You need more than your "Why" 🔐

↩️UNFOLLOW University — May 12, 2023

*The science of “mom hugs” is fascinating. Google it.*

Happy Friday!

Why?

This one question has become more than an adverb or noun - it’s an obsession.

Ostensibly, if you know your Why in life, you will know what to do with your life. If you can answer your Why, the who, what and how will follow.

Why is a truth fairy leaving clues to our purpose under the pillows of well-meaning workaholics.

With a Why, work is magically meaningful. 🪄

Without a Why, work is just work. 🔨

Why is not unimportant by any means. Simon Sinek built an entire business around it and it’s become shorthand for inspiring others to start with their purpose in mind.

So why doesn’t everyone know their Why?

🤯 Radical Truth

Knowing your purpose is not the same as having a plan.

Knowing your Why is not a master key to confident living or leadership. Asking a question doesn’t guarantee an answer.

Knowing your personal Why requires a degree of certainty and reason in a world that is unreasonably uncertain.

If you’re like me, a clearly defined Why still seems fuzzy. But there’s hope. There’s something just as valuable as knowing your Why.

Knowing your Because.

Because is a statement, not a question. Because is a conjunction that eliminates confusion by connecting important things - our past and our present.

Our Why inspires us to make the right plan. Our Because equips us to live our real truth.

I still don’t fully know my Why. But I learned my Because from my mother, Delois Parker. She showed me what a Because was by giving me her own.

…because in 1979 Delois Parker prayed over the beeping machine incubating a 4-pound baby who showed up 2 months too early.

…because in 1987 she crammed our little lives into that woodgrain station wagon that would carry us from Amarillo to Fort Worth without knowing of the potholes ahead.

…because in 1988 she dashed down the hill, chasing the runaway car without a driver because it held three helpless passengers.

…because in 1989 mama raced over to the deep end of the crowded pool before I took my last breath.

…because in 1990 she was my shelter when Gary Jackson’s brother and friends tried to beat me up.

… because she is the one who always reminds me of what I’m too busy to hear: “We love you because of who you are. Not for what you do.”

Because I went years without knowing we were poor. Because we were never asked to be causalities of our skin color. Because of her, my purpose became less dependent on having the right plan and more about knowing who I am.

Today, I’m grateful I have a mother with a Because big enough to share with others - with or without the right answers.

⚡️Courageous Question

What is your Because?

🗣 Wonderful Words

“Sometimes when you sacrifice something precious, you’re not really losing it. You’re just passing it on to someone else.”
-Mitch Albom

🙏🏽 Prayer Package

God, because of your love we have the perfect definition of success. Thank you for Jesus, the flawless example of a life lived for others. As I seek your plan may I not lose sight of your presence. You are always near. Amen.

📖 Hebrews 12:2

🎵 Do It Again - Elevation Worship ⛅️