I spent this week working on a project. Hours of tedious effort. I put it out with anxious hope on Facebook to get feedback, seeing if I could create an artistic business on the side.
Well, I think it flopped.
Sort of crushed, I kept checking to see if anyone understood my vision.
Perhaps I am not meant to be a fine artist. I just might suck at this. Have you ever wished for a talent you didn’t possess?
You, being yourself, unknowingly inspire others to be themselves-Mooji
No room for comparison
There are plenty of skills we can teach ourselves. Things we can become better at with training. I contend there are also things that no matter how we try, it just isn’t going to improve much. Bear with me here…
You know how when kids are little sometimes we hear “You can do anything you set your mind to?” Is that true? I am thinking of American Idol.
A ridiculous number of people try out each year that are flat-out horrible. They were told they had talent, when judges pronounce their singing was horrendous. They were duped.
How much better to tell kids “You are going to rock at whatever God created you to be!” Because the fact is, all the training in the world can’t make us awesome at something we aren’t meant to do.
No one ever made a difference by being like everyone else- Buckminster Fuller
Why is it important to be yourself?
I can’t sing. It doesn’t matter how much I sound like Snow White in my own ears. A good friend finally broke it to me that frankly, I am not a very good rapper. My backup plan.
I’m not a natural at many things. Some things I have learned to do that surprised me.
I want to be the best ME. I have mad skills in some areas. You knock things out of the park that others can’t.
The imitator dooms himself to hopeless mediocrity- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Not saying we can’t try new things, seek to improve in areas. Heck yeah!
Try…but try for the sake of having fun. Try…to see what your hidden talents are you never have uncovered. Try it, but if it doesn’t work out? Don’t stay stuck.
Let’s don’t want to waste time- precious unstoppable time, trying to become something we are not.
Find out who you are and do it on purpose- Dolly Parton
Stop trying to be someone else and embrace the current you
What now? I’ll enjoy experimenting, it’s fun. This piece probably has potential, and maybe I will still work on it.
Maybe I will move on to what I know I am good at. Either way is fine!
Here is where I went wrong today…I put stock in hoping people liked it. My attempts, my journey of discovery. I sought out the approval of people.
Do you want to know how you can tell you are on the right path? Just pleasing God will be enough.
That is the who and the what we are created for. And it is enough.
So be yourself, not someone else.
Galatians 1:10a Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people?
Let’s talk about it-Who do you want to be? Were you told you were good at something you aren’t? Or, were you told you were not good at something you are?
*Disclosure: I only recommend products I do/would use myself. This post may contain affiliate links that at NO additional cost to you, may earn me a small commission to help support this blog. Read full privacy policy here.
Christa, I think every writer has artistic talent in other areas. I spent a lot of time pursuing other artistic outlets, but realized we can’t be good at everything; there’s not enough time. My daughter and I designed beaded jewelry to raise money for her YWAM school and outreaches. Many people encouraged us to pursue it as a business, but we finally realized we needed to focus on what God had for us. Jewelry is a fun distraction, but writing and speaking is the gift God wants me to use for Him. I’ve decided to put my energy into where God can use me most and not get caught up in doing too much. Loved the idea of telling our kids “You will rock at whatever God created you to be!” …much more realistic and it sets up our children to seek God first. Isn’t that what it’s all about?
I agree! It was a great surprise to see how many other outlets feel so rewarding. Thank you for sharing about your jewelry creations. Who knows what the future holds? For today, how refreshing to read that you too want to focus on God’s plan for you. What a powerful thing to teach your daughter. Have a wonderful day!
It is a freeing thing Bryan, to know who we are. One more reason I love the work you do with adderworld.com You help an important segment of the population understand and develop that very thing! Thanks for being an encourager
Christa,
I saw your post on facebook about your artwork as I was rushing out the door to my night class. I thought about what you had done, and was going to offer some constructive advice.
Here it is.
“Don’t care what anyone else thinks.”
I don’t care that your friend said you couldn’t rap. There was probably someone who said to every painter who has their art work in a gallery, that they couldn’t draw. Or why they needed to get a desk job. Or even a parent who meant well, but said, “Be a plumber, you can’t draw.”
