Day 8...Know Your Makeup

And I'm not talking Mary Kay or Cover Girl!

Last week I faced some exhausting moments. You probably did, too. I'm finding out that being 35 is a little different than being 25...go figure.  One of the benefits of growing older is the opportunity to learn from our mistakes and to analyze our own personality and temperament to maximize our best possible actions and reactions.  To become someone whom God can trust to exert self-control and represent Him well, regardless of how we feel.

I've never wished that I had been a man instead of a woman, but I do envy the ability of a man to compartmentalize and to seemingly disengage their emotions in order to get a job done.  That's a pretty sweet little thing they have going for them!

Since, as a woman, I'm made up completely different than that, I'm much more prone to a head explosion.  The whole time I'm engaged in a task, my mind has the power to move faster than an Olympic runner and cover everything that has happened, hasn't happened, might happen, might not happen, will happen, will not happen...you get the picture. 

One of the lessons I have learned is that when I'm tired, overwhelmed, or over-committed, things appear to be about a thousand times worse than they really are.  I doubt my ability to follow through on commitments, I am preoccupied, I become disorganized, and sometimes I become paralyzed with anxiety.   I also become self-reliant, rather than being constant in prayer and asking my Heavenly Father to walk the journey with me. 

What happens when all of those crazy emotions/feelings take control?  The weaknesses in my personality have the opportunity to fester and grow.  They hijack who I have become, and make me susceptible to attitudes and actions that take me to places I don't want to go, emotionally and spiritually.

One of the reasons that I love the study of the personalities is that it opens up a whole realm of understanding about the uniqueness of the individual, as well as the creative genius of our amazing God.  To observe a woman become validated in who she is...what an exciting moment in time! And then to watch her take that information, along with all of the honesty and courage she can muster, and use it to benefit all of her relationships, her place in the home, her obligations at church, and wherever else she finds herself.  It's beautiful.

Knowing my makeup makes it easier for me to make decisions, love others, accept life's challenges, and have a heart of gratitude. 

Action Step: A woman who knows her makeup is one who accepts herself as God created her (not living with the 'I wish' mentality), and daily focuses on using her unique set of emotions and skills to bring out good things in herself and everyone around her.  Getting to that point requires
an acknowledgement of what is, as well as what has been (the good, the bad, and the ugly), and a heartfelt thankfulness to God for allowing our experiences to bring us to where we are today.

“Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

—Melody Beattie