Lipstick and Perfume

Beware of Sabotage

Have you ever watched your dream start to come true, but felt like everything was coming apart at the seams?  Lets talk about that.

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You’re not alone.

Check out this article if you’re about to make a huge decision and need wisdom before it’s too late.

It’s so easy to imagine everyone else has their act together except for us.  We easily imagine everyone else is successful and they know what they’re doing.  Just take one look at their social media account, right?  All the pictures are perfect.  They visit the coolest places on the planet everyday.  Their businesses are successful and all of their children have straight teeth.  And when they don’t, they still have enough to buy them braces.

But things aren’t always as they appear.  In their heart of hearts behind closed doors, many people hurt.  They long for connection.  They experience guilt.  They carry heartache for years and years.  Keep this in mind the next time you see someone who looks like they have it all together.  Don’t exclude the “stars” you admire.  They may have a lot of money and notoriety but that doesn’t mean they’re no longer human.  They’ve got problems just like everyone else.

Along those same lines, you don’t have to reach the top of the mountain to see the stars.

 Do you want to know why you get to feeling as though everything is coming apart at the seams just as everything is really falling into place?  You feel the way you do, because when you succeed, people who don’t have what you have begin to take notice.  They don’t like the fact you’re getting results.  They may even try to sabotage your dream.

I call this phenomenon the Joseph Principle: Nobody knows you when you’re down and out.  But many want to pull you back down when you start to rise.  As they say, hurt people like to hurt people.  Especially those who are winning in an area they’re struggling with.  Never underestimate the power of evil.  A co-worker can do a lot of damage with a little perfume and some lipstick.

This idea can be found in the book of Genesis, beginning in chapter 37.  Joseph was favored by his father and suffered greatly at the hands of his brothers.  He was sold into slavery.  Falsely accused.  Spent time in prison for a crime he never committed.  Was separated from the father he loved for years and years.  Is that enough?

However, in the end, Joseph was able to say to the very brothers who had abandoned him. ” Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.”  Genesis 45:5

The next time you’re on the right path and everything seems like it’s falling apart at the seams, don’t give up.  

Yes, you may have to change your course or recalibrate, but keep on truckin’.  A plane on a flight from New York to Los Angeles is off course most of the time and needs minor adjustments.  Your dream and goals are no different.  Although you may not have to make an abrupt change, there are always tweaks.

Find someone who has done what you’re trying to do and learn from them.  Read their book.  Study their posts on Social Media.  You may think nobody’s ever tried to do what you are right now.  Often, that’s not true.  The bible says, “There is nothing new under the sun.”  Ecclesiastes 1:9.  Every artist who ever lived has left behind a body of work to study and learn from.  And now with social media you’re even able to see how they spend their time when they’re not working on a canvas.  Amazing!

Probably, the resistance you’re coming into contact is strong indication you are going in the right direction.  Live fish swim against the current and dead fish float downstream.

 You don’t have to try something completely new.  You just need to keep moving forward and keep the flywheel moving.  Eventually momentum will take over.  It doesn’t matter if it’s a church your trying to grow, an art business or a family.  There is always a learning curve.  The more you use the program the more familiar you’ll become with it.  And familiarity will snowball into more and more productivity.

For example, remember the first time you used your new FB page or online banking.  It took time to find your way around all the buttons.  Now you can go in and clickaway in a fraction of the time it took before.  The same is true of any endeavor in life.

The reality is if you give up now, you’ll never know what could have been.  

People are depending on you to follow through with what you started.  Not only that, do it for yourself.  The best way to silence your critics is to prove them wrong.

Go ahead.  I dare you.

What helped you to power through when it seemed like your dream was about to shrivel up and die?

 

Please note: I reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive or off-topic.

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