Recognizing Your Invisible MentorsSample

WHAT IS MY "WHY"?

When we begin to pursue our dreams and passions in connection to our calling, our lives are bound to go through times of fire. No matter how hard we try to ignore, reject, or escape these trials, they will not go away. We need to internally deal with the fire and address our unspoken fears. Then, at other times, we need to externally deal with the impossibilities of our circumstances. Instead of sprinting to escape, we must learn how to move with the music—when to slow down, when to turn, and when to stop. 

We will always have some form of an audience in life. People will most likely cheer us on according to our outward performance. But if we find our value and validation through people, we limit ourselves. We will only rise to the level of their perceptions. The same people who watched us dance, will also watch us burn, if we lose our step and fall prey to unexpected circumstances.

In 60 AD, the Apostle Paul dealt with his own fire and audience when he was shipwrecked on the island of Malta while en route to Rome to face charges for preaching the Gospel (Acts 28:3-6). In a matter of moments, Paul went from outlaw to idol in the eyes of his observers when he shook off the viper and suffered no harm. 

While we probably won’t be judged to such extremes, at some point in life we will find ourselves on a journey we didn’t want to take—whether falsely accused, struggling past a shipwreck in life, or pierced by the venom of another’s jealousy, envy, or resentment. To be able to shake off something you cannot see in the natural will require you to find an answer to one important question: What is my “why”? 

Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote, “He who has a why to live for can bear with almost any how.” Why did you step into your fiery coals and do what you are doing at the moment? If we can honestly answer why we do what we do (and even what we don’t do), we can move forward with resilience and perseverance—even when the “how” seems far off, and even when no one is cheering us on.   

• When your "why" is greater than you, your life will have a greater meaning.   
• The why pushes you to action.   
• The why gives you confidence to overcome your circumstances—the fires you traverse—your invisible mentors.