.
You can rest and still be moving forward.
Growth does not always mean becoming a completely different person. Sometimes growth is finally recognizing what God has already placed inside you and giving yourself permission to use it.
Perhaps you have been looking at your current circumstances and focusing only on what has changed, what you lost, or what did not happen.
But what if this season is also revealing something?
What if there is another way to use what you know?
What if an idea you keep pushing aside deserves your attention?
What if you are not starting over?
What if you are finally making room for the parts of yourself that have been waiting for an opportunity to grow?
You are still here.
You are still growing.
You are still becoming.
And there is still more in you.
Around the Table
What strength, gift, or dream have you overlooked because you were focused on everything happening around you?
A Thought to Purpose Challenge
Take a few quiet moments this week and think about something you have accomplished, created, or overcome that you once questioned whether you could do.
Then ask yourself:
What else might I be capable of if I gave myself permission to try?
Do not dismiss the answer simply because it feels unfamiliar.
It may be time to make room for more.
Until next Tuesday…
Keep creating. Keep believing. Keep living with purpose.
— Kim M. Founder/CEO, More Than Just A Thought LLC Where Creativity Meets Purpose