We are FINALLY in the home stretch. Just two months to go before the release of my new book. For the next 8 weeks, I will be gearing up for the big day by doing 3 things:
- FORMING a Launch team of people (you may be one of them!) who will receive an advanced copy to read, a free book BEFORE the release, and other fun surprises for posting and sharing your thoughts when the book comes out (email lauriepshort@gmail if you are interested).
- SHARING a two minute Facebook Live video every Tuesday night marking the countdown with a quote from my new book.
- POSTING a blog every other week with some highlight from the book. Which brings me to today’s entry.
IVP did an interview with me a couple weeks ago on what the title of my book REALLY means, and what the essence of the book is about.
Unless you have laser vision, I’m guessing you probably can’t read it, so I have rewritten it in a more reasonable sized font here:
Q and A: The Power of Reframing Your Life
How exactly does changing nothing change everything?
Laurie Polich Short: You can change nothing that is around you and still change everything by the way you see what is around you!
How have you personally learned the importance of changing perspective through the stages of life?
Laurie: I learn the importance of changing my perspective every day! I think it’s particularly important when you face a challenging season but also important for living fully each moment you are here. In the big story, our challenging chapters can be the most important.
How are babies a good example of learning the big view of our lives?
Laurie: When we are born and first learn to focus we only see what is directly in our view. As we grow we learn that things exist, and are happening, outside of our immediate view. In a very real sense we need to “grow up” in our perspective, to realize we are part of a bigger story and that we are touching and influencing other people’s stories for better or worse every day.
What does it mean that your view of your circumstances shapes what your circumstances become?
Laurie: We look at our circumstances with a certain angle that affects the way we respond to them. If we believe what we see is part of a larger story, it can infuse us with hope when things look bleak because we realize it could be doing something IN us and TO us to position us for the larger story. Nelson Mandela and Joseph from the Bible are two great examples of how our response to our circumstances impacts the outcome of our stories.
What are some simple ways to begin changing the lenses through which we see our lives?
Laurie: Every day calls for help from one of the four lenses explained in the book. We need to reframe constantly. The real-life stories in every chapter show how life changing these lenses can be! There are several tools I suggest:
— Using the Lord’s prayer to see the big view
— Paying attention to what’s happening around you to see the present view
— Educating yourself on your past and genealogy for the rear view
— Pausing to reflect on what you might be missing for the higher view
So that’s a little window into what you can expect from this new book. And for those of you who are interested in being a part of my launch team, please email me directly at lauriepshort@gmail asap, and I will send you a personal email about what it will entail.
HERE WE GO!