5 Ways to Tackle Life With Grace and Grit. It’s starts with kindness..
Oh boy. I’m a year older. I’m in my 33’s. I’m not near where I expected to be in life. But then again, is anybody really on track in life? Don’t answer that. Just ponder. And agree with me. Mmm K?
Two things I’ve learned in these 33 years is that in order to survive and THRIVE, you need to accept Grace (from God and from yourself), and you need to have some GRIT. Meaning, you better know how to endure (and tackle) life’s obstacles. Yes, there will be obstacles. MANY.
But….
Praise God for Grace. Grace allows us to accept those obstacles and our weaknesses. Grace allows us to rely on God’s strength, not our own, and at the same time accept that we ARE NOT in control.
Grace, by definition, is….
• a divinely given talent or blessing.Â
• the condition or fact of being favored by someone
Yes Grace, amazing grace. If you don’t give yourself some “grace room” now then life will be quite difficult.
You see, we are all entrepreneurs in some way. Striving to be successful at our passions, our job, our roles as human beings. We take risks. We dream big. We think big. We GO BIG or GO HOME. And at the same time, we expect QUICK results and the grass is always greener on the other side success. That, my friends, is not reality.
After 33 years on this planet I have come to realize that GRACE is the watering can that helps that grass get greener. We can acknowledge our weeds. Our dry soil. Our “mulch,” and then fix it up with a bit of Grace and lot of Grit work.
You knew the grit fit in here somewhere, right?
Grit, by definition, is….
 courage and resolve; strength of character
Oh friends, isn’t that life summed up in a nutshell? We dig deep to find courage to continue with our BIG DREAMS. Our life GOALS! We build strength through trials and tribulations, which we cannot escape.
It takes true Grit to live life to fullest and set aside jealousy, comparison, fear, and selfishness. It takes true grit to be YOU. To accept who God created you to be.
It takes true Grit to accept change and to embrace it.
It takes true Grit to stay positive and uplifting through all bumps of life.
 Wouldn’t you agree?
Grace and Grit are my life vision. At the age of 33 I’ve accepted where I am in life… with a lot of Grace. As Joyce Meyer always says.
“I may not be where I want to be, but thank God I am not where I used to be.”
5 Ways to Tackle Life With Grace and Grit
- Be kind. Kind to yourself. Kind to other. Kind in ALL circumstances. Kindness is so underrated and undervalued. That is all. I say that kindly.Â
- Do not fear change. Do not reject change. Change is ULTIMATELY going to happen and it can be good. Hard, yes. Uncomfortable, hell yes. Scary, you betcha. But true grit comes from persevering through the change.Â
- Say thank you. Say thank you with the small stuff. Say thank you for the big stuff. Say thank you when you’ve already said thank you. Thankfulness is what make us flourish. Thankfulness is what keeps us GRINDING toward the goal. Our own road and journey.Â
- Do not compare. Yes, that’s easy, right? Ha, no. It’s BEYOND easy to compare or be jealous of somebody else’s status, things, success, whatever. Grass is always greener. But truth is we all need to give each other grace and value each other, not envy. Life is tough and the more we put thoughts in our head that our life isn’t as “good” as others, we harm our health. Negative thoughts cause sooo much damage to our bodies and soul. Oh that is one area I truly struggled with for years. Until I God made me realize it was STINKIN THINKIN.Â
- Be patient. Say what? All I can say is this JUST MIGHT be the KEY to life. In a world of instant gratification, we do practice enough patience. In fact, we don’t give enough patience. We expect things to happen ASAP and we can’t “hurry up and wait” for them. We want instant success, instant health and happiness, instant relationships, instant things in general. But the reality patience is what brings all those. Just in God’s timing. And His timing is always PERFECT. Or so I’ve learned (the hard way).Â
So you see, at the age of 33 we are embracing change after change. My husband and I both “grit” our way through it and try to stay positive. Change is good. Change can be hard. But Change, ultimately, is good.
At the age of 33, we have started over in life. We’ve both accepted a season of self investment, of small victories, of health (in all areas).
