More on Reality

The last ten years of my life have been pretty jam packed.  I think it might be that way for most people in their forties.  I have watched my wife battle cancer, been near to bankruptcy, experienced success, watched my kids grow up and leave home, two of them got married, I have become a grandpa, and I have watched good friends see their daughter fight cancer and in the end pass away to the life we are hoping for in heaven.

I have had the privilege of seeing some of my employee's grow personally and professionally.  I have had the responsibility to fire others who were not willing or able to fit into our culture.  Recently, one of our employee's who has possibly had the greatest affect on our culture and business was diagnosed with cancer and now has a new road to travel.

I recently listened to a song about dancing in the mine fields, sailing in the storms.  I think that this is a proper description of reality.  There will be joy and there will be pain.  There will be love and their will be conflict.  If we take risk to grow and go where we haven't gone before, we can expect to feel unsure.  We can expect to feel anxiety having no markers of where we should be or how it should feel.  We can be sure that we will find both joy and pain.  Both success and failure.  Both of it all.  We will find sometimes we hit home runs and other times we miss badly. 

But as I am trying to learn about this path of leading like a sinner, leading like one who often misses the mark that he aims for, I am learning that God's grace is sufficient for me.  All of me, the good and the bad. As we enter this reality and accept it and take each new day, not looking back, not listening to that voice that would accuse us of being a fake, or not having what it takes, but rather looking forward towards the hope or dream that we have in our hearts, we will find ourselves amazed at what happens!