As much as another indicates, suggests, and implies, there are time that it takes action to know that another is fully onboard with an idea. Until the point of movement, doubt continues to grow. For friends that do not embrace an idea, their status often changes from trusted to watch with care.
I usually think of my friendship network with two buckets. One is the trusted network, friends. The other is the I know you network. For the network, individuals are contacts. A recent conversation with a friend helped me see a third category. He described how he looked at others; trusted, not trust worthy, and watch with care. As we talked about the reasons for the third, the recurring difference between trusted and uncertain always came back to action. Did s/he act on what they said they believed in?
As I continue to mull over his question, I find myself looking in the mirror wondering. I would love to say that I am a universal man of action. As I considered the truth of my aspiration, I remembered a deliverable due a week ago that I forgot to action. There is at least one situation where I am as guilty as the people I watch with care! As I thought of one examples, others came to mind. The emerging pattern is anything but pretty.
Life reminds me of the following.
Our best aspirations are always just beyond our reach. The reality that there is a gap is in itself not bad. It is a simple reflection that we want to grow, be more than we are, and reach for the best.
Growth requires action. Friendship requires action. Belief requires action. When one writer said to God, “Everyone descending from you is guaranteed life; I’ll make your rule as solid and lasting as rock,” (Psalm 89.4) it meant nothing until he put the words into action.
Yesterday’s failure to act is not the end of the story. Each moment is a fresh opportunity. We are free to choose what we will do. We write our story.
