Being on the edge requires confidence! Biking with everything hanging out, skating with total abandon, or living life to the full cannot happen without some degree of internal assurance that things will work out. I find myself wanting both; life to the full, risks right up to the edge of the cup and virtually complete confidence and strength that says to everyone that things will work. Life is best at the edge! Everything changes.
Does it really?
As I mature, translation for getting many gray hairs and racking up the birthday candles, I find myself taking fewer risks. This applies to every aspect of my life. I play sports that are inherently safer for the participants. I always wear a helmet when riding or fasten my seatbelt when in a car. My work antics are more calculated. My success rate is significantly higher. I only take risk with reasonable confidence.
There are times though that I find myself in risky situations that I did not anticipate. I take on a project with unforeseen hurdles. I inadvertently ride to close to the edge. My ego blinds me to the inherent strength and cunning of a squash opponent. The most frequent blind spot comes in living each day.
I often ignore my failings. My eyes look away. I refuse to see the reality of my efforts. My focus is on the god I am building within my heart. When I realize that my soul is at risk and see myself in the context of the Divine, I understand that my actions may put me forever apart from a relationship with God. In this moment, everything comes into focus. Confidence in my self is worthless. However, there is a source of power.
God “knew when to signal rivers and springs to the surface, and dew to descend from the night skies.” (Proverbs 3.20) God offers you and I a path to true happiness and eternal life. God eliminated any risk on his part. The only risk is our failure to see and accept his offer. This is fatal.
Confident?
