I once read, “Success is simply a matter of luck. Ask any failure”. Indeed it sometimes makes my blood boil to hear someone say that I’m lucky. I often snap back, “Yes, and the harder I work, the luckier I get”. I could add, and the smarter I work, and the more I plan, and the more risk that I take, and the more I persevere, and the more I sacrifice, and blah, blah, blah . . .
Bah!
I was talking to a friend of mine about writing her book. She seemed to struggle with even finding a starting place much less writing the darn thing. She whined and whined about the difficulty of it.
Hmmm . . . I’ve found that most worthwhile things in life seem difficult before they become easy.
I shared with her that when I wrote my book, that I spent a considerable amount of time thinking about it before I ever wrote the first word. In fact the book that I’m currently writing has already been completed in my mind and now all I’m doing is reducing it to paper.
I looked at her and told her that she needed to think it through and take the advice of the French philosopher Voltaire who once said, “No problem can stand the assault of sustained thinking”.
Ouch! It was as though I’d slapped her face. Imagine suggesting that someone in our busy – busy – busy – fast paced society – who is gregarious and loves to talk non-stop, should go to some tranquil location somewhere and sit quietly and reflect on her problem and use her mind to “think” it through and find a solution.
She looked at me with one of those looks, so I sighed and sat down with her for a couple of hours, and just crafted an outline for her myself. (Better that than hearing more whining . . . .)
I don’t get it. To me dreams are beautiful and they stir my blood. I love to spend time dreaming and achieving my dreams is electrifying . . . and . . . and . . . well, let’s just say it’s the bomb. I love to go off in my pickup truck somewhere deep back in the woods and sit there and just dream. It’s not torture to be all alone dreaming; it’s fun!
Once I have a plan I want to make it into reality. I’m the kind of person that doesn’t want to patiently wait for my proverbial “ship to come in”; I impatiently want to swim out there to meet the darn thing.
Failure doesn’t enter my mind. I’m confident because I’ve thought the project through and through and considered every angle three times, and thus I expect to win in advance and make my dreams self-fulfilling prophecies.
It gives me great pleasure in doing what other people say I cannot do . . .
Ughhh . . . but I just remembered that I don’t always achieve my dreams as planned and hoped.
Hmmm . . . So am I a failure because I didn’t achieve my dream this go around?
I don’t think so. Even a great attempt that ends in failure is a glorious success and provides an opportunity to begin again, (only more intelligently this time).
There is an old adage that states, “Success is a journey not a destination”. Life is a journey. Look for the beauty in it and enjoy the warm sun breaking dawn and realize that even though it will go down and disappear a new dawn is right around the corner. The sun is on a journey that never ends and so are we my friends.
Take heart. God did not create us to come to an abrupt end. We are immortal and will live forever in heaven with our Savior . . . That is our success . . . Though we may suffer on our journey, like the dawning sun we will reemerge stronger . . .
1 Corinthians 3:15
If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.