Dear Beautiful Creative Soul // Use Them Fearlessly

Dear Beautiful Creative Soul-

You are an amazing creative, a vessel that holds incredible talents. 

Don't ever let shame keep you from creating. From sharing your gifts with the world. From presenting your offerings to the eyes of others.

Don't let shame keep you from being happy with what you're hands have made. 

We live in a world that's overstimulated. There's images and goals and posters of what the perfect project must be. We live in a world that's curated and edited and glossy. We read blogs with perfect presentations, Pinterest with projects that never seem to have the same results when we attempt them, and Instagram where no one has a bad hair day.

It's a lot of pressure. A high bar, where looking up suffocates you from all joy and potential.  

I should know. For years I was ashamed to call myself a writer. A seamstress. An artist. My work seemed so incomplete and imperfect compared to others who held a standard far above my reach. I allowed shame to keep me in the dark, chained to doodling and writing and creating in my room, away from others' eyes.

To hide your God-given talents is to hide your light under a basket. 

The desires and abilities He has given to your soul were given for all the world to see. They were gifts made to shine for His glory, to come alongside the Creator in embellishing His already magnificent creation.

Your gifts are an invitation to co-create with the Creator- and there is nothing you do that doesn't delight His heart. You are all together beautiful. Worthy. Loved. Amazing. 

Here's the truth- imperfections are beautiful. After all, God delights to take broken things and make something so much better from the pieces. Perfection ends the journey, so embrace those imperfect moments that you can learn from and create character with.

Let fear, perfection, and shame fall into the depths of the sea. 

I get it, that it's a battle. There's highs and lows, times where it's easy and times where you feel the shackles chafe around your wrists. This week, a friend asked me to paint a custom art piece for her, and as I read her text, my fingers tingled with utter awe and excitement. I'd never done anything like this before. No one had ever asked before.

She saw something worthy. 

For the first time in my life, I wasn't terrified of messing up. I did it freehand and didn't sweat the imperfections. Each stroke of the brush brought joy to my heart. I stood back and smiled, happy with how far I'd come.

And then I saw Instagram. 

I saw artwork that rivaled Pinterest, where everything was alined and the text was flawless. It may as well been designed on the computer, without a single smudge or wayward stroke. I looked from the screen, back to my now-pathetic-looking piece.

So far from perfection. 

My shoulders slumped a little, discouraged that right as I was feeling a victory I should get slammed with another round of missing the mark of excellence.

We have to remember- Comparison is coveting, and it's breaking the 10th Commandment. 

If we kept that in mind, how much more free would we feel? No one creates like you do. No one can tell your story from your unique perspective like you can. You are beautifully you in every area- don't let comparison lock the shackles of shame on your soul.

Please, don't hide any longer. 

Share your story loud, paint it with all your favorite colors. Unlock your heart to share what it has to offer with boldness and grace. Decorate your world like only you can.

God has given you gifts- and they weren't on accident.

Use them fearlessly.