I don’t get into movies often. I usually fall asleep during them. But every now and then I watch one that I really get into. I get personally attached to the characters and then I get really frustrated when they do self destructive things. This once happened with Wally in the movie The Switch. When the boy asked about why he didn’t make a big deal out of his birthday, Wally said, “getting old sucks. Most people don’t accomplish what they’d hope to and they realize that they are most likely not going to. They end up living these quiet lives of denial and uh… brushing birthdays under the rug just starts to become a part of that.” That was terrifying to me. I was smack in the middle of my college years, with all the dreams and ambitions a guy could have, and I had never thought of how just about everyone must have had this in their college years. They talk about this in movies and stuff. Everyone has dreams, but then they get old and their lives get boring and they never accomplish anything they wanted to. How do I keep that from happening to me?
Woah, wait. This is a bad way to think about this right? Shouldn’t I just be planning to do exactly what God has planned for me? God told Moses exactly what to do and say to get them out of Exodus, and that worked out for them for the short term. But what about the landlord passing out talents to his tenants in Matthew 25? They weren’t explicitly told what to do with what they were given.
Passages like Psalm 32:8 and Proverbs 16:9 suggest that God isn’t interested in controlling our lives. He wants more to instruct and counsel us - through his word - and then establish our steps as we live in Him.
So Is it wrong to want to live out those dreams and ambitions you have? Should you drop that ambitious new year’s resolution of getting into that school or getting that promotion? How should you look at 2015 right now from the top of the slope? If you’re in Christ, I encourage you to look at it from the basics of your Christian faith. Look at it through the lens of Christ. His word is a lamp to your feet and a light to your path! You have the salvation of the Lord & His Word as your guide! Will you take what’s been given to you and hide it away? Or will you take it like the talents and produce twice as much for your master?
-Will Hawks (Drums, PR, Coffee Snob)
