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| Terrifying. And Fun. I did this too, I promise you. But did anyone think to take pictures other than mom? Of course not. |
If
you give a girl a challenge, she's going to want to take it on. And
if she takes it on, she's going to feel gutsy. And if she feels
gutsy, she's going to want more challenges. And if she wants more
challenges . . . she writes more blogs. Do you have any idea what
you've started, friend Amy?
Especially
if you give me a challenge. The girl who once told her entire
church, at age 19, that she thought she would be a pastor. Given the
denomination of that particular church, let's just say it did not go
over well. Very nervous silence. Most people would consider
that a caution. I considered it a challenge.
Good
thing I usually know the difference between an impossible
challenge and a stupid dare, or I might have ended up like my
brothers, putting a principal's car on a roof somewhere, and I do not
do a “who me?” poker face well.
Oops.
I just outed my brothers. I hope the statue of limitations has run
out on that one.
So,
at this point, the RiskRejection challenge has me working on three
different risks:
One—Retooland revise my work to reach the audience God has for me. Don't play
it safe with safe topics, safe ideas, feel good stories.
Two—Workon the snark quotient. No critical words or thoughts this Lenten
season. Yeah, like that's going to happen. Wait, was that snark I
just detected?
Three—Losethirty pounds and donate thirty pounds of food to the local food
bank. Working on it. Working....working...working. I think this is
going to be a lot of . . . work.
And
. . . and . . . I know there are at least two more out there on the
horizon which you will hear about in the near future. Can this be
done, please? I never thought I'd say this. I. Cant. Take. Any. More.
Challenges. Full up here. Challenge quota reached. That, by the way,
is probably a very bad thing to say to God. It's like telling Chicago
I've had enough snow this winter.
Note:
It's the first day of spring. It snowed this morning.
There
are so many things it would be comforting to say about challenge.
It's easy. It's fun. It's . . . comfortable. But it is none of those
things. And the funny thing is? I don't want it to be. I used to want
that. But through challenge I've discovered something radical.
There
is something better than easy.
Joy
is better than fun. Fulfilling is better than easy. Purpose is better
than comfortable.
Most
people become adrenaline junkies at a much younger age.
Today,
the update report will be on Challenge #2. The challenge? Recite Philippians 2.3-4 every time I made a critical remark or had a critical thought. At first, this seemed kind of rote. What was the point? I just learned one Bible
verse really, really well. It didn't change the feelings.
Until
it did. Until I found myself stopping in mid-thought and thinking
about all the reasons that person could be going twenty miles an
hour, or might have cut in front of me in the express lane--with
twenty-one items. Until, wonder of wonders, I found myself
about to say something critical and then Just. Not. Saying it. Wow.
Never saw that coming.
Another
surprise? It feels so good to just not say it. Freeing. Like I was
bound in whatever misplaced pride or certainty and couldn't stop the
tongue from flapping. Oh wait. I was. That's called sin. The Bible
has a few things to say about how powerful its straightjacket can be.
It's
a risky decision to admit to these things. It's not pretty, not neat,
not a sweet story with a happy God-blessed ending. But it is real.
And unlike happy-happy-joy-God-blessed fairy tales, it's completely
up to me whether or not I want a happy ending. He'll supply the
power; I have to supply the want to. When you're a natural born
snark, there is no glass slipper fix. It's work. And it's joy. And
it's more of both.
Challenge.
Like the freedom of that idea? I'm not asking you to put a car on the
roof. I mean, unless in some cosmic way that's something God has in
mind for you. But please, I beg you.
Open up to challenge. Find out exactly how freeing and joyful it is
to look away from easy and stare challenge in the eye.
What's
your challenge right now? Big or small. What are you going to do
about it?
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