LESSONS FROM THE MAN UPSTAIRS

Go With Plan A! Forget Plan B!

Dont+ever+settle+for+second+best+when+it+comes+to+your+dreams%21

Don’t ever settle for second best when it comes to your dreams!

I base my articles off lots of things—songs, thoughts, food, etc.—today, I’m going to use a source from the Today Show.

As some may know, I have had mono for the past few weeks, so I have had plenty of time to catch up on my favorite morning show. Recently, there was a story on their Trending segment where they discussed career day at a British school and they sent a letter home to the parents that had encouraged the students to dress up as something they would want to be someday. However, there was a special note section that had read: “We know that some children would love to be professional sports people or pop stars or famous YouTubers in the future. These are great ambitions but so hard to achieve! Because of this, on this occasion, we’re not allowing these dress-up choices. Instead, we’d like children to think of their ‘Plan B’ choices for future jobs.”

I have never heard of something so absurd in my entire life. These teachers are practically dream crushers! Sorry, we would like children to have aspirations, but the sky is too high, so don’t reach for there. I apologize for my words, but this is simply ridiculous.

We cannot teach our kids that their dreams are too high. And it isn’t just kids—it’s us, too! I know myself, and I’ve got dreams, big dreams, in fact. I plan to own a bakery, be a teacher, and write for Runner’s World someday. Will all those things happen? Whatever God puts in my path, that is what is going to happen. But you can’t let people crush your aspirations for what you want to be!

It doesn’t matter if you are preparing for second grade, college, or getting ready for retirement, your dreams are still possible, whatever age you are. There is always time and opportunities waiting for you. Don’t ever shut the door on things you want to do. You can always come back from hard times and pursue whatever it is you want to do. It doesn’t matter what people say—your teacher, maybe your parents, or even siblings. If you want to travel the world, go for it! If you want to be the next big country singer, do it! There is absolutely no one stopping you from fulfilling your dreams. And you can have as many dreams as you want because this is life is yours. You’ve been blessed by the Lord with this beautiful life to do whatever you want with.

Do not put limitations on yourself. When making New Years resolutions, it is easy to say, “I can’t do this” or “this is too expensive” or “people won’t like me if I do this.” But it takes courage to step outside the box and take risks. Don’t follow your dreams, chase them. Chase them until you catch them and fulfill them and hit the ground running towards the next one. Michael Buble believes in you! Most importantly, God believes in you!

He has a glorious life planned for you, with twists and turns and heartache and happiness all rolled into one. But it is beautiful.

Be the person who decided to go for it. Don’t stop and wait for the opportunities to be directly in line. If you wait for the weather to be perfect, you’ll never get anything done. Now, get out there—and show the world YOU!

Proverbs 3:6 — “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”