Nothing Can Keep Us Down Now!

The Golden Gate Bridge spans the one-mile-wide strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. It's an amazing trip to take and a beautiful site across the 1.7 miles including an average height of 220 feet above the water! For anyone afraid of heights it can be scary looking down. Yet, it is not the longest bridge in America. In Louisiana, we would travel 23.83 miles across the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway and feel a bit dizzy! It certainly seems like a never-ending trip. 

 Just like crossing on one of these bridges, our new journey as single-again women may seem endless and a bit scary to say the least. Every new experience--moving to a different house or city, learning how to use a monthly budget to pay the bills when in the past he did all that, preparing a resume maybe for the first time, and sleeping alone in the middle of the bed--is intimidating and daunting. 

Bring on the Adventure 

All these frightening experiences may appear to be a test of our will and determination, our adventurous spirit. Maybe we think we don’t even have any such adventure left in us. Probably not true since we have already gone through knee-deep "mud" in our life to get to this point right here. That stands for "Congratulations!" 

Doing things on our own for the first time has undoubtedly been an unfamiliar struggle. How about negotiating a deal on a new home lease or purchasing a new car? Or getting the correct tool out to fix the leaky bathroom sink when we don’t have money to hire a plumber? And of course, there is the dilemma of applying for a job when our computer experience is ten years old.     

The fact is it hasn't been easy and most likely will continue to try our patience until we practice, practice, practice! But with each successful step we take, our determination and confidence will automatically kick-in. Nothing can keep us down now! 

Starting Point

We know now that we can make it if we want, but of course, no one can force us if we choose not to try. But then, where would we go from there? So, assuming we trust ourselves, our question may be, How? How can we move ahead and make good decisions?  

We are not alone. It might help to have a few real and concrete examples of women who took a chance, used their determination, and jumped into a new life even though everything tried to push them down. 

[Click on First Examples from mydomaine.com]: 

Viola Davis - "Davis’s childhood explains a lot about her work ethic today. Growing up in poverty, she often faced hunger—even resorting to digging through dumpsters to find food. But she didn’t let this crush her. In fact, it fueled her and pushed her to do better for herself. “I tell my daughter every morning, ‘Now, what are the two most important parts of you?’ and she says, ‘My head and my heart.’ Because that’s what I’ve learned in the foxhole. What gets you through life is the strength of character and strength of spirit and love.” 

Connie Britton - "Before she was cast as Tami Taylor on Friday Night Lights at age 39, Britton experienced her fair share of “heartbreak” from roles that got away—including missing out on the female lead in Jerry Maguire to Renée Zellweger. She never let that stop her though. With a positive “everything happens for a reason” attitude, Britton accepted the role as the football coach’s wife on the hit network series." [Note: she also starred later in the series, Nashville].

[And these two Next Examples are from Good Housekeeping]: 

Wendy Kopp, Founder, Teach for America - "It was her senior thesis at Princeton — a plan to create a corps of desperately needed teachers for schools in low-income neighborhoods. Twenty years later, Teach for America has trained more than 24,000 teachers and reached three million students." 

Sally Ride, Astronaut, and Astrophysicist - "The first American woman — finally — in space, 1983. Overall, Ride was the third woman in space after USSR. At the age of 32, she remains the youngest American astronaut to have traveled to space."

The Point

Yes, they are all famous. No, none of them started out that way. They had to fight for everything they received and came from backgrounds just like many of us. Think about it. Click on the links provided and read their whole stories. Next, we can ask, what are we really dreaming of doing with our lives? 

The Main Author and Defender

We are precious in the eyes of our Creator. He waits for us to come and talk to Him about all the garbage in our life. God has solutions that we need. He is the Author of our story and the best Defender we will ever need or want. He genuinely cares about us and our lives; always has, always will. Therefore, He gave us a Spirit that craves adventure. Are we ready to begin?

"The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm" (Exodus 14:14 NLT).