Nurturing a Heart for Service Amidst Life's Journey

Have you ever stumbled upon a moment in your life that illuminated the profound impact of a single act of kindness? I'm Lorayne Michaels, and in the heartfelt narrative of my journey from emergency medicine to coaching, I uncover the beauty and fulfillment that come from serving others. Unveiling the layers of joy found in selfless acts, this episode is a tapestry of personal stories and observations, celebrating the power of a tender heart in service. Reflect with me on the balance between giving and growing, and the intricate dance of creating meaningful connections while being dedicated to the well-being of others.

Let's take a stroll through the garden of service and connection, examining how unseen acts of kindness can bloom into significant change. As I share with you, the listener, the challenges and rewards of nurturing a tender heart in a world that often overlooks quiet contributions, you're invited to ponder your own divine purpose. Each story shared is a petal in the bouquet of life's service, reminding us of the unique role we play in the lives of those we touch. So, join me for an inspiring session that promises not only to brighten your perspective on service but might just alter the path of your daily walk.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

Welcome to the Bite Size Podcast. I'm your host, lorraine Michaels, former EMT and nursing assistant, now business owner and wild entrepreneur. I walked away from over 15 years in medicine to pursue my passion and my God-given talents. Now I get the honor of helping other women discover their passions and purpose. If you're feeling stuck in life, unsure where to go or what to do, welcome. If you're exactly where you want to be great, you're welcome here too. If you have faced any kind of hardship or setback, you have found a safe place here. In other words, no matter who you are or what you've been through or what you're going through, this is the space for you. On the Bite Size podcast, we'll discuss life, business and faith. There's something for everyone. So grab a cup of coffee and something to take notes with, because there will definitely be things you won't want to forget. Definitely be things you won't want to forget. What's up, friends? Welcome back to the Bite Size Podcast. I'm your host, lorraine Michaels, and today I wanted to do just a quick episode about something that is on my heart, something that I have realized, something that I've always known about myself, but now I'm getting curious about it with other people, and so this topic that I want to talk about today is about serving, and so when you hear the word serve, what do you think? Do you think of someone serving you or do you think of you serving someone else? So, do you think of someone serving you or do you think of you being served? And there's no right or wrong answer. There's no answer that's better than the other. It's just something that I'm curious about and I want to know where your mind went.

Speaker 1: 2:15

This year, it has really been important to me to focus on serving and serving more, because I mean, as it stands, I love serving. Um, it's, I think it's one of my, it's one of my gifts. I enjoy doing it and I'm good at it in any capacity, whether it's in the community, at my church, with my family, for my family, for other people in need, people who don't ask for help, but maybe I see that they can use a helping hand, or even when people especially, I love it, especially when people ask for help and I can help them, because I know it takes a lot of courage to ask for help. It's not, it's not easy to ask for help. So when someone does ask for help and I'm able to help them. I absolutely. It brings me joy to be able to fulfill that need for someone. So the reason, and also also, and most recently with me working in the emergency room, I have to tell you there's a lot of serving that happens. There's a lot of need for serving. People are in desperate need there, um, and also people, um, sometimes people take a little bit of advantage of it and it's hard not to, it's hard not to be callous, it's hard not to let that affect you, um, because some people kind of treat it like a hotel or Burger King. They want it their way Right, and so it really brings the whole serving and servant mentality into a different perspective. Either way, I enjoy doing it, I enjoy being able to help people and I enjoy just the aspect, the gifting that God has given me, that I'm able to fulfill a need.

Speaker 1: 4:28

And, like I had said this year, I really wanted to focus on serving. I wanted and I wasn't sure how that was going to look or how that was going to pan out Because as a coach and as a speaker, it's imperative to make sure that I'm getting to conferences, that I'm connecting, that I'm always learning and it's important to continue to connect and to support one another and to be in proximity with other people that are doing the same thing, even ones that aren't doing the same thing, but there's an opportunity to learn from one another. So I was a little bit nervous when I felt God laid on my heart that I need to serve more this year because of the simple fact that I know it's important to get to these events and to connect and to network and to learn. So serving kind of puts you behind the scenes, behind the curtain, and, like I said, serving is so important to me and I love to make sure people are taken care of, that they have what they need, that they feel welcomed, that they feel accepted, that they feel seen and that they matter. So that's huge for me.

Speaker 1: 5:54

Also, I don't like being the center of attention. I don't like being called out for it when I'm helping. I don't like being recognized. It makes me feel embarrassed because I just want to make sure other people feel loved and feel taken care of. I don't want that light and attention on me, and I'm not saying any of this to pat myself on the back. It's just something that I've noticed lately and I'm very attuned to it and I'm curious of how you handle it. I'm curious how you serve. What do you do and how do you serve and how do you accept being served?

Speaker 1: 6:42

One thing, though, that I absolutely love about serving and being behind the scenes is that I get to observe. I get to observe everyone. I get to see how people interact with one another. I see things that are needed and, if I'm able, I fulfill that need. I get to see how things are running, how I could help things run smoother, different, more efficient. I'm able to. Instead of being in the midst of it, I'm able to be in the background of it and help orchestrate things a little bit differently. So that's really cool, because I'm definitely an observer and I love to do that. But another thing is, when I am serving, I'm not able to connect as much. I'm not able to connect the way I enjoy connecting.

Speaker 1: 7:40

At this event that I was at most recently Amberlee Lago's event I wasn't able to be in the mix and take the pictures and be a part of really amazing conversations. It was more. I was serving. I was making sure people knew where to go. People were eating, people had what they need, the speakers knew where the speaker lounge was so they can get snacks and water, making sure that just people had what they needed. And I wasn't really able to have those connections and conversations that I would normally have if I wasn't serving at an event.

Speaker 1: 8:22

But nonetheless, something that I'm learning is God has given me a tender heart. He's given me a tender heart to make people feel seen and loved me. A tender heart to make people feel seen and loved. He's given me a heart for connection, but connection that's authentic and deep, and I enjoy bringing other people joy. So these are things that I'm really thankful that God has gifted me with and given me, and I'm really attuned to it and I'm interested to know how other people are and how it affects other people as well. So this was just a really quick episode that I hope got your wheels turning and again, it wasn't to pat myself on the back, it was just some observations that I have realized as I am serving more, because, although I love it, it is a little difficult for me for the reasons that I just discussed about connection, for me, for the reasons that I just discussed about connection.

Speaker 1: 9:33

So, as I go, I have some questions that I want you to think about and I want you to answer and maybe journal. How do you serve? How do you connect with other people? What's one thing that you can do today to connect with someone else? What's one thing that you can do to serve someone else?

Speaker 1: 9:59

Can you do something to serve someone without them knowing? Can you meet a need that maybe wasn't voiced but you know there's a need there? Also, can you meet a need that someone has asked? Are you able to meet that need? And so, friend, if you didn't know, I do have journals. They are available on Amazon. I am working on getting them available on Etsy, but there's also a digital download available on Etsy for a fraction of the cost. But as you go about your day and I want you to think about that, I think about serving. How do you serve? How do you accept being served and what does that mean to you? So, friend, I hope you have a fantastic day and just remember you were divinely created for a divine purpose and there's no mistake in you.