Beth K. Vogt's Blog, page 56

In Others’ Words: Lose the Fear

The word “wrong” can stop us in our tracks, can’t it?

String “wrong” together with the words “You are” or “You could be” — and well, that forms a major roadblock to forward motion … and to creativity.

In our pursuit of creativity, we are going to get it wrong. We’ll find ourselves staring at a dead end … or discover that the oh-so-alluring rabbit trail leads straight to a ditch full of muddy water. We’ll pour our time, our effort, our talent — and yes, our money — into pursuing our dreams — and despit all our hard work, we’ll fail.

Now what?

Well, now we try again. We tear the word “failure” off our efforts and figure out a way to re-envision the dream. To recreate it. To be brave again.

Being creative — has it scared me at times? Oh, yeah. But it has also expanded my life, my heart, in ways I never imagined. My prayer has become “More, Lord” – not in a selfish “gimme more” kind of way. No. “More, Lord” in a “make me more brave, make me more creative” kind of way. “More, Lord” in a “help me lose the fear and dream things, do things I never imagined” kind of way.

In Your Words: How are you living a creative life? What do you do to lose your fear of being wrong?

In Others’ Words: Lose the Fear #inotherswords #lifequotes
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Being #creative and being wrong #fear #amwriting
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Contest for Readers: 

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In Others’ Words: God, You, and a Yoke (Guest Post)

Really? Jesus’ yoke is easy and his burden is light? Saving all of creation by dying for us is easy?

When I look at who Jesus was trusting in to do the work – God the Father – and that Jesus knew his Father was trustworthy, ultimately powerful and infinitely gracious … then I see why Jesus thought his burden was light.

I can too readily rely on my trustworthiness, my power, and my graciousness … and I know them to be faulty, weak and imperfect. I grow disappointed, work-weary, burdened by worries and failures.

Jesus does not reproach me, but offers to let me learn from him. A yoke is a wooden farm implement that went over and around the necks of two oxen to link them together to a plow. An older, more experienced ox was often paired with a younger ox. The farmer guided the team and the younger animal would learn what the commands meant, how to pull through soft or hard soil, up or down hills, by seeing how the more experienced ox plowed. The older beast would pull more of the load, do more of the work — teaching the younger by example.

When I follow Jesus’ example then I, too, can trust that all my life will be guided by an infinitely wise farmer and a powerful, experienced plowing partner who knows what I am going through and walks with me the whole length of the field.

The result? An easy yoke to carry, with a light task.

And soul-rest.

In Your Words: Whose yoke are you carrying? Yours, someone else’s, Jesus’ ? How’s that going for you?

Are you looking for soul rest? #inotherswords #lifequotes #faith
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In Others’ Words: God, You, and a Yoke #lifequotes #faith #rest
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With thanks to my husband Rob, who volunteered to guest blog for me last night when I was falling asleep over my keyboard. He’s a compassionate man, yes — and wise.

In Others’ Words: The God of Beauty

For so many years I didn’t know what to do with that word — Beautiful.

It didn’t apply to me, and yet I kept running into it and being reminded I wasn’t one of the beautiful girls. Not even close.

Now why, you might wonder, would I think that? Pretty simple: I heard in blunt terms that I was ugly.

NOTE: Please don’t rush to the comment section and refute this statement. For the sake of this blog post, I’m telling you what was truth for me for a lot of years. Just being honest — uncomfortably so — because today’s quote reverberated deep in my soul.

When the UGLY label gets slapped on you and you’re not old enough or strong enough to tear it off your soul … or worse, if you believe that label belongs on you … well, you abandon BEAUTIFUL.

But here’s the truth: I was staring into the wrong mirror for years — I was in my thirties before I thought I was pretty. But appreciating my eyes or my smile — that’s not even the point.

If you can’t see anything beautiful about yourself …

For years I couldn’t see anything beautiful … anything valuable about myself. I kept waiting for someone else to tell me I was worthwhile, that I’d done well, that I was somehow beautiful in their eyes.

And I’d believe them for maybe an hour. Or two. Possibly overnight. And then I’d go right back to being ugly again. My beauty had no basis, no firm foundation.

If you’ve been around this blog long enough, you know where this is going, right? Straight to God. I finally believed Psalm 139:14: … I am fearfully and wonderfully made. 

And then I heard a song and I sang the words and let them sink deep into my bruised soul about (paraphrased) if God made everything beautiful, what does that say about me?

In Others’ Words: The God of Beauty #inotherswords #lifequotes
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If you can’t see anything #beautiful about yourself … #inotherswords #lifequotes
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GIVEAWAY FOR SUBSCRIBERS TO MY NEWSLETTER

Have you signed up for my author newsletter yet? I have an exclusive giveaway of an advance copy of Crazy Little Thing Called Love, my destination wedding novel releasing June 30, 2015, and a COVER RELEASE my newsletter subscribers will see first. Make sure you sign up here.

