Youthful Idealism or Living Hope?

A friend shared this quote with me, and I love it : "I am not realistic. I never want to be realistic. God save us all from realism, especially if it means we have to limit our vision for the world. "

At work, we are all about the power of goal setting. It is an amazing discipline that keeps you re-examining your life and keeps your big visions on track. There is one type of goal that we are encouraged to set. This goal is called a B.H.A.G (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) and is meant to stretch you beyond your realm of what you think is possible. Does anyone truly aspire to attain mediocrity? I think if we are honest with ourselves, the answer is a resounding “NO!” As children we are confident that greatness is attainable. We live with unbound dreams and aspirations of being great. I am wondering why coming of age sometimes squelches dreams? If we aren’t careful, we loose childlike innocence and begin to settle for mediocrity. One might say that this return to realism is a part of maturing and growing up, but I have realized that settling kills the soul. I strongly believe that a lack of hope produces the same death within us. Without hope, our vision for the world rests in apathetic mediocrity. Everything rides on hope. It is living hope that spurs us on. Recently, my hope and my joy have been renewed.

I was sitting with my roommate tonight catching up on the events of our day and swapping stories. I found myself laughing, simply laughing and feeling so blessed. Granted, it was absolutely beautiful in Seattle today…75 degrees, sunny and not a cloud in the sky, (we all know that sun makes people happier) but I am going to say that this unexplainable joy is from God. There is a deep joy coming up from the pit of my stomach. My heart is happy. I am experiencing peace. Now let me be clear that my life is by NO means perfect. My life still consists of daily struggles, challenges and unknowns. In fact, the past month has been kinda tough and my future is quite uncertain…but right now I am allowing this peace to sink deep into my bones and letting this joy emerge. It’s a beautiful state to be in, and I believe it is a blessing from His Spirit. Although I have no idea what the future holds, I have an unrelenting hope and peace that comes from knowing that I am not in control.

Bare with me as I try to put my feelings into words... I've been hit in the face with the truth that Christ's redemption is so much more beautiful than perfection. Its amazing… I have seen a lot of things and heard a lot of stories that have hurt my heart and brought me to tears, but nonetheless this feeling of joyful hope persists in the midst of all of life's crap. Some may dismiss this as youthful idealism (and they have..) and maybe even naiivete about the nature of the world, but I don’t see it this way. It is not like I am seeing the world with rose colored glasses and choosing to ignore the bad stuff, but it is more like God has defined my calling to serve in the midst of brokenness and provided deep assurance that He’s got it all taken care of. He is redeeming constantly. I have tasted and seen that the Lord is GOOD. Jesus help the world to radically encounter the joy and hope that only You can give. Help me to forever cling to your Living Hope and let the joy you have given me be contagious. I give my desires and my BHAG’s to You Father knowing that you are in control and that your timing is perfect. Thank you for your faithfulness and for blessing my life beyond measure.

Some JOYFUL music FOR YOU ... here is one more GOOD ONE