What does it mean to lean into life?
Yesterday, as I sat in my chair at Uniontown Bible Church, pastor Dave Baldwin mentioned the idea of “leaning in” to struggles and adversity. It’s not the first time I have heard the phrase “lean in.” For some reason though, in that particular moment, it struck me deeply. This is the way life works in general, at least for me, we often need to hear or read things over and over before it resonates with us.
Well yesterday, it resonated. I had such a peaceful feeling to these words, so I decided to share some thoughts about this idea. It is certainly important to lean into your challenges, because they are not going to go away just because you back away. In most cases, they are only going to become worse the longer you wait to deal with them, and your self-esteem will suffer during this period because you will know that you’re acting cowardly. I know this first hand as for many years I was someone who didn’t just back up when things got tough, I ran away. That only brought me more pain and disappointment in life. I’m happy to say I have been leaning into them for a long time now and the fruits in my life have multiplied as a result.
It’s not my intention to make this about struggles and adversity, but about life itself. Leaning into life as a way of being is the ultimate. Waking up every day being thankful that you are healthy, have people you love and who love you, live in an age of immense opportunity to grow and develop to be anything you aspire to. Life is really very good for anyone who lives in a developed nation. We have so much to lean into!
Lean in like you are looking in awe at something beautiful. Lean in like you are touching lips with the one you love. Lean in with curiosity about all there is to learn. Lean in like you are captivated with interest. Lean in like you want to do the best you possibly can, lean in and give all you have until the sweat is dripping from your forehead and you are happily exhausted from exertion.
Lean into life my friends. Life is good. And it’s even better for those that lean in.
