W
hen are you going to arrive?
So you have arrived! You've worked hard! You have sacrificed a lot to get here! The top of the world, WOW! How do you feel? Elated? Exuberant? Well don't hold your breath; it does not last for long. I don't want to burst your bubble, but in this life there is no top; no lasting arrival. Everything has its moment. Now, this is not supposed to be a downer message; actually, it is an upper! Think with me for a moment. My wife and I just returned from a great trip to the Vatican; it was amazing and full of meaningful messages about faith and hope being applied in our lives. We even encountered Pope Francis. He is a spirit of hope in a world of challenge, but besides the encounter with the Pope, in all honesty, the greatest part of the trip was in the preparation. A fulfilled life is not in the destination; it is in the journey! This concept was also posed by Ralph Waldo Emerson. Now I'm not calling him a role model of life, but he was right about one thing, "There is more to be gained in the preparation than ever is accomplished in the arrival." It is in the journey that we are stretched. It is in the journey that we fall down and have to get up. It is here that we gain the most insight, the most transformation and self-discovery. The Divine Intent for your life is in the daily living of that life: the journey.
So how can we take advantage of the life journey so that we actually discover our real self? How do we discover what we are supposed to be and what we are meant to do with all we have been given?
First, live in the moment! If gaining the most from the journey demands that we engage what we encounter each day, then we better work on being in the here and now. Regretting the past or fearing the future will result in missing great opportunities that were meant to benefit your life. I'm not talking about stopping to hear the birds and smell the flowers; I'm talking about embracing the people and situations that come your way. Opportunities come for a reason. The reason is bigger than you and I will ever be able to see in our human condition. Some of the situations are corrective in nature and some are meant to be encouraging. Some things happen because we are off the path and our course needs an adjustment. Other situations are encouraging, offering the energy of hope to keep us going in spite of barriers. Second; ask better questions. The curious mind armed with great questions will draw more out of life than those that are not curious. Don't waste your time asking why things went right or wrong, rather ask what you should learn from what went right or wrong. Third; connect things together to discover the pattern in your life. Each life has a pattern of people, things and situations. Reflect on the past thirty days and identify these three things: people or situations, how they were connected and what that meant to you.
Our lives are made of moments that we effectively connect to discover purpose, meaning, joy and fulfillment. Get in the moment to discover yours!
