We are free to collaborate.

How do you relate with the women you create with? Is there a lady that you work with in the women's ministry that consistently takes your ideas as her own? Maybe you're feeling drained because you never feel heard or valued in your workplace. Maybe the way your mom entertains at the holidays steals the joy from your own celebration. Can you imagine being wild and free in the way you relate and work and collaborate with other women? Not afraid of who would get the attention, because He would ultimately be getting the Glory? Being unabashedly for the women you know, because their success makes your heart happy? Being happy to co-create because you know that they sharpen you, make your ideas better?

It's interesting. I'm an idea person, and sometimes I feel like my ideas and my words are all I have. There have been instances when my words have been co-opted and my ideas lifted. It's difficult to call the police to report a stolen idea, that ephemeral magic that sometimes even I have a hard time trapping. I start to feel miserly with my words and I tamp down on my ideas. I store them up for myself and wait until I hit publish and I can prove that I did it first, should it ever come to that. But, that leaves me stuck in my own head, missing out on creative community that pushes me to be better. Have you ever felt wild and free in working with someone else? Completely free to collaborate because you know your ideas are safe. Safe from being stomped on and overspoken, and also safe from being snatched and stamped with a name other than yours? This safety? It's borne out of love. It's born out of a knowledge that His love feeds our love and that our ideas are His anyway.

 

Female relationships can be so hard, and creating together can highlight all of those flaws. But, what if we began to work in a way that really cheered other women on? What if we were so sure in our own identity and standing with the Lord that we didn't compare our good qualities with the good qualities of others? Could you, would you love differently? Would you be compelled to work differently? That freedom can come when we start to set each other free. When we live out freedom and walk in expectation that our friends will be free, too. If I am free, maybe my wildness will look lovely and exciting to you. Maybe you'll be compelled to walk out of captivity and into the goodness and fullness of freedom. The vast creativity that can come from free women working together for the good of others and for the glory of God is something fearsome to behold.

The other day on instagram, Hayley and I got bold and shared a sneak peek of our newest collaboration. 
You can see her picture here and mine here. 
And if we're not following one another on instagram, let's correct that!