Those who "do nothing, say nothing, be nothing" will be criticized for apathy and passivity. We all wake to the human condition and we all wake to cynicism.

Don Miller says, "No, life cannot be understood flat on a page. It has to be lived; a person has to get out of his head, has to fall in love, has to memorize poems, has to jump off bridges into rivers, has to stand in an empty desert and whisper sonnets under his breath... We get one story, you and I, and one story alone. God has established the elements, the setting and the climax and resolution. It would be a crime not to venture out, wouldn't it?" I agree so greatly.

Just noticed you slid another blog post in under the Twitter radar... :o)

As to how I've been recently, I've had a really great weekend with friends and family and am getting ready to fly back to Seattle in the morning. There was lots more I'd wanted to do, but these will have to wait for another time. My occasional weekends in Michigan are always too short! Hope you had a great week/weekend too!

Before hitting the post button on this one, I reread the following paragraphs, and I can't figure out if they're on or off topic. It's what I thought of when you asked the question, so I guess that's good enough! :o)

This pic you posted makes a great point, and I think your title is interesting too. Because I'm by nature a people pleaser, that question of “be-ing,” defining who I am, is something that I can struggle with sometimes. Maybe it's more a matter of being almost everything rather than nothing, but that's still similar in that neither are something in particular. It's not that I define myself by those around me, because I don't (or at least I try really hard not to). However, I do tend to try to adjust what parts of me I present first depending on who I'm talking with, where they are in life at the moment, and how they seem to view me. I don't think this is all bad. As a result of this though, if I can't at all pin some of these things down, I start to feel kinda like a fish out of water! That doesn't happen super-often, but when it does, it leaves me a bit kerflummoxed.

Of course another problem with wanting to please others and being creative is that you tend to base far too much of your creative direction and output on what people around you want or seem to want (and that - especially when paired with perfectionistic tendencies - can be paralyzing). My desire is instead to be driven by the unique passion and vision that God placed inside of me. In order to do that well, I need to seek His face for clear revelation. That's the subject of an already partly-written and hopefully soon-to-be-posted entry on my blog. All I'm gonna say here is that Third Day's song Revelation just plain rocks and has been constantly in my heart and head lately!

Vicky,

In regards to picture think its important listen and give constructive advice.On the other hand we will have some disagreements and persecution for our faith.

My week has seen God answer prayer major requests with pursuing full time ministry and providing for daily needs!!!

In Christ,

Nathan

interesting.....its very true, but then maybe you would be criticized for saying and doing nothing??

in regards to Jesus, i would rather live for Him and be criticized, than say nothing at all.

love lucy xx

Well, the Lord's word says that as Christians we will be persecuted and criticized... and I'd rather speak up for Him and take that as a burden of joy instead of staying silent.

I think Albert Einstein said it best:
"Great minds will always encounter opposition from mediocre minds"

Criticism comes in so many forms, both healthy and destructive. For me Im very sensitive about who it comes from. Sincere criticism is taken from close friends, but also it can be the kind that hurts the most.
When I first began following Christ, a mentor wisely said to me "If your not being criticized or persucted, your probably not doing anything at all."
What do you think about it?

Hey Vicky,
I had a great week!
I think that whatever you do there is always going to be someone who is criticizing you about it. I just think that you should be the person that you want to be and be happy!

Well put!

Putting yourself out there will indeed cause criticism.

Hi there!

Yeah good week as usual, nothing special.

Hm, interesting...
I think there's no way to escape criticism: you're lazy if you do nothing, dull when you don't say anything and there is always someone who is criticizing you, even when you feel like you're nothing. Maybe especially in that situation...