A woman making funeral arrangements for her husband requested that her husband be buried in a dark blue suit. “Wouldn’t it be easier to just bury him in the black suit that he’s already wearing,” the funeral director asked. But the woman insisted that it must be a blue suit, and gave the funeral director a blank check to buy one. When she returned for the wake, she saw her husband in the coffin wearing a beautiful blue suit. She complimented the funeral director on his choice of outfit, and asked how much it cost. He said, “Actually, it didn’t cost anything. The funniest thing happened. As soon as you left, another corpse was brought in and he was wearing a blue suit. I noticed that they were about the same size, so I asked the other widow if she would mind if her husband were buried in a black suit. She said that was fine with her. So I switched the heads.”
This story crudely illustrates the problem with taking shortcuts. As in this story, when you take short cuts, you often do more harm than good. If you want to realize your purpose then, you must take your time and do the right things the right way so you will have the right impact.
I get it. You’ve been waiting a long time to realize your dream. You have prayed, planned, and positioned yourself for success…or so you thought. However, sometimes our impatience gets the best of us. The worst decisions are usually made at the least opportune times. Typically, this is when you are close to completing a task but you don’t realize how close you actually are. This is why Paul warned us “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;” (Philippians 4:6). Recently, in a Bible study with my wife, I told her that there is no other scripture that I both love and dislike so much all at once. First, let me tell you why I dislike it. If you know me, you know that I am very persistent and focused. I know the goal I want to attain and I go towards it with resolute determination. The problem is that sometimes things don’t go according to plan or better yet, God’s version of the plan is taking a lot longer than my version. Conversely, I also love the scripture because it reminds me that I have an avenue for success. I can go to God and “make my requests known” and as the next verse says, “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). In other words, even though I don’t always know the specifics of His plan I do know I am in His plan. That fact provides me assurance that everything will come to pass as He sees fit and in a way that best fits the time, the environment, and the people that will be impacted. The unknown is not the same as uncertainty. You may not know how He’s going to get you there but you know that He will.
Best-selling author, Orrin Woodward said, “There are many shortcuts to failure, but there are no shortcuts to true success.” You and I have to decide whether time is of the essence or whether we will squeeze the essence out of our time. Is it more important to get ‘there’ swiftly or is it more important to get ‘there’ successfully? The road to success is paved with failures. But failures become lessons and lessons become growth and growth becomes clarity. Skipping steps cannot attain that clarity, which is only wrought in the abundance of experiences, both personal and witnessed. Paul said it like this, “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope” (Romans 5:3-4). James, the half-brother of Jesus, gave us a similar message, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” (James 1:2-4)
When you are climbing a ladder it can be dangerous or even fatal to skip a rung. This statement becomes even truer as you reach new heights in life. As you climb towards the fulfillment of your purpose, be careful not to skip any steps and be mindful to enjoy each step along the way.