Dear friend,
To the one who hasn’t sat quietly by while letting others dictate what you should think, or feel.
To the one who is feeling persecuted for letting your opinions be known.
To the one who has been attacked for having the courage to speak up, let your voice be heard.
To the one who has written from your heart only to be crushed by others response to those words.
To the one who is second guessing your voice, wondering if it would have been better, easier if you just sat down and shut up.
Those negative words in your head? That’s the enemy talking. He is the chairman of the negative committee. We all know he likes to talk, never a kind word.
Guess what? Not everyone will agree with what you have to say. Not everyone will like what your heart begs you to say. Say it anyway. Those negative, crushing words from others say more about them than it does about you.
There is a risk in writing from the heart, letting your voice be heard. The risk of having your feelings hurt is great. Whoever said “sticks and stones break my bones but words will never hurt me” had never been hurt by words, or found the secret to ignoring the hurtful words.
Who cannot let words hurt, even just a little? I don’t know the secret of not letting words hurt. I won’t sugar-coat it. Some days it can be a struggle.
But, I do know this: It takes courage to speak your voice. It takes a leap of faith to write from your heart what needs to be written. It takes a will greater than the negative voices to continue on.
[Tweet “You may need to stop and lick your wounds, but then get up, put a band-aid on it, and keep walking.”]
Let your heart be known. Let your voice be heard. There is risk. How else will anyone really know you? The risk maybe great, but the reward will be greater.
So, my friend, stand up, dust off those negative words, and listen to this. No matter what the negative committee says, YOUR words matter. YOUR heart matters. YOUR voice matters. Who are they to say it doesn’t?
Let them alone with their hateful words. You have more important things to do. You are leaping.
* * * * *
LINKING UP with the wonderful Holley Gerth. Find encouraging words from wonderful ladies there today.
LINKING UP with Faith Barista (Friday) WhiteSpace. Bonnie has a great giveaway too! And, she wrote a new book. She rocks!
Have Faith Everyday 
I. LOVE. THIS. And, desperately needed it this morning. Dropped by from Coffee for Your Heart and you were the post before me – do you think God had anything to do with that??? Bless you, sister.
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Susan, don’t you just love it when He does that? The funny thing is, I hopped around Holley’s link up and this was a familiar theme throughout many of the blogs I visited. I think we so desperately need to hear it! Thanks for stopping by.
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Visiting you from Holly today! I agree with you so much – this is the thing I think all of us need to remember this sometimes! We have to speak up – in round about way this is what I shared today too (www.setapartwarrior.blogspot.com) may you be super blessed! Aliyah
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Aliyah, great minds think alike! You speak to the soul.
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hi, found you in the link up from Holly – love the “poster” – reminds me of my friend, Kathy Vick, who talks about the “bad girlfriend in our heads” – she does need to keep a lid on it…(:
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“Bad girlfriend in our head”…I like that!
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It is so much easier to say nothing, but the cost is too great for that. If people don’t agree with me, well, I am starting to learn that’s OK. 😉
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Being a people pleaser has been hard for me. I don’t want to get into conflict. But that really isn’t being real. So I am learning too. Sometimes it’s the hard way, but that’s okay too. Thanks Sarah!
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