{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"4214 Put the Mask Down","description":"Pretending takes so much more energy than people realize. It\u2019s not just one lie \u2014 it\u2019s a thousand tiny adjustments every single day. You\u2019ve been carrying it for a while now, haven\u2019t you? That careful smile. That practiced answer \u2014 I\u2019m good, I\u2019m fine, everything\u2019s great. And maybe you\u2019ve gotten so good at wearing it that even you\u2019ve started to believe it. But it\u2019s time to put the mask down because you\u2019re finally ready to be whole. Otherwise, you find youself adjusting your voice and your posture. You rearrange your face before you walk into the room. You swallow the hard thing and smile over the top of it, and then you wonder why you\u2019re so tired by noon. That is the weight of carrying something you were never meant to hold. Desire to be supported and encouraged by other like-minded women? Join us at the Kairos FREE Online Community. https:\/\/createyournow.com #Inspiration #CreateYourNow #DailyMotivation And here\u2019s something you must remember about the mask: it doesn\u2019t just hide your pain from other people. It hides you from God\u2019s work. Because it's harder to heal what we refuse to uncover. God is not going to force His way past the walls we build with our bright smiles and our \u201cI\u2019ve got this\u201d speeches. He waits. He\u2019s patient like that. But He\u2019s also persistent \u2014 and every time that mask slips, even just a little, grace is already rushing in. Paul understood this. He had been given a thorn \u2014 something painful, something he begged God to take away. Three times he asked. And instead of removing the struggle, God whispered something that changed everything: My grace is enough for you. My power shows up best when you stop pretending you\u2019ve got it all together. (2 Corinthians 12:9, NIV.) God is telling you to stop performing strength, and let Him be strong through you. The very thing you\u2019re trying to hide is the exact place where His power wants to be. Be present. Think about that for a moment. You\u2019ve been exhausting yourself trying to prove you\u2019re unbreakable \u2014 and all along, the broken places were the entry points for something far greater than anything you could manufacture on your own. There\u2019s a line that says, \u201cShe was powerful not because she wasn\u2019t scared, but because she went on so strongly, despite the fear.\u201d Atticus  wrote that, and it lands differently when you read it in this light. Because when you put the mask down, it doesn't mean you stop being brave. It means you redefine what brave looks like. Brave isn\u2019t the woman who never struggles. Brave is the woman who says, I\u2019m struggling \u2014 and I\u2019m still here. I\u2019m still showing up. I\u2019m still trusting God with the parts of me that don\u2019t look polished enough for public display. That\u2019s real strength. Not the manufactured kind that crumbles in private, but the kind that\u2019s rooted in truth \u2014 the kind that can hold weight because it\u2019s honest about what it\u2019s carrying. The K.I.S.S. ~ Put the mask down! When you set the mask on the table and let people see you, you might be surprised. The world doesn\u2019t end. The people who love you don\u2019t walk away. And the ones who do walk away? They were loving the mask, not you. But the people who stay \u2014 and more importantly, the God who has always stayed \u2014 they meet you in a place that pretending could never reach. You start breathing again, not the shallow ones, but the deep, full, honest breaths. The kind that comes when you stop holding everything in. The kind that sounds a lot like surrender \u2014 and feels a lot like freedom. You don\u2019t have to have it all figured out this week. You don\u2019t have to stand on a stage and announce your mess. But you can start small. You can answer honestly the next time someone asks how you\u2019re doing. You can sit in prayer without performing for God \u2014 just showing up, raw, real, and open-handed. You can let one tear fall without immediately wiping it away and apologizing for it. Because every time you choose truth over performance, you make room. Room for healing. Room for grace. Room to become the woman you already are underneath all the pretending. And that's the woman God has been speaking to this whole time, even when you couldn\u2019t hear Him over the noise of keeping it all together. Put the mask down, my sweet friend. You don\u2019t need it anymore. What\u2019s underneath it is more beautiful, more powerful, and more loved than anything you could ever pretend to be. "Be present. Be incredible. Be YOU!!!"   \ud83d\udd14 Desire to be supported and encouraged by other like-minded women? Join us at the Kairos FREE Online Community. https:\/\/createyournow.com TAKE A.I.M. ~ Action Ignites Motivation  - This is a complimentary (FREE) coaching call with me. You will discuss your specific situation while gaining tools and strategies to move you forward. (https:\/\/form.jotform.com\/62988215824163) \ud83d\ude4f  Create Your Now TV on Pray.com (https:\/\/pray.com) \ud83c\udfa5  Create Your Now on YouTube (https:\/\/youtube.com\/createyournow) \ud83c\udfa7 Create Your Now on Spotify, Pandora, and Audible. \ud83c\udfb6  Create Your Now on iHeart Radio (http:\/\/www.iheart.com\/show\/263-Create-Your-Now-Your-Best\/) \u270d\ufe0f  YourBestSelfie@CreateYourNow.com  Instagram @CreateYourNow @KristianneWargo Twitter @KristianneWargo @CreateYourNow Facebook www.facebook.com\/TheKISSCoach www.facebook.com\/CreateYourNow   Cover Art by Jenny Hamson Photo by Canva.com   Music by Mandisa - Overcomer http:\/\/www.mandisaofficial.com Song ID: 68209 Song Title: Overcomer Writer(s): Ben Glover, Chris Stevens, David Garcia Copyright \u00a9 2013 Meaux Mercy (BMI) Moody Producer Music (BMI) One Songs (ASCAP) Ariose Music (ASCAP) Universal Music -  Brentwood Benson Publ. (ASCAP) D Soul Music (ASCAP) (adm. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com) All rights reserved. Used by permission. ","author_name":"Create Your Now with Kristianne Wargo","author_url":"http:\/\/createyournow.com","html":"