Note – this post was actually written for the most part on Monday, May 1, 2017.  Then I chickened out, then procrastinated, then chickened out again.  This morning I woke up at 6:00 am knowing that this was it, today was the day.  Honestly I’m not sure what I have been afraid of other than it is difficult to be open and vulnerable.

Yesterday (April 30) was a big day for me. I reached out to some women that I know but not incredibly well, and invited them to my house for an If:Table group. This probably wouldn’t be a big deal for most, but hospitality is not something that I have ever thought of myself as being gifted with. I don’t normally cook for people. I like to cook and I think it’s something I’m actually pretty good at, but I have that fear of being judged. People’s tastes are incredibly different and I can take things very personally. (side note – I also started an online Bible study group that will officially be starting next week. I will just be facilitating and getting things started but these are all steps of faith for me, just following where I feel God is leading even though I don’t see the whole path.)  Back to the in-person group at my house.  So yesterday at our group one person ended up not being able to make it so it was me and three other women. It was slightly awkward at first but I think we quickly found that we can be honest with each other because that is the entire goal – to be open and honest and figure out who we are and how we feel about Jesus – no judgement.  I think it’s going to be a very exciting time! However there’s a couple of things that I think lead to me making the decision to step out in faith and lead this group and those epiphanies are just as exciting! More about that in a moment.

hospitality

I like people and consider myself to be friendly, so that should be easy enough.  But here’s where it gets tricky.  I mentioned in a previous post that I had recently gone to Florida. I went with my best friend and her son and my two boys and we stayed with a friend/former coworker and her husband at their home. I know a lot of people stay with friends and family so that wouldn’t be a big deal, but I am not those people! I do not even stay with family. I stay at home or at a hotel.  This trip came about because my friend and I were looking to get away with the kids but we needed to watch our budget because we both just quit our jobs. We were planning to go somewhere closer to home and stay but when our friend offered to host us it seemed like a great opportunity to catch up with them and save some money! (And be able to check out the beach.) My friend and I were both pretty nervous about staying there, not really knowing what we were supposed to do or what it would feel like. To be honest, it was a little awkward at first, but not nearly as uncomfortable as I had thought it would be. Our hosts were wonderful and encouraged us to make ourselves at home. One of the big lessons it taught me is that the most important part of hospitality is the the people aspect. Their house was not perfect. It was bigger than mine, newer than mine, but it wasn’t a show home. And they didn’t apologize for that. It was a normal family home, lived in and loved in and warm and welcoming. What’s better than that? I have always been so self-conscious about virtually everything and the older I get I realize that most of it is really inconsequential. We need new siding on our house. We have weeds in our driveway. Dust is a dear friend of mine. But there are some things that I love about my house. It is next-door to my mom and we are able to see each other often. It is in town and close to every place that I might need or want to get to quickly. My kids have all been raised there. If we can fit six kids and us in the house do we really need a bigger house now that we only have two at home? Probably not. The fact that we don’t have a big house was part of the reason that I was able to leave my full-time job and work very part time building our dreams!

When we first came back from Florida I went out into our backyard and noticed that a couple of our daffodils had bloomed! They were yellow and beautiful and I was so excited to see these first signs of spring. Later in the day, I went walking and noticed that our neighbor had about 50 blooms – bigger and brighter and prettier – and immediately I felt bad about my poor little flowers.  Why?! If they made me happy before and they were beautiful before why did I get sad just because somebody else’s was bigger? Why do I always have to compare myself to everybody else? Why if I go walk for an hour and then I hear about somebody else that went running why do I feel bad about myself when I just felt good about myself? Why does everything feel like a competition? I am hopeful that the awareness of this and how common it is in my everyday life will move me toward contentment and aware from comparison.

I appreciate how happy and just good I feel overall, especially considering that yesterday was a big day for another reason. Yesterday I lost a free trip to Puerto Vallarta that I have worked toward for a year. All it took was consistent effort – totally manageable, totally doable for anyone who is willing to do the work. And for the first ten months I did the work. And then I stopped. I let a lot of other things come up and take priority. Instead of continuing to put in literally 15 to 60 minutes a day it would’ve taken to stay qualified I chose to do nothing. I’m not sure why other then I do have a tendency to get sidetracked and focus on one big thing at a time. I’m not sure exactly why, but it happened.  And here’s what I do know. It’s OK. Am I disappointed? Yes. I’m disappointed in myself but I am also proud of myself because I realize that it’s all on me. And just being able to feel bad and accept that responsibility honestly feels good. There are so many things that are out of my control but the things that I truly am responsible for?  Those I can fix, those I can work on. There are things that I have let slide that I should not have. There are things that I should have followed up on that I didn’t. And for that I’m truly sorry. There’s nothing to be done but learn and move forward.

If there are areas where you are struggling, take the time to figure out what you need to do, or not do, to move forward.  Recognize all of the great things you are doing and don’t be so hard on yourself!  If a close friend made a mistake here and there would you constantly berate them for it?  Hopefully not!  But we do it to ourselves all the time and we need to stop and be kinder, more loving. Do you find yourself making comparisons often, and if so, how does that impact you?