We are all givers and receivers.  This coming season of gift-giving is upon us – and there will be lots of fun boxes with bows – yet today I’m focused on a different kind of gift that comes in a different kind of packaging.

Each one of us has gifts to give.  Whether it is musical talent or cooking or mothering or business or an expertise that you have honed, it is meant to be cultivated and given.  Many of us have gifts that get squelched by fear of failure or hard times.  Don’t let hard times squelch the giving of your time, talents, and treasures.  When times are hard, give.  Cultivate your gifts even when you don’t see the outcome.

When I was in graduate school, my professor told me I was someone who not only wanted to write, but HAD to write.  It’s true.  I HAD to write GIRL PERFECT and I HAD to write BEAUTIFUL LIES.

The message of this new book stirred in my soul for eight years, since I first taught it to a handful of girls in an upstairs game room.  I couldn’t rest until it was delivered.  I worked two years on the book proposal alone, and my computers are filled with draft after draft of my attempts to weave meaning from my experiences, offering truth that sets women free.

Then one day, my gift became a gift:  BEAUTIFUL LIES and the 40-day Study that goes with it hit the shelves.  Nothing in the world changed, but I did.

All we can do is trust that each of us has gifts that the world needs us to give, and sometimes we will never know the way they moved the receiver.

Do you have a dream?  Do NOT let hard times squelch it.  Do NOT give up.  Keep believing.  Pray BIG prayers.  Persevere.  Use your gifts to get there.  Not just what you have, but the precious gifts others give you – the gifts of their service, prayers, connections, friendships & favors.  I believe your gifts point to your destiny, and your destiny is worth fighting for.  Don’t you?