GOT HURDLES?

Crystal Weber 05-16-12

Hurdles…they occur both real in our physical world and metaphorically in our minds.

There are literal hurdles -  I remember running junior high track.  I loved the 100 yd, 200 yd, 400 yd, 800 yd, mile… anything but those hurdles.  They terrified me, looming barriers, mocking me as they block the way to the finish line and victory. I sometimes would stay after practice when everyone else had gone home, drag a couple hurdles back onto the track, and convince myself this was the night I would beat them.  But night after night I would go home frustrated because as I would approach the hurdle I would either stop or run to the side.  I know by now you are probably chuckling to yourself and you are justified in this because it was probably an amusing sight to behold.  However, I do want to make a larger point in this. We can beat those hurdles.  I remember the day I finally summoned up the courage and as I sprinted toward the hurdle I did not stray from the path but instead leaped over the hurdle and kept right on running.  And then I leaped over the next one, and so on.  After that I found the hurdles were quite simple to overcome and even came to be a fun event in track.  It often seems the case that once we overcome something it becomes something easy to us, sometimes so easy we wonder why we struggled with it in the first place.  

Metaphorically, hurdles occur in our minds every day.   Some are quite small; others are huge and seemingly insurmountable.  I want to encourage you to start with the small ones and check them off the list.  Once you see you can indeed find success in the smaller items you will gradually gain the confidence you need to master within yourself in order overcome the larger items.  The list is different for each of you.  However, I encourage you all to take a few minutes and contemplate on what hurdles you are avoiding and come up with a plan of attack.  We are resilient creatures, we humans, and as a result we are naturally made to get through things.  If you fall on your hurdle, just brush off the dust and try, try, try, and try again. 

So… got hurdles? Sure you do – we all do!  The question for you is, are you going to push through your hurdles or run around them?  I am going to push through them and get to the other side – to the life I am meant to live.  I urge you to do the same, because you have a wonderful life ahead of you. ~

Psalm 121:1-2
“I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” (NIV)

Isaiah 41:10
“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.
Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you.
I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.” (NLT)

Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (NIV)