Our Own Worst Critic

I often wonder when my life here is over, and I stand before God, what He will show me. I think He might show me the "could have been's" if I merely followed a different set of steps in my future. Far too often, I believe we pray for His direction in our day, but then we are the ones who get in our own way of possible success. Perhaps it is that we lack the confidence and faith to believe in the possibilities laid before us. I firmly believe that with my whole heart. Even if we have 100 people tell us that we need to go in the direction we believe God is leading us to, we second guess, judge ourselves and listen to the lies of the enemy that say, "You're not as good as you think you are."

We kill ourselves before we even get going. Even though there is gas in our tanks, we don't even want to grab the keys and jump in the car. But the honest point is that we don't know how close we might be to reaching the other side of the shore, if we simply give up. What is it is one more project to complete, that will start your business in a successful path? What if it is showing up one more day, prepared to tackle whatever lies in front of you, and then the path will open wide up? What if we are merely steps away from reaching that point, God has called us to, but we throw in the towel saying, "I'm done. I can't do this any more. I'm out."

What if it was merely changing how we view our attitude that day? There are so many what ifs, and it makes me curious, why do we tend to listen to the negative what ifs in our head, instead of what could be positive what ifs instead? I wonder if it is just a woman thing more often than it is with a man, because everything that we do and say, is all connected in a way. Everything touches something else in our life. I believe we are our own worst critic and while we pray for God to work in our situation, we are blocking the way. It's time to stop saying it's too late to begin again. To say you're too old to do something. It's time to stop accepting the lies of the enemy and start listening to that still small voice that cheers us on, and encourages us to keep moving forward. Stop quitting and start working harder to find out what God's will is for your life.

If you're unsure, pray for clarity. If you don't have the strength to go on, lean on God. If you will listen to the lies of the enemy, start listening to the whispers of the Spirit. In other words, girl, get out there and be all God has created you to be. Stop standing in the way, get out of the way and watch God work.

Today, I received another email from a big name Christian book publisher that they are closing their review program to everything but eBooks. While I can see their point in keeping costs low, there are so many that can't or don't have access to eBooks. I see this as another confirmation that I am meant to move forward in my path as a small business owner and slowly transition from a book reviewer to the new chapter God is laying before me. Whether I will continue to make wreaths and home decor for the next year or whether God is calling me to teach and encourage others, I will pray for wisdom to know the difference between what God's will is for me in my life, and what I want instead. I need to give it all up to God and walk in the path He has laid before me today.

How can I encourage or pray for you today?

I Survived!

I did it!!!

Well not without struggles, but I managed my first Facebook LIVE without any assistance from my hubby or my kids. Yet, this girl soloed and came out the other side. Remember when I told you how I was facing my own challenges to see if I could do this in yesterday's post, well I did it. I got through it. I didn't lose my cool despite how badly I may have wanted to pull my hair out when things began to pose a challenge.

Despite all my husbands best attempts to educate me on setting up my lights and how to manage both filming the LIVE and responding to viewer comments, I struggled. I didn't realize that if you wanted to go LIVE in landscape mode, you have to keep your camera in landscape mode before you click the LIVE button. So I managed. I hate to delete my first few minutes and begin again. But isn't that how we really learn, from the mistakes we make?

Next up once I got that figured out, my lap top which I was using to view LIVE comments from my viewers crashed. I could still see the LIVE happening but the comments were no longer showing up. Gotta love technology. So I explained what was happening to my viewers and told them I would be responding to their comments once I finished my tutorial. They were super understanding. They know things are going to be bumpy until you figure things out.

Despite all those issues and spending two hours prior to that LIVE session getting everything set up and prepped, I did it!!! I still need to look into back up options for when things don't run smoothly and until I get some money under my belt and buy an external camera I can control remotely, things like this will happen. Yet I didn't let it stop me. I didn't stay stuck. I didn't give up. I kept on going. Even more amazing is that I won't let it defeat me and I will be making more LIVES alone.

