“Happiness comes from walking the beautifully thin line between knowing that you will never be fully satisfied on this planet, and always striving for more…”-Nikki Phillippi
It is the time of year to open your calendars, dream big dreams, and making your cliche filled list of resolutions. Don’t worry, mine probably has more cliche’s than yours. Now look, I am all about dreaming dreams and setting goals to try and achieve them. I think we were created with a desire to be motivated deep within us. But here’s the thing, we also were not created to be perfect. We are flawed humans. We stumble and fall, we fail and give up, we disappoint and hurt others, we are in desperate need. The need for something deeper can only be satisfied by the arms of our Savior. His hands pick us back up when we fall, He gives us hope when we give up, and He heals what we have hurt.
We crave more day after day. We set high standards for ourself and feel like a failure when we don’t measure up, but the truth is we will never truly be satisfied here. We crave something deeper that only the Father can satisfy. I think that this is why we try year after year to fix things, to make things better. We can’t be content because we won’t be satisfied till we are with our Father. But He called us to be here. now. Only in Him do we find the balance of Him asking us to be content where He has placed us, but also to strive for His will.
I set goals because it helps me focus on what my next step is, it helps me not feel trapped in a whirlwind that I can’t control. But the truth is that He is the writer of our story, and He is going to shape our life whether we set goals or not. When we cross of the list and feel proud and accomplished it is hard to remember that we are not the ones that did it, but that “every good and perfect gift is from above” (James 1:17). As I have spent the past few weeks thinking back over the year this has become evidently clear. It does not matter what I have in mind for my year, all that matters is what He has in mind.
I am reminded of this every time I am filled with the joy of shooting a wedding, remembering how I used to think I would hate shooting weddings. I am reminded of my desperateness when I am rude or snappy at my family when I am feeling cruddy. I am reminded of his faithfulness when I make my schedule each week and am able to pick my own priorities. I am reminded of His grace every time I am scrolling through Instagram an image I took posted by my clients. I am reminded of His rivers of living water each time I chat with my dearest friends.
I am grateful for a Father who gives me motivation and goals, but only through Him can I accomplish anything.
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