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How to do What you are Called to Do Without Failing

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How to do what you are called to doPhoto Source

As a blogger you can get pretty lost in all of the “to dos of blogging.” It’s a list that most blogging conferences, or blog posts on how to blog, confirm: promote your blog, use social media, comment on other blogs, guest post, connect, build relationship… It’s not a bad list and it does yield results but it may not yield the right kind of success if you aren’t supposed to be doing those things.

Over my 3 years of blogging I have watched blogger after blogger burn-out. They felt called to write at one point or another but then the demands of it took time away from their families and they couldn’t find the balance so they had to lay it down…completely. I admit to wondering time and time again if I should lay blogging down but every time I seek God about it I hear a clear “no.” I have had seasons of laying it down but have never felt the necessity of letting it go completely. However, It scares me, honestly, that there is such burn-out among bloggers, especially moms.

As I have watched so many bloggers struggle with the balance I could not help but be desperate for the answer to cure the epidemic. “God why do so many women struggle with this, myself included?” and what God spoke to me was a swift and absolute answer.

“Only Do what I told YOU to do.”

Oh! I get it. Too often we get caught up in what someone else is doing and attempt to follow their path. Sometimes that is the right thing to do because that’s what God has told us to do. But sometimes it’s not. Sometimes we are just chasing the success of someone else. If you’ve been told what to do then THAT is your path to being successful. If you haven’t been told {or haven’t taken time to ask} please make that a priority before moving on.

When I think back to the beginning of my blogging journey I remember that God called me to write. Every day. He said “Write every day. Live your life and blog along the way.” He never said to catch up with Mrs. Jones who has been blogging for years. He never said promote yourself like crazy. He never said “you have to connect.” He just said “write.”

And I remembered how God is interested in our hearts. Do we trust Him with what He has called us to? Will we be faithful to obey? Even if it isn’t the way it looks for someone else?

Of course I had the potential to burn-out because I cannot expect that God will bless, protect and grow what He never asked me to do {also known as disobedience to what He HAS called me to do}. He equips us faithfully for our calling. We falter when we leave Him behind thinking that we’ve got it now and know how to do it.

{Please note that there is a difference between burning out because you are following the wrong path and God changing your path. And there is ALWAYS grace. I have missed the mark on this so many times and He lovingly brings me back to truth…every time.}

My calling may be different from yours. You may not even be called to blog. You may be called to blog and promote and work long hours to make money at it. You may be called to connect like crazy. BUT if you aren’t you should stop. I had to stop.

Let me leave you with a verse that God has been speaking to my heart over and over. Psalms 23:1 says:

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

Another version says …I have everything I need. Is the Lord your shepherd? You have everything you need. Your calling is enough for you. But get this: in Hebrew the word translated “want” also means to fail or (cause to) fail. So you could also read it like this: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not fail…

Make the Lord the shepherd over your calling. Do only what He asks you to do. Guard it and your time diligently and You cannot fail. He won’t let you.

Kristin Lemus
The Beautiful Deep

Comments

  1. Kristin,
    I love your discussion of the fact that God calls us to be faithful to Him–not to keeping up with other bloggers around us. He has called us to our very specific purpose, not to another’s purpose. This is great truth that all Christian bloggers should grab ahold of and run with. I needed this. Thank you!

    • You are welcome Mandy. Yes, let’s keep encouraging each other to only seek after His calling in our blogging and our lives. Blessings, Kristin

    • Hi Eileen, So glad we get to figure it out together and walk it out as an example to others as well! Blessings, Kristin

  3. I hadn’t thought of my work in quite this way: Just do what He has led me to do.

    Such an incredibly simple thought with such power and direction. It is all about being firmly attached to and fully dependent on the vine. Thanks for this inspiration and encouragement today!

  4. Kristin, you say it so well. I’ve been struggling to find words to write about this in a way that is filled with grace and truth. Glad you did it for me!

  5. Something I am not called to do is focus on seo. It just isn’t my thing or focus. I have tried to do a few things to better my search odds, but to write and rewrite my post just to get popular key words in, is not my call. God will bring me readers as He sees fit.

    • Yes He will. It’s not easy to lay down the things that everyone else says we should be doing but God blessed our obedience and then we can say our confidence is in Him and not our own ability. Be blessed!

