Over the past weekend, I was watching a television show where a young couple had decided to buy a property that would be considered a “fixer upper”. During the show, there were unforeseen repairs that needed to be made, the reconstruction was overwhelming for the new homeowners, and you could see the fear and frustration in the couple as the design team proceeded with remodeling the home. There was one scene where there was nothing but dirt in the floor because there was no foundation underneath the cement that had been laid previously, and all the young lady could see was the mess. She was so fixated on the debris and the repairs, that she could not see the potential of the final outcome. Needless to say, when the process was complete, the home was beautiful. The couple was happy, and while they did not like the challenges they faced during the process, they felt the final outcome was worth the investment.
"..don't listen to the defeatists. Instead, accept the encouragement of the hopeful, the optimistic, and the people who dream." - Helen Mayhew
However, that’s human nature. We’ve all been in similar situations; not feeling a sense of control, feeling overwhelmed, loss of hope when things don’t seem to be going in our favor, focusing on the now vs. the outcome. We can’t see past the “now”. We can’t see that with patience and time things will be better because we’re so focused on everything that’s “wrong” in the present. For example, you’ve experienced a bad break up, and all you can see is your heartache. A year later, you’re thanking God that the relationship is over and trying to figure out why it lasted so long in the first place. Another example: you lose your job, struggling in your finances; however, in the job you loss, you didn’t feel free, you weren’t living on purpose, you hated it; and during your time at home you decide to start your own business and months later you couldn’t be happier. This is usually where that saying “hindsight is 20/20” comes into play.
Hebrews 11:1 (KJV) “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
Life is a journey, and we must remember the importance of process. Just because things don’t seem to be going in your favor, or because you can’t see the end does not mean it’s not going to occur. You must not give up hope when there is a delay in the process, or even if you feel as though you’ve failed at having what you desire. In my opinion, there is no failure, only lessons. Either the plan to achieve the goal needs to be changed, or a new plan must be put into place. However, don’t let fear of the unknown deceive you into thinking your desires aren’t possible. Most people believe some things are impossible until someone comes along and shows them different. Can you imagine the look on people’s faces when they said man would walk on the moon? Don’t give up when the way looks dark, keep moving, keep pushing forward, keep dreaming.
