I just finished writing my second book, The God Dare, and today I’m sharing a section called Hindrances to The God Dare outlining all the things the devil will try to throw at you when you bungee jump into your future with God and do the scary, crazy thing He’s calling you to do, what I like to call The God Dare. Comparing and competing are a big problem and afflict us all and if we’re not careful, they can quickly derail our God Dare. But there is an answer! Here are my thoughts:

“I love Pinterest but looking at it usually makes me feel like a complete failure. Everything on there is so perfect and I just know I don’t measure up! My house will never be so cleverly decorated or efficiently organized. I’m not crafty and though I pin lots of DIY with the best of intentions, I can tell you honestly I will likely never likely follow through and make any of those things.

Worse yet, I’m totally intimidated by most of the authors and bloggers I follow. They write beautifully, take gorgeous photos for their blogs, have way more followers than I do, (tribes, even) so I might as well just throw in the towel, right?

That’s exactly what the enemy would like me to do. He would love to intimidate me right into submission and right out of my God Dare. If I compare myself with other writers and bloggers I’ll be found wanting.

Every. Single. Time.

The devil wants me to listen to the voices of insecurity and doubt already lurking in my subconscious. He wants me to pull those voices out, polish them up and put them on display.

“Who do you think you are Kate? You’re not gifted enough, smart enough, young enough, connected enough or educated enough to pull this off. You’re not fooling anybody. You might as well just give up before you’re totally embarrassed!” 

Please don’t listen! If God has called you then he knows exactly what He’s doing and he will equip you for the task. Maybe part of your miracle and testimony is the fact that you are small and unknown. If you’re gifted enough, smart enough, connected enough, young enough (or old enough), and educated enough, what on earth do you need God for? 

The whole point of The God Dare is believing in the impossible.

Walking by faith, not sight. Taking God at His word in complete trust. Your obedience will impact the ones it will impact. Do numbers matter to you? Popularity? Beating the competition? If I let my numbers dictate my God Dare then I would stop writing today. But God has shown me this little nugget of truth, this God Dare Secret:

We all have our sphere.

I have a circle of lives I impact with my words and blog posts and recipes and you have a circle your God Dare impacts completely different from mine. Likely I won’t reach your circle and you might not reach mine. But each of us has something unique and important to contribute.

“.. from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.” Ephesians 4:16 (emphasis mine)

Whether I’m called to reach two hundred or two million, in the infamous words of Hillary Clinton, “What Difference Does It Make!!!” The point is not my reach compared to yours.

The point is obedience. You sow and let God give the increase.

If popularity or numbers or fame or fortune is what drives you, you might need to take a good hard look inside and make sure it’s God’s Dare you’re following. Not that some God Dares don’t lead to those things but honestly, it’s rare. Here’s another God Dare Truth:

Most of us will labor in obscurity but none of us is too small not to be able to change the world. 

And trust me, fame is not all it’s cracked up to be. It’s not glamorous and it’s hard, hard work to maintain.

You have a unique voice in all the world, a unique calling, a unique destiny.

God created you for it and it really doesn’t matter how you compare with someone else. Just like Jesus told Peter after the resurrection when He appeared to the disciples by the seashore. Peter was all concerned about John and what Jesus had for John to do. Peter said:

“Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following,….Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?”

Jesus basically puts Peter in his place with these words:

“If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.” John 21:22 (emphasis mine)

In other words, it’s none of your business how I use your friend!  What I have for them shouldn’t concern you. You obey what I tell you and don’t compare your life to anyone else’s. And He says the same to you and me today.

“You follow me.” 

Will you? Will you take The God Dare, the one uniquely designed just for you, stop comparing and competing and not worry about what He calls someone else to do?”

I would love to pray for you.