There is an old saying: Rome wasn’t built in a day. What people often neglect to think about when it comes to this quote is just how long it took to build a city during this period. As they were constructing Rome, the architects and builders knew they would not see its competition in their lifetime. They were building for the future generation. The mindset they had, which we all can incorporate, is a simple one to grasp, yet so hard for us to fully understand. The secret to success and to becoming better is this: direction over location.
Your location does not matter when you do not have a clear direction of where you are going. When you are going somewhere unknown, what is the first thing you do? Do you sit and think how scary it will be to get lost, or do you look for directions from someone who knows the way? Rather than sit and ponder where we’ve been, we must focus on where we are going. This is one of the main differences between someone with a fixed mindset and someone with a growth mindset. When we are in a growth mindset, we are focused on one thing and one thing only: the pursuit of more. I believe this is how we ought to be as Christians, solely focused on growing our relationships with Jesus Christ. It doesn’t matter what else comes into our lives, whether it’s death, sickness, famine, or anything else that can be thrown at us. We were never meant to become stagnant in our lives. We must stay growing. If we must stay growing, then how do we grow properly? Well, I believe the answer is pretty simple and is explained best through nature.
A plant will always branch out from wherever it is rooted and its success is due in large part to what it is rooted in.
Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still, other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
— Matthew 13:3-8
When we are rooted in a healthy foundation, we flourish. When our lives are rooted in God’s word and the unconditional love God has for us, our location seems a lot less important than where we are going. My challenge to you is to take a minute out of your day and think about the direction your life is going and what changes you need to make to your path.