“How do you change a ocean tanker once it is moving?”
“Interesting question, why do you ask?”
“It is what my job feels like. I do not think we are going in the wrong direction but there are several course refinements (corrections) that could help us get to the destinations that we share an aspiration to reach.”
The question is still on the table. While there have been a few suggestions, the response that has resonated is a direct one.
“I do not know. I am glad we are working together to figure the answer out.”
In the bigger story we are in, life can feel like a full tanker that is already under power. As much as we might want to change course, there is a momentum and force that overwhelms our actions. We want to do something different, but it seems impossible. As hard as we try to change, we end up doing the same things as we did yesterday. Our cries for actions and something different go answered, even by the actions within our control.
It can feel like advocates for no-change are working together. It is as if “the kings got together, they united and came.” (Psalm 48.4) The hurdles initially encountered are growing taller, wider, and longer. Mission difficult morphed into mission impossible.
Let me suggest the following truths as a reminder to you and I.
We are never in this by ourselves. Others are critical if we are to change. We need those that are empowered to hold us accountable for our dreams. We require defenders and advocates, individuals willing to stand with us. Change takes more than one.
Change is rarely about the immediate. It is striving when things seem impossible or improbable. It is acting in faith that doing the right thing is always the right thing, even when different outcomes will only come with time.
Being right does not mean one is right. Always listen with the intent of learning. Course corrections to earlier course corrections are not bad. Life is found in the process of living.
