I can't do this!!
I can’t do this. Hmmm…I know I have said this statement before….and I have for sure thought it!! You? Maybe when things get tough in life, or maybe before we even start a daunting task!
I seem to learn a lot of life lessons from my kids! The latest lesson came last week when we took our 4 kids to a water park. The lesson I learned from my 2 year old was all about facing our fears and moving forward with confidence!
When we first arrived to see the water, slides, buckets, and more, the 2 year old watched her older brother and sister go down the slides with absolutely no fear. She, on the other hand, had a look of absolute terror all over her face! When I asked her if she wanted to go down the small slide – she clung to me and said “no way mommy…I not do that!”
As it didn’t matter to me one way or another, we went about spraying each other, dumping water, and just having a great time. But I kept catching her looking over at those slides. She would inch a little closer, a little closer, and pretty soon, she pointed to the top and said “I want to do it mommy!”. Okay!! I was excited for her and went to go with her. BUT…
This was one of those small kid slides that they don’t let an adult hold them on the way down – and you can’t even walk them up the 4 steps to the top of the slide. So, I decided that the best spot for me would be at the bottom of the slide, showing her I was there for her!
She slowly climbed the stairs and looked at me again and again for some reassurance. I was yelling with everything inside of me things like – “Go Taylor!” and “You can do it”…. She would hardly even smile – but she saw me. She heard me. She got to the top of the 4 stairs, and all she needed to see at the bottom were my hands and arms open and reaching for her. Without any hesitation, she went down that slide.
She didn’t say it was fun, she hardly even smiled when she made it, but guess what? She jumped out of that water, climbed back up those stairs, and did it again.
Every trip I would cheer her on, encourage her, and remind her that she could do it!! Before I knew it, she was laughing, having fun, and that slide became the highlight of the day!
As I sat there and watched her, I thought about us as adults!! How many times do we have something that we are facing and we have such fear or dread, that we can’t bring ourselves to start the task? Or maybe we get started on something, and it feels overwhelming and HARD and so we just want to give up and stop?
BUT what happens when we get a little encouragement from someone else?
What happens when we feel supported?
What happens when we look to God for our help and support?
What happens when someone is there to assure us that it will all be okay, and they will be there every step of the way?
Well, the impossible becomes possible. The daunting becomes doable. The task becomes a joyful.
The day at the water slide watching Taylor get through her fear, was full of lessons that I have since used:
- Encouragement goes a long way (for us to receive and give).
- Supporting others on their journey is always a blessing.
- May we try to always be excited for other’s success.
- Our confidence needs to come from God alone! When we have God-confidence, we can rest in the truth that He is in control!