Sit Still Look Pretty

I am a passionate soul. I think when God created me and blew life and breath into my bones he might have added a little bit of fire.  My poor parents.  I can imagine that trying to raise a girl with all this fire, passion and emotion felt impossible more than once.  Bless them and all of the grey hairs and sleepless nights I gave them.

Now that I am an adult, doing adult things, I have come to realize that this emotion, this passion, has allowed me to survive.  It has brought me through single parenthood, addictions, dire times, abuse and through extreme depression. Somehow God turned all that into good and fueled the flame that he placed inside me, even when I wasn't seeking him.

There are so many people in my life that do not share my exuberant passion.  They are more of a straight and narrow stay on the safe path of life people.  Bless them all.  We cannot all be the same.  There have to be all kinds of people, otherwise the world would either be very dangerous and wild or very quiet and boring.  We are made unique for a reason.

This week I get to do something that I was made to do.  I get to be free. I get to be me.  I get to stand in front of a room of women and lead them in worship and prayer.  I get to take my passion and infuse it into their sweet souls.  I get to lead them into the throne room, what an incredible honor.  Each week on Sunday mornings I stand before a group of people and play a role in leading them in worship but it is a bit different. I have to stay in a safe box. I can't talk out of turn. I can't sing a praise song at the time there was supposed to be a hymn. I can't raise my hands a certain way or even have a posture of prayer on stage because that would shock the masses.  Everything has to look and feel the same every weekend and that is one tall order for this free spirit.

This morning, after a night of practicing for Imperfectly Brave Worship Night (that's this Thursday) I was overcome by emotion. Last night I was so free.  I was comfortable in my own skin, I was beautifully functioning as the fiery passionate little daughter that my good Father made me to be.  I didn't have to fit into a mold, I raised my hands freely and bowed my head while I sang.  I was overcome with my Fathers love in song.  It was beautiful.

Earlier this week someone who means so much to me used my passion against me and it really hurt.  I closed up immediately and shut down.  Last night I was set free, reminded that I was not made to fit into your mold, her mold, his mold, their mold.  I am not a sit still look pretty girl.  I am filled to the brim with fire and love, mixed in with extreme compassion and grace all granted to me through my relationship with the Savior of my soul.  God will call me to function within his plan for me. I cannot be a robot, I cannot look like you and you should not look like me.  You are called to be you, to chase after Jesus in the way he calls you to.  I am called to love passionately, to go do, to pour into people and bring grace to them in all the ways I can. We are all called to worship, to love well, and to be the hands and feet of Jesus in obedience to his word. I may do that with the passion of 1,000 suns, you may do that in a more reserved way, but let's both decide to do it anyways.

I am learning to embrace my passion, maybe even reign it in at times in order to also appreciate the way others do things too.  Thursday night this Cinderella will break free from the walls of this tower and step out free from the shackles that are placed on her by the world around her. God will fulfill a need in her in that place, that time that only he can.  Then she will go back to her call to obedience trying to bloom where she was planted.

I hope this week you allow someone to bloom in your presence, maybe just maybe, you will catch their fire.

"And let us consider how we many spur one another on toward love and good deeds..."
Hebrews 10:24

Much Love,

Chrystan

PS- This song nails it not in the context of a relationship for me but in the context of being free to be who I am where I am.

"Sure I'm a pretty girl up in a pretty world, but they say pretty hurts and
I don't wanna sit still look pretty..."

Fiercely For You

There’s enough. Did you know there’s enough to go around?  There’s enough space, there’s enough topics to cover, there’s enough room for blogs and articles on news feeds. There’s enough speaking podiums and passionate stances to be shared.  There’s enough words for compliments.  There’s just enough for all.  We don’t have to compete for air time, Facebook reads, blog post views, who is the prettiest, who wore it best, who sung it better. I mean there’s just enough. 

I have a group of girls.  We champion for each other.  We each have different God calls that focus on different areas of life and you know what we do, we hoist each other up each ladder rung.  Sometimes one girl is shining in the light and sometimes none of us are. Sometimes one of us makes a HUGE break through and sometimes 2 of us do and 1 doesn’t.  I mean who stinkin’ cares.  The gospel is being shared, the love is being poured and Jesus wins. 

Ladies let us stop.  Can you just HALT this with me?  The girl next to you who is shining in her role on this earth, can you champion for her please?  Can you lift her up so high today? Cause you know what, she needs it because this world is harsh.

I am a boot girl.  I loves me some cowboy boots. Not just any cowboy boots but Old Corral CowboyBoots (yes maybe I am a boot snob, I’m working on it).  I love beautiful boots on my feet.  I save and hoard gift cards and gift money to buy a pair of boots.  I love my light brown lace style boots, it’s rare I see them on anyone else and I get compliments on them all the time.  Love them.  The other day I was at an event and someone else had the same boots on.  So instead of being snotty about it, as if I wear them better, I walked over and told her she was rocking those boots. We laughed about being boot twins and it was so fun.  Girls, ladies, women of the world we can celebrate each other today.  If a girl is rocking an outfit I could never wear, I want to be the first to go to her and say dang girl you look gorgeous today!  If I see someone shying back and looking less confident I want to go and give her a compliment, tell her she’s looking lovely, tell her she has a great smile.  Let us be only for each other all the time.  There is no time to sit back and be harsh.  There is no room for pushing and shoving and holding down each other. Let us be FIERCELY for each other!

Believe me, I’ve been mean, caddy, unkind, snobby and self-centered (I can maybe still be all those things in my head).  This is a newer me.  A me that has seen and felt the support of what real women do.  Real women champion each other.  Real women lift up not pull down.  Let us all be REAL women.  The kind of women that support each other in all the things, that will sit down so someone else can shine.  I am learning to shine the light outwardly instead of on myself. There is no perfection here, but I will seek this with my days. I will be FIERCELY for you!

Ephesians 4:31-32

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you.

You are God’s girls, he looks on you with abundant love each day, let us do the same for others.  Treat yourself as if you BEAUTIFULLY, FEARFULLY and WONDERFULLY MADE in his image, because that is truth.

Much Love,

Chrystan