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Coaches
often tell their athletes, “Whether we
win or lose, let’s leave it all on the
field today!” Within the last few years,
we have come to realize exactly what
those words mean.
In 2005,
Geri and I had our Life Plans done with
incredible results: A God-sized vision
for our “second life.” But as we
have
learned over the past 5 years, walking
out your Life Plan takes full commitment
and many steps of faith. For us,
it has
entailed moving cross-country and
leaving all we’ve known for most our
lives.
So, what
does it take to walk out a God-given
destiny?
Patience.
Many
variables need to be aligned for big
moves to happen: people’s hearts,
companies, market/economic
conditions…all of which we do not
control. And while the weight – and the
wait - feels heavy at times, in
retrospect, God’s timing is always
perfect.
Courage.
Leaving the
known for the unknown is not for the
weak. There are many times when
“returning to Egypt” seems very
plausible, even sensible. You have to pray and push
through obstacles, even when you’re
exhausted.
Teamwork.
For us,
there have been many days when one of us
has needed to rescue the other.
Husbands and wives need to be on the
same page, well-practiced at compromise
and be emotionally stable so that both
are “pushing the elephant.” As the
saying goes, there is no "I" in "team.
Surrender.
Expectations get shattered while
pursuing a God-sized vision. God is
constantly working at making us “look
like the vision.” This necessitates
giving Him complete control, which is
difficult yet exhilarating and
necessary.
As we look
at our own journey, we have come to a
deeper appreciation of what it really
takes to walk out a Life Plan. It’s
scary, frustrating, challenging,
rewarding and life changing…all at
once. However, at the end of the day,
we’ve learned that a leader who has not
left it all out on the field cannot
teach others how to do the same.
Some
questions for you to consider:
*
What
are you willing to "leave it all on
the field" for?
* In
retrospect, who in your past was
with you in the foxholes of life?
How did they help you get through
it?
* Do
you have enough support and
accountability to tackle your
biggest vision?
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