In Others’ Words: Worries and Troubles That Never Happen

Sometimes life can scare me to death.

On the days I let myself be ruled by the what ifs and the might bes … well, I’m a dead woman walking, overflowing with worries.

Of course, I’ve had to sign on the dotted inummerable parental permission slips detailing how my kiddos could have been injured, maimed, and yes, killed while playing school sports. It got to the point where I just skimmed all the warning, warning, warnings and scrawled my name. My kiddos wanted to play sports — and I wasn’t going to say no because I was afraid something might happen.

Waitng for the maybes — that’s no way to live.

After the sports came the school trips and mission trips out of state — and out of the country. A whole new slew of worries and troubles to imagine. Or not.

I chose “or not.”

It didn’t come naturally or easily — but I’ve gotta agree with the guy on his deathbed: most of troubles in my life haven’t happened. And the ones that have? Well, I need my focus and my faith strong for those times — not the imaginary ones.

In Your Words: What imaginary trouble do you need to send packing? How do you fend off worry?

In Others’ Words: Worries That Never Happen #lifequotes #WinstonChurchill
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How do you fend off #worry? #lifequotes #inotherswords
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GIVEAWAY FOR SUBSCRIBERS TO MY NEWSLETTER

Have you signed up for my author newsletter yet? I have an exclusive giveaway of an advance copy of Crazy Little Thing Called Love, my destination wedding novel releasing June 30, 2015,  and a COVER RELEASE my newsletter subscribers will see first. Make sure you sign up here.

In Others’ Words: Losing and Winning

 

When it comes to competition, I am not one of those “everyone’s a winner” kinds of people. Sometimes you win. Sometimes you lose. That’s what competition is all about — winning and losing. It’s always more fun, more satisfying, when you win. But that’s not real life.

Growing up, I tended to shy away from sports. Why? I was afraid I’d lose — maybe even embarrass my team in the process. Reality was, I would have lost. But think of how many wins I missed out on!

But my kiddos have taught me over and over again that it’s about giving your all — your best — and being satisfied with that. Each one of my children has gotten involved in sports to one degree or another: swimming, soccer, horseback riding, martial arts (which I actually did for a few years — ask me how I met my husband!) … and now my youngest daughter is playing club volleyball.

I keep replaying in my head something she shared with me after a recent tournament. Here’s what her team said: We’re having more fun even though we’re losing than the other team is having — and they’re winning! 

They were giving it their best out there on the court — and having fun! I would call that a win, wouldn’t you?

In Your Words: When has a win for you not equaled first place? And why was it a win? 

When a win doesn’t equal first place #lifequotes #competition
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Wins and Losses and Being the Best #competition #inotherswords
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In Others’ Words: Start Here

Oftentimes to embrace the future I’ve had to let go of something I’ve loved.

For years I thought of myself as a writer. Occasionally I would say to a friend, “I want to write.” But I was busy being a mom — and I love my kiddos. I was busy teaching women’s Bible studies — and I loved spending time with women and discovering God’s truths. Writing would happen … one day.

And then the desire became an undeniable have to in my heart. I couldn’t just talk about writing any longer. But I also knew to write, I had to give up teaching Bible studies — something I was passionate about, something I felt called to do. But there are only so many hours in the day, and I’m not one of those women who can juggle a gazillion things well. Sometimes I can’t juggle three things without dropping one of ‘em.

It was time to write. And that meant it was time to stop teaching to make room for a long-postponed dream.

“… to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.”

Once I made the decision to listen to God’s whispered “Are you coming?” and to follow his leading from end to new beginning, I didn’t miss what I left behind (teaching) as I embraced what was ahead (writing). How gracious of God to replace one passion with another so that there was no looking back over my shoulder with longing or regret.

In Your Words: When has a new beginning required an ending for you? How were you able to make the transition?

With thanks to my friend, author Cathy West, for sharing this quote with me. Cathy is one of my favorite authors. If you haven’t read her novels Yesterday’s Tomorrow and Hidden in the Heart, I highly recommend them!

“The end is where we start from.” #lifequotes #tseliot
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When as “the end” been a beginning for you? #lifequotes #inotherswords
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In Others’ Words: Guest Post by debut author Jill Lynn

As Christians, why is it so hard for us to forgive ourselves? This is the journey my character Olivia goes through in my first novel, Falling for Texas.

I love this quote from my pastor, Mark Bates: “Christ, the faithful savior, died for unfaithful sinners. We don’t ask him to forgive us because we’re good. It’s because we’re His. Because He is faithful.”

What grace in these words. What relief. He is faithful when we are not. We don’t deserve grace or forgiveness and cannot earn it. It’s because Christ first loved us. Because he is faithful.

I’m so grateful He’s a trustworthy God.

