Dear Readers,
As I was preparing for the “First Monday Night Prayer” which is a night our church family shares in community, food, and prayer I got to thinking about labels.
Somewhere along the road, I decided that being a Christian meant that you had to quote the bible all the time and it “looked” a certain way. I am delighted to find that life is full of so much more gray than that.
Take me for instance, I have many hats. I am a speaker, a manager, a coach, and an actor and a singer. Those are just a few. I am also a sister, an aunt, and hopefully one day, Mom. This singing that I did for the church is as a direct result of my performance history and my wanting show my love for God. This post is not so much about that as the realization that you don’t have to accept the label that people give you especially when its a negative one.
Statement- Oh, she is a Christian- so she is righteous and religious and judges me.
No, I am a Christian, who believes in God, and is here to serve others and more importantly to meet YOU where YOU are. No judging here.
Statement- Oh she is an actor- so she is flighty and undependable
No, I am an actor which means I show up on time ( to fight that stereotype ) and am dedicated to my craft and work harder than anyone you have ever seen to bring a character to life.
So what is the point in all this you ask? Simple, you are the only one who puts limits on who YOU really are. A wealth of things await you in this life, all you have to do is be brave enough to call yourself what you are and own it.
This quote from Zen Pencils (you should really check this stuff out its inspiring) really landed on me.. especially because this is one of my favourite quotes by Marianne Williamson-
http://zenpencils.com/comic/65-marianne-williamson-our-deepest-fear/
“our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate….. our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure”
It was scary for me to sing for God, mostly because I have never done it before, but shining my “light” in that way made me feel really good and I hope it helped someone else see, “Hey, I could do that, too!”
so glad you are feeling good in what you are doing jennifer! that is fantastic! you also listed my favorite quote which is something i often struggle with my marianne williamson!
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Thanks Chelsea! It is one of my favourites too- and to see an artist like Gavin bring it to life with his gift- makes it that much better!
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That is a great quote! And congrats for putting yourself out there and singing at church.
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