Did you have fun creating? Will you only create if someone says, “Good job.” Are you seeking validation?
Would you stop writing after putting one story on your blog and only one person read it?
Rap on Sterken, and keep doing your word art.
One critic does not make a majority.
Oh, I don’t want to give my friend a bad “rap”, they were just teasing with me. It isn’t really my back up plan. Yo, yo…
I did have fun creating, the issue I discovered is that I WAS seeking validation afterwards, when normally I do it only for the joy. I will keep creating, but my main energy will go into doing what I see my growth in “now”. Writing, Pictures…I have more than enough to keep me busy for lifetimes.
Hi Christa,
Hey, saw your piece yesterday, didn’t have a chance to comment.
Pretend we are in an art class offering critiques, or like a writers group.
Combining the letters with color on a canvas was a nice mix of media. I was immediately drawn to the letters on the right, as the yellow color drew me over there.
I was confused by the dots on the left hand side. The word faithfulness connected to the two sides.
I can see you doing a series of these. Explore them more, and then start an account on Etsy, and sell them as one of a kind original pieces.
Plan on doing a series of 12. Explore and create. See what vision God will give you.
You got this Christa. (P.S. I don’t have a budget for art, but I would save for one. Let me see them when you get a dozen.)
I am grateful for your input. The original photo art I did was a yellow bucket of blueberries, with graphic overlay. I mimicked the original piece from my Visually Speaking ebook. The cutting and pasting of countless blueberries to find that no one knew they were berries, was insightful. Thanks for further help~! That helps me very much. I might revisit this…or, I might just give it away 🙂
I admire your drive. Because we’re a creative sort, I think it’s inevitable we attempt a variety of artistic venues. I have tried to do a lot of things, and found they don’t always fit (even though I was hoping they would). It reminds me of seeing a beautiful dress, but putting it on tells me a whole different story. Flops and successes make us who we are. Christa, you are beautiful.
Good post. I’m with anyone who said don’t go by what people say, or even don’t say. Take it in but always ask God where the truth lies. Also, just something I’ve learned watching my daughter Jessie as she’s taken independent classes from Art Teachers. Even they differ in their opinions. One art teacher LOVED one of her pieces, the other one thought she was going in the wrong direction.
Knowing we perform for an audience of one. We just need to be who He is making us to be. Yep, we’re still a work in progress. And he still looks at us and says, “I like it.”
Anne I appreciate your consistently wise input here… Thanks for sharing Jessie’s experience. I love thinking of God smiling at us and saying “I like it”. Very much
i have always wanted to try something new, something I had seen and admired and was different from anything I had done before. I have tried many, many different projects. Some worked, some bombed. I enjoyed the challenge of creating all of them, and will continue to experiment with new things as they come along. I have learned the joy is in the process; if the end product is great, that’s wonderful! If it isn’t, put it away (or continue to play with it; whatever catches your fancy) and move on. Just enjoy the ride!
Christa, you hit the nail on the head … We can’t be anything we want to be… But we can be anything HE want’s us to be. The secret is sitting down and talking to HIM about it, then listening. My problem is sometimes I don’t like what I’m hearing from him;)
Christa, I think every writer has artistic talent in other areas. I spent a lot of time pursuing other artistic outlets, but realized we can’t be good at everything; there’s not enough time. My daughter and I designed beaded jewelry to raise money for her YWAM school and outreaches. Many people encouraged us to pursue it as a business, but we finally realized we needed to focus on what God had for us. Jewelry is a fun distraction, but writing and speaking is the gift God wants me to use for Him. I’ve decided to put my energy into where God can use me most and not get caught up in doing too much. Loved the idea of telling our kids “You will rock at whatever God created you to be!” …much more realistic and it sets up our children to seek God first. Isn’t that what it’s all about?
I agree! It was a great surprise to see how many other outlets feel so rewarding. Thank you for sharing about your jewelry creations. Who knows what the future holds? For today, how refreshing to read that you too want to focus on God’s plan for you. What a powerful thing to teach your daughter. Have a wonderful day!
