Every great hero goes through trials that test their inner mettle. Precious metal becomes more valuable after going through the fire. Inner mettle becomes stronger through repeated victories, and failures, that present themselves along this treacherous path of life we walk. Pressure makes the diamond, champ.
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been walking through some very treacherous paths that nearly got the best of me. I believe it’s important to step away from your beliefs in order to gain an objective viewpoint on their legitimacy. However, it’s very easy to be thrown away from the gravitational pull these beliefs carry as you step away from them. It’s this pull that keeps you grounded during the rocky moments of life, yet the perspective gained from stepping away from them is also a factor of staying true to what it is that you believe in.
What I’m learning most is that all of us have to make hard decisions in order to make the most of our lives. These decisions are all that we have in our life, as our choices are the key determinant in who we become. Many do not like to accept the fact that their choices are theirs to own; it’s easier to assume you have no control, rather than all control. What I’ve learned is that we either have 100% control of our lives, or zero control. There can be no middle ground. To God be the glory, to us be the choice to do the most with what we’ve been entrusted with. It’s all His.
In my heart, I am struggling with what is required in order to become a strong man. The man I long to be is a distant mirage from who I currently am. Paths become roads become highways. In this sense of the word, I’m well on my way. However, I have seen the great journey ahead. I can see the mountain. LORD, grant me the strength to climb it.
Over the past year, I have explored what it means to be a warrior. My good friend, Travis, wrote an epic note titled “Heart of a Warrior” where he stated the true armor of the warrior is those whom he surrounds himself with. It is not the plates of metal on his chest, but the strong fellow warriors he chooses to be around. Reading this, I have questioned whether or not I’ve been this strong warrior to uphold and encourage those around me.
In our society, we live in a crippled state that allows, if not encourages, failure. Should you get in over your head and can no longer afford the payments on your Maserati, it’s acceptable to simply declare bankruptcy. Should your marriage no longer work, divorce immediately. Even the disability system has been used and abused for the advantage of those who choose to avoid working through their handicaps. Granted, there are those who cannot choose to get better. But there are also those who choose to stay crippled. All we have are the choices we make. Where are the days where failure was met with the sharp thrust of a sword? Where are the days where survival of the fittest was actually lived, rather than taught as theory? What happened to the days where the honor of ones house was actually worth fighting for? Warriors no longer have the opportunity to be developed, appreciated, or challenged.
Who am I? I am a champion that is not willing to accept mediocrity as the outcome of my life. I will fight to the finish until I can no longer fight, at which point I’ll gladly accept and enter into the transition of death. I am a man in development that is striving hard to become the best version of myself. I’m a created being by the Creator of the Universe that has counted the cost of living this life and is willing to pay the price.
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