The Climb

I can almost see it,

That dream I am dreaming,

But there's a voice inside my head saying,

'You'll never reach it.’

Every step I'm taking,

Every move I make feels

Lost with no direction

My faith is shaking.

But I-I gotta keep trying,

Gotta keep my head held high.

There's always gonna be another mountain

I'm always gonna wanna make it move.

Always gonna be a uphill battle,

Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose!

Ain't about how fast I get there

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

IT’S THE CLIMB.

The struggles I'm facing,

The chances I'm taking,

Sometimes might knock me down,

But no, I'm not breaking!

I may not know it

But these are the moments that I'm gonna remember most, yeah

Just gotta keep going...and I, I gotta be strong!

Just keep pushing on!!”

Two years ago I sat in a hotel convention room with over 500 women listening to me share my heart on this message right here. Listening to my passion of “The Climb.” Today, two years later, the morning of the completion of one of the biggest victories of my marriage and dreams with Brian, this same message still rings in my ear. I can still see the same dream I was dreaming. That same voice in my head is still saying, “You’ll never make it.” So many of my steps seemed lost with no direction with my faith shaking, but ONE thing remained. BELIEF. ABSOLUTE, 100%, RAW, NO IFs, ANDs OR BUTs, just TOTAL BELIEF. Belief that Mark 9:23 is true. Belief that Acts 20:24 is true when it comes to others watching my walks, my peaks, my valleys, my stagnants, my victories and  my joys and knowing that because “HE IS,” then, “I AM WHO HE SAYS I AM.” BELIEVING that HIS promises DO in fact come true.

See girls, here is what I want to say to you today. Our entire lives, our dreams, our goals, our desires are HIS. HIS plan. HIS timeline. “Yeah!” you say, but did you catch the “TIMELINE” one? That’s where most of us slowly fade. Slowly quit. Slowly decide for ourselves that maybe that’s not what God told us after all. Maybe we were wrong when we knew without a doubt that what was right in front of us was our answered prayer. After all, it has been 6 months, 2 years, 5 years with no end in clear sight, but yet a certain whisper from Him assures me that it’s not about how fast I get there. It’s about what’s waiting on the other side. It’s the climb.

Hang on. How many times have we heard the voice of God and felt his “blessing right in front of us” AND it had a date attached? A deadline? A finish line marked? Sure, maybe He’s told us it would be in 2011. But did He say by summer? By fall? See girls, WE place GOD’S plan on OUR timeline. It’s no wonder we throw in the towel. When God gives us a blessing, we must keep our eyes on the prize and not give in to our own selfish desires and timelines. We must get up and match his vision or Word for us step for step. As my favorite scripture says in Jeremiah 29:11 (paraphrased in the same way I read it to myself), ROBBIE, DO YOU NOT TRUST ME THAT “I KNOW THE PLANS THAT I HAVE FOR YOU!?!?!” Then I’m quickly reminded, it’s not about how fast I get there. It’s about what’s waiting on the other side. It’s the climb. 

So for this moment, what if we remember that to ALL things He has a purpose? To every set back. To every snicker. To every no. To every re-alignment of friends, circles, or associations. To every struggle. To every defeat. To every invitation. To every “just showing up.” To every YES. To every victory. How fun would life be if we finished the climb to THAT place, with total ease? With no problems at all? With no hurts, no fight, no passion? How much faith would THAT require? What kind of stories could you share to impact others about the Power of God? What would your life represent to a fellow struggler? Would you then just simply feel lucky?

See girls, I don’t want to feel lucky in any sense of the word. When people see EVERYTHING about my climb - EVERY set back, EVERY peak, EVERY valley, EVERY VICTORY - I want them to stop, look up, and say, "WOW GOD! BECAUSE OF WHO SHE IS AND WHAT YOU’VE DONE IN HER LIFE, I BELIEVE THAT YOU REALLY ARE WHO YOU SAY YOU ARE.  I’M DECIDING TO BELIEVE YOU.”

What is your walk saying? That of weak faith? That of your own timeline? That of no belief? That of if it’s not on my timing, it must not have been from God? Or… that of absolute victory. That of absolute walking out knowing that WE are the only variables to that CLIMB. It comes in the way of our FEET.  They are only usable when we get up and put on our hiking boots, which withstand stickers, mud, wet, dry, heat, or sinking sand, and then put one foot in front of the other and START TO CLIMB. 

It’s THEN that our journey begins. It’s THEN that HE can begin to show His glory through our CLIMB. I just took off my hiking boots from a huge climb I’ve been on for the last year. It wasn’t about how fast I got there. It wasn’t about what was on the other side. It was THE CLIMB. My feet are resting, only for a few days. Then I’ll grab a new pair of socks, put my hiking boots back on, and head out for the rest of the Climb. Many people wait to watch me tackle the next mountain. 

“I may not know it~But these are the moments that I'm gonna remember most, yeah Just gotta keep going...and I, I gotta be strong! Just keep pushing on!!”

-Robbie