Was my stubborn reply to the insistence of my mother and brother and other family members. “There’s too much fog and smog. And we’re just a little to far away. And not high enough up.”

There was an unusual amount of fog. That much was true. And there was the usual amount of smog. Also true. But we were indeed close enough and high enough up—my insistence that we were too low and distant was untrue.

For everyone going into ministry. Or anyone doing anything important, for that matter. 

But those who wait upon God get fresh strength.

They spread their wings and soar like eagles,

they run and don’t get tired,

they walk and don’t lag behind.

Isaiah 40:31

This is really good news, because waiting upon God is hard work. 

You’ve heard that old saying. You know the feeling. It’s like your brain has hearing damage.

I’m beginning to realize that the hearing damage is actually more profound: “It’s so loud I can’t hear my soul speak.” 

Then talk about it. Especially if it’s potentially difficult. Especially if the stakes are high. Odds are it won’t be as difficult as you fear, nor the stakes as high as you imagine them to be.

Is a transformative tool. A simple twist of perspective can change our hearts and minds. It can take prayer in new directions. It can even make it a little more fun!

STEP 1: Find a prayer. Scriptures are a good place to start. 

STEP 2: Change the pronouns. For example, Us —> I. I —> them. Us —> she. Mix it up and see how it changes your prayers

Like this. 

Because the best motivation doesn’t come from within you—it comes from outside of you. The best motivation isn’t drummed up just because you need to feel motivated—it’s imparted to you from a source external to your own self. Such motivations are more like received gifts than they are like re-charged batteries.

Positive thinking is cultivating perspective. Hope is cultivating a relationship with a Person. 

Positive thinking is all about control. Hope is all about trust.

Positive thinking ignores or at least minimizes the bad. Hope is brave enough to look the bad in the eyes. 

“How many loaves do you have?” he asked. “Go and see.” When they found out, they said, “Five—and two fish.”

(Mark 6:38)

We like to think we have more than a few loaves. And definitely something more substantial than two fish. We’ve got serious gifts and passions and talents to bring to the table. Years of experience under our belts. Degrees on our walls and download stats on our social accounts. Impressive résumés and recommendations from people in high places. 

But the longer I do ministry, the more I suspect that it’s all just loaves and fishes. 

We either fight it or universalize it. 

We all have a dream of a future that involves someone or something or some place. In our shock we refuse to believe that the picture might not include A, B, or C after all. So we grip tighter. In vain, we leverage all of our energy towards forcing that future to still somehow exist.