Number Two

Starting isn't the hardest part of any new endeavor. Persevering is actually harder. The second blog post is harder than the first.

After launching my website last week, I entered a new chapter of my writing journey. My goal is to write a new blog on a weekly basis. I had established this goal long before my website was up and running, but now it is "go time." My desire isn't to throw words at you just for the sake of meeting a goal though. I want my words to matter. I want them to point you to Jesus.

I have not once wanted to give up on the actual act of writing over the past year. Isn't that crazy? I feel like that's not normal, but I will tell you that doing anything with my writing is where my perseverance starts to wain.

My husband read a portion of my book one day and I came unglued. I became self-conscious about what he thought, and he's my husband for goodness sake. He already knows everything that is in my book. He was there! How was I ever going to let people read my book if I couldn't even let my husband read it without freaking out?

Persevering

It's hard, vulnerable work to let people into the innermost parts of my life. So, why am I moving forward? Because my eyes are fixed on Jesus instead of myself.

Hebrews 12:1-2 says, "And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith."

It's not about me anymore. When I get self-centered, is when I freak out about people reading what I write. My self-centered thoughts tend to look like this:

I don't want to be judged. I want it to be perfect. I don't want to step on anyone's toes. Somebody else can do it better than me.

I could go on and on… how about you?

If our eyes aren't fixed on Jesus, it's easy to quit. The longer I live the more I realize that the things He asks of me can be hard. It requires daily surrendering my thoughts to Him. When I surrender my thoughts to Him, my eyes stay on Him and I can move forward and freely in my calling.

God doesn't need any of us, but he chooses to use us. All He asks is that we keep our eyes fixed on Him.

P.S. All of you parents thought this blog was going to include "potty talk" with the awesome title. Sorry to disappoint you.