Start Where You Are

Humble Beginnings

“You have to start somewhere.”

This is something you’ll hear from business experts, artists, motivational speakers, and other successful people who’ve made a living using their God-given abilities. This statement might be considered the cousin of the dreaded saying, “Practice makes perfect.”

Can you think of anyone you want to emulate because they are currently living the life you want to be living eventually? Most likely, they’ve had to overcome some of their fears and come face-to-face with a version of themselves they didn’t want to meet.

I’m inspired by Brian Welch. He went from being a drug addicted member of the band, Korn, to a musician with a powerful Christian testimony. He decided to change his entire life for Christ and therefore, changed his family forever, too. How many lives you could change with one decision?

I’m also a fan of motivational artist, James Harris, aka Undefeated Speaker. His podcast, Ten Years War, inspired me to invest in my talents despite where I was (mentally and physically) two years ago. James can motivate his audience very well because he speaks from experience, purpose, and confidence.

Both of these individuals were not perfect when they started their journeys, but Brian and James didn’t let their past experiences define them, or block them from moving forward in what they were called to do. One day they simply began working towards their vision despite how difficult it might’ve been.

Confronting Yourself

It takes a bit of courage to look at your surroundings, to confront the ugly truths about yourself and admit you aren’t where you want to be. You might not even be close and might need some extra training, but where you are is good enough. Whether you’re still healing from a toxic relationship, an addiction, a mindset, or still trying to figure out what you’re good at, one thing I’ve come to know is that you have to be willing to meet yourself, flaws and all, in order to level up.

When I started YouTube ministry, God required me to surrender my life to Him and believe in who He made me to be. I also had to fire myself from the role people wanted me to play and change my mind on who I was. It was tough, to say the least. However, God put me in a refinement season once I took the initiative to confront my ungodliness. He could only begin to work through me with this decision to face myself. In fact, it’s truly up to you if you want to become a refined individual because God respects freewill.

It’s a painful process to confront yourself. We often come to the frustrating conclusion that where we were headed was all wrong, and where we want to go is not in alignment with God’s plan for us. Sometimes when we confront ourselves we realize who we thought we were, or thought we had to be, was a lie created from hurt and self-protection. Despite the challenge it can be to face your reflection you have to remember God is with you during this whole process. One important difference between who you believed yourself to be and who you are today is that you’re (hopefully) now making the efforts to heal and move forward with your life in the way God has called you.

Remember that our mind is a powerful tool and weapon, for us to work with, for God to use, and for the enemy to try to manipulate. It’s why we must renew our minds daily and weed out these lies about who we are. We don’t want who God called us to be to be confused with what our trauma calls us to be. We don’t want to identify with the world when we are children of God. Confronting yourself becomes easier with time, consistency, honesty, and the Holy Spirit. We may have programming to undo from our childhood, but God is with us. We might have to change lifestyles or career choices and lose a few people, but God will not forsake us. It’s important to reaffirm to yourself that you’ll be fine during this process. These uncomfortable feelings will pass as you step into alignment with God.

Become Your Own Motivational Speaker

Affirmations can make a difference when you’re finally able to take that first step. Along the path to reconnecting to my true identity I became my own inner motivational speaker. It took prayer, fasting, and studying God’s Word to begin to see the renewal of my mind. Even today, I’m still learning to re-adjust my thought patterns, so don’t let perfectionism stop you!

Here are some examples of what I’ll tell myself during stormy days and nights:

• I am not my mental health.

• I am not my physical vessel.

• I am not my financial status.

• I am not for everyone.

• I am capable of achieving my goals.

• I am a child of God.

• I am loved by my heavenly Father.

• I will use what God has given me to build the Kingdom.

Every time I wanted to quit writing or making videos, I would remind myself that God hired me to guide others to who they originally were before the world tarnished their confidence and led them away from their calling. I’ve seen many fellow humans fall into depression, addiction, and self-loathing. I’ve witnessed women and men lose their passion for creativity, leadership, love, and philanthropy and trade it for instant gratification, likes on social media, and a temporary safety net. Everyone has their own story and hardships to overcome, yet it goes to show how easy it is to get trapped in patterns of familiarity, fear, and doubt.

Every obstacle, every fight, every enemy we’ve encountered might’ve not seen fair to us at the time. Most leaders and healers have come from dysfunctional family units, been subject to bullying and trauma, and have had their fair share of mental health struggles. While some may have had support and the right financial opportunities most of us had to learn the hard way and make our own way. We’ve had to battle the external and internal worlds. We’ve had to overcome spiritual warfare, heartbreak, and feeling lost. For most of us, the battle seems to never end as we encounter new devils with each level we elevate, yet we emerge stronger after each victory because of our faith.

Trust in God, Believe in the Vision

Despite all you’ve been through, can you trust God to help you make the right decisions for your well-being? Can you trust that He has a bigger plan for you than only hardships? Have you ever thought to yourself that you are your own biggest obstacle? Are you ready to create that video, paint that scenery, start that business, be on that podcast, or write that book? What is holding you back right now? What would you do if money were not an issue?

Believe in yourself because God gave you the ability to live an abundant life with those skills you’ve been possibly afraid to share.

Perhaps you’ve already started pursuing the things God has called you to do in this lifetime. If not, I encourage you to believe you’re capable of greatness and creating positive change. What you desire can be yours when you choose to believe in the vision God gave you and use your faith to take action.

All you have to do is start where you are and work your way up from there. The best part is, there is no wrong way to start when you’re willing to commit and become a better, more resilient version of you than you were yesterday. Never forget God is with you on this earthly mission.

Copyright 2023 Angie Vargas