A few weeks ago, I was on a walk in Arizona. If you know me well, you know I love Arizona. Like, love love it. Almost obsessively. 

To me, it’s a magical, spiritual place. The crunching of gravel crunching beneath my feet, the squinting through bright afternoon light, the lazy swaying of palm trees. No hurries, no worries. A slow, beautiful pace of life. 

I love the sunshine, I love the year-round invitation to be outside, and I especially love the desert. The climate is so wildly different than anything I grew up with in Iowa or currently experience in Dallas. The mountains! The cacti! The sand! Bring. It. On. I love it, love it, love it. I come alive when my feet hit the ground in the great state of Arizona. 

As I walked on this particular day, I couldn’t help but admire the landscape on my path and try to permanently engrave its beauty in my memory. I noticed a particular patch of the desert that was overflowing with all kinds of wildlife—cacti of various shapes and sizes; palm trees everywhere; an assortment of rocks, grass, and flowers. There was a lot going on, and it was a whole lot of splendid. 

If even one of those plants or pieces of the landscaping hadn’t been there, it wouldn’t have been the same. Even though there were plenty of cacti, each one added to the overarching picture of beauty. Same with the flowers—just because there were pink flowers in one area didn’t mean the purple bunch around the corner wasn’t just as breathtaking. Each piece of that landscape was intentional, handcrafted, and purposeful. 

So it is us with us. 

I think sometimes we get tripped on the fact other people are already doing what we feel called to do. We feel like we can’t possibly step into “their territory” or work in the same space because it’s “already being done.” At times, it’s like we’re waiting for someone to give us permission to use our gifts. For someone to say, “Oh, yes, please come into this category of the market/world/internet. I now declare you allowed to do your thing!” 

And the truth is that that day may never come. 

We will probably never get a letter in the mail that makes us feel comfortable stepping out in faith. As much as we may want to hear that we have the authority or gifts or permission to step into the calling God put on our life, no other human can make us feel good about that. Only He can. He’s the one who called us and gave us our gifts, Which means He’s also given us authority.  

Growing up, I always, always, always had the desire to write and speak and encourage other women. For a long time, I was waiting for someone to say, “Oh yeah, you should totally write and speak. That’d be so amazing. Here’s how you do it.” 

While I’ve had encouraging people speak into my life and cheer on my dreams and visions along the way, I was always seeking a larger sense of approval, acceptance, and permission. I wanted the world to say that not only was I gifted for those dreams, but I should actually chase them. 

Along the way, I’ve learned that using our God-given gifts isn’t about me. It isn’t about my comfort level. It isn’t about other people’s approval. It isn’t about waiting until I feel like it’s “acceptable” to chase my dreams. 

It’s about giving God glory, being a light in this weary world, and building the Kingdom. Full stop. That’s what our gifts are about—not building ourselves a platform, not getting everybody and their mother on board, not feeling comfortable all the time. The truth is that stepping into the calling God’s put on our lives is usually scary. And honestly, it should be! It’s the God of the universe calling us to do heavenly, counter-cultural, Kingdom-building things in a world that is so quick to cancel people it doesn’t agree with. 

So know that you don’t have to wait, hold back, or make yourself smaller to use your God-given gifts. Your gifts are so needed. This world is desperate for your light and encouragement and faithfulness. You don’t need the approval of everyone on your Instagram feed to start sharing what God’s nudging you to share, to write the book, to start the small group, to do whatever beautiful thing it is that God has asked you to do. He’s placed it on your heart. He’s given you the desire and the gifts. And that is enough. Let’s trust Him and believe in the gifts He handpicked for us to carry, manage, and share, yeah?

If there’s already another cactus nearby doing its cactus thing, but you also feel like you’ve been called to do cactus things—that’s okay. You don’t need permission or approval to show up and add some beautiful cactus energy to the desert. It can only get more majestic and breathtaking. You are needed, you are valuable, and your gifts are beautiful. So let’s get to using them.