African Impala

Have you ever come out of church fist pumping?

The first thing my sister said to me after the 8:30am church service at Valley Real Life was, "I want to tackle someone!!!" Again - citing extreme passion - you speak to me in someway and boy, I become a fist pumping fool. Makes me slip into my freight train ways and tell everyone I know about the latest and greatest - I totally get this from my dad BTW. Sunday was absolutely no exception.

The sermon was about not being able to control the future - which is most fitting concerning the place where Nick and I are in life right now (more on that tomorrow). At the end of the sermon, Nathan was wrapping up and told the story of the African Impala. Folks - did you know that the African Impala can jump 13 feet high? I was actually googling for an image of one of these deer like suckers when I saw one standing 8 feet on its hind legs eating leaves off a tall tree. Crazier yet, in a dead run, they can go 30 feet before its legs hit the ground! If this doesn't blow your mind, I don't know what will - when you take an Impala and put it in captivity the only thing stopping it from USING its God gifted abilities is a 3 foot wall! They are so fearful/unsure about what is on the other side of the 3 foot wall they forget their purpose and stand still. Woahh.

What is your 3 foot wall? What are you allowing to stop you from using the gift and talents God has given you? Fear of the unknown - fear of the future? Have you tried escaping the 3 foot wall and totally biffed it? Are you scared stiff?

Yes, there have been many times in my 27 years I have stopped cold in my tracks scared of what could be. Sunday, I got slapped in the face with a much needed reminder that God is in control. He knitted me in my mother's womb, knows the exact number of hairs on my head, loves me more than I can wrap my head around and created me with precious gifts and abilities - ones I am thankful I get to use in a profession which allows me to glorify God, ones I am thankful are so complimentary but not necessarily the same as the ones God has given my husband (we really make a great team).

So again I ask, what is your 3 foot wall? My challenge to you today: break through (**fist pump). Do not allow fear to hold you back from doing what you were meant to be doing...who you were made to be (**fist pump).

(**fist pump).