There is no secret about where destiny dwells.  It’s not far from you in any given moment.  It might look like a crystal ball or a star, or maybe it’s just an aura.  You might reach out to touch it.  You never will feel its power that way; but, it will touch you.  Following your destiny is not easy, even when you recognize it. How many times have you turned it away? Destiny will run its course.  You cannot control it.

Take me.  I’m busy with work and family and life, and  knee deep in karate classes, blogging, podcasting, writing, dreaming, and just plain trying.  My days are long and vigorous.  Many of you are not far behind. One mom told me how her time is filled with  popcorn sales and camping; and another parent was busy signing his son up for Boy Scouts and karate classes.  For our families, we will do anything. We want our kids to grow up fulfilled and happy and have a good sense of direction and commitment.  Perhaps you have no children.  You are just as busy.  Life has a way of filling the hours no matter who you are or what you do.

Too many things.

That is the problem for me.  I juggle too many things, yet I feel sure that all of it needs to be done.  You can look at it one of two ways.  Overcommitment or pushing to make a difference.  I choose the latter.  If you’re stuck in this kind of tail spin, well, here’s the answer, and I have to listen to it myself. Everything involves a plan.  The question should not be what am I trying to do, but where am I headed?  And, if you fight your destiny, you will never get anywhere.

The Plan

It is great to be productive, but even multi-tasking needs to come together at some point for a purpose.  When I look at my life I see some trends.  Interesting careers such as private investigating, writing for  martial arts magazine, working as a compliance paralegal, being a second degree black belt and teaching a karate program.  That all does seem to go together nicely.  Then there is the creative side- blogs and writing and videos and podcasts.  When I look at it this way, I see a plan forming that I had never noticed before.  Not a plan that I picked, but a plan that picked me.  I believe we all have a destiny; that for which our life serves a purpose.  We can choose to ignore it, but it will show up one way or another.  Push it aside, try to forget it.  None of that works when destiny is involved.

Our family is a homeschool family.  Believe me, we did not choose this crazy, sacrificial, difficult life because we wanted to!  No, it was part of a plan controlled on a much higher level, and even though we wanted to ignore it, it came crashing through our lives with great force.

You may not always see why a path sets its course on your life until you’ve lived it for a while.  I didn’t know why we were called to homeschool our kids until we watched our oldest child graduate high school with an AA Degree in his hand.  We didn’t know why were were called to practice martial arts until we found ourselves teaching at a community center and I started blogging.  Nothing explains why building my own house was such a tremendous difficulty except that now I appreciate every little thing I have and every little moment I live.  The thing about destiny is that it locks you in.  I could have put my son in school, gotten a little complacent or lazy, and walked away from a half built home.  My personal destiny was already set in motion and there was no way to walk away from any of it, even if tried.

When you make decisions that are in opposition to your destiny, they won’t work.  You will get pulled back to destiny’s core.  You can identify destiny because it is always for a good purpose. Never will destiny force you to be unkind, vicious, uncaring, or selfish.

Lately I’m called to do so many things that it’s hard for me to focus and see the purpose of it all. So many words flow into my head that I can’t write them down fast enough.  Sometimes I just sit in front of the video camera and say them, instead.  I know I’m meeting destiny each time I hear a kind comment come back my way.  It’s an affirmation that I’m following the right path and pushing my talents and time in the right direction.  I know I’m meant to be a martial artist.  I enjoy practicing the art and sharing it with others.  It brings me time committment challenges but I find a way to continue.  That is what destiny looks like.

If your actions feel completely dreadful, then you can be assured you are not following the right path.  Don’t mistake being uncomfortable as being a sign of following the wrong path, though. Discomfort, when felt in a good positive direction, is what helps you grow.

I guess I can understand my own personal destiny a little better now.  I have to just let it be.  I can’t control it.  So, along with all of my other commitments, I must be willing to find the time to let destiny dwell where it wants. I’ll know all the answers one day.  For now, I will just continue to follow the path because if nothing else, I am moving forward.

Think about your life.  Are you allowing destiny to run its course?  If you have some happiness and some peace, then most likely you are.  If something is missing and joy is hard to find, take a closer look.  What is it that you are called to do?  What is tugging at you in the back of your mind that you are trying to disregard?  If there is a nagging thought of some kind that continually knocks at your mind’s door, it’s time to let it in and get to work.

Allow destiny to reveal itself bit by bit.  Destiny dwells in you.  Follow it and you are sure to Win at Life.

Andrea