Wouldn't it be great if life came with an EASY button. Yes, I sometimes shop at Staples, but that doesn't seem to help when you get to the really sticky situations in life. Unfortunatley, the easy path is usually the one that leads us away from our hopes and dreams. Rather than traveling through uncharted territories, or exploring new opportunities, taking the easy path usually takes down the same course that millions of others have travelled.
Most of us have probably heard the quote, "Pioneers take all the arrows." There certainly is danger in being the first to journey into brave new worlds, but I heard a great spin on that old addage that inspired me. "Pioneers take all the arrows, but they also have the biggest ranches." I have taken a lot of arrows in my life, but I have also been rewarded with blessings few get to experience. Watching the sun rise over the Mt. Cook in the Southern Alps, hearing the morning drums, followed by the soft echo of Christian hymns in the jungles of Africa, or building homes for those who lost everything after Hurricanes devastated Honduras. These are riches that far surpass any material gain I have ever enjoyed.
There have been many times in my life when I prayed that God would make my path EASY. Fortunately for me He had other plans. The trials, the tragedies and the heartaches of life have all been training grounds to minister to others. There have been times when I sought riches, wealth, fame and prestige, but God reminded me that life is most rewarding when I serve, when I humble myself, when I fulfill his plan for my life. So go ahead, hit the easy button, but if you do - you are missing out on the blessings that come through struggle and hardship.
1 comment:
Thanks so much for this blog, Trent, and you are absolutely right. Without adversity, our lives would be tragically easy and we would never learn to appreciate what we have. Take for instance the perils of Adam and Eve and their exile from the Garden of Eden--they didn't realize the richness of blessing they had until they were ostracized from it.
To throw in a little opinion here, I can't watch those reality shows with women who are wealthy and spoiled and their whole life revolves around minutiae, such as the stylist gave them the wrong shade of blue for their dress. They are seemingly unaware or blindly ignorant to the hardships that the poor face, such as having an outfit to wear at all, never mind color!
Even though money would make some things easier, I would never want to become like that. Easiness is the way humanity becomes complacent.
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