“Do you have the courage to be you™? The you I created?”
It is such a simple yet profound question. I believe it comes straight from the heart of God. Do you sense His challenge in it? This question seared my heart & ultimately led me on a journey to discover my purpose & passion. A journey to me. And now a journey to you.
Heart Longings.
I have had some type of a job since I was 15 years old. Like most people, IÕve experienced moments of satisfaction for a task well done. IÕd even say I have been proud of an accomplishment or two. But nothing has ever satisfied the longing, the deep desire in my heart to make a difference in this world. I longed for my life to matter.
Discovery of Me.
For the first half of my life, I had absolutely no idea, or time to discover how to “do” just that until the eve of my 40th birthday. Through a series of events, I made a deliberate decision to begin living my life intentionally as opposed to the frustrating method of reacting to whatever life threw my way. My first intentional choice was to go in search of God, the God I learned about and believed in as a little girl. Not only did I find Him, but I found me - the me He created me to be! For the very first time in my life, I discovered that I was “created on purpose for a purpose™” and that the longings of my heart were not random. They were placed there by God to serve as a road map to my destiny, to my purpose.
Faceless Fears.
What an exciting adventure! But I have to be honest. Though exciting, this journey of purpose is not always easy or for the fainthearted. I discovered a large dosage of courage is required for me to be who I was created to be. Faceless fears assult me daily. The fear of the unknown, fear of the uncomfortable, fear of change, fear of “what if”, and fear of failure are all designed to tempt me into mediorcrity and to cause me to settle for less than I was created. Fear can paralyze and stop the journey of purpose. Courage is required. Courage is simply action in the face of fear and propels me through its invisible wall. Daily I am presented with the choice to move forward into my purpose or stand still, letting my life pass me by.
Necessary Encouragement.
I discovered another truth while on this journey of purpose. Courage is much easier when you are surrounded by other people on the same journey. I need people to cheer me on and encourage me to be me. I need to hear stories of others who have risked it all to live lives of passion and purpose. But when I looked around, those resources were not easily found. I didn't find many classes on the subject nor did I find many flesh and blood role models pursuing their own life of purpose and passion, inspite of their circumstances, inspite of their inadequacies, in spite of their fears.
Birth.
That is why Courage to Be You, Inc. was birthed. We wanted to give away what we longed for ourselves. We wanted to be a chorus of voices equipping & encouraging each other and everyone that crosses our path to be who they were created to be, nothing more but absolutely refusing to settle for anything less. We wanted to remind ourselves and shout to everyone we meet “you were created on purpose for a purpose™”. Courage Conferences, Courage Houses, Courage CafŽs, Courage Publications, Courage Volunteers all were developed to be a resource for you on this journey of purpose. We pray that as you investigate our website you find those resources valuable and also find the encouragment to begin your own journey of discovering the you God created you to be.
A Universal Desire. A Life that Matters.
I am still astounded at how quickly an intangible desire of the heart can be turned into reality when you intentionally pursue it. I have no words to adequately describe my feelings as I realize how many lives have been touched and forever changed because a few individuals discovered that one life, their life, was designed to make a difference. That is our desire here at Courage to Be You - to change the world, one individual at a time. I applaud everyone who has dared to do that while being more and doing more than they ever dreamed possible. You are making a difference. Your life does matters! So Dream Big. Live Large. Laugh Loud™. And choose courage!
Jenny Williamson, Founder