Made for more?
What if you were placed on this earth for a very special reason? If you're anything like me you may have had moments when you've sat, perhaps at work, or even at home, and thought, there’s got to be more to life than this. I was made for more than this. More than, you know, getting up every morning, doing the same old, same old routine. Lacking motivation, not getting any satisfaction. I did this myself for several years and finally decided that I'd had enough. I felt like life was too short (or too long, depending on how you look at it), to spend it doing stuff I hated, or stuff I didn't find fulfilling. I had a sense of something bigger.
You see, we're all born with that sense of purpose. That sense that we are created for something that's greater than ourselves; something that involves making a real difference. I'm not saying that we're all meant to be world leaders or technology tycoons, but I think most of us know when we're not living our lives to the full.
But what keeps us on this treadmill of life, too scared to get off?
Many of the doubts I had about leaving a well-paid job and stepping into the unknown world of self-employment are the same ones that a lot of people face every day. Questions like, ‘Do I stay in my comfort zone, where I know exactly what to expect and what I'm doing day in day out, or do I venture into something else and try to do what I know or at least think I should probably be doing? Fear of the unknown is usually what keeps a lot of people in the former. We worry about where the money is going to come from, how we’re going to pay our bills, or continue in the life style that we’re used to. Our insecure self asks, 'what if nobody is interested in what I have to offer?' And ultimately, 'what if I fail?'
Well, in answer to the last two questions, I would say, how about life goes on? How about one door closes and you try another? How about you look back and know you tried and it didn't work out, rather than think about what could have been?
Or even better,
How about your fears are unfounded and it actually works out?
Is it possible that sometimes we're scared of what would happen if our dreams actually become a reality? That we could actually try something and be successful beyond our imaginations? There's a phrase from the popular poem 'Our Greatest fear' by Marianne Williamson that's been quoted several times and always strikes me as very profound.
'Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure'.
I believe it takes on an even greater significance when we remember as Christians that we are made in the image of God, and we have His Holy Spirit residing within us. Surely this means that nothing is impossible for us.
Personally, I came to the point in my life where I decided that I was going to get out there and start living the life I believe God has planned for me. I decided that I would no longer compare myself to others or care about what others thought of me. That I would get out of the so-called rat race. That I would figure out what I really enjoyed and what I really wanted to do with my life and pursue it with passion and vigour. This magazine was birthed out of that decision.
So today, if you’re sitting there and thinking to yourself, ‘this is not the life I want to live; I was made for more than this.’ How about you stop thinking about it and make one decision that starts you on the journey of what God has called you to do? It doesn’t have to be a massive decision like quitting your job; it can be a small one like making a list of ideas you have. All you have to do is start.
I leave you with the poem, 'Our greatest fear'.
Our Greatest Fear —Marianne Williamson
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other
people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, Our presence automatically liberates others.