Pursue

I'm a coach. Over the years I have learned a lot in the "Personal Development" business. Each week, there are several opportunities for powerful conversations with people and this week has been no exception. I have talked to moms, prisoners, teenagers, performers, a recovering addict, pastors, and socialites. Each conversation offered insights. At first, I thought the similarities between these people seemed few, but upon further thought I discovered one trait shared among all of them...they pursue.

I believe the endeavor of pursuit is one of our natural states, and I would argue one of the most powerful. Human beings are wired for pursuing, seeking, and chasing their goals. And even though the specifics of what we pursue will vary, all of us move towards a goal to take our lives somewhere. 

Our life’s pursuits are not just our own, they involve others as we enter into their pursuits and they, ours. Think about the powerful moments you've experienced in your life. They likely are a journey and include at least one other. And, to take this a bit further, those moments you experienced were powerful. When we achieve our goals, we experience what we were meant to do!

As a coach, I ask a question. Are you available to success? Are you open to the possibility of achieving what you pursue? As a Christian I believe God created us to pursue our callings, do so in communion with others, and encourage as many as possible along the way. This only occurs if we are open to success; are you? I believe we were not only designed to pursue our goals, but to succeed.

Unfortunately, our states of pursuit and availability are often interrupted, or worse, halted by fear. How many times have you and I wanted to act, but then wilt because of what might happen? What causes us to so often miss our chance to actually conquer our fear and achieve what we chase? The problem, too often, is us.

We miss moments because we were unwilling to live totally outside of our fears, laziness, shortsightedness, or insecurities. Said another way, we simply lack courage. Well, the good news is two-fold; we in fact do have the perfect amount of courage AND God, offers us some wisdom to pursue and achieve through Jesus!

Luke 19:1-10 tells the story of a little man named, Zacchaeus. He was the town's rich, but crooked, tax collector. Zac heard the news that Jesus was coming to town and wanted a front row seat. However, he hit obstacles on his way to the front of the crowd to see Jesus. As a short guy, the odds of him achieving his goal were slim. But, it was Zac's relentless pursuit of a moment with Jesus that set the stage for what happened next. Zac, seeing the direction Jesus was taking, ran around the back of the crowd, found a tree, and hoisted himself up onto a branch - all while being heckled by the crowd. Then it gets even better...when Jesus walked through the crowd he stopped under that very tree, he looked straight up at Zac and said, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today." 

Zac was willing to go the extra mile to meet his goal and Jesus was willing to help! This story teaches us that not only is Jesus always open to us, he's interested in knowing us. He will help us achieve what we pursue.

Jesus could have easily shouted up to Zac that his sins were forgiven and carry on. But he did more - he pursued Zac because he knew Zac was pursuing him. The moment changed Zac. It moved him to offer half of his possessions to the poor. And, if that wasn't already repentance enough, he promised to pay back four times as much to all he had defrauded in taxes!

The story shows when we chase a goal God will meet us in the middle and help us achieve what we pursue. Jesus did it for Zac, and he will do the same for you! 

If this post touched you, I'd love to hear your comments and invite you to share this with others.