Here it comes, phase 3 of Hope, Vision, Ambition, Completion, the ambition part. We’ve discussed the importance of hope and vision. I have emphasized the usefulness of committing our desires to the Lord and allowing him to unveil the vision of our lives to us. Now it is time to get to the action part of the sequence.

Ambition involves the desperate pursuit of our vision and hopes. Ambition is taking these ideas a step further and moving toward them in faith, trusting that they will be accomplished. James 2:17 reads, “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” This means that we can believe for something to happen but if we don’t take action, all we have is a fantasy or a dream. But life is not a Disney movie, and not everything happens if we just believe.

Many people use the analogy of pregnancy and child-birth as a way to explain the process of pursuing a vision. I am not going to re-invent the wheel, because I believe this process explains it perfectly.

At some point we may decide we want a child, we dream about it, imagine what life would be like with a child of our very own. We look at baby clothes with a heartwarming sensation of someday being able to dress our own baby. We anticipate the day we will be a mother, than we take this desire to our partner. We begin to work toward creating a baby. We work together to make this child a real live human being. Once the baby has been conceived, it begins to grow inside of us. We take special precautions to ensure the baby is born healthy. We attend regular check-ups with the doctor, try to eat healthy, avoid things that could harm our child, take vitamins and get plenty of rest. We take special care to make sure our baby comes into the world as planned, free from flaws. As anyone who has ever had a child knows, pregnancy is not easy. There is much discomfort, inconvenience, insecurity and sacrifice that comes with having a child. It takes 9 months to ensure a healthy, whole and complete child. Most of us, by the 8th month are screaming we want the child born NOW, we can not wait until the 42 week. Some of us even start to think this child will NEVER come. We believe the baby will be stuck in our belly forever! It can become agonizing and frustrating. However, even in our selfishness, we know it is important we wait the full term for the safety of the child. We will sacrifice our own comfort to ensure our child is ok.

Then, as if the long, grueling 9 months is not pain enough there is the labor. The labor lasts hours, its horribly painful and it involves work. We must push. We have to give some strenuous, difficult pushes in order for that baby to present himself to the world. However, once we hold that beautiful creation in our arms, suddenly the inconvenience of pregnancy, the pain of child-birth is all forgotten and all that matters is we are holding the most beautiful creature we’ve ever seen. We experience a love we never imagined we could feel. This moment makes all the struggle completely worth it.

Ambition toward our vision is just the same. Our visions are big, they are powerful and will require our actions to make them happen. We may have to endure the discomfort, inconvenience, insecurity that the 9 months of pregnancy requires. While we are preparing to birth our vision we will need to carry it, and carry it to completion in order for it to be born as it was intended. We will need to take special care while carrying our vision to ensure is it birthed perfectly. We will need to monitor our choices to ensure they coincide with our ultimate goal. We will need to avoid dangerous people or situations that could detour us from our ultimate desire. We must handle our vision with care. It may get to the point, when the vision is near birth that we want to scream, “I want it now, I can’t take this anymore!” But as with a baby, we know that if our vision is born premature it may have complications. We want the perfect, without flaw vision. Most importantly, we need to focus on the work that is coming soon. The pregnancy all leads to up to the hardest part, the labor. It is called labor for a reason, because it is work. The birthing process requires hours of painful, agonizing contractions. This is the point we feel tired, question why we ever chose this, but we also know there is no turning back. We can not stop the process, we have to keep going. Then comes the time where the doctor says its time to push, the baby is ready to be born. Our heavenly doctor tells us it’s time to push. The labor is almost to an end, it is time to push, this vision is ready to be birthed. We may push many times or only a few times, but either way we must do the work. The doctor may help but the hard part is on us. However, once it is all said and done and we hold that precious piece of handiwork in our arms, the pain subsides, the struggle is forgotten and we are emersed in the glory of holding our creation, our vision.

If you have been following this blog you are at the point where it’s time to push. It is time to withstand the heavy labor, endure the pain and push this vision into existence. Push beyond circumstances, push beyond resistance, push beyond doubt and insecurity, push toward the ultimate prize of holding your vision in your hands.

Phillipians 3:14 “I press on toward the goal to win the supreme and heavenly prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward.”

The labor and pain are temporary, the pregnancy WON’T last forever there is a tangible, powerful, real life experience waiting at the end of this difficult process. But we must carry it to full term, we must experience the pain of labor and we must do the work to push. We can consider God’s grace our epidural or pain medication. He can ease the pain, lighten the struggle, lessen the labor. He can make the experience more bearable and provide the support we need to complete this task. He can be our coach, physician, nurse, midwife and comforter through the whole process. Yet, He will require a push on our part. Prepare for the push, but expect the tangible miracle of the birth of your vision.

Until next time, remain strong and don’t give up before the birth is complete. Thank you for reading. You are loved, you are blessed, you are able. May the peace of God be with you during your push.