Desiring Validation
I have been searching for validation. Have you ever been like me?
Unless you live in a cave, you have been exactly like me. A year ago, I sensed that God wanted me to start writing. Being a writer was something I thought I would do when I was old and wise. (Disclaimer – I don’t feel old and wise now. Hopefully you aren't too disappointed.)
So, I faithfully wrote a book over the past nine months. Honestly, it's a hot mess of a Word document right now. I need an angel to come edit it, but even more so, I need the guts to let people read it. Part of me wants God to say, "Hey! Thanks for writing that book. You can be done now. No one needs to read it."
Do you know why I feel this way? I feel this way because I feel like I need to be validated by people in my calling to write.
Searching for Validation
I have spent so much time over the past several months believing that the following things would validate me:
Someone telling me I AM a writer.
Someone telling me that my writing is good.
Someone telling me that my story will point people to Jesus.
Someone telling me I have what it takes to see this through.
If I have learned anything in my 32 years on this earth, it's that none of these things are going to happen. Validation will never come from another human being, and it shouldn't.
As I sat across the table from my new friend a few weeks ago eating a cookie and drinking lukewarm coffee after a pumpkin carving session with my children, it finally dawned on me that I'm looking for validation in all the wrong places. Deep down I knew that I was, but it's so easy to get lost in the search for earthly validation.
After that night with my friend, I began to truly believe that God had already validated my call to write. It seems silly to me now that it took me so long to become confident in His validation. Especially when it was the only thing that came to my mind for an entire year when I asked God, "What's next?"
Finding Validation
One of my favorite verses is Jeremiah 29:11, "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future'."
Verse 11 is so good. The next two verses are crucial to the context though.
Jeremiah 29:12-13 says, "THEN you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
I've always known that God had a plan for my life. My dad had written Jeremiah 29:11 in every holiday/birthday card he gave to me growing up. I love that verse, and I am learning to realize the importance of the words that follow. Our human brains think that God has a plan for us and that's the end. Guess what? It's not.
Validation comes when I go to Jesus and earnestly seek Him to fulfill His plan for my life.
His plan has unfolded slowly in my life. Honestly, it's still unfolding. It started with a book, but it goes deeper and further than me putting words onto pages. I'm excited and slightly terrified of how God will use it, but I'm also ready for anything. He has led me to write a book, build a website, and start blogging. His validation and faithfulness is everywhere in this.
I am learning to walk in the truth that God validates my calling. My calling will never, and should never, be validated through another human being. I truly hope that you know the same goes for you.
God shows His validation in so many ways. We simply need to look for it, because in my case, it's never been what I thought it would be. It may be exactly like that for you too.
So, I guess it's time to own up to it. I am a writer.
What type of validation are you looking for today?
