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Obstacles, Real . Or Imagined?
August 08, 2004
Have you ever faced an obstacle so large, one that felt so impassable, that it seemed impossible to overcome? Did it feel like the cost of getting through it might be extreme? Did the risks to overcome it seem tremendous? Might the changes it would require potentially move you in a new, unknown-even scary-way? Could you lose something or someone very dear to you if you did make the change? Were the payoffs for walking through the obstacle unclear?
An old farmer had plowed around a large rock in one of his fields for years. He had broken several plowshares and a cultivator on it, and he had grown rather disgusted about the rock.
After breaking another plowshare one day, he decided to do something about it.
He put the crowbar under the rock and was surprised to discover that the rock was only about six inches thick, and that he could break it up easily with only a sledgehammer. As he was carting the pieces away, he had to smile, remembering all the trouble that the rock had caused him over the years, and how easy it would have been to get rid of it sooner. He had perceived that because the rock had broken several plowshares, it must have been huge. And he found out it wasn't.
What are the obstacles in your life? Which ones have you walked around, avoided, ignored, or allowed to rule your life, for days, months, years?
It's been my experience that most obstacles are really perceived obstacles, and that these obstacles are almost always self-created. No one was stopping me from pursuing my goals, no one was telling me I couldn't do this or that, no one was holding me back. (In fact, most people are aware of what others around them are doing, but they're usually concerned more about themselves . and not about you. For example, are you concerned about what others do, really?)
Perceived obstacles are almost always constructed of limiting beliefs, fears, lack of self-esteem, lack of knowledge, "selling out", and righteousness (being right with no possibility of being wrong). And there are others, for sure. In my experience, building the obstacles takes a lot longer time than walking through them.
How will you walk through your obstacles? Sometimes we can't see clearly the obstacles, or the circumstances around them, so the path is unclear. We lose perspective. Enlisting the help of a coach, counselor, consultant, or close friend can often help you see your situation in a clearer, fresher way, so that YOU can then make the choices necessary for stepping right through most any obstacle.
Once you've gotten the support you need and can see the situation clearly, listen to your heart (very important!), be loving, thoughtful, and kind, and then, take that step which will set you FREE!
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