A trip to the attic.
When I was 7 or 8 my family and I would take trips up to my Grandma's house in Green Bay. It was chance to get away and explore. I would welcome the chance to venture into the attic to find hidden treasure. I never really found any hidden gems, but looking back the adventure was the treasure. Being able to explore was part of the adventure of my heart.
This past year or two Jesus has taken me up to the attic again. In the corner, tucked away he discovered a box, that upon dusting it off and opening, contains much of my lost heart.
I realized that over the past 20 years I have been following someone else's dreams. Society, marketing, tells us that we must follow a certain path. We should go to school, then get a "safe" job and hopefully survive at a company for 30 years. Retire with a bag of money and then enjoy life. We should live in the right area, drive the right car, have the right lawn, and do the all of the right things. Now, I am saying all of that is bad, but does it really make us come alive, to really live?
The pivotal point for me was the words that John Eldredge spoke in his book "Wild at Heart" -
"Everyman dies, but few men ever really live. Find out what makes you come alive and go do that, because the world needs more men that are alive."
As Gary Barkalow states, "If we live only out a sense of duty, our heart will eventually die." Such profound words.
God has blessed me this chance to look deep into my heart, look back into my life and reveal those passions. I have taken this time to invite my Wife and Daughter into this journey and let them see what makes me come alive, what God has placed upon my heart. To be able to give them a Husband and Father that is alive is so special. There is a lot of work ahead, but that will be part of the adventure.
I challenge everyone to take a look and see if what they are doing is making them come alive. If the answer is "no". maybe it's time to make the trip to the attic.
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