No Shortcuts

There are two variations on the most popular question asked on road trips. At some point in the journey you can expect to hear, "Are we there yet?" and/or "How much longer?" I recognize part of this is an excitement about arriving at our destination, but there is also an element of bored impatience behind these questions. Instead of enjoying the act of traveling we become consumed with the end of the trip.

I don't suppose this attitude is any different for the rest of our life's journey either. We are zoned in on arriving at big milestones and forget to enjoy what happens along the way. Sometimes we are rushing towards these positive moments (graduation, wedding, birth, promotions) and neglect the joy of the process of getting there. Even when we deal with painful situations we eagerly anticipate the solution and want things to be resolved quickly. While our desire to be relieved of pain is understandable, this ignores what we can learn by persevering through the process of healing.

While all of life may not seem joyful, there is much to be learned in the process of living. When we rush to get to celebrations or strain ahead to move past pain we are neglecting some of the sweetest and most memorable parts of life. No matter what our intent is we can't shortcut the process of growth. We are all required to travel the full path of life and sometimes it takes longer than we think it should. Take pleasure in the entire journey because this moment has something unique to offer.

Better Get Ready

The more you sweat in practice, the less you bleed in battle.

I came across this quote today while doing research for an upcoming message at the end of our "Warrior" series here at Northridge. While it is certainly applicable for people engaging in physical combat, I believe there are many levels to its meaning. It describes the level of preparation necessary for us to succeed in all areas of life. This quote also gives credence to the difficulty of the paths that lie in front of us. If we do not push ourselves to the limits (and beyond) of our capabilities, we will not be able to endure when the real moment of trial comes upon us. 

From experience, I can attest to the fact that this positive return is very rarely found without some personal investment. Most people who are recognized as "overnight success stories" have actually been working for years to be prepared for this moment of opportunity. If we want to be people who engage in life and find victory, we've got to work hard in the stages leading up to battle or we won't be tested enough to endure. 

Warrior Mentality

We kicked off our 3rd annual "Man Month" with guest speaker David Rocker joining us once again. David is a passionate Christian man who inspires others through his preaching, but even more so through his lifestyle. We started a series entitled, "Warrior: Learning to Fight For What Matters" with his message from Joshua today. David shared many great things (the entire message can be found on our website); here are a few highlights from this morning.

• You can't change your past: don't let it dictate your future. 
• Don't give your past more authority than it deserves.
• If you're going through something tough at least you're moving. Keep going and don't give up. 
• We (men) are wired for boldness and aggression and need to use it in the right way for the Kingdom. 
• What is God declaring to be yours? You won't get it unless you're willing to fight for it!
• Sometimes it only takes a couple of men to stand for what is right and make a difference. 
• Joshua was a general and a servant. He knew how to have authority and be under authority. 
• To be an effective warrior we need to be secure in who we are. 
• Warriors see the solution at the end not just the problem at the beginning. 
• You are too close to your breakthrough to quit!
• At some point the end will come. God has promised a due season.
• How can we be successful if we don't study our playbook? Don't assume your talent will be enough to bring success. 
• Stop talking about it and start being about it.

Obstacle Course

No journey in life will be entirely free of obstacles. Regardless of how strong our resolve might be, there will be moments of difficulty to challenge our progress. In the face of these trials we are essentially left with two options: find a way to overcome the challenge in front of us or give up.

Why do we choose to conquer or run away? Is this something that is too difficult or do we just not want to do the hard work of figuring it out? Struggling through the process of finding a solution brings a satisfaction avoidance cannot bring. We'll never see a new pathway without persevering.

Keep Driving

We passed a road sign on our sight-seeing with our mission team today that said, "Rough Road for Next 6 miles." I appreciated the caution and shared it with our team, but also thought to myself, "This would be helpful in other areas of my life too." How much easier would it be to deal with difficulties if we always knew when they were coming and how long they would last? If we could see a sign that let us know exactly when we were about to hit a rough patch we might be able to endure it better. 

Since we don't always have the power of predictability we will just have to persevere when uneven patches come. The road we are traveling leads through this tough section and we'll survive it if we just keep moving until we reach the other side.  

Too Idealistic?

I don't know many people who think that setting goals is a bad idea. Having something to aim at hopefully inspires us to become better people. The truth, however, is that we won't always reach what we are striving for. Sometimes we will fall short of our desired objective and will need to reevaluate our goals. 

When we discover that something is idealistic but not realistic, what do we do? 

• Give up.
• Change our ideals. 
• Figure out a way to get closer to our ideal even if it's not 100% attainable. 
• Diminish our values so that we can say it worked. 
• Make adjustments while continuing to strive forward. 

The correct answer might seem obvious, but it really depends on our level of maturity, our willingness to persevere, and our committed passion to the goal. 

God on My Side

The pace of life recently seems frantic. There are difficulties to overcome, crises to manage, futures to plan for, and balance to find. It is not always easy to make the right choice and to persevere through these stormy seasons. The good news is that I have confidence in the fact that God is on my side. I am blessed with a heavenly Father who is working actively for me and not against me. How different would it be if this were not true? 

Where would we be if God wasn't working actively to protect His children? What would we look like if God wasn't right next to us trying to reach us? What would our lives be like if God wasn't healing & raising us up?

If it had not been for The Lord on my side, tell me, where would I be? O, where would I be?

Waves Crashing

Some days you feel like you are trying to run towards the shore & big waves keep crashing around you halting your forward progress. Nothing seems to come particularly easy and yet you find ways to push through. The entire day can be filled with a sense of battling through things. It's a struggle to:

• pray
• stay focused
• be compassionate
• see the whole picture
• be understood
• keep your energy up
• get it all done
• maintain momentum
• write the words

The beautiful part of this relationship with God is that He knows these days are coming and is ready to give us a fresh start tomorrow. He specializes in new beginnings on a daily basis.