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Thursday, August 20, 2009
2:50 PM
Put on your creative and imaginative caps as I bring you through an exciting journey with me…
Imagine…
You are standing in front of the open gates of a giant maze with its concrete walls towering to as high as 10 metres.
You have to get across the maze, and find your way out – through that one and only exit.
The rule: One step taken, one move made, not reversible. No U-turns allowed.
Your first step was easy. You look ahead of you, a straight quiet path. You made your second move. Not difficult at all.
You increased your speed at every pace you made. You began walking,
and walking,
and walking,
and walking…
And you stopped.
You arrived at your first crossroads, an empty path to your right and another to your left.
A crucial decision has to be made. It’s either or, one that leads to the desired destination, or the other, a dead end.
“Which way should I go?”
A gush of emotions engulfs you. Fear, lost, confusion, hesitation, you can’t decide.
With much contemplation, “Right, I should turn right. Yes, that should be it.”
And you turned.
Not knowing what lies ahead of you, you just kept walking.
You walked,
and walked…
and walked…
“Man, if only I’m able to have an overview of the maze. I would know which way to turn, which path to choose, anticipate the crossroads. I will get to the end in no time!” you sighed grouchily.
Knowing there’s no way for you to turn back; you grit your teeth, clenched your fist, take a deep breath, and kept on walking,
and walking,
and walking…
Your footsteps got heavier, and heavier. Perspiration drops trickled off your face incessantly as the scorching sun shone down on planet earth. You are exhausted but you just couldn’t stop. Along came more crossroads… tougher decisions you had to make.
Crossroads,
and crossroads,
and more crossroads!
You sensed deep in your heart, that all this is coming to an end. You anticipate excitedly, and started making your final dashes… only to find yourself standing in front of a 10m tall concrete wall.
Your heart sank. “Dead-end?! How can it be?! Didn’t I make the right decisions all these while? I want to do this all over again!”
Regrets…
The End…
Moral of the story?
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“Mazes are bad!”
Nope, think deeper.
Ask yourself these questions…
“What has this story got to say about my life? How is it related to me? How can I identify with it?”
This is life. Our lives are like mazes. Take a look at the similarities.
Both mazes and life…
• Have only one chance; no U-turn
• You can’t see the overview; predict the right move
• There are crossroads; decisions
• Your goal is to end up where you want to be; intentions
• You will end up where your decisions lead you; destination
Now, to sum up the whole thing, the key principle is this.
Our decisions, not our intentions, determine our destination.
Example 1:
You INTEND to get A for your exam. But you DECIDE to play dota all day. So obviously, your DESTINATION, where you end up, is you will not get A.
Example 2:
You INTEND to win in a race. But you DECIDE to eat unhealthily and refuse to train. So obviously, your DESTINATION, where you end up, is you will not win the race.
Example 3:
You INTEND to have a good relationship. But you DECIDE not to make effort. So obviously, your DESTINATION, where you end up, is you will not have a good relationship.
Example 4:
You INTEND to get closer to God. But you DECIDE not to do your quiet time. So obviously, your DESTINATION, where you end up, is you will not get close to God.
Example 5:
You INTEND to do great things for God. But you DECIDE not to obey Him. So obviously, your DESTINATION, where you end up, is you will not do great things for God.
Example 6:
You INTEND to enjoy a great marriage. But you DECIDE to fool around with girls. So obviously, your DESTINATION, where you will end up, is you will not enjoy a great marriage.
Do these make sense to you?
Our decisions, not our intentions, determine our destination.
Remember this principle.
And another thing to take note is this…
We only have one life; one chance to make it right.
So the main question is this…
HOW TO MAKE THE RIGHT DECISIONS!?
Truth is, we can never make the right decisions on our own, especially when the we are in the maze itself. We cannot see what is ahead, or the overview. And, in life, we tend to make decisions based on feelings. We make decisions that have more emotional appeal. Thus, it is really hard to make the right decisions.
But there is a way.
Here are some suggestions:
1. Look ahead and don’t rush to decide
2. Learn from others who have been through it
3. Lean on God and ask Him for directions and listen to Him
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