Katie Nelson

Recently, I have felt like the floodgates of inspiration have opened. There are so many exciting projects that I’m working on but…

I’m so nervous to share about them.

What if they aren’t as cool as I think they are?

What if it all flops?

And then it hit me… What if the opposite happens?

What if people like my work?

Terrifying.

Success is definitely more scary than failure to me.

Why? I think because then I have something of value that I’m responsible for.

I don’t want to screw it up.

I’m seriously just winging it – writing, posting on social media, learning how to publish…

There is an Instagram reel that says, “There’s no strategy. I have no strategy. There’s zero strategy.” That seriously rings in my head so often!

In contrast to my fear, Corinthians 16:13 admonishes us to “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.”

What if instead of thinking – I’m just winging it, I think of it as taking faith steps? If I think it’s all up to me to make something successful that is super overwhelming, but if I focus on being faithful… everything seems much more doable.

I’m not going to do it all perfectly (even though the perfectionist in me so badly wants to!), but there’s grace.

As I’ve been pondering all this, the parable of the talents comes to mind. Three servants are given a sum of money by their boss. Two doubled their boss’s money, but the third simply dug a hole and buried his boss’s money. Check out Matthew 25:24-27 from The Message…

“The [third] servant given one thousand said, ‘Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways, that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it is, safe and sound down to the last cent.’

“The master was furious. ‘That’s a terrible way to live! It’s criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least?”

I can so relate to the third servants fear… “I was afraid I might disappoint you so instead of trying, I did nothing.”

But when I think of it in a different way like… What if I asked my kids to do something – draw a picture, clean their room, or pick out their clothes for the day? And then when I came in to check on them, they told me: “Mom, I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I just sat here. I thought it was better to do nothing then to try.”

I would be super frustrated. Like you know my character! You know that I love you. You know that if you did your best, I would be proud of you.

God is a good and loving Father. I’m preaching to myself here… All He asks is…

“To act justly and to love mercy
    and to walk humbly with your God.”

-Micah 6:8

Don’t bury what God gave you.

Don’t play it too safe.

Take a step of faith.