Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

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{God-sized dreams} One small thing at a time

January 15, 2013 by Kristin Leave a Comment

“God gave us the ability to take action because he wants us to freely move forward rather than him forcing our steps. … God can handle the big. When you start out, it’s okay for your part to simply be the small.”

{Holley Gerth in The “Do What You Can” Plan}

I surprise myself sometimes with how satisfied I am with my ordinary life. I stay at home {well, you know what I mean …} with two kids. My season of motherhood changed some when my daughter started kindergarten five months ago and my son started preschool at the same time, which was a year earlier than I had planned to send him. Even on the hard days when the questions are endless and I wish my 3-year-old boy noticed his dirty diapers and cared about the potty, I wouldn’t trade this life.

Yes, that surprises me sometimes. This isn’t what I planned for myself.

But it’s here, in this surprise place of motherhood that I’ve gotten to know God in a way I hadn’t experienced before, realized what I value most, built friendships that have sustained me, and learned big things happen in small moments.

And it’s here I’ve met my God-sized dreams and mission: I believe God has created and called me to communicate stories from my own life and others’ lives for families to know God as the author and creator of every detail through writing, promoting and serving. 

The asterisk that goes with my mission statement is I want to serve my family first. I want to be a wife and mother before I’m a writer, creator, and promoter.

Yet, still, while serving my family this week, I’ve still managed to hear God encourage my dreams and give me opportunities to take small steps when I wasn’t changing diapers, packing lunches, making dinner, grocery shopping, going to a doctor’s appointment, driving carpool, and running errands. It was in these ordinary moments that I was reminded dreams will get derailed if I don’t act — even in small ways — now because the time will never be perfect. I can always come up with reasons to wait. But ignoring God’s nudges is no way to spend my time.

On that note, I heard Mat Kearney’s “Never Be Ready” on the radio this week. See, I’m telling you, God is in the details: We’ve got our fee on the wire, talking ’bout flying/Maybe we’re diving in over our heads/Scared of what I’m feeling/Staring at the ceiling here tonight/Come on lay down these arms, all our best defenses/We’re taking our chances here on the run/The fear is an anchor, time is a stranger/Love isn’t borrowed, we aren’t promised tomorrow/We’ll never be ready if we keep waiting/For the perfect time to come/Won’t be steady, we’ll never be ready {From “Never Be Ready” by Mat Kearney}

Take a listen ..

The Dreams {Updated}
Last week I shared my dreams and what I was doing to work toward them. Just moments after publishing that list, I acted on a couple opportunities to tell a couple of my own stories as guest blog posts on two different websites. I haven’t heard if my words were approved, but I still felt the reassurance that God has my storytelling under control, just like he does every other details of my life. 
{The Book}
In the past week, I’ve also texted with my best friend about the rough draft of my book and emailed my with stranger critique partner, who had fabulous ideas I plan to implement. My mom also gave the concept her stamp of approval. 
{KHT Promotions}
Even though I had already created a Facebook page for my on-the-side business, I shared it with friends last week and had several “likes” and even a couple messages of encouragement. I also began working on a project that involves marketing a vacation lake rental that isn’t ours. If you’re interested in knowing more about my freelance business or supporting this dream, you can “like” KHT Promotions on Facebook.

How is God moving in your dreams? What steps are you taking to follow him?

________

Tuesdays are God-sized Dream days around here and I’m linking this post along with many, many other dreamers on Holley Gerth’s blog. You’ll find encouragement, truth and community there. Want more? Subscribe to get “Insights” in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.
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Filed Under: God-sized dreams, life, motherhood, music, writing

Comments

  1. Alyssa says

    January 15, 2013 at 4:09 pm

    I wish alot that I could be MORE content.

    Reply
  2. Kristin says

    January 15, 2013 at 6:26 pm

    It's been a long time coming to contentment. I still have stressful, hard days, but I don't want to be anywhere else and I don't find myself wishing I was doing something different than mothering. I think having some non-mothering projects helps keep me sane!

    Reply
  3. Holley Gerth says

    January 16, 2013 at 4:02 pm

    Kristin, you are living your God-sized dream in your everyday life and that's beautiful and extraordinary. I love it. If there was an applause button on here, I'd sure push it. 🙂

    Reply
  4. Kristin says

    January 16, 2013 at 4:47 pm

    Thank you, Holley, for this specific encouragement and the way you're living you God-sized dreams in a way that affects so many women and their families, including me.

    Reply

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About Me

Telling stories is my therapy and I love sharing them with friends on my porch.

The main characters in my stories are my entrepreneur husband, our high school girl who never forgets, our middle school boy who has no fear, and our joy-filled first-grade girl. As we live out our stories, we seek God as the author of them all.

Learn more about my story here.

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I sat on my porch beneath a blanket and finished t I sat on my porch beneath a blanket and finished this book today. Yes, I’m fully invested in this Cuba saga involving the Perez family. “The Last Train to Key West” by @chanelcleeton is the third in the series. I have the fourth on hold at the library for pickup on Monday. 

I wasn’t sure I was going to love this one as much as I did Cleeton’s first two, but it was a slow-building story that turned stormy. I loved how the three women were in Key West for their own reasons, developed meaningful relationships as they navigated their lives, and managed to survive the storms of their lives and an actual hurricane. 

The historical fiction story offers hope:

“It’s strange how your life can change so quickly, how one moment you can barely eke by, desperation filling your days, and suddenly, out of the unimaginably horrific, a glimmer of something beautiful can appear like a bud pushing through the hard-formed earth. There’s so much broken around us; maybe all we can do is try to fix each other, do what we can to preserve these precious moments in a world where there is so much sadness and loss. … Maybe some would say my dreams are too small. Perhaps they would dream of railroads that go over the sea, great, wonderful things. Maybe others want riches and jewels, a chance to travel the globe. For me, this is enough: A corner of paradise in this wretched world that I am able to call my own.” — Helen in “The Last Train to Key West” by Chanel Cleeton

#KHTreads #bookstagram #booklover #librarybooks #historicalfiction #weekending #favoritethings #choosingJOY #bookquotes #bookreview
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#reallife #basketballseason #wifelife #choosingJOY
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For quite a while now, I feel like I’ve been living a day at a time. I used to be able to see my life in larger chunks of time and anticipate and prepare accordingly. Now, I slap things on the calendar and then deal with them as they come. Navigating life with two teenagers and a first-grader is the best and hardest thing I’ve ever done.

Honestly, this moment-to-moment living has been good for me and helped me rely on the God who created the stars and rivers that still exist in our world. Focusing on where I am helps me take slower steps, trust God to provide, and remember I’m not in control. I’ve felt an internal shift with my relationships — with my husband, kids, and friends. I’ve felt behind on laundry and dishes and piles of papers. But I’ve also felt a refreshed nearness to God. 

I’m going to rest here while believing God created life and light when there was only darkness and continues to order my days. 

#livingfaithfully #choosingJOY #momlife #faithlife #preceptstudy #genesisstudy #genesis #beginnings #reallife #PorchStories
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