What’s the point?

Sometimes you don’t know you have a problem until all of the emotions you didn’t know you had come spilling out. That’s what happened to me yesterday. An attempt to take the PERFECT PICTURE of my latest quilt for the blog turned into a big heart-to-heart with Mr. Right.

After trying to explain to him that I had to have the PERFECT PICTURE in the PERFECT outdoor setting because that’s what quilt bloggers do. And if I was ever going to get pinned on pinterest, if I was ever going to gain new followers, if I was ever going to be like THOSE BLOGGERS I read daily who have thousands of followers, if my little shop was ever going to REALLY take off, then I had to have the PERFECT PICTURE.

And that’s when Mr. Right looked at me with those giant brown puppy dog eyes of his, and said, “I think your priorities are a little out of whack.”

This isn’t a popularity contest.

My worth doesn’t come from the number of people who read my blog, or the number of people who buy something in my shop. My worth comes from one place and one place only – Christ.

I have been chosen by God: You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last.  Then the father will give you whatever you ask in my name. (John 15:16)

My goal is to become more like Jesus: And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18)

My job is to show people Jesus’ love on his behalf: As God’s fellow workers, we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain. (2 Corinthians 6:1)

I am fearfully and wonderfully made: For you created my inmost being;  you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:13-14)

My delight should not come from popularity: Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4)

I should not waste my time worrying about the approval of the blogosphere: Commit to the LORD whatever you do,  and he will establish your plans. (Proverbs 16:3)

Here is what I know is true:

My worth comes from Christ, and not from the number of sales I make in my shop.

My value comes from Christ, and not the number of people who read my blog.

It is not healthy to seek popularity.

I opened my shop because I love it. This is not my career, this is not my primary source of income. I chose to do this because it was a welcome challenge to this girl who never takes risks.

I blog because I love it. Because I am a writer by nature, with an inherent need to put words on paper and come up with new and creative ways of expressing myself. I write because it stretches my muscles, it challenges me, it’s something I have to do. I blog because I want to encourage other women, to show them that I don’t have it all together, to show them that behind the pretty wreath on my door is a messy house with two imperfect people inside. I blog because it’s so comforting to find out that you’re not the only one who doesn’t have it all together.

The main goal is for you to see how much I love Jesus.

So to my dear friends who read this, thank you. Thanks for supporting me as I continue to blaze a trail that is sometimes filled with potholes and rocks and other times is smooth and wide. I hope to never encourage comparison, or feelings of not being good enough, but instead provide reassurance that every girl has that messy drawer that she doesn’t want anybody to know about. Or for me, a laundry room piled to the ceiling with clothes that need to be folded, and a closet that is most certainly a fire hazard, and a bed that is only made 15 percent of the time (oh mom, please don’t ground me) and a closet full of clothes that fit a little too snugly.

My worth comes from Jesus, from the One who saved me even though I was still a sinner. Who loves me when I feel unpopular, or unsure of the future, or filled with insecurities.

16 Comments

    1. Chelsea, I remember you once said that when you first started you waivered back and forth between feeling successful and worrying that nobody would ever book a wedding ever again. I feel that way with my little shop – one day I feel like it’s going so much better than I expected, and then I go a few days without a sale and I feel like nobody is ever going to buy anything ever again.

      Reply

  1. Mr. Right is so—-well–right!!! You are an amazing woman and just your being the person God has created you to be, is such an encouragement to all of us. Love to read your thoughts and love your quilts. Love you too, by the way.

    Reply

  2. i am proud of you for blogging about this! this needed to be shared. women really can get competitive with crazy stuff like this.

    as a mom, i have gotten caught up in the “everything has to be perfect” for my little girl; her outfits, her birthday parties, her activities, etc. then i realize that she is 4 and the time that i spend doing these things would be time she would rather just have playing silly games with me or reading to her. Grace doesn’t even care if or know the difference if her birthday napkins match the theme or not. she dresses herself and that means more to her than any outfit i could coordinate.

    i am so proud of you for this blog entry. i see it all the time with women. we are so silly!

    Reply

  3. Bethe, there is an irony here…I just emailed my answers to you (before I read this) for the Balanced Women blog post, and that is EXACTLY what I wrote about! That we just can’t be perfect. And it’s OK. After 4 kids, a failed business and a lot of prayer, the one thing I’ve learned in the past 12 months is that it ain’t up to us, folks….God is in control, and if we let Him lead us, we will always go where He intends.

    You are inspiring to more people than you know!

    Reply

    1. I can’t wait to read your blog! I’m going to do my best to get it up tomorrow. Love sharing that sort of wisdom with others!

      Reply

  4. Girl, if I only had one thing to say about you it would be that you love the Lord, with all your heart, your soul, and your mind! As always, thanks for being real.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Bethe Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

HTML tags are not allowed.

39,869 Spambots Blocked by Simple Comments