Jump: How to Live When You’re Caught Between What Is & What You Dream to Be

There is a line so fine between the belief in what you secretly hope for and resigning to what is that it is nearly undetectable.

Most of us brush past it in our thoughts because if we stopped to give it credence it might rile up life as we know it.

Dreams can feel easier with a “someday” vocabulary.  It still speaks of possibility without requiring anything of us now.  We don’t have to do the work.  We don’t have to feel the feelings.  We don’t have to risk.

And yet, if most of us are honest, some of our biggest heart issues find home in that tiny space.

I can dwell in this shell of my body or I can labor my way to the healthier version of me.

I can resist failure with my ambition or I can throw it all out there knowing there is possibility for success.

I can keep going through the motions or I can awaken what makes me tick.

Significant meaning is brushed aside or wrestled with depending on how gutsy we are on a given day.

Skydiving

I'm heading to the gym soon and my mind has sailed back to a different day I was walking the treadmill over a decade ago. A 90th birthday wish to parachute from the skies, news stations zeroed in on George H. W. Bush’s triumphant jump, and it was on nearly every gym television.

It struck and stuck with me.

It was a dream that from the outside appeared a bit absurd.  Why jump out of a plane at 90?  Why jump out of a plane at all?  His legs did not have full function.  He'd recently been hospitalized, reporters highlighted, for lung issues.  And, he had a form of Parkinson’s Disease.

All odds appeared stacked against him and, yet, that’s the thing about odds.  You don’t know where you will land until you take the jump.

Risk taking isn’t attractive on the outset.  It’s why we often resign to what is rather than plunging into what could be.  But when the “somedays” run out we discover a life lived in safety is hollow and dreams never chanced ultimately show distrust in the Giver of it all.

Because all passions, however small or large they may seem, ultimately come from a God who created us with gifts that motivate and energize, that give the world brighter color and life grander perspective.  This God offers us more than the rising of the sun and coffee to face the day (although that is a wonderful bonus not to be underestimated).  Yes, this God offers constant encouragement saying, “This is the way, walk in it” (Isaiah 30:21)

Will you trust Him?

Will you jump?

After all, life isn’t about getting through the time we have but making a difference with each moment we get.

xx Melissa

Follow Me on Facebook

Have My Blogs Delivered to Your Inbox (via the Main Page)

Seasonal Activities You May Enjoy:

Exploration Station (You can do this in a congregation or as a family activity)

Popsicle Praise

Painting Birdhouses