For years…I have told myself that I’m not good
enough. That I would never measure
up. That I can’t do that because I’m not
as good as her.
As a young girl I would have this image of myself
becoming something and as quickly as it would come in my mind…I’d shoot it down
by saying, “Oh I could never do that.
I’m not smart enough.” I still do
it sometimes today. I get asked a lot to
take pictures for families but I always refer them to someone else. Fear of not getting it right or for whatever
the reason…I always say that I’m not the person you want…go here to this
person.
Now I have this desire to write and use my photos to
encourage people to look to Jesus!
Doubt will whisper…You can’t do that! While friends, family, and people I don’t
know will tell me that I am encouraging them.
Yet…I doubt myself a lot. I keep
doing it because I feel led to do it and I don’t want the enemy to win. Do it afraid!
Fear
is a liar. God made us to
be brave, to take heart and to have courage. Satan is the father of lies…and he
knows our weaknesses. He preys on us and
our fears. He wants to get us to take
our eyes off of Jesus…to forget that we are children of God…and focus on our
flaws and doubt it all. And it’s when we take our eyes off of Jesus that we
believe the lies.
The world today tells us that we need to be bigger….we
need to do more and become more. But
this is never enough. We can start to
compare ourselves to others and comparison is a thief. It’s a thief!
Jesus tells us to be still…to let
Him be enough. To be His image and
to love others as He did. G.K.
Chesterton says, “Let your religion be less of a theory and more of a love
affair.”
2 Cor. 10:12 says “those
who measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves are
not wise.”
“To
compare myself with others is to intentionally look Christ in the face and say
‘you are not enough’ what you have for me and all that your Word promises, is
not enough. It’s to say that the
temporal fix from believing what I am ‘better than her’ or ‘it’s all her fault’
is more secure than the act of Christ on the cross.” ~Brooke Boon
When Jesus was tempted…He spoke His Father’s word. When I’m tempted to doubt myself I don’t
pause to think about scripture. I’m too
much in a hurry to leap right over God’s word to the side of doubt and
fear. I’m not even looking to God…instead
I’m choosing to believe the lies.
Renee Swope says in A
Confident Heart, “We have a choice to either let doubt beat us up or let
God’s truth build us up.” A choice!
His goodness should make me good enough.
God is GREATER!
“Trying
to get our good enough outside of God’s promises and provisions will always
create insecurity and obstruct our relations with Him and with other people.”
Renee Swope
God asks me (you) to be a part of His life…to be a part
of His family. I choose to be a part of
that. I choose grace and love. And by choosing this…I need to speak life to
me. I need to get into God’s word daily
and have His word get into me. I need to
be the image of Jesus and sink into His promises. Sink with my eyes locked on His because we
are made in the image of God and are being remade into the image of Jesus. Inside the person of Jesus is the safest
place to be.
"So the
Poet himself stepped out of heaven and into the poem, onto the dusty trails of
the earth and into the desperate ruts of our souls. He steps out of
heaven into us, His poiema, His workmanship." ~Emily Freeman
I have an
option to be fed by God and to come into agreement with who He says that I
am. I’m sinking into God because we fall
into God when we surrender.
Sinking is the
only way to float in God’s promises.
Check out Sweet and Sour 365 on Facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sweet-and-Sour-365/556130327748595
Oh. My. Goodness! So many nuggets of truth here, plus beautiful photos. Thank you for speaking to my spirit today.
ReplyDeleteThank you Bronda and thank you for stopping by. =)
DeleteBeautifully written - and your photos are INCREDIBLE!! Thanks for sharing!!
ReplyDeleteThank you Janet. Thanks for stopping by. =)
DeleteEnjoyed your blog this morning. Your photos are a window to God's creation. Thank you for sharing your talent.
ReplyDeleteVery kind. Thank you for stopping by. =)
DeleteWhile I understand struggling with doubt, you should not doubt your abilities to take beautiful photos! My fave is the apple on the picnic table. Fabulous!! Thanks for sharing a little of your story with us.
ReplyDeleteMary (OBS Small Group Leader)
Thank you Mary. I do love taking pictures of the beauty around me. I'm harder on myself when it comes to humans. :) The apple on the table is one of my faves! Thank you for stopping by!! =)
Deletewow beautiful photos and beautiful thoughts! I hope that you are grasping what you are saying - you don't need to be filled with doubt anymore- Be all that God has created you to be! You are so talented!! Blessings!
ReplyDeleteThank you Jane. You are very kind...and thanks for stopping by! Blessing to you!! =)
DeleteMichelle your blog post and your photos are BEAUTIFUL!! I believe that you have touched MANY hearts with this post. Thank you for sharing with us <3
ReplyDeleteaww...thank you Amber for your kind words. =)
DeleteThis blog is full of encouragement! And, your photos are awesome--I was wondering where the orchard pics were taken--they remind me of the area my Mom lives in, near Yakima, WA.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing <3
Oh thank you Sandi! The orchard pictures are from Virginia!! =)
Delete