Cadence Caller — Amanda Conquers

I remember when he came home from his first day of intense physical training. The door opening to the smell of Central Valley fog, the diaper-butted crawler making her way for Dad, the tromp of spit-polished man-boots, and the deep sigh of exhaustion mixed with pride. I worked hard. I am sore. I am man.

Man reached down, picked up the pink-cheeked baby, and kissed the wife who was eager to hear about the first day. He began to recount all he had accomplished: the 5 mile run, the 50 push-ups, plus the 50 more when a fellow trainee was found with smudged boots. He told me about the other work-outs—the flutter kicks, the up-and-hold-em’s, the holding-the-wall’s… All kinds of ways to either break a man down or make him stronger.

I remember him telling me about the older Sergeant in charge of the training, how he’d call out things like “When my grandma was 92; she did PT better than you,” “Left, Left, Left, Right, Left!”—and with each rhythmic line the Sergeant called out, the trainees would echo back—cadences.

I remember his words about cadences, “Somehow hearing that voice and being required to repeat it back with 60 other people in unison, it just takes your mind off the pain in your body. It pushes me forward. I try my hardest. Some of them are kind of funny too. I enjoy it.”

Cadences.

Whether the battle is physical, emotional or spiritual, sometimes you just need someone to call out words of encouragement. Mere words spoken from a heart of camaraderie have the power to pull you out of ruts, take your mind off the pain, push you forward and bring out your try-hard spirit.

That’s the power we women can have. We can grab our metaphorical pom poms and cheer for our friends and even perfect strangers—or we can sit on the sidelines or even join the opposing team.

We can offer those been-there-before and you-are-a-good-mom words to the momma whose son is having the Temper Tantrum of the Year in the grocery store (instead of quietly speculating how she could have handled it better). We can cheer for our friend as her dreams become realized (instead of being secretly jealous). We can grab our closest friend by the hand and begin to pray after she pours out her soul in tears because she’s about to lose her house and her car (instead of stopping at the thought that we don’t have the money to help her).

We can help people press forward—be Cadence Callers.

Do you want to be a Cadence Caller?? Me too! Here’s 5 Ways to be one:

1. Prayer Warrior- Be the kind of person that when you say, “I’m praying for you,” you actually are. The best way you can help someone battle whatever opposition they are facing is on your knees (or pacing your living room… or sitting quietly on your balcony.)

2. Safe Place- Be the kind of person that people know they can talk to because you don’t blab secrets. You are not a gossip. And you definitely don’t attack someone’s emotions.

3. Encourager- Be the kind of person that is FOR people. You want to see them succeed. You say things like: “Press forward! You can do this!” Maybe even throw in a “Rah-rah-shish-boom-bah!”

4. Truth speaker- Be the kind of person that can speak out the promises of God found in His Word. Be unafraid to call out the truth your friend might be blind to because fear is skewing her vision… Things like how she’s not ugly or how many blessings she has in her life or how you have messes in your house too or how things like colic and unemployment don’t last forever.

5. Listener- Be the kind of person that allows her friends to pour out their heart before you offer any wisdom or encouragement. Sometimes someone just needs to empty their heartache so God can fill them back up with Hope. God can use even a quiet mouth when paired with a listening ear as encouragement.

Really, that’s it. If you can do those 5 things, you can be a Cadence Caller, a pom-pom holder, an encourager, and a really good friend.

And hey, we are all works-in-progress, so if you know you are falling short in one of those areas, maybe consider working on it. You can do it! (<---did you see how I did that? Yeah! That’s right. Cadence Caller Outer right here. :))

This is the point of this blog. It’s why I named it what I did. It’s why I love being a part of this thing called the blogosphere… because I see it—the way we can impact one another in the best way. I’m not fabulous, or conquering… but I want to be, and maybe you do too, and maybe we can encourage one another.

So, because I really like rhymes and might just be a complete dork…

...a Conquering Cadence for you:

When troubles are getting near,

I will not give into fear!

When my kids spill all their juice,

I won’t let my tongue get loose.

When I feel angry and full of doubt,

My friends remind me what God’s about

When my friend seems really down

I’ll sing silly songs to change her frown

When the mirror is mean to me,

My friend tells me I look like a Queen

Sound off. (one two) Sound off (three four)

Ooorah!

Alright. I’m pumped. You? Go conquer your day! You can do it!

Your fellow Cadence Caller,

Amanda

Want to join in the fun?? Maybe you would like to leave a cadence in the comments? Or maybe just some non-rhyming encouragement (because really the rhyming was just for fun and so not the point)?? (Pssst… I would love to hear YOUR encouragement here too!)

Or maybe, if you are feeling brave enough, you can share how you need encouragement in your life right now?? xo

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