Growth

Beyond

My Twitter friend, Alece Ronzino, (who I one day hope will be my real-life friend) has started a cool idea of absconding with New Year’s Resolutions in favor of choosing One Word that will focus how you intentionally live throughout the year. The idea has caught on like wild fire and a whole community of One-Worders has started. As someone who has never been a huge fan of New Year’s resolutions, I liked the idea, and I started thinking through what my One Word would be.

It didn’t take hardly any time at all for me to know in concept what I wanted to focus on. You see, I’ve always been a person who is pretty comfortable with staying within my boundaries. I tell people I’m compliant – and it’s true – I love knowing where the lines are so I can color expertly within them. And while I think that’s a good thing, I also know that I often hide behind these tendency as an excuse not to that which scares me. I stick to the things that I know I will be successful at because I don’t want to experience the pain of failure. I stay where I’m comfortable so I won’t be vulnerable. I remain content with good at the expense for great.

And then it hit me, I don’t want to live life confined by my fears, my insecurities or my habits. I want to live beyond those trivialities in full view of the greatness of God.

Beyond my comfort zone.

Beyond what’s convenient.

Beyond what’s known.

Beyond my expectations.

Because ulimately what lies beyond is the eternal rewards of Heaven.

So that’s my word for this year. Beyond. I hope to share the journey with you as I strive to live life beyond in 2011.

In Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Reepicheep says “There is no honor in turning away from adventure.” Later he states “Extraordinary things only happen to extrordinary people.”

Here’s to an extraordinary 2011 – living a life beyond.

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Hope

Final Destination

We’re all familiar with the tale of the child on a family vacation who can’t seem to stop asking “Are we there yet?” If we’re honest, most of us have probably felt like that child at one time or another. Even before we start our journey, we’re often picturing the blissful days that we plan on enjoying. We talk with friends about our plans to sit on the beach, hit the slopes, or to spend time with loved ones. We anticipate the feelings of relaxation that will penetrate our bodies and rejuvenate our spirits. Once we’re on our way, we can hardly wait to get there.

For the Christian, we know that our entire life is a journey towards a destination that greatly overshadows even the most wonderful of vacations. And just like the child who is eagerly looking forward to getting to where they want to be, we should be eagerly anticipating the Place that awaits us. We must live life on this Earth with our eyes firmly focused on our final destination – not only because it will help us make choices in light of eternity, but because it will make put the temporary concerns of this Earth firmly in perspective. Just as a child doesn’t worry about the sniffles she woke up with or the previous day’s skinned knees when they are fixated at their impending trip to Disneyland, so we will rightly focus, not on the trials that we currently experience, but on the permanent goodness that awaits us.

As C.S. Lewis once wrote that “If you read history you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this one.”

May our eyes be focused on our final destination so that we do the most good while we are on our journey to there.

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