Only Those Who Risk Are Free
What are you willing to risk?
Lately I’ve been reflecting on my life, my experiences and how I’ve been living. What I’ve discovered is that I’ve been making too many decisions rooted in fear.
And if I’m brave enough to dive a little deeper, I’ll admit that I’ve been too paralyzed by fear to really live my life. I rarely go out on adventures. I barely take chances. I never raise the stakes. And this is not how God designed me to be.
Fear-based decisions feel horrible. They affirm my insecurities, make me feel misaligned, worsen my anxiety, and keep me from reaching my full potential. It keeps me in a state of complacency, unwilling to take the necessary risks I need to move forward.
And now is not the time to NOT move forward.
My partner’s motto is “only those who risk are free” and it inspires me more and more each day. Because I’ve been playing it too safe. I don’t feel free. I feel trapped in my emotions and needlessly anxious. I want to unbind myself from those feelings.
My community deserves a version of me that is brave, bold, courageous. My loved ones deserves a version of me that is present and at peace. And I deserve a version of me whose nervous system is regulated.
But what does it mean to “risk” or be “free” anyway?
Taking The Risk
Risk can be defined as opportunities (positive risks) or threats (negative risks). It all depends on the situation.
A positive risk, or opportunity, is an uncertain event that can have a beneficial or advantageous impact. Unlike threats which can cause a possibility of harm or exposure to danger.
To be free is to not be under the control or power of another and to be able to act as one wishes.
So when you say “only those who risk are free”, what you’re really saying is only those who face the uncertainty of a situation are unbound by barriers or limits.
And boy do I want to know what THAT feels like!
The older I get, the more I think of my mortality. The last thing I want to do is look God in His holy face and tell Him I was too scared to go for something I really wanted or something He’s called me to do.
Which leads me to wonder…what will freedom cost me?
The Price of Freedom
The thing about playing it safe (in life, with your gifts, etc.) is that it’s easy to get used to playing it safe.
But that doesn’t help anybody. And you don’t achieve anything worthwhile that way.
And it also keeps you confined and complacent to a certain way of living, which is not a good thing. As leaders, we must be flexible to adapt to the different situations that arise on a mission. And I refuse to be a slave to outdated ways of thinking.
So what will freedom cost me?
My comfort. If I want to consider myself truly free, I have to try new things and that can be an uncomfortable experience.
My pride. I have to be willing to publicly make mistakes and get things wrong. It’s all apart of the journey.
My doubts. Taking action will help me build evidence against the thoughts that tell me I’m trash.
My excuses. I can find just as many reasons to do something as I can find excuses.
But in return, I’ll gain:
Courage. Which means I’ll go from being too afraid to do anything to doing things despite my fear.
Experience. Which means I can bypass basic mistakes and come back better than before.
Confidence. Because now I have more proof that I can do hard things and achieve my goals.
Passion. Which helps me bypass excuses because I want to find a way to make things happen.
Everything I want is on the other side of taking risks. And they’re worth the risk. So here’s what I’m going to do next.
My Experiment
My experiment for the next 12 weeks is to do things that are outside of my comfort zone. I’m going to take bold, calculated risks with my dreams, my health, my career, and my relationships. It’s all part of my personal development plan.
I invite you to do the same!
This week, as you reflect on your life, ask yourself “Am I taking a risk on the right things?”
The answer may surprise you.
