Hello all my loyal blog readers, okay, so, at long last I have published “I Believe in You,” on Amazon Kindle to start. Below, chapter one. At bottom, links to more sample chapters. This is a good thing to read if you are having one of “those” days . . . or years . . .
I Believe in You
You have dared to dream.
You have envisioned a bright future for yourself and those you love. What is even more remarkable, you have demonstrated the willingness, and the courage, to try to make this wonderful dream come true. You deserve much admiration for setting out upon such a noble enterprise.
But dreams do not always come true right away. And until they do, you have to live in the present, which is often a dark limbo of uneasy anticipation. The price of aiming so high includes having to cope with this stress-laden existence, where you must suffer the withering looks and condescending criticisms that come from those who do not share your faith or your vision. You have often found yourself all alone, coping with this relentless anxiety of delay and disappointment. You have been confronted with enormous hurdles and setbacks, with an unknown number still to come. Added to all of this, there is a more insidious problem: the never-ending petty demands of day-to-day life are constantly draining away your time and your energy, stopping you a teaspoon at a time but doing so as effectively as a concrete wall.
To your credit, these many obstacles have not deterred you from your quest, but as you have traveled down this long road, you have come to appreciate just how far away your goal really is. The long deferment of these earnestly hoped-for rewards, along with the seemingly endless psychic bruises of this battle, have taken their toll on you. You are only human. When no one is looking, you have occasionally been forced to wonder if your dream is worth the cost. You have been forced to consider, from time to time, if your dream is even possible. Despite your tenacity and despite your best efforts, bitter prospects of defeat have often loomed large, and it rends my heart to see you reckoning with these Goliaths of potential failure after coming so far. But no matter how distant your dream may seem, I have never lost faith in you, for I know, as surely as I know the sun will rise tomorrow, that you will succeed.
I do not say this because of any physical evidence. I say it solely because I have seen the power of spirit that lives and breathes in you. It is that power, and that alone, which convinces me, and makes me so certain, that you will ultimately prevail. Even though this journey has been much more difficult than you ever thought it would be, you have always remained true to yourself. You have never abandoned your goals. In spite of interminable defeats, you have always kept on trying. History shows that you have always recovered from such events, rising ever stronger like a phoenix from the ashes. We both know that, no matter what obstacles the morrow may bring, you will once more dig deep within yourself and somehow find the heretofore unknown strength and courage to face them. There is no doubting the resiliency of spirit that you possess. You are far too optimistic to believe in impossibility for very long. You have never lost faith, even when faith was the only thing you had left.
I know that in trying to make more of your life than what was assigned to you at birth, you are inviting far more than your fair share of frustration and heartache. Any worthy endeavor carries with it the likelihood of momentary failures, and sometimes these failures are very painful.
But with every failure, you move yourself forward. With every failure, you gain precious knowledge. With every failure, you become a little more free of the destructive power of infinite vague imaginings and incorrect theories. With every failure, you discover what you can leave behind, you become ever lighter, and you come one step closer to escaping the earthly bonds that hold so many of us down. And so, when you fail, it is never a loss or a failure at all, because in every case you have learned something. You have occasionally learned bitter lessons about your own limitations. But you have also, through these bold experiments and sojourns into unknown territories, discovered the existence of many hidden capabilities. I have seen how this process has changed you. You have slowly but surely forged the steel of your courage in the flames of hard experience, you have tempered it with patience, and you have sharpened it with your wisdom. There is no stopping you now. Your success, while neither easy nor immediate, is inevitable.
Perhaps you should pause for a moment, and instead of looking at how far you have to go, consider just how far you have come. While your ultimate goal may still be far away, you have had some remarkable successes, not all of them planned or expected.
One of your greatest achievements is the degree of inspiration you have provided to others. You may not be aware of it, but many people, after witnessing your efforts, have taken renewed devotion to the fulfillment of their own most precious dreams. With your deeds, not just your words, you have encouraged those around you to take the same terrible risks and persevere toward their own true heart’s desires, no matter how distant they may be, and despite their own many stumblings and defeats. You have demonstrated to everyone, again and again, that disappointment is not infinite, nor is it invincible– it can be overcome with sheer power of mind and will. You have reminded us all that, with only a mustard seed’s worth of faith, one can move mountains. Your actions have proven that any one of us can ultimately prevail in any worthy endeavor, if we simply have the courage to begin, and the will to persevere.
I know it has been difficult for you to walk this long, lonesome road that lies between a dream and a dream come true. It is a long and hazardous journey, fraught with peril. But in my heart I am certain that you will complete this great crusade. I do not hesitate to place all of my faith in you, for it is safer there than in any bank, paying far greater dividends.
No matter what adversities, setbacks, or disappointments may befall you, always remember that I believe in the righteousness of your purpose. I believe in the worthiness of your goal. I believe in your ability to ultimately overcome whatever obstacles may appear in your path. And I truly believe that someday this world will become a better place because of your efforts.
But what is most important, at those darkest of times when your faith is most severely tested, I hope you will always remember that I believe in you.
Excerpt from I Believe in You
(c) 2012 Justin Locke
This book is currently only available through the Amazon Kindle Store. You do not need to own a kindle, they have free software so you can read kindle books on a PC or tablet. A paperback version is coming eventually.
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More Sample Chapters from “I Believe in You” :
Chapter One: I Believe in You
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