This is a question that many ask weighing the outcomes of
each. What are the outcomes if I STAY: Safety, comfort, stability, security,
status quo, boredom, control, expectations. When I think of a trip of this
magnitude that I am about to embark on, I cannot help but think upon the COMFORT
and SAFETY I will give up. But alas, as Christians, believers in Christ, we are
not called to be safe. God himself is not safe, not tame, but He is good. I
view adventure the same way. It will be a trek into an untamed wilderness and
the safety zone behind me will linger there until I turn a corner into the
unknown street. When Simon Peter walked on water as he so famously is known, I
cannot help but focus on the other eleven disciples. Peter gets such a hard
time for being the disciple who took his eyes off of Jesus, but guess what? He
was the only man who stepped out of the comfort of the boat to follow his Lord.
The others just sat there and thought he was crazy. Some will think I am crazy
for cycling down the Pacific Coast and back up through the Sierra Nevadas
during the hottest part of the year with a deadline lingering in front of me.
But those folks are the guys and gals who will not even leave the boat. They
won’t leave the house, the town, the state…and if they do, it will be by a
motorized means. When I venture out my STABILITY will be altered, my SECURITY
tampered with, the STATUS QUO out of whack. Becoming a vagabond as one
wandering from village to city, BOREDOM will never take place. The CONTROL of
my circumstances will be out of my hands. I cannot EXPECT what will happen to
me or whom I will meet. Adventure awaits…
Should I stay or should I go?
What are the outcomes if I GO: Sacrifice, blessing, risk,
hope, adventure, fear, change, faith. Next summer I will SACRIFICE my time that
I could be spending with family and friends, watching movies, hanging out and
enjoying life at home twiddling my thumbs. That is a sacrifice I am willing to
make. If I do not sacrifice and take the plunge, I will be missing out on the
BLESSINGS of a God who has called us to sacrifice our very selves. My friends,
it is a blessing to go. It is most definitely a RISK to step out of the boat,
but oh the joys that will befall you are boundless. Risky business is always
wary when you don’t know what will happen next, but that is the joy…the joy of
not knowing. Whom do you put your trust in? If it is someone or something other
than God Almighty, then you do have something to worry about, but if He is for
you, who can be against you? Step out and have a blast. When you do step out,
you will be filled with HOPE, hope that you will return, hope that around the
next corner will be an ice cream shop and hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. As I
have mentioned and will continue to mention, there will be no lack of ADVENTURE
outside of the boat. Yes, challenges will happen, but where do we grow? Where
are we stretched the most? Inside or outside of the boat? I’ll let you answer
that one yourself. FEAR is one that gets me and I’m sure it gets you as well.
There will be many dangers along this odyssey and it will not be without fear.
But fear is actually good to have. Without fear, adventure will lose its
meaning. But with the CHANGING tides, new experiences and opportunities will
present themselves and who knows what will happen on the road to exploration.
If I set my eyes on the One who has gotten me thus far and is taking me even farther,
what do I have to worry? I put my FAITH in Him and His doings and not my own.
That is the key I suppose. I long for this trip, but as the weeks turn into
months and as the new year is right around the corner I think of all I need to
do to get ready for Perfect Circles 2014…will this trip actually happen? Am I
ready? It must happen, I’ve told so many people about it. I can’t let them down
now…nor ever. I feel like Gollum at times with a contradicting conversation
piercing my thoughts. Safety or Sacrifice? Comfort or Risk? Security or Hope?
Boredom or Adventure? Control or Change? Expectations or Faith? Stay or Go?
Should I stay or should I go?
GO!!
ReplyDelete