The United States just held elections across the nation. Although this time of transition in leadership, economic uncertainty, civil unrest, and international tensions can cause anxiety, fear, and a lack of motivation, I encourage you to push through that and always do your best given what you have.
I was inspired this week to learn of Diana Nyad. She is the first person to swim the 110 miles of ocean between Cuba and Florida without fins, a shark cage, or taking any rest on an escort craft. As you can imagine it was not easy. She faced strong currents, high winds, storms, dehydration, hypothermia, jellyfish stings and the threat of sharks. The difficulties caused her to fail four times between 1978 to 2012. But she kept trying. In 2013 at age 64 she succeeded. It took 53 hours.
Go Farthest with God
Perseverance, grit, resilience, facing the unknown are critcal life skills. Also many times the process is just as valuable as reaching an end goal. As amazing as you can be with talent and self-determination, you can go infinitely farther with God’s help. Trust him by faith. Confess any wrongdoing, ask him how to live rightly, then put all you have into doing what he shows you. William Carey, an English missionary is credited with saying, “Pray like everything depends on God, but work like he’s equipped you to make it happen.” You can do this by following Jesus. He will save, transform, and empower you to accomplish what you could never experience or achieve on your own. Jim Denison, a Christian author wrote, “All across the Gospels [in the Bible], whenever and wherever people chose to trust in Jesus and stepped into a personal relationship with him, he changed their lives. And he is still the same today as he was then.”
Conclusion
I’ll quote William Carey again, “Expect great things from God. Attempt great things for God.” I encourage you to not just stand on the shore of life, dive in. Don’t fear shark infested waters of your circumstances, trust in God’s provision and protection. Don’t grow weary. Continue to do good knowing God multiplies your efforts to accomplish great things. Don’t give up, give in to God. He will sustain you, deliver you, and transform you to become all he has designed you to be and to accomplish all the glorious plans he has for you.
Note: I have written a couple of songs about doing your best. “Peaks or Pebbles” is a secular song and “Carry on with the Call” is a Christian one.