Do you trust me?

Animal Crate Benches

            Do you everget a feeling about something that you should do but in the next breath you question yourself? It happens to all of us. We have an instinct to question things to protect us from danger. Most of the time, we question ourselves; Can I do this? Will I be able to make the best product? Can I raise these kids? Should I try this new thing? What if I fail? Most of us are wired to fear taking risks.
            My family and I go to a consignment auction every year where farmers and nearby land owners drop off stuff that they want to auction off. We love going because we can find great deals on furniture, old farm goods and much more. A few years back, we found a pile of these crate looking items that were in pretty good shape. They have a wooden structure with metal mesh sides and open ends. My sister and I were instantly attracted to them and wanted them. In the next moment, my sister asked, “What can we do with them?” “I have no idea but I want them”, I replied to her. As the auctioneer came to the pile of crates, a rush of excitement went through our bodies. I love bidding on things, especially when it goes for cheap! My sister won the bid and we got about 12 crates that we had no idea what to do with. 
            As we showed our dad what we bought, he explained that these were the main part of an animal trap. I thought it was neat that we could repurpose these animal traps into something! We still weren’t sure what we were going to do with them or where we would even store them, but someone, God, gave us that instant nudge that we should get them. 
            Proverbs 3:5 says “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding”. We so easily doubt ourselves and don’t trust ourselves to do things. We lose confidence in ourselves and don’t follow our dreams and passions. The problem is, we are relying on ourselves and not God. To find our way through this world, we need to shift that confidence and trust to the Lord. If we have trust in God, he will give us the courage to take a risk.

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            A few months later after my sister and I saw the crates packed away in the barn and we had the idea to try making a bench out of one of them. By sanding them lightly, clear coating them for protection, adding feet to give them some height, the only thing left to do was make the cushion for on top. Sister had a fun turquoise color fabric left over from a previous project and so I got a piece of plywood, two inches of foam and some batting. I layered the batting over the foam and stapled the fabric on. It turned into the cutest bench ever! Our mom wanted one so we made her one that she uses as a footstool. 
            After selling the first bench, a few customers asked if we could make custom ones with certain colored fabric. It was our pleasure! We sold a handful of benches from that pile of crates that we had no idea what we were going to do with. We didn’t know, but God knew. 
            I still find myself second guessing if I should get a piece of furniture, or if we can build this business into something that will make an impact in this world. Is it worth the money and work? Will we sell anything? Will people like the same things we do? But I keep turning to God and put my trust in him instead of myself. I have faith that he will guide us as long as we have the courage to try the new things, and let go of some of the old that is holding us back. ​

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