I am writing this on a gray, snowy day. Baby, it’s cold outside! Temperature is 18 degrees with wind chill of -1. Glad I can sit and look out the window and not try to go anywhere. I am trying to use today for some focus time. Do you ever feel like a juggler that is just trying to keep too many balls in the air (or too many plates spinning … pick your metaphor)? And to take it a step further, do you ever feel like your juggling is on display for a crowd who is judging your performance? If you can’t relate, you can probably stop reading now. Have a great day!
If you CAN relate, stick with me for a few more lines …
I was recently working with a coach who helped me focus on why I want to write and attempt to be creative (notice “attempt”). After all, I have plenty of things to do. Plenty of tasks to complete … phone calls to make … meetings to attend and/or facilitate … questions to answer … you get the picture. You probably get the picture because it looks a lot like your life.
So why am I frustrated by not having time for creativity and writing? Do I have a need to be noticed and acknowledged? Am I just one of those artsy persons that needs to have an audience to be fulfilled? Maybe there is a morsel of truth there. But that is not the main reason. The main reason is that I believe God has gifted me to communicate truth in a way that is simple and practical and can bless and encourage those who read or hear. I know that He has given me a passion to be a blessing and encouragement. In fact, I have determined that my life’s mission is to bless, not to impress.
So, that means that sometimes I am in the spotlight, but more often I am in the shadows. The question for me is to find out who is casting the shadow that makes it a little darker where I am. The late Dottie Rambo wrote a song that I sang about 30 years ago. A line from the song said that I am “happy to stand in the shadow and give Him the praise.”
I read this morning in Psalm 91, “The one who lives under the protection of the Most High dwells in the shadow of the Almighty.” That is a good shadow to be in. So, my prayer for today is that I would be overshadowed by the Almighty. So, how do I reconcile that with the idea of “letting my light shine”? I’ll talk about that next time. Will you join me?
Don’t forget that your life matters to God.
