As I drove to work, the weight of the job was heavy on my heart. The thought of those imaginary chains keeping me securely connected inside the cell we call “offices” was sucking the energy out of my heart before I hit the Loveland city limits. Don’t get me wrong here, I have a great job, get paid a respectable salary, have benefits, enjoy the company of great co-workers, and enjoy working for my supervisor. Because of our jobs, my wife and I are enjoying many blessings in our lives and we certainly consider ourselves fortunate in so many ways. So, the question must be asked…what is the problem?
I’m the lion inside the cage who gets all my basic needs met. I don’t have to get up each day wondering if I’m going to eat, and I don’t have to worry about any annoying pack of hyenas bothering me over my breakfast…but as you look beyond the chains of my cage into my eyes, something seems to not be so right with me.
That worry I solved by stepping into the cage…you know, the one about whether I would eat or not…, it was solved, but it created a bigger problem. That worry, and others like it, they weren’t negative….they were instilled within me to provide the necessary push so I would do what I was designed to do….hunt. So if I’m not on the hunt, I’m not involved in one of the major things that make up who I am. If I’m not doing what I was created to do, a part of who I truly am has been stolen from me.
Now, let’s lose the lion metaphor…I’m now sitting on my back patio enjoying the quiet of the early morning with the cool air and a hot cup of coffee provided by the wonderful people at the Dunkin Donuts Corporation (had to make that plug to keep my sponsors happy…..wait! I’m not getting paid for anything here!)
Sorry…back on track. That was stupid, I know.
Here is where I’ve struggled for years. There is a restlessness within my heart about something being “out there.” Think about the discoverers we learned about in school growing up. They stood at the ocean shores and stared out into the waters…some force was drawing them to do the craziest of things. Or think about the explorers of more recent generations, who had a pull to go west into the wilderness of the unknown in search of something. In our lifetime, okay….maybe this doesn’t speak to all of us…but some of us saw the Apollo spacecraft land on the moon! Something has always driven us to the edge of the known world, and as we stand there looking outward, we realize this strange pull towards the unknown…toward risk…adventure.
• I’ll interrupt only for the briefest of moments to say that we can vilify those early discoverers and explorers for the sins of the future generations if we want. Many evil dealings took place by people in positions of power to put others into bondage for their own personal greed and ambitions, but that’s another story for another person to write. I simply want to focus on the power of desire within the human heart.
For most of us, I suspect this metaphorical “standing at the water’s edge” (if we even took the moment to go there) ends as a whimsical daydream which came to an abrupt halt at the doorstep of a reality that centers around mortgage and auto payments, college funds, 401-K’s, and other stuff.
For me, most everything important is about my family…whether they know it or not, I’m in pursuit of a lifestyle that challenges my kids to see there’s another path we can take. We don’t have to follow the herd to the slaughterhouse…a slaughterhouse where dreams, purpose, and passion are sacrificed and replaced with a need to build a temporary kingdom which promises the illusion of security.
From July 6, 2005 to August 9, 2005, I had a running letter addressed to my kids titled “Spiritual Roadtrip”. On several days through this time period I e-mailed them as if I were out on a road trip in search of my heart. It was my hope they would never be enticed by the trappings of this materialistic world and tricked into sacrificing their heart for “success” as defined by our culture.
Here I am again, 11 years later…and I’m still driven by this thing out on the horizon beyond the water’s edge. I found those e-mails to the kids…I think I’m going to share them again. In some ways, it vaguely appears like I’m in the same place I was back then…but I’m definitely not.
I am at a place where I need to sacrifice my need for “security” in order to jump more deeply into this adventure we call “life”. My children need to see it can be done…my grandchildren need to see it can be done.
I’m trying real hard to stay away from religious lingo as I talk…but there simply is no substitution for faith and trust in a loving Father. As a little child, we won’t jump from the pool’s edge unless we know there is a loving father or mother in the waters assuring us we will be protected. In most cases, if we don’t know this, we’ll stay chained to the pool’s edge…standing there watching others enjoy the water.
I want to leave you with questions okay?
- Will you give your heart the time to really communicate to your brain what its feeling?
- What makes your heart excited? What stirs you up?
- Where have you discovered a reservoir of energy that you were previously unaware of?
- What are your dreams? Have you wanted to write? Paint? Become a photographer? Hot air balloon (Mo)?
- Do you want to climb a 14’er or learn to flyfish?
- Have you desired to become involved in causes that bless others?
- Have you wanted to build your real estate empire so the word “retirement” never had to be considered again? Okay…that’s me.
I’m a writer. I come to life behind the keyboard or with a pen and paper in my hand. I’m a coach. I desire to see people win…it doesn’t matter what the “game” is…I want to see people develop their skill-set and compete at the highest levels they can…and win. I want to be a real estate tycoon because I have the nature of a builder…I want to expand…and then, I want to hand off to my kids so they have something more.
What are your dreams? How are you wired? What brings you life? Are you providing the outlet your heart needs to pour out that expression? Or is the pursuit of security stealing from you?
I hope you will find the way to politely tell your brain to stop talking long enough to hear what your heart has to say. They can work together…but sometimes, the brain has to be told to stop dominating the conversation.