Tip: I am almost where I am going, but I am not there yet!
Do you realize that there is tension involved in everything we do in life? I can just hear some of you answering that out loud, “Yes, I am aware of that fact!” Actually, tension is the fuel that gets us through life.
Think about your day. Everything you do has a start and finish to it. You get up in the morning (that’s the start), and you go to bed at night (that’s the finish). We start eating a meal and we finish eating a meal. We start getting dressed and we finish getting dressed. We start our drive to work and we finish when we arrive at work. We start our business day and we end our business day. You get the picture. The challenge, however, comes in the in-between time. That is where the tension occurs.
I have seen many females in my family go through pregnancies. There is a start to the pregnancy and it continues until the birth of the child. During the time it takes for a baby to develop, tension occurs because changes occur. It really does not matter whether it is our eating process, our work process or our living process; all of it has a starting point and an ending point. Ultimately, our starting point was when we were born and, naturally, our ending point will be at the end of our life when we die.
Everything that takes place in the in-between time is the tension. That is where the activity occurs. That is where the challenge, the stress, the opportunities, the fun, the disappointments, the excitement, the ups and downs of life and everything else happens. It is the tension between the “almost” and the “not yet”.
I love to see things get started. There is nothing more fun than beginning a new project or seeing something exciting taking place. I have learned that beginnings are great. However, there is nothing better than seeing something come to fulfillment. I have learned that completions are special. The tension always occurs in the middle, when we are trying to finish something in a way that makes sense to us.
At one time or another we have probably all thought that life will be great when the kids are raised, when our debts are paid, when life slows down, or any number of other things. Somehow we seem to think that if we can just get to that point, we will have it made. But, if that is where we must be in order to be happy, we will be miserable creatures all the way to the end of the journey!
I want to encourage you to look at the in-between time where the tension occurs as a very important part of the trip. Do not let the frustration of things not yet being completed or accomplished rob you of your daily joy. Even though you may not be where you want to be just yet, remember that you are on a journey and are closer to your goal than when you first started.
My life has taken detours and many different directions than I had planned. At first, I may have thought those detours were terrible, but they ended up making my life better. That is because the journey I was on had not yet been completed and I had not yet arrived at my destination. I sometimes look back with regret and wish I had enjoyed the “in-between” times a little bit more. It is the tension that has forced me to grow and has made me better.
All I am saying is this: don’t feel bad because things are not as you want them to be today. The tension is the very energy of life that is propelling you toward your ultimate goal. Enjoy the journey and let the tension bless you rather than frustrate you. This is an important concept to burn into your soul. It makes all of life so much better.
Tip: I am almost where I am going, but I am not there yet!
Have a great week! God bless you!
Dr. Robert A. Rohm
