An Invitation to Adventure

I don’t know that I’ve met anyone that doesn’t dream of adventure. Even as children we have dreams of being an astronaut, or a pirate, or a knight in shining armor. We imagine ourselves as firefighters, pilots, warriors, princesses, and kings. Some of us pursue and catch our dreams and live the adventure. And yet for many, maybe even for most, life happens and they find themselves pursuing happiness, comfort, and peace. In the process, they find neither adventure nor the happiness they’ve so diligently sought after.

I was watching a video recently that reminded me that Christ’s invitation to follow Him did not come with a promise of happiness or exemption from suffering, rather it was an invitation to an adventure. An adventure full of risk and reward, hardship and joy, chaos and peace.

In fact, an adventure would not be an adventure without risk, sacrifice, and suffering. Those are some of the ingredients that go into making a worthwhile exploit. On the journey there will also be joy, peace, wonder, and amazement, but those things come at a cost. The invitation to follow Christ is an invitation to join Him in The Grand Adventure of all time. The pursuit is not happiness, the pursuit is the One we are following…Jesus Christ. There will be pitfalls, pain, and disappointment along the way (all great adventures have them). There will be moments where you want to quit, give up, and go home. Abandon the journey.

There will also be moments of great satisfaction, amazing peace, and inexplicable joy. It’s a paradox, and it can’t always be explained. But ultimately, there will be this moment where we catch what we are pursuing…and we will look Him in the face and see Him in all His glory. In that moment, all the pain, all the heartache, and all the tears will disappear. We will look back on our journey and think, “what a ride!”

Until then, we must stay in the fight…and it is a fight. Any journey worth taking will require us to push through, stay the course, and war against the constant desire to quit.

The past 3 years for our family have been full of agony, despair, and pain. But we are still in the fight. It’s difficult and I still have days where I want to quit. In fact, this past week has been full of “throw in the towel” moments. I actually began writing this blog 2 weeks ago, and then I was hit with the weight of everything we’re carrying. So, I didn’t finish writing because I lost my perspective. I’ve had to push through and find that place of pursuit that enables me to get back in the fight…it’s a constant battle when we choose the adventure over comfort.

But make no mistake, choosing comfort and happiness is no less problematic. In fact, the end result will ultimately prove to be worse. So, stay in the fight. Don’t quit. An adventure beyond your wildest dreams is waiting.

Peace.