I hate that the labels that say, “deer resistant.” They are a bunch of liars.
I live in the country and love the deer and the turkeys that are around our house, but I don’t love that they love my plants. I planted a bunch of different types of deer resistant flowers outside of our fenced area of the yard. I thought I was beautifying my driveway. Apparently, the deer realized I gave them a buffet of greatness.
All summer long the deer would actually leave the plants alone for the most part. I watered and cared for my precious plants. Then buds would form and I waited in anticipation for the colorful bounty that would be my front yard. Then in one evening right before the flowers would open the evil deer crushed my colorful dreams. The carnage was heartbreaking.
A couple weeks later the plants had recovered and so had my hopes. The plants were ready to bloom again in only weeks, holding scars from the last apocalypse of the deer. My rainbow visual display would make my neighbors jealous of my gardening skills. Then the zombie deer destroyed my plants again!
All summer long this pattern would persist. The deer would leave the plants alone until they started to bloom and they would chew off the flowers. The plants would never give up. They would try and try again. This fall I have flowers! The plants look funny with the tops chewed off, nonetheless, the front yard is full of flowers.
Okay dream chasers, we need to learn a lesson from my non-deer resistant plants.
At the edge of success, they would get their faces chewed on by a deer of death and have to start over from scratch and try and bloom again. I didn’t hear my flowers whine or even show a hint of giving up; they kept trying to bloom. They bounced back up like Rocky Balboa getting punched by Apollo Creed.
Luckily, we don’t have zombie deer trying to chew our beautiful faces off, but we will have a lot of setbacks. Someone you admire will tell you your dream doesn’t matter, your plans won’t work, and you will have to try a new strategy. Time and time again there will be setback after setback. Your emotions will have you wanting to cry and throw a big fit. That’s not your nature though.
Our true nature is a resilient one. One more powerful than my flowers. Our true nature I am talking about is our identity in Christ.
In Romans 8:37 it states, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”
We have everything in us through Christ to bounce back and be an overcomer. The problem is that often instead of reminding ourselves of our nature and pushing through all of the obstacles in front of us, we focus on something else. This may be our current circumstances or the obstacles themselves to our own inadequacies. Instead of being a conqueror, we shrivel into a wimp because we choose to not operate from our identity in Christ.
It’s as simple as a choice.
Choose to never surrender. Choose to live in joy. Choose to persevere. Choose to have a faith so strong that you are willing to look like a fool to others. You have what it takes to do what you have been called to do. You were built to dream, just make sure to bring your family with you.
Be blessed on your journey.
Questions to Ponder:
When are you tempted to give up?
What do you need to remember to push through setbacks?
—
◊♦◊
Here are more ways to become a part of The Good Men Project community:
Request to join our private Facebook Group for Writers—it’s like our virtual newsroom where you connect with editors and other writers about issues and ideas.
Click here to become a Premium Member of The Good Men Project Community. Have access to these benefits:
- Get access to an exclusive “Members Only” Group on Facebook
- Join our Social Interest Groups—weekly calls about topics of interest in today’s world
- View the website with no ads
- Get free access to classes, workshops, and exclusive events
- Be invited to an exclusive weekly “Call with the Publisher” with other Premium Members
- Commenting badge.
Are you stuck on what to write? Sign up for our Writing Prompts emails, you’ll get ideas directly from our editors every Monday and Thursday. If you already have a final draft, then click below to send your post through our submission system.
If you are already working with an editor at GMP, please be sure to name that person. If you are not currently working with a GMP editor, one will be assigned to you.
◊♦◊
Are you a first-time contributor to The Good Men Project? Submit here:
◊♦◊
Have you contributed before and have a Submittable account? Use our Quick Submit link here:
◊♦◊
Do you have previously published work that you would like to syndicate on The Good Men Project? Click here:
Join our exclusive weekly “Call with the Publisher” — where community members are encouraged to discuss the issues of the week, get story ideas, meet other members and get known for their ideas? To get the call-in information, either join as a member or wait until you get a post published with us. Here are some examples of what we talk about on the calls.
Want to learn practical skills about how to be a better Writer, Editor or Platform Builder? Want to be a Rising Star in Media? Want to learn how to Create Social Change? We have classes in all of those areas.
While you’re at it, get connected with our social media:
- To join our Facebook Page, go here.
- To sign up for our email newsletter, go here.
- To follow The Good Men Project on Twitter, go here.
◊♦◊
However, you engage with The Good Men Project—you can help lead this conversation about the changing roles of men in the 21st century. Join us!
◊♦◊
We have pioneered the largest worldwide conversation about what it means to be a good man in the 21st century. Your support of our work is inspiring and invaluable.
—
Originally published on Zechariah Newman
—
Photo credit: Shutterstock ID 321313280