4th and Go

"To love is to risk not being loved in return. To hope is to risk pain. To try is to risk failure, but risk must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing." - Unknown

Two teams were in overtime, playing a heated rivalry football game. The score was knotted together at twenty-three to twenty-three with plenty of momentum on one side. The offense had fallen upon a fourth down with less than one yard to go for a first down. The ball was on their own thirty yard line.

Easy decision was to punt and wait for another chance.

Hard decisions require us to try and go for it.

If they made a first down, momentum would have clearly swung their way. If not, the opposing team would be in a position to win. The teams lined up, excitement grew as the quarterback barked out the call. Huge men came crashing together trying to outdo each other.

The running back took hold of the ball and ran into the mix of bodies, trying to search out those few precious feet. But it was not going to happen. He was stopped short of the first down marker, short of the goal that would allow them to continue.

The opposing team had stopped them on "4th and 1" and went on to kick a game winning field goal. One team victorious and another defeated.

All of this drama played out for a mere two or three feet.

Sometimes we get that close to our own goals in life. One, two or three feet is all which separates us from achievement. As we make our final push to cross over that line, we get pushed back, defeated and rejected.

It seems during those few moments all is lost.

But not all is lost, there is hope. There is strength in knowledge of what went wrong. There is greatness in moving forward and trying again. The obstacles in life we face sometimes get the better of us. Even when we felt we were unstoppable and had the greatest of confidence in our own ability, the opposition will win sometimes.

So you withdraw, replan and reattack the goal.

You jump back into it with new experience and understanding. You keep trying.

Stay inspired my friends!