As we start a new week, it’s time to take a deep step into the one thing that can keep all of us from reaching a goal, a dream. It stops our faith in its tracks sometimes. It’s that one thing that seems to come between you and what you are trying to get done. For each of us it’s something different. As you finally learn how to get past one hurdle in your life then another one comes up. These things are obstacles.
As I write this I know of two types of people who have different reactions to a dream or an event they expected to happen this weekend. While I was traveling last week there is very little news that I watched or read about. I spent the time I wasn’t on a motorcycle preparing blogs and spending time with strangers who are now new friends. There were two things that were in the news last week that most Americans were able to read or see. I want to use these two events to write about obstacles in our lives.
Harold Camping, the Family Radio leader, predicted the world would end this past Saturday night. Well if you’re reading this it’s a good sign that he was wrong. Many people were following this and following him as he preached this message. They are all disappointed today. I’m sure he meant well in this and I’m sure that he believed these events would happen. The story made its way to national news media and even atheist friends were watching it. As a Christian and a person who is spreading a message myself, I see a man who seems to be Godly with a good message but who has now given others who talk about God an obstacle. And I (like my other Christian friends) could now be grouped with this man. I have friends who are atheists and I’m sure as they are reading this, they think even more firmly that I’m crazy for this faith that I have in God.
The other news story is that Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife have split up after revelations Arnold was involved with another woman. Since people in the media and those who read the Entertainment section love a juicy scandal, they are all running with this one. While I am not one to follow every Hollywood celebrity to see what they do or what they have done wrong, this story now will give another obstacle to all those who are honestly serving in a form of government. It’s bad enough that in America we have so many people in politics getting themselves into trouble and giving the political office a bad name. To add one who was so well-known in his own right to the pile has just pulled the political life down another notch.
Both of these men made the news last week; both of them are this week’s tabloid or front page news stories. I’m sure many people will be doing research on them and they will be ranking at the top of internet searches. They are humans and they will have to answer for the actions they have taken. Yes, we will look at them while they have their five minutes of fame, but when the dust clears and they have moved on to other things, where will the faith of those who looked up to them be? On this earth we will have people who share false information – some to make themselves famous by getting their names in the news, and others to just get a larger following for whatever scam they’re running.
Today I want to ask this question to make you really think. With your life, are you creating obstacles for others by your actions, or by what you believe? Have you done something that would cause someone else to stumble in their life? While we look at what it is that keeps us from reaching our own goals, we should also make sure that we are not the reason that other people are not reaching their goals.
So here is a three-part check list. We all will mess up on this earth, but let’s try to keep the damage we do to ourselves.
1. If you believe something, are you living like you believe it? I’ve not checked into the life of Mr. Camping, the “end of the world” pastor, but if he truly believed in what he was teaching, did he make any plans past that day for his own life? As a Christian, yes most of us believe that Jesus will come again, but the date is not certain, so we plan our days, we do not just sit and wait for it to happen. If he had “contingency” plans in place, if he had clearly planned for life after the big date, then perhaps he wasn’t really living like he believed what he preached.
2. If you are wrong, be willing to admit you failed. Years ago when I was working in a body shop I got into a big argument with a co-worker about how something was done. I knew I was right, and pushed to do the project my way. My supervisor believed I was wrong, but chose to let me try it my way. After I failed, I went to him and said “Jim, I was wrong. This failed. Can we try it your way?” You see, Arnold now has to face the fact he failed and it’s a public thing. I failed and had to admit it. So then I made the corrections and did it right.
3. Always check how what you do could affect others. Lately, I seem to have talked to a lot of people who have lost their drivers licenses for drinking and driving. They complain about how it affected their lives, how they now have to find other ways to get around. I hear many blame the cops for checking them in the first place, for making a traffic stop. Well if you look at it from another angle, they were extremely lucky they were only stopped from doing it again. They could be in a place of serious regret because of harming someone else by being incapacitated by alcohol, thus ruining or ending someone’s life because of their own poor judgment. This is more drastic than what either of these two men has done, but still what they have done affects the faith of others.
The main thing I want to get across today is to make sure your actions do not lead to someone else losing faith. Make your actions point people to faith, whether that faith is in God or your fellow man. We need to help others rise up, not take steps that bring them down. Someone is looking up to you. Keep their faith alive.
I’m Tim Gillette, the Rocker Life Coach. It’s time for you to Live the life you always wanted, Love what you do and those you spend life with. Let me know how I can help you become a RockStar in your world.
