“When your legs get tired, let your heart do the rest.” -Pride, 2007
Everything that flies has wings. Everything that has wings, needs space to spread them. Wings vary from color, shape, size and pace. The type of wings that gets one person from place to place may look drastically different than another set of wings that serve the same purpose – flight.
Takeoff in flight can be scary. You don’t know what to expect, it’s the start of a new thing. It’s a beginning that leads into the unknown. It’s a journey that could (and will likely) include the unplanned and unconsidered. It can be beautifully mysterious.
How do you prepare for takeoff?
Be bold // Live courageously. Hutzpah is a Yiddish and Hebrew word that describes a fiery passion – a shameless boldness. You often find this quality in persons who are boundary pushers or crossers. I like to define this quality as “sitting on GO”. Regardless of what needs to be done, someone with hutzpah has the courage to accomplish it by any means necessary.
There once was a man named Jacob, you can read about his story in the last half of the book of Genesis. Jacob’s name means supplanter.
Supplanter - to take the place of (another), as through force, scheming, strategy, or the like. Being a supplanter takes courage or hutzpah.
Jacob sat on GO.
Have an idea of where you are going // Vision. Your ability to see affects everything. Manipulative or not, Jacob was always prepared. He was always thinkin’ of a master plan. He was always ready to execute. He was always connected with necessary resources. He was always ready to innovate. He had vision.
'If people can’t see what God is doing [without a vision], they stumble all over themselves; But when they attend to what he reveals, they are most blessed.' (Proverbs 29:18 MSG)
Vision is not something that happens in isolation. In order to fly, your environment must be conducive. Taking flight can mean physical relocation, taking or leaving a job, working through or leaving a relationship, shifting in to a new realm of purpose, or doing anything that requires risk!
You gotta jump // Be willing to take a risk. Risk is simply the exposure to the chance of loss. Many of us are risk averse because we fear what we may lose. If we insulate ourselves from the potential of loss, we hinder the opportunity for gain. The ideal of loss is often connected to fear.
“God placed the best things in life on the other side of fear.”
- Will Smith
Risk does not have to be reckless - you can still operate in wisdom. Risk taking feels much more doable when you are wearing a safety belt. Case and point: I am the least adventurous person in my immediate family, but I recently challenged myself to go ziplining. While I probably drove my guide crazy with all my self-talk and questions, before I jumped off the ledge, the greatest comfort I took was in the harness hooked to me. I trusted my anchor and jumped. I silenced my apprehensions and lived out Nike’s theme: Just do it. Ziplining turned out to be an exhilarating experience that I would do again. We are good at talking ourselves out of something. But sometimes the answer to apprehension is silence - let your wings make the noise.
Done is better than perfect // Reject the ideal of perfection. Perfection is an excuse to continue to postpone. While quality is important, perfection is unnecessary and unrealistic. Reality is that when flying, turbulence is likely. Buckle up, keep it moving and get it done.
You have blind spots // Stay connected. After a flight, most people thank the pilot and give no thought to the Air Traffic Controller. Truth is, the pilot could not accomplish much without an additional set of eyes who can see what they cannot. Take advantage of your friends, family and most of all – your connection to God. Community is not only for encouragement, support and love. They are also there to cover and look out for you. Allow your supplemental eyes to aid you on your journey in order to ensure you have a safe and effective flight.
You have wings for a reason – FLY.
Use what you have and take off into your soar space!
Alecia Swoope
Alecia is a writer and speaker who's passionate about teaching and supporting people to be their best self. She loves all things relational and comfy- when she's not busy, you can find her chatting and laughing with loved ones, snuggled under a warm blanket or vibing out to feel-good music.