About the time a small child learns to talk, people start asking, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" When you think about it, life is a series of goals. On my seventh birthday I set two goals: learn to ride my bike without training wheels and learn to whistle. I mastered the bike that year. I still can't whistle.
Here's the thing about goals. Once they're attained, they inevitably lead to more goals. A first grader looks at the "big kids" in sixth grade with awe and longs for the day when she'll walk in their shoes. By the time she's in sixth grade, she's looking ahead to junior high. Then it's high school. Then that magical milestone of senior year. But even before we reach our senior year, parents and counselors urge us to consider our next step. College? Career?
Many girls start dreaming of their wedding day before they lose their first baby tooth. And, indeed, saying "yes" to a life partner is one of the most significant decisions we make in life. But the goals don't end there. We want children. We want a better job. We want a bigger house.
Simply put, we never get to the end of the road this side of heaven. One goal leads to the next leads to the next leads to the next. And this isn't a bad thing. God designed life to be a journey. If we ever fully "arrived" we'd quit growing and stagnate like a scum-covered pond. How much nicer to be a laughing, dancing brook, reaching the milestones and then continuing on our way to one ultimate goal--falling into the almighty ocean's embrace at the end of the journey.
Do you have goals? Dreams you long to make into realities? As long as they honor Christ, go for them. Make choices today that take you one step closer to the prize you've set before you. As J.R.R. Tolkien said, "Little by little, one travels far."
And here's another quote I love. Songwriter Rich Mullins wrote, "If I ever really do grow up, I want to grow up and be just like You."
Me, too.
1 comment:
Interesting thoughts. Some people need goals in their lives otherwise they meander aimlessly with no set course or direction. They have nothing to guide them.
But I can see how we can become unsatisfied always wanting more, as well. I don't think those are really goals though -- those are more like ambitions.
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