Welcome back!
Especially while starting out, it’s a good protective strategy not to make a major announcement about your destiny and what your plan for reaching it is. Don’t set yourself up for more heartbreak by letting people who are already some degree of unsupportive have the chance to be unsupportive about this too. Here’s another analogy. Mothers don’t run out into the middle of the town square to give birth publicly. They seek a private place that will be nurturing for them and welcoming for the baby. Only their trusted professionals and closest support people get to be present for the birth. So it is with your destiny. Don’t offer it up as fodder in the town square. Find a private, nurturing place in which to do your praying and your planning. Gather your closest, most trusted people around you and share progress with them as it comes, until like a human child your destiny has grown up enough to withstand some bumps and spills out in the larger world.
Making adjustments to relationships can happen in a variety of ways. Strive to resolve problems while preserving relationships, and not make any bad situations you’re facing even worse. You want to do your part to create a positive environment. You may be the first example someone has ever seen who actually rose above their circumstances and went on to a better life. Learn to distinguish the difference between someone who is hesitant about what you’re doing, and someone who is genuinely unsupportive. Try to keep talking through things, be a good friend to them, and have compassion for where they are at. They don’t have to adjust overnight, there is time to work things out. As time passes it will become clear who believes in your destiny and who doesn’t. You may already have a good instinctive sense of this, but it may take time to confirm it. No matter what kind of adjustment you decide needs to be made, pray for the other person. One of my father’s last lessons to me, and it holds profound wisdom, was “pray for your enemies, you never know what they might be going through.” Note that he didn’t say to keep putting up with their nonsense, or subjecting yourself to harm. No, he was a big believer in taking action to set things right in every area of our lives, but he was also realistic that not every person would treat us well. He wanted me to do what he did, to rise above the fray by keeping myself safe, and by not harboring any anger or resentment. He wanted me to know there is freedom in praying for our enemies and it brings great blessings for everyone involved.
Until next time, I’ll be praying for you to pray for your enemies. Just try it, and watch the power that unfolds.
