Progressive

"Progress, no matter how slowly, is all that matters."-Don Miller

I feel like I've made some good progress this week. Physically, spiritually, mentally, relationally, creatively. Slowly but surely. I feel pretty accomplished at the moment, and that feels absolutely incredible. I haven't "arrived" by any means, but it finally feels like I'm getting somewhere. I've learned something about progress this week: it's really stinking incredibly hard to make.

It means doing things that absolutely horrify me, putting forth time and effort, and fighting through tears, frustrations, and a lack of motivation.

It's determination and sacrifice and pushing myself further than I think I can go.

It's when everything in me wants to give up, and God, in a way I don't understand, gives me strength and I'm able to keep going.

It's casting off my pride and begging God for mercy.

It's choosing to go forward in relationships when they feel distant and incomplete, knowing that if I give up on them, there's absolutely no hope of improvement.

It's knowing that good things rarely come quickly.

It's consistency.

And it's pain. Lots and lots of pain. Heart-wrenching, excruciating, eye-opening pain. Pain that is progress in disguise.

I want to challenge you to do something difficult. Pursue that friendship. Do what God tells you to do, no matter how ridiculous or insignificant it may seem. Try something new. Train for that marathon.

Allow yourself to feel the pain of progression. Only then will you allow yourself to feel the joy of progression.