Believing and Becoming

A charming four-year-old of my acquaintance recently told her mother, "Mommy, when I grow up, I want to be a black man."

"Honey," the mother replied, "you're a little girl, and little girls grow up to be ladies. When you grow up, you'll be a lady, not a man."

"Oh. Well, then I want to be a black lady."

Mother gently explained to her fair-skinned child, "Honey, when you grow up, your skin will be pretty much just like it is now. You can't be a black lady."

"Oh." The child paused. "Well, then I'll just be an elephant!"

We are told that "if you can imagine it, you can achieve it." Does merely imagining something guarantee that it's within the realm of possibility? Obviously, the answer is sometimes no. But it is true, that if we are in fact going to become something, we must first believe it. By the time she is, say, twelve years old, the little girl will have set her sights on some other more reasonable ambition, and I have no doubt that she will believe it and achieve it

There aren't really any "secrets" to becoming who we want to be. Successful people have shared what they have discovered, and not too surprisingly, one of the things frequently mentioned is "hard work." Dreaming is not enough, although I believe in dreaming. It takes determination, preparation, sacrifice, dedication to the task, learning from failure, and usually it takes time. Famous people in spheres of work that vary from actor or journalist to movie producer or model have told us it takes a good many years to become an "overnight success." Sometimes, in our eagerness to convey confidence to our children or our students and mentorees, we underplay the price of achievement. Jesus did not make that mistake.

Jesus made it very clear that following Him would entail some cost. Sometimes, especially in the first flush of enthusiastic commitment, Christians mistake personal ambition for God's leading. When they find that the pathway to influence is not necessarily the same as the road to fame or power, they become discouraged. "If you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you. They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’ " (Luke 14:27-30) Very often, the follower of Jesus experiences the cost of discipleship with little distinction or financial gain—just the knowledge that he/she has faithfully carried the cross. If we believe that's a goal worthy of our pursuit, we can become a truehearted disciple.

MaryMartha

Related posts: I Have a Dream
Don't Give Up the Dream

The quote, "If you can imagine . . ." is from William Arthur Ward, known for his inspirational writings.
Scripture quotation is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.