To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.

_{Ecclesiastes 3:1}

Do you ever notice a particular theme running through your days- something you know you need to pay attention to? I have had the words “consuming vs creating” pop up in the last few months. As a card maker, I am constantly looking at new and creative ideas. When I first started making my own greeting cards, I had no idea how many different ways one could cut paper and lay it out on a card front. I didn’t know there was a whole crafty universe of pretty cardstock, paper trimmers, scissors, and supplies. On Pinterest, I have 3,649 creative ideas saved of handmade cards alone. I have inspirational screenshots captured on my cell phone and videos on YouTube to watch later. At times, all the ideas and new products that come out every month from all the companies I love cause my brain to freeze, and due to the overwhelm, I am unable to create.

I used to write more on my blog, but looking too much at what other people are writing keeps me silent and uninspired.

Another area that has been on my radar is Bible reading. Reading Scripture daily has slipped away over time, and I haven’t been reading my Bible like I should. I have looked at multiple devotional books, wondering which one would be just right to get me back on track. There are so many! Should I read about rest? Do I need a book on motivation? I have a study guide book covering the Psalms, which is always a good place to begin again.

I watched a YouTube video recently covering the topic of “consuming vs creating” and decision overload. When I am constantly looking at other people’s ideas in cardmaking and not creating myself and playing around with different ideas, I am a consumer of ideas, not a creator of them. When I read too much what other people are writing about the Bible, the Scriptures become less personal, and I have nothing gained of my own to share. I have notes written along the margins in every Bible of mine. There are messages from my dad, my husband, speakers from various special meetings, former pastors, and preachers who have since passed away. What a history! There is so much richness there, just in the notes from God speaking during those times.

There is a season to consume ideas and gather up inspiration. Lately, I have been in a creative phase and have made well over fifty cards rather quickly. Most of them have been mailed out or sent to friends who like to use the cards in this encouragement ministry. There is a time to read devotionals and be inspired by the perspectives of different authors, and there is a time to read the Bible alone to see what God has to say directly with no filters or preconceived thoughts. I can open anywhere in the Old and New Testaments and find a notebook’s worth of moments when God was speaking. I am in the season now where I want to begin reading the Bible again to hear from God myself. Currently, I am following this plan of reading the New Testament.

Consuming ideas vs creating something touches many areas of my life – including what to cook for dinner! God has been weaving this theme throughout my days and moving me towards a bit of action.