Just after I took this photo, the rain came down. I knew it was coming. The weather app warned me. But I was happy. I was hoping to make it to this point before the shower. Thankfully, the lightning didn’t show up until I was nearly done. By the time I finished I was drenched.
In the past, a dear family member or two would call me crazy for running in inclement weather. Friends usually say nothing but give me that look as if I had sniffed too much rubber cement in my early graphic design days.
Last year, my wife and I took one of the biggest risks of our lives. We moved away from everything and everyone we knew to do what we were called to do. I resigned from a steady job where I had a recent promotion to join my wife in this new adventure. Like the legend of Hérnando Cortéz, we burned our ships didn’t look back and headed for Arizona.
It didn’t work out the way we had hoped. I thought I could immediately land a new job right away. It took eight months. My father-in-law was gravely ill and eventually passed away. This caused us to make many trips back to the Midwest. A five-year commitment was cut to one year.
Yet, we have no regrets. In fact, I am glad we took a risk. It taught me a few things I never expected.
On this morning’s run, I came across this sign. It is the third time I took this route in a week. Yet, I didn’t notice the sign until this morning.
How many times do we go through situations without realizing hope is right there. Zig Ziglar liked to quote John Maxwell and say, “If there is hope in the future, there is power in the present.” It is true that we need hope in order to keep moving forward. It is a sad person who is trying to trudge forward without noticing hope is before him.
We all need a trip down Hope Lane. None of us really know the future. We can embrace it and acknowledge doomsayers aren’t always right and we can do something today that gives hope to the future.
We get to move once again today. It will be the fifth place in just over a year. Do you want proof?
We all need a moving day. I came to that conclusion when we were selling all our stuff to go to Arizona.
I didn’t expect to be in Ohio/Indiana until Christmas day. But life throws you a few curveballs throughout the innings we call decades. There’s a few too many metaphors in that last sentence, isn’t there? I’m not even a rabid baseball fan (However, I did love the way this year’s World Series ended. Good job, Royals!).
Last Friday, we thought we were going to lose a loved one. Today, things have improved greatly for him. It has made this Thanksgiving so much more meaningful. However, we have also been reminded that time is finite and we can’t take every day for granted.
Through the last several months, I’ve learned there are a few ways to cope when life throws you a curveball.
We will all face some unexpected challenges. Through those situations, be an overcomer. Don’t let those curveballs strike you out! I’m rooting for you!