Aw... Poor thing... Suck it up...
The “path of least resistance” is virtually the same as the “road of good intentions”…
Think about this: If you have a goal (let’s say you intend to lose 10 pounds) but you skip the gym every time you come to an obstacle or time conflict, you are never going to reach that goal…
Because all of our worthy aspirations are met with resistance…
I don’t really have an explanation for this, but I have a theory:
Since our best, most worthy goals are designed to improve us or our world, they are likely to run afoul the status quo…
I’ve never made it my goal to gain 10 pounds of fat, unlearn an instrument or narrow my friend-network to something manageable like 2 or 3 people… Those outcomes can happen all by themselves because I am introverted, lazy and tend to medicate with Oreos…
Paul has this to say:
Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. – Paul, The Bible, Philippians 3:13-14
It always makes me smile when I hear Christians talking about “pressing on” or “pressing in” because that’s so 15th century… Modern paraphrase: “Suck it up.”
To conquer the inertia of the-way-things-are, I have to suck it up to reach for the-way-things-could be…
Here’s an example:
I’ve been trying to interview an artist for the site for 3 months. We’ve set appointments and I’ve missed them… sometimes through no fault of my own… but I feel like a schmuck every time it has happened. The temptation to just quietly stop trying is overwhelming to an introvert like me…
But the goal is more important than my insecurity… The prize more appealing than the comfort of retreating into my embarrassment…
So, I suck it up and keep trying…
The payoff is that I’ll have the opportunity to learn from this artist, share his encouragement with you and move closer to my own larger goals…
So, what inner turmoil is holding you back? What does it look like when you “suck it up” and push toward your goals?
NEXT in this series: Cut Yourself Some Slack…
