I’ve never moved before. Until now, which was a good reason since we’re married ;) However, when living at my parents house, I never liked the idea of living in a development (since I only knew the woods and open spaces) or once thought of having a front porch at my new house. But with the perfect plan from God, I couldn’t image a more PERFECT little house to start out with that’s in a DEVELOPMENT and has a front porch. So what’s my point? This: That front porch is like no other spot in the house. It brings me peace. It’s my go-to spot with a good cup of coffee, listening to the crickets chirping and watching the neighbors stroll by. It’s where I do my soul-searching, digging deeper for a better understanding in life, and of myself.

Lately, I’ve been thinking of “keywords” (that’s what I like to call them) in my life and truly defining them or searching for more guidance through the bible. So for an example: some of those keywords could be jealousy, TRUST, forgiveness, The future, etc. (the list could go on and on)  So I’d start with the index in the back, picking out my keywords and then following up with finding the scripture relevant to that keyword.

Being in a pretty saturated (but AMAZING) industry of photographers, it’s so, SO easy to get caught up in what others are doing, how far they “succeeded” in a short amount of time, or comparing their business to mine, etc. (this list could also go on and on!!) So, naturally, I started with jealousy being my first keyword.. and wouldn’t you know.. there was the perfect verse that “hit the nail on the head. “

“It is sometimes difficult to be happy when others are doing better than we are. To compare our success with that of others is a dangerous way to judge the quality of our lives“. – Gen 31:1-2

I’m pretty sure after reading that, I sat in awe.. and most likely with my mouth hanging wide open. It continues with this, “We may be giving jealousy a foothold. We can avoid jealousy by rejoicing in others successes.” Before I could even speak, God placed another verse in front of me that directly related to my feelings, “When we we see others succeeding where we haven’t, or receiving the affirmation we crave, it’s hard to rejoice with them”. And it is, 100%. Since God always know what we need, he puts this reminder in my ball court, “Jealous anger blinds us from seeing the benefits we have and makes us dwell on what we don’t have”.

So where am I going with this? Quite honestly, I’m not sure. But I DO know that this was meant for not only me, but possibly others who are struggling in the same area of life. And maybe it’s just a daily reminder for a few things:

1.) You ARE unique. You were created for a purpose. And you are PERFECT the way he made you.

2.) Focus on ALL that God has blessed you with, instead of comparing your life or successes to one another.

3.)  Realize that you are unique and were created with your own special gifts. Where you may succeed, others may not. And Vise-versa.

4.) Overcome jealousy by rejoicing with others and their successes. . no matter how hard it may be. Read more HERE from Natalie Franke (an incredible, world-shaking photographer) about how to rise up as a COMMUNITY over competition!

and lastly..

5.) Buying a house in a development with a front porch is a great idea.

xo! – K

** Disclaimer: By no means am I a writer (clearly) but this has been on my mind for weeks and I just felt the extra push this morning to write about it. Also — If you know someone that needed to hear this,
then spread the love and pass it on! **