Stop Looking for "Greener Pastures"

Why is it that we're always looking for "greener pastures"? Are there really greener pastures out there? Perhaps. Perhaps not. I'm just wondering what ever happened to working hard right where we are.

Suleyman Guresci, of Izmir, Turkey divorced his wife of 21 years after a bitter six-year court battle. It was ugly from the word "go" and got uglier until it was final. Now "free", Guresci began looking for the ideal marriage partner. His search took him to a computer dating service--the kind that evaluates your written profile and suggests matches for you.

Over the course of the next couple of months the dating service found some 2,000 prospective brides. And at the top of the list? The service selected his former wife, who (unbeknownst to Guresci) had signed up for the same service. What did Guresci do? Just nine months after their divorce, he and his wife remarried. He said, "I did not know that my ex-wife had been the ideal counterpart for a marriage. I decided to give it another try by being more tolerant toward her." Your ideal mate might just be the one you've already married.

The principle Guresci learned applies to so many areas of life. We tend to give up far too quickly. Why? Because we want things to be easy; to be handed to us on a silver platter. I'm honestly concerned about today's generation of youth and their "entitlement" attitude. No one ever said life was supposed to be easy. Honestly, it isn't. But walking away and looking for "greener pastures" is not the answer.

I know there are times when we think, "Wow! There has to be something better than this!" Or, "This is far more challenging than I thought.......I'm getting out of here." I want to encourage you today, stick with it. Really, you have two options: 1) Look and look and look for the "perfect" situation (HINT: It doesn't exist.) 2) Make the place you are the "perfect" situation. (HINT: Perfection may be a stretch, but anything can be made better with some effort.)

Time after time I've talked with people and heard stories about indivuduals who thought they wanted "greener pastures". So they left their job, their home, their family, their circumstance to pursue it. What did they find? For the vast majority, they found sorrow, regret and disappointment.

So I encourage you today: Stick with it! Don't give up! Bloom right where God has planted you. I'm not saying it's never right to move on, but have a long talk with God about it before you do. Just like Guresci learned about his marriage, your ideal situation might be the one you're in right now.

1 Corinthians 15:58 says, "Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."

Blessings to you this week, dear friends!!!