KEEP MOVING FORWARD

Keep Moving Forward

Philippians 3:12-14 (NIV)

¹² Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. ¹³ Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Have you ever noticed that anytime we are promoted in life at the first sign of trouble or if we see something we don’t like, we wish for an instant demotion? What we had before starts looking better than what we remembered, we forget all our complaints, and all the prayers we sent up to for something better. Sometimes the problem may be small but since we are uncomfortable in a new environment anyway it becomes the size of a mountain and then we make it bigger. We call anyone who will support our decision to find something else because there is no way this is going to work out. If you are super dramatic like I can be, you will reach out to all your friends to see what else is out there. Whenever you are uncomfortable in a situation everything automatically seems ten times worse.

Last April God answered my prayers and I was blessed with a new position at a downtown hospital. I was excited because I prayed continuously and fasted to be moved to something better and this was it. I knew this position was heaven sent because I never applied for it, I just prayed, fasted, and waited. It fell out of the sky via email I was recruited, lol. The patient to nurse ratio would be better, there would be room for growth within the organization, and I could see myself retiring from there. It also came with a nice financial increase, the largest amount in my career as a bedside nurse. It all confirmed to me I was on the right path. Everything appeared to be wonderful until I had to sit in traffic for two hours a day and this would be a daily routine for the next three weeks.

After the first three weeks I learned I would have to attend educational classes in addition to the hours worked on the floor. I also had over 100 computer learning activities to complete. Instantly I wanted to return to my previous position because it was less than 15 minutes from my apartment, traffic was never an issue, and my computer courses were already completed. I did not care about being called into the office about my co-worker’s negative perceptions of me, the heavy patient assignments, shared patient/nurse bathrooms, or no real lunch breaks. I had become accustomed to all of the problems there and I was going back. I felt that I had made a huge mistake and I must have received God’s instructions incorrectly. I did not care about what pain came with it I just wanted my comfort back. Have you been here before?

One drive home I broke down, and I broke down terribly. The traffic was very bad that day and I had a difficult twelve-hour shift with only a fifteen-minute lunch break. I could not hold it in anymore and I even didn’t try. I cried and talked to God and cried until I had nothing left. If someone was watching me, they would have thought I was being held hostage. After that I felt a weigh lifted off me and I knew everything would be fine I just had to be patient.  At the end of each day I realized it would be foolish for me to return to delusional comfort instead of moving forward and mastering an uncomfortable situation.

What I did not realize, I was being held hostage. I was being held hostage by comfort. Comfort will keep you in the same dead-end position that you hate because you know it so well, and you can do it in your sleep. This does not just apply to work comfort can keep you from moving forward in any area of your life. Anytime we decide to stop moving forward we stop growing and I know I’m not finished growing. I don’t know if all that crying healed me but whatever it released, I was able to keep going. Never be afraid to cry, it cleanses the soul.

Now fast forward four months later I now live closer to my brothers, church, and work. I have a larger place, I’m saving money on child care, and did I mention I absolutely love this area. What is truly amazing is my list of gratitude could go on and on because I notice something new each time I look around. Yes, I have cried some more, I have prayed even more, I struggled to find my way around, but I am thriving. I had to learn to trust my intuition and endure the discomfort that comes along with growth. Remember when God is moving you from one situation to the next the road may be bumpy before it becomes smooth again. Your growth takes place along the bumps. Ask yourself if you are where you want to be, if not make some changes. I know that sounds silly but its that simple. Is comfort holding you hostage? Never be afraid of a few bumps, we have something for that!! My journey continues…

BNV