There are times in life when we are faced with challenges. It can be a difficult task or making a difficult decision. As a leader or follower, you might have to make challenging decisions that impact the lives of others or yourself. Authors James Kouzes and Barry Posner said, “leadership challenge is about how leaders mobilize others to want extraordinary things done in organizations.” For humanity to make extraordinary things happen in life, it requires transforming values into actions, visions into realities, obstacles into innovations, separateness into solidarity, and risks into rewards.
Nothing becomes truly great until it overcomes something that looks insurmountable. Great doors of opportunity always come with great challenges, and each challenge calls for greater faith and tenacity. Think about it; if outstanding success came easily, everyone would have it. If everyone had it, it would not be outstanding success. How does a caterpillar transform into a butterfly? By overcoming the cocoon. And the cocoon is so essential to the process that the caterpillar creates it. Would not it be easier to just stay in the warmth and comfort of the cocoon? I am sure that there are times when all of us would rather stay in our comfort zone and avoid stressful events. However, life is not that way. If you are going to be successful, you must overcome challenges.
On days when the caterpillar struggles to get out of the cocoon, he probably thinks that it is not worth the struggle. This is the way life can be to us. There are days when we feel like it is not worth the struggle but something inside our humanity reminds us to step out on faith and meet the challenge. Deep down inside, the caterpillar knows the price of success and freedom. Flight and discovery require struggle, development and breakthrough. There is no other way for us to have a breakthrough.
We are all struggling to become who we are destined to be in the sight God. But we must remember that joy always come after the struggle. It comes after we have met the challenge and refused to quit. So how do you become the kind of leader people want to follow? How do you get other people in their free will and free choice, to move forward together in pursuit of a common vision? It is by accepting your responsibilities through reflection and humility and by taking advantage of every opportunity to make a difference.
Instead of complaining about struggles, ask God for more faith and see it for what it is – preparation. And remember that your level of preparation indicates the level of blessing that awaits you after the struggle. And Never Give Up! Never Give Up! Never Give Up!
By Chaplain Ghosten
chaplain@lhp.net
