We’re on the road leading a missions trip in Jamestown NY. So I’ve asked our friend Ashley to write a guest post for us.
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I can’t even tell you how many times it has happened.
My day is winding down as I enjoy a cup of green tea, and I realize… I have no clue what I did with my day. I didn’t accomplish nearly as much as I wanted to. Actually… Did I truly accomplish anything?
This isn’t how I want my life to be. I want adventure. I want to grow. I want to make an impact on the world around me. I think we all do. But the tragic reality is that very few people accomplish this. Heck, if we’re honest, most of us are doing only what we HAVE to do each day; the bare minimum. Oscar Wilde said “To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.” Why is this? With all the dreams and passions within each person, why do we let them lie stagnant?
Obviously I don’t claim to have all the answers; far from it. I think that there are many reasons for this, varied and complex. But here’s what I (and some people much smarter than me) have come up with that maybe begins to move us forward:
Doing nothing is easy. It takes far less effort to sit on the couch than to go for a run. It’s easier to mindlessly surf the internet than to read a book. It’s much harder to step out and show love to another person than it is to keep to myself. We like the path of least resistance. And that makes “Nothing” very powerful. C.S Lewis wrote a book called The Screwtape Letters in which a master demon coaches an apprentice on how to lead a man to destruction. One chapter in particular actually scared me. The advice given to the apprentice wasn’t that he edge the man towards evil things; it was that he should distract him with meaningless and vague thoughts, petty tasks, and mediocrity. “Nothing is very strong; strong enough to steal away a man’s best years not in sweet sins but in a dreary flickering of the mind over it knows not what and knows not why… that have not even lust or ambition to give them relish, but which, once chance association has started them, the creature is too weak and fuddled to shake off.” We are pulled into pastimes that have little or no value, and the weird thing is that we don’t even really LIKE them. We succumb to this hinderance because they keep us from feeling bored and asking the scary questions in life; the ones we don’t want to think about. Maybe it’s the abundance of distractions available to us; the ability to go from app to app. Or maybe we’re so afraid of anything real that we’ll hide from it however we can. Either way… This “nothingness” has a grip on humanity.
Another trap we fall into is waiting. Maybe for the next phase of life, for everything to line up just right, or for something exciting to suddenly present itself. This trap is one that I recently discovered I struggle with. My husband is currently pursuing a PhD and I am working a simple retail job to get us through this phase. See, there it is: “Get us through this phase.” Because I know that this is temporary, it’s very easy for me to just wait; wait for our life to “really” begin; wait for everything to be perfect; wait for me to feel like I’m “ready” to go after my dreams. But then if I think about it, I’m not convinced that those things ever happen. Rarely does every aspect of life line up perfectly. Most of us never feel that we’re totally qualified and prepared for the large dreams we have. Because of these mindsets, we end up waiting and waiting for something that never comes.
And even when we feel that we’d like to do something meaningful, we hit another snag: You see the many changes that need to happen in the world, or realize the amount of effort it would take to make your dream a reality, and it shows you that there’s just SO MUCH to do. It’s overwhelming. You don’t know where to start. But you know that you alone can’t end world hunger or bring about equality for women in third world countries, so you just assume that you can’t make a difference and that there must be no point in trying.
So what now? How do we overcome all the distractions, downfalls, and mental blocks so that we can gain some forward momentum? A good first step is to figure out what exactly is holding you back. Identifying this is huge; if you know your personal blockades, you can bring them down. As I said, for me it was the ambiguous waiting; simply not doing what I could to make the most of my time. Another key move is setting goals; realistic and tangible, yet challenging goals. In order to make an impact, to make the most of this life, you have to work for it; force it; maybe even fight for it. A big, exciting change rarely just falls into your lap. It requires a plan, not vague ambition. The plan should be specific. Instead of saying “I want to read more,” or “I want to get in shape,” say “I want to read 6 books of different genres,” or “I want to be able to run 2 miles, no problem.” The plan should be practical and attainable as well. I can’t end world hunger, but I can donate to and volunteer at my local soup kitchen. Being mindful of the plan is also important. When I’m online and find that what started as productivity has turned into simple browsing, I need to close my computer and go pick up my camera or cuddle my husband. In that simple move, I make more time for the things I love and that excite me, the things that invigorate and pump fullness into my life. At the end of it all, maybe I won’t have some grand, notable legacy. But dang it, I cannot waste this time that I’ve been given. In the end, I want to hold my head up high and be able to say that I gave it my all; and giving it my all means starting right now with what I have. So I challenge you to do the same: don’t wait; make things happen; focus on what matters; do what you can to improve yourself; impact the world around you by bettering the people and situations in your life. I’d be willing to bet that if you do, the changes will be far greater than you realize. At the very least, it will surely be more fun and satisfying than a life drained by distractions and nothingness. So come on…
What are you waiting for?
Ashley currently lives with her husband Nathan in Clemson, SC where she works in the administrative office of a local home improvement store. In her free time, you are mostly likely to find her reading, working on some crafty project, or exploring the beautiful lakes, forests, and mountains of that region. She also enjoys photography and adventures of all sorts.
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by Jim Baker
Love this post.Thank you.
Encouraging and butt moving post!