You do not want a big, sudden, increase. It may be tempting to go after a lot all at once but big sudden increases are not sustainable. Large jumps will land you backwards, not forward.
Did you ever try to leap a stream as a child only to have your backside sitting in the water?
This is the way of windfalls.
Neither you nor I have the muscle, so to speak, to handle a big, big, load that is far beyond what we have already been carrying. It wouldn’t bless you, it would stress you, and just might break you. In the worst sort of way.
There is not a one of us that would go to the gym and begin with 200 lb weights right at the start. Why? Because you would probably be crushed by those weights! That’s why.
If you want to carry a large canister of water on your head you begin with a small canister of water on your head. If you want to carry large timbers you begin by carrying small timbers.
Any smart person begins with a small weight, gradually increasing bit by bit to a bigger weight. To do anything less than this is to risk damage to your body. It is common sense.
So it is with projects of all shapes and sizes.
Whether you are looking to increase your income, your influence, your reach, the size of your mortgage or house, of ministry or in business, whatever it might be, you want slow, steady, growth and increase. (The same is true for weight-loss or down-sizing).
Slow, steady, growth and increase will take you where you want to be. And it will be sustainable. Your muscles (of heart, wisdom, strength to say no, ability to stay on course, mature response to the troubles, gain in fortitude, and more) will grow with the increase bit by bit, happily alongside each other.
Neither you nor the increase will out-pace the other. And this is good. This is what you want.
You will make tiny increases, you will stretch out just past the reach of your fingers, and you just might feel (in that moment between steps) that it may not come together. But if you are doing it right, you are not making too big a stretch or too wide a stride and it will come together.
Keep in mind who you are. From where did you begin. What assets of person and culture and class do you already have in hand and which do you not?
If, for instance, the work you long to do requires good manners and you were not taught good manners in childhood, then it will take a little longer for you to acquire good manners as intuitive action and response. Know this.
If the work you long to do requires good money thinking and you were not taught good money thinking as a child then it will take longer for you to acquire good money thinking. Make time for this, give some years to catch up on what is lacking.
In the same way, if the work you desire to do requires the ability to deal with much that goes wrong (for instance, a leader’s main job is heading into problems, keep in mind) and yet as a child you were over-protected from anything going wrong, then you will need to find some problems and you will need to gain the fortitude for problems that you never gained as a child. This too will require some years, perhaps decades.
All of us are handicapped in some way in terms of the work that we long to do and the impact we long to have in this world. We must give time and priority to learn and acquire what we did not learn as children.
We must all critically consider, what am I already carrying? How am I managing with the weight I am already responsible for?
Is the work you are currently undertaking reaching sustainability. Are you able to carry on with greater ease what was last year’s difficulty?
If not, do not yet reach forward for more. You will be in danger of upsetting the whole cart. It is quite possible to become puffed in our thinking, counting our successes too soon.
Not everything you envision is possible. At least not at the moment. All elements must be taken into account.
To thrash forward on good will is generally not a good idea. Too many times I come upon people who are praying and begging and presuming upon God and others to make up for their bad decision making. (and I’ve been one of these! it takes years to recover)
If you are looking for quick fixes, you are probably going about life wrong. Too much too soon is a recipe for disaster.
It comes down to character. In what manner are you going forward. What is the strategy to get there. What are the ingredients that you need in particular. Do you have the strength of will to say ‘No’ when you need to?
We go from strengths to strength. This is never a leap, it is always a solid walk and sometimes a crawl.
Let me bring my rambling together:
1. Reject the windfall, the quick fix, the sudden growth. Remember, all the muscles required for more only grow bit by bit. Settle into this.
2. Go for slow steady growth. Plan this and plan for this. Make slow growth your priority. Whether you are growing a business or a school or a ministry, go forward bit by bit.
The infrastructure of people and resources and time and character strengths and decision making wisdoms and more, can only be developed over time — so take your time.
Hold out for long-term thinking and planning. Allow current projects to take deep roots, becoming established and sustainable before going on to the next thing.
Your muscles will grow. Savvy will increase. You will come to maturity and mastery will take over. What once seemed impossible will be accomplished, and more!
Bottom line: finish what you start. Be faithful with the little and you will come to more.
It is the journey of a lifetime. So begin early. Let it build.
Admit your mistakes. Adjust your course. Step back when you need to.
Quiet things down when they get out of hand. Admit your mistakes. Adjust your course.
Take it slow. Be faithful with the little. Finish what you start. Stretch forward beyond yourself.
And repeat. Then repeat again. Repeat once more.
There you go. You got it
Cyndy Lavoie 