In Defense of the Pinterest "Super"-moms

It seems that one of the latest trends is to beat up what I'm going to call "Pinterest SuperMoms" -- I've heard preachers, teachers, friends, and even, strangely enough, bloggers gripe about women not feeling good enough about their motherly/wifely/crafty skills because they don't measure up to what they see on Pinterest or Facebook or on their favorite blog.  Now, let me start out by admitting that I am not by nature a crafty person. This is MY version of a Cars-themed birthday cake:

Comparing it to the original inspiration from Pinterest...

Source: bakerlady.wordpress.com via Cheryl on Pinterest

...you can see that I could easily choose to feel a bit down about my cake decorating skills. Instead I am grateful for the good idea, and happy that my son loved his cake.

Even more, I am thankful for the existence and success of Pinterest, Blogging, Facebook, and all their various cousins, because they provide a means for extraordinarily talented women to share their clever ideas, their daily triumphs, their awkward and awesome moments. 

I'm grateful for the chance to discover that my old high school friend Kelly has such a gift for cooking (and posting recipes in a beautiful and easy-to-follow format); and that another old friend, her sister Jody, has a remarkable talent for thrifting clothes into awesome outfits.

And while I've always known my best friend Molly has an eye for finding beauty in the smallest of details and not only seeing the potential in a discarded item but also bringing it to life, I wouldn't get to enjoy that gift from halfway across the country without her blog. Thanks to her etsy shop, I can also wear some of the loveliness she creates.

You know how you can really see a Bible verse for the first time after the hundredth reading? While I was pondering the Pinterest SuperMom envy, I happened across the following encounter in a group Bible study: 

Genesis 4:6–7 (NASB95)

6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?

7 “If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.”

  

If something you run across online makes your "countenance fall", I challenge you to take the path suggested to Cain, and find out why you are intimidated instead of inspired by the "perfect" Pinterest/blogging/facebooking mom. Find a way to share your talent, whatever it is, instead of allowing jealousy or bitterness to take root.