At the age of 33, I am finding JOY in all things, practicing a lot more patience, acceptance, and confidence.
To say we both wish we would have ventured down this path 8 years ago, when we were first married, would be lying. I am glad we didn’t settle right away. God gave us a lot of grit and grace to get through those years and make us stronger. AMEN!
To say we both wish life hadn’t been such a mess for all these years would also be lying. I look back and praise God for his strength and provision.
To say I am glad I am getting older… well , that’s the truth. Grace and Grit combined sure do make for a shiny new surface (after much hard work). Such is life.
 Speaking of practicing patience and acceptance, with my husband’s new job, we now have amazing health insurance! This means, after 8 years, we I can have reconstructive surgery on my colon. I bet you didn’t expect for me to say that, right?  Something I haven’t shared because, let’s face it, who want to talk about the anatomy of a colon and food in one day. Haha! It’s also why this blog has shifted more toward foods and not fitness. Yes, physical dilemmas there. Thank God for wine… and then some. 😉
That being said, I’m gifting myself more grace to grit to get through it. It’s in two weeks, so if you could please say a little a prayer, that would be lovely.
Thank you all for continuing to support this gluten free site and my corny Cotterness. That’s word, I promise.
p.s I did not really proof read this. Gimme some grace with the grammar… mmmm k?
I love this so much! I think I give myself the least grace when I am impatient with my kids! I feel like I have developed a hardened “grit”…and I need to focus on the grace and thankfulness! We were called to be missionaries far away from our family…and I can’t say I’ve been grateful for it this past year! God is doing amazing things here and I need to look to Him instead of my own ideas of what my life should be! I’m going to choose to focus on the beauty…not the pain! 🙂 <3
Love! Thank you for sharing girl and than you for this reminder! Embracing seasons of life can be so tough, depending on the circumstance. So glad that you are loving it and finding joy! Can’t wait to catch up on more posts…lots of comments to follow 🙂
I will be thinking of you as you head into surgery! Prayers and positive vibes for a quick recovery! <3
Thank you so much friend
Happy Birthday — what a great post! I’m 39 and am still not where I thought I’d be either — sometimes I wonder if we ever are. But I took your words of wisdom to heart — especially the one s about being thankful and not comparing your self to others — these are exactly what I needed to read today!
Thank you liz! I think we all need that reminder, yes?
No matter the age you’ve shared some amazing thought-provoking posts before and this is yet another great one. Usually a stickler – yes, ask my famiily and friends; definitely not exaggerating here – about grammar you have all my grace regarding that here. And my grace in general because – like I said before – you’re a wonderfully corny Cotter.
P.S: It makes me happy you’ll finally be getting the needed surgery. Living over here I’ve definitely taken growing up with a great health insurance for granted too often before. Keeping my fingers crossed everything will go well for you!!!
thank you friend. that means more than you know! and i love your grammar grace. <3 you so!
You are so inspirational Lindsay! I absolutely love this post and everything you’ve written!
You my dear are the epitome of grace and grit. You have and always do impress me. I’m happy you’re able to get the surgery and will send lots of love and hugs.
thank you friend. <3 you so.
I could not possibly agree with all of these points more!
I am praying for you and your surgeons/doctors/nurses from the lead up right through to the recovery of this surgery, beautiful! Here’s hoping you feel like a whole new you at the end of it all! Hallelujah for health insurance!
thank you so much sweet friend
Sending late birthday wishes as well as lots of prayers for you lovely.
Lovely post with such truth written in it.
Wishing you all the best sunshine!!
thank you friend. You are so lovely! <3
Sending lots of love and hugs and best wishes for a super op and a speedy recovery!
Keep that beautiful smile going ??
Thank you friend! hope you had a great bday too!
COMPARING yourself to others = THE DEATH OF YOU. Seriously. The second people start doing that is the second they start to hate themselves because they always point out “flaws” but really NO ONE had flaws – we all have quirks that make us uniquely AWESOME!
AMEN SISTA
HBLC. CTI.
