Fulfillment

Ecclesiastes (3:1-4) 

There is a time for everything, a time to weep and a time to laugh. Optimists tend to believe that life is mostly good; pessimists, that it's mostly bad. Life is both. And only those who embrace that truth are able to find fulfillment. Why? Because those who accept it but don't embrace it become apathetic, meeting every difficulty with a shrug and a sigh. They may survive, but they won't be successful. To succeed you must be proactive, in bad times as well as good. If you examine the lives of successful people you'll discover they always do what's right no matter how they feel, and by doing right-they end up feeling good. On the other hand, unsuccessful people tend to wait to feel good before they do what's right. As a result, they neither do what's right nor feel good. Often you won't feel like doing the right thing, but you need to do it anyway. Nelson Mandela said: 'I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one finds many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended.' If you always do the right thing-despite how you feel, despite what others may say or do in response-you will be satisfied with yourself. And that, at the end of the day, will do a lot to determine whether you feel fulfilled. 

Between praying for a miracle and getting one, you'll be tested, you'll grow, and you'll learn to trust God more than you ever thought possible. Plus, here's something else that's important to remember: when you share your experiences with others don't just tell how you started or where you are today; instead, tell them what God brought you through, for those are the very things they're struggling with too. Tell them how your faith was tried in the furnace of affliction before you came forth as gold. Don't leave them feeling frustrated because they claimed God's promise and haven't received it yet. Yes, there'll be times when you'll feel like your life has come to a screeching halt and you're getting nowhere. Maybe that's where you are today. If it is, please know this: God will be faithful to you. Not only will He bring you through, but like Sarah, your joy will return as you watch Him fulfill His promise to you. 

There is usually a huge gap between the birth of a dream and the achievement of that dream. The question you have to ask yourself is whether it will be a fulfillment gap or a frustration gap. If it's a frustration gap you'll be miserable most of the days you're in it. And every day that you're frustrated instead of fulfilled, you lessen the odds that you'll be able to keep moving forward toward your dream. This gap between when you set out to do something and when you actually start to see significant results, 'the dip.' The dip represents the adversity you must face, the learning curve you must go through, and the hard work you must be willing to invest between conception and realisation. If the dip you are in seems to be a road without end, here are some Scriptures you need to stand on: 'Don't be impatient for the Lord to act! Keep travelling steadily along his pathway and in due season he will honor you with every blessing.' 'Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised' Hebrews (10:35-36). 'So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal' 2 Corinthians (4:18). God has promised you more than just the fulfillment of your dream; He has promised joy in each step you take toward it. 

'The ideal is a picture we create of future desirable events and situations that enables us to move forward in time. The ideal does not actually exist outside our minds, nor is it achievable.' Why? Because it depends on everything being perfect. Life is, at best, messy. It's filled with surprises-both good and bad. If you need the ideal picture of your dream to come into being in order to feel fulfilled, you will never be fulfilled. That doesn't mean you should cast aside your ideal vision. It is useful for helping you to establish goals, find internal motivation, and strive for excellence. However, you also need to temper it. Where idealistic dreams expect to be realised immediately, realistic dreams make you appreciate the time it takes for them to become a reality. Where idealistic dreams do not tolerate anything less than perfection, realistic dreams leave room for you to be human and imperfect. Where idealistic dreams set you up for disappointment, realistic dreams set you up for success. The man who never made a mistake, never made anything. Indeed, the man who never made a mistake probably gets his salary from the one who does. The reason God doesn't whitewash His heroes in the Bible is to let you know that in spite of your flaws, He can use you to accomplish great things. You say, 'But am I not supposed to work on my weaknesses?' Yes, but you'll only succeed in what you're called to do by working from your God-given strengths.