Here’s a quote from Falling for Texas:

“Forgiveness can change those wounds from bleeding and throbbing to an ache that heals over time.”

Sometimes the person we need to forgive most is ourselves. We’re full of grace for others, but we hold ourselves to a higher standard.

What are you holding on to?

My prayer for you today is that you break free from the thing that’s been holding you captive and fly into the freedom He offers each of us.

In Others’ Words: Why is it sometimes easier to forgive others, but not ourselves? Do you have a favorite quote or Scripture about forgiveness? 

Forgiven because we are His #lifequotes #faith
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The challenge to forgive ourselves #lifequotes #forgiveness
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Jill Lynn lives near the beautiful Rocky Mountains with her husband and two children who make her laugh on a daily basis. She writes the kind of stories she likes to read—ones filled with humor, grace, and happily ever after. Jill does far more dancing in the kitchen with her family than she does cooking, and she has a thing for coffee, books, boots, and thrift stores. Connect with her at Jill-Lynn.com or on social media @JillLynnAuthor. Other ways to connect with Jill:

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In Others’ Words: when I was a child …

When I was I child … somedays all I wanted to be was grown up.

And now, when older is, well, at least a bit wiser, I would go back and tell younger-me to slow down. Don’t be in such a hurry to lay claim to adulthood — because once you’re all grown up, there’s no going back.

As a matter of fact, I would encourage younger-me not to ever be all grown up. “Tuck a bit of childhood into your heart,” I’d insist. “And bring it with you.”

And now that I think about it, yes, I’m older, but I haven’t forgotten how to be a child.

I still stay up too late to read a good book — even though I know I need my sleep
I still savor the perfect mix of a root beer float and a classic movie ( Bringing Up Baby, anyone?) 
I still run down to the beach — and then run away from the advancing waves, laughing all along (And I’m already looking forward to doing this in Destin, FL next month.)
I still wish upon stars … even though I believe in prayer

 

In Your Words: How have you managed to maintain some childlike fun and wonder in your life as you’ve grown up?

In Others’ Words: When I was a child #lifequotes #choices
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How have you maintained childlike fun and wonder in your life? #lifequotes
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In Others’ Words: It Ain’t Over …

My kiddos grew up hearing certain phrases, certain Vogtisms, if you will. One of them is: There’s always room for one more. 

Translation: Go ahead and invite someone else over for (insert holiday here) dinner. We’ve got plenty of food and plenty of room.

Another Vogtism is: Vogts don’t quit. 

Translation: You join the swim team — you’re on the swim team for the duration of the season. Decide to go out for dance? You’ll dance all the way through to that year’s recital and take your bow with everyone else.

There’s something to be said for learning how to sticking it out for the long haul — whatever “it” is — a sport, a project, a problem. I’m not saying that once that sport season is over that you sign up for swim team again — or ice hockey or track — if you hate it. I’m not saying you take on another quilting project if you feel like quilting is just a math problem with material. (Not that I would know anything about this.) And I’m not saying that once you work through a particular problem that you get back in line and ask God to “Bring it on again!”

When it’s over … it’s over … but when it ain’t … it ain’t … and don’t quit.

In Others’ Words: What have you learned by living the wisdom of Yogi Berra: It ain’t over until it’s over? What helps you not quit?

It ain’t over until it’s over #lifequotes #yogiberra
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What helps you not quit? #lifequotes #perseverence
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With thanks to my friend, author Patricia Bradley, for sharing this quote by Yogi Berra with me. Pat is the author of the Logan Point romantic suspense series! Check it out! 

In Others’ Words: Funny Good Fun

Sometimes the Friday blog post seems to call out for a Dr. Seuss quote.

That was true last night as I pondered today’s post … and the “good fun” quote seemed perfect.

Maybe it’s rainy where you are today. Or maybe’s it’s sunny … or snowy … here in Colorado the weather is so unpredictable we can have rain, sun, and snow all in the course of one day. And you know what? We’re kind of proud of the weather-craziness.

Whatever the weather where you are, let’s focus on the “good fun” part of the quote … and how a rainy day (circumstances) shouldn’t stop us from having funny good fun. We have to be like the Cat in the Hat, who spoke this quote, and then acknowledge the reality of our circumstances as he did:

I know it is wet and the sun is not sunny …

But even acknowleding the rain and the lack of sunshine, the Cat in the Hat determined to have fun.

Lesson learned from a fictional character? 

Be realistic about the rain (your circumstances).
Find a way to have funny good fun. (How can you encourage optimism or outright joy in the midst of your cicurmstances?)

In Your Words: On actual rainy days, what do you do for fun?  And when virtual rain has you down — when circumstances overwhelm you or discourage you or break your heart — how do you find joy?

The importance of funny good fun #lifequotes #inotherswords #DrSeuss
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How do you handle rainy days? #lifequotes #inotherswords #DrSeuss
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