(Continue To Inspire). I realised those 3 letters could be framed very differently.
thanks bud! CTI…. cotter transparency inventervencion? LOL!
ugh that was supposed to say intervention. autocorrect fail
I love every part of this YOUNGIN! 🙂 On the colon, I hope you share more in the future! HAPPY HAPPY BDAY beautiful friend!
I wish my life was not still screwed up… I am not sure I feel the same way as you cause I am too close to the end vs. in the middle..
HAVE A WONDERFUL WINE EVE! xoxoxo
oh friend, God is using you now more than you know! YOu’re a daily inspiration to so many!!!
Oh, I’m in NO WAY where I thought I’d be at 33. And that’s okay. It’s not always easy to accept, but it’s OKAY.
Wait, I’m supposed to proof read? Hahaha.
never proof read again! haha my gift to you!
Happiest of birthdays, friend! I love your posts like this!
And HOORAY for good health insurance! I’m so happy for you!! xoxo
YES to all of this!! You are so right, kindness is extremely undervalued right now. And I think it ties in with grace AND grit – it takes both to be kind in a difficult situation, especially if we want to scream or yell or get angry.
Yes, thank you sweet friend
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GIRRRRRL!
Happy BIrthday, my friend, and here’s to many, many more to come. I like to think that we both have grace and grit. Sometimes more than others. But I was raised by a woman who instilled them in me without even knowing it, and I am surrounded by incredible friends IRL and online that keep me grounded.
Sending so much hugs & love your way…. You have been a true blessing in my life. Now only if I could figure out how to get a private jet to come visit 😉 love you pastor Linds 😉
ps. I think larabar took your healthy bite idea!!!!
Oh i adore you! i will play lotto and try to buy you a jet. P.s I tried the larabar balls. No one ate them. I love larabar but not those. haha I am bias
Sounds great! 🙂 I agree, I’m bias too! hehehe
Thanks for sharing! I love this. So many good thoughts here. Grace towards ourselves is sometimes the hardest to give.
Happy birthday dear friend! I LOVE and adore you, and in so many ways look up to you even though you are younger than me. I know your surgery will be fine. But I understand the fear. I’m going through that now with my hip surgery coming up in 4 weeks.
Happy, happy birthday!!! I’m so happy for you and your health insurance. Please keep me posted. I’ll send you wine! 🙂
And, as always, wise words my corny friend. I know all about grit, but the notion of grace with yourself… I need that.
P.S. I never proof-read. Can you tell?
Happy happy birthday friend <3 I hope it is fantastic- you deserve it! Will be keeping you in my thoughts and wishing you well!
Thanks so much Jess!
I really, really love the message. It’s so simple to say (seriously, yay alliteration), but both grace and grit present their own challenges when you need to actually have them. And I love that you threw gratefulness in there – because saying thank you is the easiest thing in the world, and it feels so good to be thanked, but so many people just don’t do it.
Sending good thoughts for your surgery. I’m glad you’re at a place where you’re able to do that for yourself! Wishing you the happiest of birthdays, Lindsay!
Happy birthday Lindsay!! And I love love love this post. God is good, and His grace is amazing for sure. Walking in His love and grace is the only way to live a life full of joy and purpose 🙂
xo,
Sarah Grace
Thank you friend!! God is so good!
Happy birthday, Lindsay! I will pray for a successful outcome for your surgery!
Thank you friend
Love the message here and try to practice it though it can really be tough for so many reasons. I’m so happy to hear you’re able to take care of your own health now, it is truly so important to be able to give that to yourself!
xoxo Happy birthday wise Lindsay!
thanks friend
I love this so much Lindsey!! I am reading the book “Grit” right now by Duckworth and it is AMAZING! Have you read it? Its a must read 🙂 I love your self awareness and reflectiveness in this post. You hit so many of “my words”. Mine are gratitude, strength, kindness, and grit. Really trying to be more mindful of how I practice these things in my relationship with myself, others, and the kids I work with as a school psychologist. Wishing you all the strength to get through this surgery. XO
oh i am so looking into this! thank mollie!
Prayers coming your way, girl! Your wise for such a young gal. 😉
thank you friend! xxoo