From My Heart - Keep On

Hey Friends!!!

Welcome!! Happy Sunday!! Here on the blog on Sundays I'll be sharing a card, but I will also be sharing a little From My Heart. I hope it will inspire you to encourage others this week.

Deuteronomy 3:28 "But commission Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he will lead this people across and will cause them to inherit the land that you will see."

When I was a little girl, I was extremely shy. I know!! Who would have guessed?! But it's true. I rarely raised my hand in class. In second grade I never played during recess. Ever. For the whole year I just stood on the edge of the playground and watched the other kids. I highly disliked all sports. I never wanted the ball because having the ball, any ball: volleyball, basketball, softball, meant that everyone was looking at you and I did NOT want that!!


When I was a sophomore in high school, our tiny Christian school added "drill team" to their list of extra-curricular activities. Through the fine art of peer pressure, my friends convinced me to try out. The ONLY reason I thought it was possible to stand in front of a crowd and do high kicks was we would be doing all the moves together in unison. No one person would be singled out. I could literally hide in a crowd of girls who were all dressed exactly like me. In a hideous bright, yellow Lycra contraption with red sequins. Oh. My. Word. I'm pretty sure every girl who tried out that year made it.


My junior year, our drill team coach encouraged me to try out for captain of the team. Apparently she did not know me very well. I went along with it for awhile, but a few days before the try-out date, I told her I was not going to do it. I told her I did not make up my own routine, which was one of the requirements. Which was true. But what I didn't tell her that I was terrified of the thought of having to be "in charge".

Long story short, I'm pretty sure she rigged the whole competition because you guessed it... 
I was awarded the role of Drill Team Captain.

Obviously she saw something in me that I, myself did not even know was buried under that shy, little girl. She encouraged me to go above and beyond what I thought I was capable of. She saw my potential.


Like Joshua leading the Israelites, I needed the encouragement of others to do a job that I did not think I had the skills to do. I need the strengthening word of another to show me my own potential.

My dad picked up a phrase on the road years ago, "Keep on, keepin' on". More or less it means, don't give up. It kind of has become our family motto. This card will be going to a college sophomore who needs a little extra encouragement. Just a small reminder to take each day as they come and don't worry about the big picture. If you just keep on, keepin' on, when you turn around you will be amazed how much you have actually accomplished.

Looking back, I realize now that what was seen as "shyness" when I was younger, was actually fear. I was afraid of being less than perfect. I didn't raise my hand in class because I was afraid to get the answer wrong. I didn't like having the ball, because I was afraid to miss the shot. I didn't want to be drill captain because I was afraid I couldn't be a leader.

Deuteronomy 3:22 "Do not be afraid of them; the Lord your God himself will fight for you."

Even Joshua had to learn to overcome his fears and trust God with the big picture.

I only wish that I would have learned earlier in my life to "fear not". But thankfully, through the encouragement of many people like my drill team coach, I finally figured out that being less than perfect is okay. Life is not something to be afraid of.

If you've stuck with me all the way to the end... THANK YOU!! And I hope you've been inspired to send a card of encouragement to someone in your world this week.

Thanks for stopping by.

Be blessed and be a blessing.

Now go SEND A CARD!!!

Krystal