Every January I prayerfully contemplate my writing goals for
the new year. For book proposals, I first prayerfully create a one sheet synopsis of the theme of the book God is
laying on my heart, followed by a rough outline, and culminating with an
in-depth proposal, all in hopes of landing a book contract.
Some people set extraordinary goals and accomplish them. This
week, like many in the United States, I witnessed two amazing achievements: The first was the Ohio State Buckeyes winning
the national college football championship. They were never expected to be
number one. The OSU football team was considered the underdogs all through the
season, right up until the very end; yet, they miraculously ended up being the
champs.
The other extraordinary achievement was done at Yosemite’s
El Capitan. It played host to two very dedicated men for 17 days, as they
bloodied their fingertips and inched their way up the massive rock, scaling all
3,000 feet of it to the very top. Several years of painstaking preparation
culminated in this amazing triumph.
But during the arduous months (and years) of those
dedicated football players and rock climbers practicing and planning their
strategies, there were no cheerleaders along the way picking them up. Time after time they were exhausted and longed
to quit. No one took over their daily hours of practices for them –
they, alone, had to stick with it and force themselves to persevere when they
desperately wanted time off. Those “behind the scenes” moments full of physical
pain and setbacks, where they pushed themselves beyond what they thought they
were capable of, was what eventually enabled them to be successful and reach
their goal.
After witnessing both those amazing sets of achievements in
one week, I was even more motivated to stick to my own personal goals. Their
dedication reminded me that working toward a goal and finally achieving it not
only blesses us, but blesses and encourages those around us to strive to reach
their goals, too. And sometimes we forget there is a bigger picture involved. We forget that our actions can prompt others to step up to the plate. (The
opposite is true, as well. Our lack of commitment can lead others astray.) It
is important to remember that our perseverance, and taking the necessary steps
toward our dream, is what it takes to win the trophy.
I press on toward the
goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
(Philippians 3:14)
