It Takes Guts To Be You

photo credit: Iria 02 via photopin(license)

I went grocery shopping today with my two year old. This is not an easy endeavor. Bringing a toddler along on any shopping trip is always an adventure.

The store was packed. Everyone was in a hurry. But my little Cutie Pie just couldn’t resist the opportunity to sing at the top of her lungs. Right there in the middle of aisle 4.

She sang loud. She sang proud. She wasn’t afraid. She simply owned her song. And it occurred to me that she was demonstrating a confident courage that most of us look for but never find.

All I know is….we all want it.

She was a musical picture of unashamedly being who God made her to be. Did you catch that?

She didn’t apologize for her gift. She simply owned her song.

Not a single person’s turned up nose or applause was going to affect her. And both reactions occurred. But she kept on singing.

I felt like I could both laugh and cry as I witnessed this 5 minute event. The audacity it took to stand up in her cart and belt out her favorite tune. Talk about guts.

But isn’t having guts what it’s all about? In the grand scheme of things, I don’t want to be the person that shy’s away from the opportunity to share my gifts. I want to be the person who owns the moment and sings MY song!

As I watched her sing, I realized something. She was singing for me. Her mama. She was looking right at me with a twinkle in her eye.

She didn’t even notice the others. If they sneered, she didn’t see it. If they smiled, she had no idea. She was looking at me and love was oozing from her heart and hanging onto every word she sang.

What a picture. Can you see it?

GUTS. The gooey stuff inside of us that comes out in moments of transparency. The stuff that gives you the oomph you need to take that next step and go for it. The incomparable nerve that fuels your unveiled self.

How do we own our song? How do we have the guts to share with the world the real person that is inside of us?

Just look at your Maker. Hold His gaze and never look away. He’s already looking at you with a joy that brings a tear to His eyes.