  7. I think another thing we need to accept, is that there are people who are called to blog for a season, and that’s Okay too. I’d like to think that I’ll be writing for a long time, which is what I feel God calling, but if he asks tomorrow to lay this ministry down in favor of another one, I’d like to think I’d do it without question.

    • Could not agree with you more. Sometimes it is for a season and listening to Him is so important to know if and when that season is over. Blessings as you follow Him.

  8. I cannot thank you enough for this! So good! I recently had this conversation with the Lord myself – feeling like I have been blogging forever and yet – on the ‘business’ side of it all – I can feel sadly behind… He reminded me of the Call to write – to spend time with Him and then write out of that experience. He also reminded me of a few promises He gave me in the beginning… while I love the connecting He lead me in over the past year (and He did lead me) He reminded me that some times those connections are more Kingdom minded and personal, than networking and ladder-of-success climbing! Honestly – I am relational – and it feels more authentic when I remember that I am called to be that way – whether the ‘business’ side ever climbs higher or not!

    • Hi Karrilee, Yes! I have been so very blessed with some special relationships that I have made with others online. I am often amazed at how God has brought me some of the most beautiful friendships from women all over the globe. That never would have happened without social media and blogging and yes, they are for Kingdom and personal reasons more often than anything else. Thank you for that reminder!

      I also believe that when we are seeking God and have desires in our hearts that He gives us those desires and has plans to fulfill them. I believe He can work things out in the business aspect of blogging and if you desire it, I bet He desires it for you too. His timing will be perfect in it all. Blessings as you pursue Him, Kristin

  9. Chasing after someone else’s dream is exhausting. And chasing after God, somehow, never leaves me feeling like that. The stumbling is hard, but I love this reminder to continually seek Him and let God keep telling you what you are called to do. I wonder sometimes, if all of the social media outlets we can plug in to, as bloggers, don’t simply get so loud that we can’t hear what it is we’re supposed to do next. Thank you for writing this reminder out for us!

    • Yes, all of the noise of all that we should be doing can drown out God’s voice. We have to make an effort to be still and listen. You are so right. Chasing after God’s heart is refreshing and fulfilling. Blessings, Kristin

  10. Thanks for this post. I’m printing it off and putting it inside my Bible, so I can be reminded to take everything to God in prayer and only do what He’s asked me to do – nothing more, nothing less.

    • You are so welcome Heather! It blesses me that it would be an encouragement for you to rest in only following His voice. Blessings, Kristin

  11. Thank you for this timely post. I’ve been so tired and the words don’t come easy, but I am pressing through, because I know God has called me to encourage women through blogging. Just today I received notification from another blogger that I love and follow that he is shutting down her blog and moving off of all social media. She’s so anointed and it breaks my heart. I cannot argue with what she feels God is calling her to, but I do believe shutting down a blog is a bold step. Oh that I would follow His leading and remain in His will, stay balanced and not burn out.

    • I echo that last line Barbie. Oh, that we would all! I can understand the laying down of it all and would in a heartbeat if I heard God telling me to.

      Praying for you right now that God would bless and strengthen you. Blessings! Kristin

  12. I really liked reading how you shared more about Psalm 23:1 and the meaning of “want”. Thanks for sharing what the Lord is teaching you so it can teach us as well!

  13. OH, this post is exactly what’s in my heart. And it brings me back to the word He gave me for this year: Permission. Permission to only do what HE is calling me to. Permission to NOT worry about whether it’s the same as everyone else or not. You speak truth so beautifully! Thank you, friend!

    • Love that word “permission” Shell. Don’t we all need to understand that we have His permission to lay down what anyone else (including ourselves) would expect or demand that we pick up? Love that! Blessings!

  14. Kristin, you are so spot on. He called us each, gave us passions each, gifted us specifically each, equips us each, and carries us each. That is something we all strive to know and follow in a world that tells us opposite. Keep our eyes on the thing He has called us to do… LOVE Him and LOVE others – His Kingdom. All else will be supplied. Thank you for writing this as you were called to do.

  15. Thank you so much for this. I needed it today beyond words! The Lord has really been stretching me through my blog lately and this is the push I needed to lay some things down that don’t belong on the blog.

  16. Thank you so much! This is exactly what I needed to read today. It was like a breath of fresh air full of perspective and hope for blogging. Bless you!

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