Do what you are called to do, Christa. You don’t need anyone’s approval. I love your tenacity and spunk.
It is a freeing thing Bryan, to know who we are. One more reason I love the work you do with adderworld.com You help an important segment of the population understand and develop that very thing! Thanks for being an encourager
Christa,
I saw your post on facebook about your artwork as I was rushing out the door to my night class. I thought about what you had done, and was going to offer some constructive advice.
Here it is.
“Don’t care what anyone else thinks.”
I don’t care that your friend said you couldn’t rap. There was probably someone who said to every painter who has their art work in a gallery, that they couldn’t draw. Or why they needed to get a desk job. Or even a parent who meant well, but said, “Be a plumber, you can’t draw.”
Did you have fun creating? Will you only create if someone says, “Good job.” Are you seeking validation?
Would you stop writing after putting one story on your blog and only one person read it?
Rap on Sterken, and keep doing your word art.
One critic does not make a majority.
Oh, I don’t want to give my friend a bad “rap”, they were just teasing with me. It isn’t really my back up plan. Yo, yo…
I did have fun creating, the issue I discovered is that I WAS seeking validation afterwards, when normally I do it only for the joy. I will keep creating, but my main energy will go into doing what I see my growth in “now”. Writing, Pictures…I have more than enough to keep me busy for lifetimes.
Hi Christa,
Hey, saw your piece yesterday, didn’t have a chance to comment.
Pretend we are in an art class offering critiques, or like a writers group.
Combining the letters with color on a canvas was a nice mix of media. I was immediately drawn to the letters on the right, as the yellow color drew me over there.
I was confused by the dots on the left hand side. The word faithfulness connected to the two sides.
I can see you doing a series of these. Explore them more, and then start an account on Etsy, and sell them as one of a kind original pieces.
Plan on doing a series of 12. Explore and create. See what vision God will give you.
You got this Christa. (P.S. I don’t have a budget for art, but I would save for one. Let me see them when you get a dozen.)
I am grateful for your input. The original photo art I did was a yellow bucket of blueberries, with graphic overlay. I mimicked the original piece from my Visually Speaking ebook. The cutting and pasting of countless blueberries to find that no one knew they were berries, was insightful. Thanks for further help~! That helps me very much. I might revisit this…or, I might just give it away 🙂
I admire your drive. Because we’re a creative sort, I think it’s inevitable we attempt a variety of artistic venues. I have tried to do a lot of things, and found they don’t always fit (even though I was hoping they would). It reminds me of seeing a beautiful dress, but putting it on tells me a whole different story. Flops and successes make us who we are. Christa, you are beautiful.
Shelley, how sweet your encouragement is to my soul. I feel great about this, after writing about it. Funny how that works, eh? Love your analogy…
Christa,
Good post. I’m with anyone who said don’t go by what people say, or even don’t say. Take it in but always ask God where the truth lies. Also, just something I’ve learned watching my daughter Jessie as she’s taken independent classes from Art Teachers. Even they differ in their opinions. One art teacher LOVED one of her pieces, the other one thought she was going in the wrong direction.
Knowing we perform for an audience of one. We just need to be who He is making us to be. Yep, we’re still a work in progress. And he still looks at us and says, “I like it.”
Anne I appreciate your consistently wise input here… Thanks for sharing Jessie’s experience. I love thinking of God smiling at us and saying “I like it”. Very much
i have always wanted to try something new, something I had seen and admired and was different from anything I had done before. I have tried many, many different projects. Some worked, some bombed. I enjoyed the challenge of creating all of them, and will continue to experiment with new things as they come along. I have learned the joy is in the process; if the end product is great, that’s wonderful! If it isn’t, put it away (or continue to play with it; whatever catches your fancy) and move on. Just enjoy the ride!
Joy is in the process. THAT would be a great slogan to have in the home, on a shirt, everything
Christa, you hit the nail on the head … We can’t be anything we want to be… But we can be anything HE want’s us to be. The secret is sitting down and talking to HIM about it, then listening. My problem is sometimes I don’t like what I’m hearing from him;)
Ooh Audrey, that is a convicting thought to sit with. I sure understand, thanks for contributing