Are you feeling the pressure today?
Pressure to do well. Pressure to say the perfect things. Pressure to really change the way you look at things, your perspective or point of view. Pressure to always be joyful. Pressure to be perfect.
I think that as time goes on in my blogging career, I don’t want to let anyone down, and I know myself. I know that I’m not perfect. That I mess up. That I have 0% capability of being tactful. And it’s hard to keep up with the daily grind sometimes.
Are you feeling these types of pressure today?
- Maybe your parents are pressuring you.
- Maybe the world, your friends, a friend in particular.
- Maybe you are pressuring yourself.
- Maybe it’s your relationships with your spouse or your kids.
- Maybe you feel pressure to get out of debt.
- Maybe you have a heavy load at work.
- Maybe you feel pressure to live a certain way and it’s just not who you are.
It seems like the modern world wants to put us in this little box. To pigeon-hole us. We must be like everyone else.
This week, I’ve felt pressured in so many areas. I’m single and basically do everything on my own. I don’t HAVE help here in person. It’s just me. There’s pressure to be a great leader. A good mom. A fantastic blogger. It’s too much pressure weighing down on me sometimes.
Some people idolize me. They think I live this perfect life and yet others hate me for no reason. Some hate me because I love God. Others hate me because I’m happy all the time….or successful. Yet others, who SHOULD know me better, think completely wrong about me.
The truth is that, I’m not perfect. My life is not some magical place where everything is in order. Last night, my daughter threw a huge temper tantrum and she’s 11. Life is not perfect. Life is messy, and I’m really bad at pretending I have everything under control, because I don’t. I can’t fake anything. I’m bad at it and I like that I’m bad at faking.
I’d rather you see me for who I really am, a sinner just like everyone else, in desperate need of a Savior.
This week, I’ve learned that it doesn’t really matter what others think because most of the time, they will be wrong. Whether they think I am better than I am (and I know I’m not) or worse (and I know I’m not). You can be accused of all kinds of things, you can be misaligned. You can be hated.
But none of that matters because ultimately you stand before GOD. He’s the One that counts.
When you feel pressure to conform to our society, you can stand tall, knowing that God made you unique…different and you know what?! Different is a GOOD thing.
In real life, I always feel like no one gets me. I feel like there’s only a couple people who can even understand me. Then, I come online, I look at the emails I get, the comments I receive and I realize that I’m NOT alone. That although I may be weird and different to the people around me in person, God has given me an incredible community of women who get it. You understand. You don’t judge my “weirdness.” To you, I’m normal. And that’s freeing. Thank you!
I can’t tell you how thankful I am to you. To have a place where I can feel free to be me and it’s okay. You all mean much more to me than you realize!
Blogging for me isn’t about money or reaching a certain stat or even notoriety. It’s about belonging to a place and helping other women feel they belong too. It’s about helping you guys GO AFTER YOUR DREAMS. The worst thing you can do is sit on the couch and let life pass you by.
Get out there and do something. Feel free to BE YOURSELF. You will be mocked, you will be hated, but you know what, it doesn’t matter. You can come back here and know that you are loved.
No matter how weird we all are. We ALL have a purpose.
It’s not easy to take a stand against the world. It takes strength and that strength can only come from God. One of my favorite quotes I heard this week is this,
“True authorities don’t hedge. They don’t tactfully play the middle, aiming to please both sides of the argument. Instead, they take a stance…”
– Jason Gracia
In a world of so many hedgers….dare to be YOU. Dare to stand out. Dare to be different. Don’t let anyone box you in. Don’t let THEM decide WHO you are! You decide. And you’ll be stronger for it!
From this moment on, make a commitment that YOU decide who you are. Take a stance for something….take a stance for SOMEBODY. You can handle it. Because in a few years, whatever hatred you receive for standing, won’t be there….you’ll be in the arms of your Savior as He says to you, “Well done, my GOOD and FAITHFUL servant.” He made you “weird,” don’t run from it…OWN IT.
Today I own that I’m not perfect. I own that I mess up and make mistakes. I own that I’m different than others around me, and I’m tired of feeling bad for being different. For feeling bad because God made me to have this particular personality that many around me, don’t seem to get.
Friends, what do you own today? Are you willing to stand? To stop caring and worrying about what others think and just be yourself? You too, can be free if you do!