That is the wonderful thing about grace, I got lots of it plus understanding from the 9 people who were watching me. I only hope that I can continue to improve but also be there for them, when theyre ready to take that leap forward. So tomorrow, I go LIVE before a bigger audience, my main Facebook business page, Kat's Creations, which is a public and FREE place to get those great DYI tutorials. Whether things go smoothly or they have their own challenges, I will rise above and perhaps in those struggles I will be helping someone else not give up either.

This is what we made last night in my Paid Private Group and it is for sale in both my Etsy store and also through Facebook or blogging. If you're interested in purchasing this, I accept all payment types and can ship within the US via USPS ground options for an additional fee.

My Etsy Store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/KatsCreations777
My Facebook Business Page: https://www.facebook.com/katscreations777/ 

The Super Highway of Life

"Be content with who you are, and don't put on airs. God's strong hand is on you; he'll promote you at the right time." 1 Peter 5:6

I remember when I was in my teens, I was so anxious to 'grow up', to be 'older', to be considered an adult. Now that I am in my mid 40's I want to go back. I want to enjoy the carefree lifestyle of my teens.

Have you noticed that we are on the super highway of life? Everything is moving at such a fast, rapid pace that we don't seem to have time to even catch our breath? We struggle in the course of our day just to find time to get it all done. Is there a goal for us achieve at the end of our day? Is that why we always ask ourselves the same question, 'Why isn't their more hours in our day?'

It seems like we are constantly being pushed to do more. More in our jobs, I believe they call it "multi-tasking", but the real definition is doing the job of more than one person, the more jobs you can handle the better and all without hiring any more people. The down side is that they rarely ever pay you the salary of what you should be paid, despite the fact you're working yourself to death.

Why then do we even do it? Is it for some sort of glory or recognition by our peers or upper management? As parents, we are pushed for more as well. Besides working full time jobs, there are the kids to consider. If we don't buy more for them, won't they feel less than adequate in front of their peers? We need them to be actively involved in sports, or after school clubs, why? Because they need social skills to enable them to deal with people later in life after the schooling ends?

Then we are the super parents, the parents who will do everything possible so our family will be perfect. We will bend over to the most incredible length, volunteering for every possible school, church or family function, and then at the end of our oh so busy weeks, wonder where it all went? Why do we push ourselves to the extremes these days?

It seems like the pace is almost never ending. I have had my friends tell me that they can't say "No" anymore, because they feel guilty of hurting someone who is depending on them. We over schedule ourselves and then realize at some point, we've gone too far. We don't know how to get out, to slow down. Even vacations become something full of stress instead of the peace and relaxation we were hoping it would all bring.

It's because we as a nation believe we can have it all. We believe we can be better people than our parents. Here are some alarming statistics if you don't believe me....

In 1950, American families owned one car and were diligently saving for the second one. In 2000, nearly 1 in 5 families owned three cars or more...Americans shell out more for garbage bags than 90 of the worlds 210 countries spend for everything. America has double the number of shopping malls as it does high schools.

In 1900, the average person living in the United States wanted 72 things and considered 18 of them essential. Today the average person wants 500 things and considers 100 of them essential. Who can even keep up with the Joneses anymore? It's one simple word....GREED!

For that reason Jesus warns, "Be on your guard against every form of greed" (Luke 12:15 NASB.

Greed isn't just in the form of things you can buy. It can be greed for approval. Greed for applause. Greed for status. Greed for the best office, the fastest car, the prettiest date. Greed has many faces but speaks one language: the language of more.

We need to learn a valuable lesson during these tough economic times where people are now at risk of losing everything they ever owned, because they spent more than they had. "I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content." (Phil. 4:11)

Before you change your job title, examine your perspective toward life. Success is not defined by position or pay but by this: doing the most what you do the best.

Pursue the virtue of contentment. "Godliness with contentment is great gain." (1 Tim 6:6 NIV). When choosing or changing jobs, be careful. Consult what you are great at. Consult God. But never consult your greed.