Apparently there's a movie coming out sometime later this year, about a woman who went on 1,000+ mile hike alone, as a way to reflect and find herself.
No offense, but my gut reaction to that was, "That's a terrible idea." There are so many things that could go wrong out there by yourself. What if you fall and sprain or break something? What if you get bit or attacked by something? What if you get totally lost? What if you run out of supplies? What if the weather changes? I mean, I recently heard a story about a whole group of people that hiked up Everest - 8 or 10, a couple of whom were trail guides - and only 2 or 3 survived the trip after an unexpected storm popped up. After hearing about that, you couldn't pay me to go on a hiking or camping trip by myself.
Another movie: Frozen. LOVE IT. Such a great movie. Everyone should see it... multiple times.
But so, one of the girls in the story has powers that her family wants to keep a secret. Solution: we'll just conceal them and she'll be kept away and secluded so that nobody sees these powers and nobody gets hurt. My gut reaction, which I actually spoke out loud in the theater: "That's a recipe for disaster. That's a horrible plan." And it turns out to be, later in the movie.
My point is that trying to fly solo is not the smartest option, in any case, ever.
I've known so many people who have gone through difficult things, and have set themselves up for failure in overcoming their challenges. These people that end up defeated, they always try and tackle their problems in the same way.
Step 1: Deal with problems alone before anyone notices something's amiss.
Step 2: When tackling challenges alone proves harder than originally thought, pretend that nothing's wrong.
Step 3: Get frustrated and push people away.
Step 4: Give up.
And from the inside looking out, this looks totally reasonable. Because who really wants to know about all my issues, or who would really care about me if they knew what I was going through, or what I did, or how I'm living, or what I'm struggling with? And if I got myself into this mess, I can get myself out of it. Right?
You see, the problem is, this whole way of thinking and going it all alone - it's not true. Why not? Because it negates love.
Love is a communion. It presupposes a relationship, aka more than just someone alone. Love is a giving of oneself for the good of another person. Sometimes, the person that receives the good, is the one giving of themselves. Often, we need to give of ourselves for the sake of our own well being. And that might seem selfish, but there's nothing selfish about wanting to be loved. Our souls cry out for love. We come alive when we love and are loved. We were made by, through, in and for Love. It's nothing less that the greatness to which we are all called. It's not selfish, it's full-filling our purpose.
So never go it alone. Whether that means a hiking trip, or a hard life decision, or a transition into a new phase of life - don't try and do it all by yourself. Don't shut people out of your sufferings. I know that's easier said then done sometimes. I'm the first in line when it comes to covering up flaws and struggles. We're all scared to be vulnerable and appear weak at times. But, to try and pass off as perfect is a lie, and just shuts people out of what we're really going through. It's hard to be open and humbled, but we need to be honest about our shortcomings. We can't do it alone. Even Christ was helped in carrying His Cross. He carried it, no doubt, but He didn't do it alone.
Don't shut people out of your adventures, out of the downs and the ups of your life. Trust in the fact that there are people that care about you and want to walk with you on your journey. As soon as Jesus set out in ministry, on His mission for His time on earth, what did Jesus do? Established community, called disciples, made friends. He made sure He wasn't alone. Lean on and love your friends. If friends are hard to come by these days, pray for them. Seriously. Multiple times in my life God has come through on that prayer for me. Why? Because God doesn't want us to be alone.
"It is not good for man to be alone...."
Why? Because God doesn't go it alone. He chooses to love us and bring us into all that He is. He chooses to work through us as the Body of Christ here on earth. If God chooses not to go it alone, that should tell us something. God is Trinity. He never goes it alone, and if God doesn't, we shouldn't. Man is made in the image of the Triune God. Our essence is communion. It's impossible for us to be fully alive in isolation.
Never go it alone. Enter into communion, during the good and the bad, and live the love you were made to live.
No offense, but my gut reaction to that was, "That's a terrible idea." There are so many things that could go wrong out there by yourself. What if you fall and sprain or break something? What if you get bit or attacked by something? What if you get totally lost? What if you run out of supplies? What if the weather changes? I mean, I recently heard a story about a whole group of people that hiked up Everest - 8 or 10, a couple of whom were trail guides - and only 2 or 3 survived the trip after an unexpected storm popped up. After hearing about that, you couldn't pay me to go on a hiking or camping trip by myself.
Another movie: Frozen. LOVE IT. Such a great movie. Everyone should see it... multiple times.
But so, one of the girls in the story has powers that her family wants to keep a secret. Solution: we'll just conceal them and she'll be kept away and secluded so that nobody sees these powers and nobody gets hurt. My gut reaction, which I actually spoke out loud in the theater: "That's a recipe for disaster. That's a horrible plan." And it turns out to be, later in the movie.
My point is that trying to fly solo is not the smartest option, in any case, ever.
I've known so many people who have gone through difficult things, and have set themselves up for failure in overcoming their challenges. These people that end up defeated, they always try and tackle their problems in the same way.
Step 1: Deal with problems alone before anyone notices something's amiss.
Step 2: When tackling challenges alone proves harder than originally thought, pretend that nothing's wrong.
Step 3: Get frustrated and push people away.
Step 4: Give up.
And from the inside looking out, this looks totally reasonable. Because who really wants to know about all my issues, or who would really care about me if they knew what I was going through, or what I did, or how I'm living, or what I'm struggling with? And if I got myself into this mess, I can get myself out of it. Right?
You see, the problem is, this whole way of thinking and going it all alone - it's not true. Why not? Because it negates love.
Love is a communion. It presupposes a relationship, aka more than just someone alone. Love is a giving of oneself for the good of another person. Sometimes, the person that receives the good, is the one giving of themselves. Often, we need to give of ourselves for the sake of our own well being. And that might seem selfish, but there's nothing selfish about wanting to be loved. Our souls cry out for love. We come alive when we love and are loved. We were made by, through, in and for Love. It's nothing less that the greatness to which we are all called. It's not selfish, it's full-filling our purpose.
So never go it alone. Whether that means a hiking trip, or a hard life decision, or a transition into a new phase of life - don't try and do it all by yourself. Don't shut people out of your sufferings. I know that's easier said then done sometimes. I'm the first in line when it comes to covering up flaws and struggles. We're all scared to be vulnerable and appear weak at times. But, to try and pass off as perfect is a lie, and just shuts people out of what we're really going through. It's hard to be open and humbled, but we need to be honest about our shortcomings. We can't do it alone. Even Christ was helped in carrying His Cross. He carried it, no doubt, but He didn't do it alone.
Don't shut people out of your adventures, out of the downs and the ups of your life. Trust in the fact that there are people that care about you and want to walk with you on your journey. As soon as Jesus set out in ministry, on His mission for His time on earth, what did Jesus do? Established community, called disciples, made friends. He made sure He wasn't alone. Lean on and love your friends. If friends are hard to come by these days, pray for them. Seriously. Multiple times in my life God has come through on that prayer for me. Why? Because God doesn't want us to be alone.
"It is not good for man to be alone...."
Why? Because God doesn't go it alone. He chooses to love us and bring us into all that He is. He chooses to work through us as the Body of Christ here on earth. If God chooses not to go it alone, that should tell us something. God is Trinity. He never goes it alone, and if God doesn't, we shouldn't. Man is made in the image of the Triune God. Our essence is communion. It's impossible for us to be fully alive in isolation.
Never go it alone. Enter into communion, during the good and the bad, and live the love you were made to live.