www.stacistallings.com

staci_stallings@hotmail.com

Have you ever had a dream that was so close you could nearly reach out
and touch it?  And yet every time you put your hand out, it turns out
to be a mirage.  You work and work.  You put your all into making the
dream come to fruition, but when you get to the place where you think you
want to be, all you find is more work to do.

 I see it with the two college students who work for me and are always
hanging out at my house.  It seems like they work and work, and yet
graduation feels no closer.  I see it in my carpenter husband.  He
stresses out when a job is finishing up because "what are we going to do
next?"  But he also stresses out when the job is going because "how are we
going to get this all done?"

 Now I see it in my own life.  I set up meetings to talk with people
about my books.  The meetings always go well-some even go really well.
But then, the sales don't come through like I thought they would (read:
hoped they would).  It's not that God's not on my side.  I know for a
fact He is because I've seen His hand at work in too many areas of my
life to doubt it.  Yet I'm still left wondering, why does it have to be
this hard?

 In thinking about this phenomenon, I suddenly realized that this very
feeling is encapsulated in the scene at Gethsemane.  Christ is
kneeling, praying, and He says, "Father, if it's possible, let this cup pass Me
by..."  What He's really saying is, "God, listen, please, there's got
to be an easier way."  He knows what is coming.  He knows to the bottom
of His soul this is not going to be fun.  In fact, I think He's not
even totally sure He can pull it off. 

 Think about it.  He's been asked, nae, sent, to save the whole world. 
That's not exactly a miniscule assignment.  On top of that, He knows
that in order to accomplish this, He will have to suffer and die-on a
cross, beaten bloody, and humiliated.  That's not exactly the most
comforting thought in the world.

 And so, He had to ask God one more time if this plan was really
necessary.  Apparently the answer was, "Yes, it's necessary."  In my mind I
can see Jesus say, "Well, okay then."  He stands up and walks forward
into His future.

 Here's the thing though, while we're in "hard," it's tempting to give
up.  It's tempting to say, "This isn't worth it" and walk away from
God's ultimate dream for us.  But if we do... if we walk away because it's
too hard... we will miss the glorious resurrection day.  We will miss
that day on which God takes our dream, molds it into His vision and
releases it to the world in a burst of golden light.

 Sure, it could be easier, but then the triumph of our Easter Sunday
wouldn't be met with such rejoicing.  And who knows, if we didn't go
through our Good Friday, Easter might never come at all.
Copyright Staci Stallings 2003

Copyright Staci Stallings

Want more inspiration from Staci Stallings, the author of this article?
Staci's new book, "Reflections on Life" contains 52 soul-inspiring
stories. Visit: http://www.lulu.com/spirit-light to see "Reflections" and Staci's new inspirational
novel, "Cowboy."  As always, you'll feel better for the experience!