Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Pick Up Your Stones

Have you heard the Bible story of David and Goliath? David was a little guy. He picked up five stones, but as the story goes, he hurled the first stone and took out the Phllistine giant, Goliath!

A "giant" in my life....

ever since I can remember even as a little girl, was one called Fear. I can remember being afraid of, just about, everything. I was afraid of dogs, afraid of being left alone. I was afraid at night. I was afraid of dying. I was afraid of my parents dying.  I was afraid of being sick. I was afraid of...well,you get my point. Fear dominated me. Now, at the time, I didn't recognize the severity of it. I still was a happy child. I played and acted as most any young girl, but now I realize I didn't have peace. As I've matured and grown up, I have conquered the giant of the fears that I have described. However, that giant has cousins!

Back to my giant named Fear, even though I've been freed of that giant, I find other giants, named Disapproval and Misunderstanding lurking in the shadows; Fear's cousins.  We all have fears, of some sort. Some people fear failure while some fear change and others fear crowds. Fear is very real and can be paralyzing. Eventually, I began to taste some freedom, or so I thought. I was no longer paralyzed. However, I learned to dance around with the giants and play it safe, keeping them appeased and not threatened. It still wasn't freedom. In fact, it began to feel more and more like compromise. I recently, read an article excerpt, that was, as if the woman was singing my song and dance!
" I began to realize that by playing it safe I was not being honest—to myself, to God, to others.  In my efforts to avoid disapproval, I was ignoring the stirring God put inside me to lead, to stir the pot, to use my voice, to say what I really thought, to ask questions, to call the church to more.
Being misunderstood.
Being talked about.
Being silenced.

Being labeled as prideful.

Being disapproved of.


It about did me in. However, it also helped me grow in a way I would have never grown if I kept quiet and kept trying to keep the peace. It hit that deep message inside of me that I would be unaccepted if I was really me and I began to heal it. And it strengthened the call inside of me as a leader, like never before." (Kathy Escobar)

We all have to make a choice to take a risk and put on the shoes called "vulnerability." Feeling vulnerable is equivalent to feeling the breath of that giant on your neck. It really has boiled down to being up to me. I had to make a choice. My freedom was already mine, through Christ and His grace, and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. So what did I do? I began putting the stones in my sling and doing something to conquer the giant(s).  As Kathy Escobar puts it...


" I started being honest.

 I started telling my truth.

 I started using my voice.

 I started asking hard questions.

 I started stepping into more leadership.

 I started risking my heart in new ways.

 I started living into who I was created to be."




Whatever the giant is that you've been dancing with, look at it straight in the eyes, pick up that stone. It's in your hand, It's called choice. Choose to do the opposite of what makes that giant thrive. Strangle it and do the hard thing to conquer it, once and for all, and start "living into the person" you were created to be! There are people who need you. God needs you to be who He created you to be. Put on those shoes (vulnerability) and dance with freedom and grace. You'll love it!






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