Courage Requires...

One of my absolute favorite quotes right now that I heard my first mentor teacher say to her students all of the time is;

"Who cares if we make mistakes, as long as we have courage."

I just think it is brilliant! What a wonderful ideology to instill into young minds! As this thought has percolated in me for the last 3 months, I come to more and more reasons that support the truth of it that resonates in my heart.

How have I learned the big lessons of life... by trying and making mistakes.
In music when I have I learned and created the most... by making big and confident choices.
How have I come to painting... by grabbing supplies and seeing where they lead me.
How have I made my closest friends... by not fearing taking a chance at sharing my heart.
How have I come to have faith... by admitting my humanity and having the courage to say I can't do it alone.

These are defining moments of who I am. This is where I have been me to the core of who I was created to be.

Often though the cloud of anxiety or fear speaks louder. It wins the call of my heart, it keeps me from learning, from joy, from love, from living. It will call the dark parts of my heart. It pulls up the walls. I am human, I am sinful, I do have faults.

So how do I choose courage? How do I choose to tell that voice the truth? In my search for the answer to these questions I made a list that you see in the photo, of what I believe courage requires. When there is a word that challenges me that I feel God calling me to, I often brainstorm a list of words that brings about a clear meaning of how I have seen this played out in my life or in the ordinary people in my life that inspire me. It helps me reach out to the tools to make the change in my heart, then my mind, then my actions.

I wanted to share this in hopes of inviting you to join me in choosing courage. I would love to hear your thoughts, words, or images of what courage is to you. What do you think courage requires?

To come a painting...