Life is a Tug of War


“I couldn’t sit around and wait, I had to have it happen.” — Drake

What did you learn today?
What did you learn yesterday?

What did you study last week?

What can you do with what you learned today?

What about what you studied last week?

Maybe today you learned that the Miami Heat eliminated the Milwaukee Bucks from the NBA Playoffs. What could you use that for? Social conversations? Maybe.

But what value is there at a deeper level? There might not be much of a true value for you. Is it worth studying in that sense? Maybe.

That’s tough to say one way or another because we all have different goals.

If your primary goal or motive at this stage in your life is to become an NBA staff member — then yes, you probably could greatly benefit from closely following the NBA Playoffs.

But if not? What’s the value?

Do you get joy from watching basketball? Maybe. Is that worth watching every game then? Maybe. But probably not. Those games are long and there are so many different things that you could be doing with that time.

Time is limited.

Almost everything else is unlimited. But this mortal life on earth is temporary — time is limited.


Time runs out

What do you want to do before your time runs out?

Maybe you want to write a book, that would be cool.
Maybe you want to skydive in California, that would be cool.
Maybe you want to have 5 children, that would be cool.
Maybe you want to be worth $10 million, that would be cool.

Whatever you want to do, I always strive to confirm with God that the vision I’m forming for my life is consistent with the purpose that He has created me for.

I know that each person on earth has a unique divine purpose for their life. Some people discover and live out their purpose but many don’t.

If it’s heavy on your heart to contribute to the solutions that are being created for the impending water shortages throughout the world, then act.

If you can’t stop thinking about how impactful the Salvation Army was for you when you were younger and didn’t have a place to stay, then get involved.

If you continue to be reminded of the great nonprofits in your local area that are feeding thousands every week, check them out.


Life is a tug of war.

We are going to be pushed and pulled… that’s life.

But, we should push ourselves in the direction that we desire to go.

It is far too easy to float. It is FAR too easy to coast.

“People don’t get kept up at night by their dreams, they fall asleep and dream about them.” — Harrison Wendland

We all have dreams — or at least we did once.

And those dreams never stop…

Have you ever met a TRUE dreamer who’s lived an incredible life? The crazy thing is that even though they’ve done some incredible incredible things, they still want MORE.

They’ve already done so much but they are STILL pushing forward. They are NOT coasting.

What would that feel like? I think that exhilarating would be a great word to use that encompasses and fully describes a life where dreams are relentlessly and continuously pursued.

“I couldn’t sit around and wait, I had to have it happen.” — Drake

Stagnancy Sucks You In

YUCK.

What would it feel like to purchase a Lamborghini but…

For the first week after owning it, it just sits in the driveway

For the first month after owning it, it just sits in the driveway

For the first year after owning it, it just sits in the driveway

That sounds horrible.

Yet… numerous people do that with their potential day after day and year after year.

People say they’ve gotten to a point where they “don’t desire to get better.” I don’t buy it.

Frankly, that sounds incredibly ridiculous.

You don’t desire to get better? That means you’re getting worse.

Life is a tug of war.

Think about the person who pushes and pushes and grinds it out in the gym to lose 100 pounds in 2 years. They reach their goal and say, “ok, I don’t desire to get better. I’m going to eat whatever I want and stop working out so much.”

Well, what’s going to happen?

They’ll probably revert back to the person that they were 2 years earlier.

That is NOT stagnancy.

Stagnancy is one of the biggest frauds in life. People think that it exists.

It’s the person who’s been in the same role at an organization for 20 years and thinks that they’re in the same spot… no they’re not. They were there 20 years ago but so much has CHANGED. And if they haven’t?? They’ve decreased.

Everyone has unique goals, I mentioned that before and I will highlight it again.

But is it really anybody’s goal to be worse off next year than they were this year? I don’t think so.


This sums up the whole point of this piece perfectly:

“To be successful at the highest levels, you have to do stuff you don’t like. It’s part of the formula. We’re moving forward or we’re moving backwards, and if you’re not uncomfortable, you’re moving backwards.” — James Lawrence

Join my weekly newsletter to see all of my writing here.


Read this article on Medium.com

Leave a comment

Please note, comments must be approved before they are published