This or That?

Real world story.

A friend messaged me this morning after reading my Facebook post yesterday about being discouraged. She was confused about her calling. Should she do one artistic pursuit that gave her joy? Or another that she was now struggling with? And she wanted me to give her counsel.

I prayed for wisdom. And then God reminded me I was jumpstarting my day without the counsel of his Word. So I opened up to 2 Chronicles 1-4 in my read-through-the-Bible plan and read the passage about how Hiram, king of Tyre, comes alongside Solomon, king of Israel, to help provide materials and craftsmen to build the first temple.

Read along with me:

“I am sending you Huram-Abi, a man of great skill… He is trained to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood, and with purple and blue and crimson yarn and fine linen. He is experienced in all kinds of engraving and can execute design given to him. He will work with your craftsmen and with those of my lord, David you father.” ~2 Chronicles 2:13-14

Friends, should we do one thing and one thing alone? One art form instead of another? One genre of writing instead of another? One craft instead of another?

Well, marketing folks would tell us to stay in the lane–to just build one audience and keep doing that one thing to make them happy.

But is that what Huram-Abi did? Nope. He became skilled in all kinds of metal work, in stone and wood, in engraving of any design, and even in fabric artwork.

I’ve felt like a scattered mess lately. I went through a certification course to become a life coach and began a coaching business. I started writing retreats in my home. I created an online masterclass, Prayer School. And I recorded an audiobook.

I’m a marketer’s nightmare. But I have truly felt with each endeavor that God’s hand was guiding me and his Word was encouraging me. When I asked for wisdom, he never failed. When I hit a wall of discouragement, he gave me #grit such as I’ve never experienced before in my lifetime.

Should I do this . . . or should I do that?

It’s a question I get often from people. The counsel that never fails is this: Read the Bible daily . . . the answer will pop off the pages.

Keep #lookingup, friends . . . and looking into his Word.

Janet McHenry is a speaker and author of 24 books–including the bestselling PrayerWalk, which is in its 20th year of publication . . . and as of this week . . . . drum roll . . . in audio form. You can download the mp3 version here. Janet would love to hear your prayerwalking stories . . . connect with her on social media or through her website: janetmchenry.com.

#lookingup #Prayer #prayerwalk