Lessons from a rollercoaster

The Top Thrill Dragster. Climb 420 feet and down at a top speed of 120 mph.

Last night I returned from one of the most fun-filled trips I’ve been on in a long time. A group of friends and I traveled to Sandusky, OH to make a early fall visit to Cedar Point.  It was just the trip I needed, and while I’m a bit tired, I am mentally refreshed.  It’s amazing what 60 hours outside the Beltway can do… and a dozen or so heart-grabbing roller coasters can add a little bit of excitement as well.

The trip was really kind of an allegory for the season of life that I’ve been in – a roller coaster of sorts.  Since I left my Congressional office back in May, the search for a job, the summer with my daughter, and pursuing direction in relationships and friendships, it’s been an up and down period of time.  I’ve enjoyed some of the richest experiences in my life as well as some of the most discouraging and frustrating.  It’s been a ride to say the least.

But as I stood in line at Cedar Point, awaiting the most exhilarating 17 seconds or so a human can possibly, there was an overwhelming sense of excitement, anticipation, and even fear.  The photo posted in this blog is the Top Thrill Dragster, which takes you from 0 to 120 mph in the first 4 seconds before hurling you straight up 420 feet and then back down.  The visual can grip even the most adventurous of hearts, and it did mine.

But after getting off the ride, I literally told a friend, “Wow!  That was awesome.  It wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected.”  And off I trotted to the next thrill inducing coaster.

What I’ve learned is that it’s easy to expect the worse and hope for the best.  It’s easy to just kind of “get by” – in our jobs, relationships, friendships, and life in general.  But I can’t settle for average or good.  I’m determined to press on toward ALL that God has determined to bring my way. And over the past 2 and a half weeks, God has stirred in my heart such a huge anticipation for an outbreak of incredible things – job, relationship and friendships that are coming over the horizon.  And while there may be a corkscrew or upside down loop that maybe in between here and there – I’m more than just hanging on – I’m pressing forward with expectation.  Already I am beginning to see some of these emerge and my heart is so incredibly full of life.  I know that the best is yet to come.

Just this past week, I participated in a video conference call and spoke with someone who is sure to run for President in 2012 and seen several clients move to within reach of signing respectable contracts with a new public relations startup that a friend and I have recently launched.  I can take no credit for all this, but it’s the hand of the Almighty reminding me and demonstrating that while there are ups and downs in this life, He desires to bless us and give us good things.

And while there are certainly interesting times ahead, they are no match for a loving Father who is always looking out for us.  I have never been more excited about the future and the things that God is positioning me to encounter and walk in!  Lord, bring it to pass!  I’m buckled up and ready to be launched!

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