Settling

Not everyone is afflicted with great expectations.

Many of us secretly believe that the safest path is the one where our hearts are kept on a tight leash. If we don't want much...we are seldom disappointed. A short wish list makes for an easier life--or so it seems. No one would accuse us of harboring great expectations. At some invisible place we don't even remember, we decided to aim low and to retreat from the risky places where our hearts might take a painful hit or two. We get good at settling. It's a familiar tale--one that thousands of us live--and if folks knew our real story, they would understand why...

It takes such courage to stay awake to possibility--to keep bringing a hungry heart back to God, over and over, until he says it's time to let go. It takes faith to believe that if God says no to a good dream...it means God is up to something that will, eventually, have his glory written all over it. I find that trusting God with my life often leads to a place that's exhilirating and yet oddly painful at times. Indeed, it can hurt to hope.

--Better than My Dreams by Paula Rinehart, pps. 19-20