For Those Who Try

Photo by Katrina Wright on Unsplash

Perhaps your dreams haven’t turned out the way you hoped.

Goals have not come to be.

You tried your best.
You really did!
You say to yourself,

“Is there a way I could have reached these dreams inside of me?
Is there some way of changing the way I’m thinking?

Is there something I may be too blinded by my circumstances to see?”

You look at others who have achieved their dreams.

You sigh in dismay and say.
“It’s time to put my dreams away.”

Take a break from doing this, doing that, to get to

where you want to be.

You can’t think if you’re worn out.

Your pondering will go nowhere if you don’t take time to look after

YOU.
Otherwise, the well-spring of your energy will run dry.
You’ll be so exhausted you may fail to see ideas for your next direction,

so you arrive at life’s right intersection.

In these times take a step back, pause, and breathe.

You might surprise yourself with the plans you conceive.

Ask those who know you about the qualities of character they perceive.

Whenever I’ve done this I learned things about myself I didn’t see.

It gave me a better understanding of who I am.

It caused me to take a leap of faith;

to stop always playing it safe.

You’re never too old to achieve your dreams.

I know a person who was sixty-three before she started

her Master of Divinity degree to enter ordained ministry.

Consider this:

Could it be that a different path is the way to go?

The doors you wanted to be opened either weren’t meant for now,

or there is a way to reach your dream another way.

Listen to the wise counsel of those who are in the educational program

or profession you are seeking.

The certainty of life is its uncertainty.
It’s okay to take a breather, find your private space.

We often run too fast in this human race.

There are times to slow down.

Take time to look around you and see,

the truth of this reality.

Remember it wasn’t the hare who won the race.

He was in the lead.

He gave too much energy and sprinted past the tortoise.

But the tortoise who moved slow as a snail,

in the end he did prevail.

You may not see it now, but you’re going to win the race,

if helping others see their dreams come true, is the passion

that motivates you.

It won’t make you as fast as the hare.
Your dreams may be delayed.
People will see in you a caring heart displayed.

Your story will inspire them to press on.

This life isn’t about trying so hard you poop out.
These are the abusive tapes of your past and present that say,
“You’re not trying hard enough.

You’ll never have the right stuff.

Why bother to try?

Why bother to try?”

Because those tapes are full of lies.

Full of lies is what they are.

Speak the truth of who you really are.

Listen in your soul to those who encourage,

not those who discourage.

Hear the comments on those who lift you up,

not break you down.

Stand up to bullies.

They can be mean.

They can make you cry.

They can make you feel like you want to die.
Don’t listen to them.

They have stopped trying.
They aren’t like you.

If I could just sit with you a while,

I’d tell you how beautiful inside you are!
You’re so much more than those ugly things bullies say.

You’re an overcomer.

This is true.
And I’ll tell you something else.
God has an everlasting love for you.
You are the apple of His affection.
He looks back at you with eyes of love.

He thinks a lot of you.

God sees the potential in you.
Why?

Because you try.

Because you try.

All God ever asks is that you try.

Life should be about showing others how to try,

so their dreams won’t pass them by;

so like an eagle soaring through the sky,

theirs and your dreams will never die.

theirs and your dreams will never die.

Dr. Kevin James Osborne M.A., M.Div., Psy.D.. D.A.B.T.E, C.M.H.C. is Dean of Psychology and President of Student Affairs at St. James the Elder University. Karen Osborne B.A., D.Sc. in Psychology (honoris causa) C.M.H.C. is the Registrar of St. James the Elder University.