Here is an Advent devotion for ya. STOP. Tell the critic, “Bull#@*$!”

I remember a certain trip to the dentist when I was in my 20’s. I went on the offensive. “What type of toothpaste do you recommend and should I use a WaterPik? ” I asked.  I was stalling for time. You see, I did not want to hear the dentist moralize about how long I had waited between checkups. (I do go twice a year now.)

I think we all do this. Not at the dentist but to ourselves.

I recently read that most of us have a chorus going on inside our heads telling us how we don’t cut it, how we don’t measure up, how we screw up. As a result, I think most of us get blisteringly busy in order to stall and not hear the critic.

Here is an Advent devotion for ya. STOP. Tell the critic, “Bull#@*$!” Tell the critic that you are not the sum total of all the mistakes you ever made. Tell the critic that you are love, not for what you do but for who (and whose) you are. Call the critic’s bluff.

And listen to your Maker who calls you “child” and thought that you were just what the world needed. If you need to, confess your mistakes to a confidant. They will be of no use to your critic any more.

Don’t stall by staying busy. There is too much life to live and you wouldn’t want to miss it.