I have been blogging about climbing the mountain of life.  The higher you go the higher the price.  You have to give up to go up.  Give up limiting beliefs, wrong attitudes, anger & bitterness, fear, and all the things that weigh us down in life.  We were created for greatness, we were created to climb.  Just like a true mountain climber has to pack the right tools and materials, no more, no less, we have to pack for the journey as well.  We can’t take unnecessary things with us or we will never make it to the top.  So what do we need to pack? A few days ago I talked about the first things we need…Hope and Teachability.  Today I want to talk about 2 more things…

1. Teamwork

On May 29, 1935 Edmund Hilary and Tenzing Norgay were the very first people to make it to the top of Mount Everest.  Many people tried before them but came up short and in many cases dead.  They did what no other human had ever done, they stood on the top of Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak! They could not have done it by themselves.  It took a team of people to make it to the top.  You and I cannot make the journey of life on our own, we need others.  We were created for community, we were created for relationship.  One is too small a number to achieve greatness.  If we are going to be successful in life it is going to take us developing good relationships with those who we can journey with.  When we work together we can accomplish great things.  Tenzing Norgay said this about teamwork…

“You do not climb a mountain like Everest by trying to race ahead on your own, or by competing with your comrades.  You do it slowly and carefully, by unselfish teamwork.  Certainly I wanted to reach the top by myself; it was the thing I had dreamed of all my life.  But if the lot fell to some one else I would take it like a man, and not a crybaby.  For that is the mountain way.”  

Who are those around you that you are journeying together with? Who are those around you that are lifters, lifting you to a higher level? Spend time developing those relationships, for they will be the ones that will take you places.

2. Determination

You do not get to the top without determination.  You do not climb a significant mountain without an unwavering sense of commitment to the journey.  Only climbing when you “feel like it” will never take you to the heights.  You only get to the top by hard work and endurance.  “Feeling like it” may get you started but it won’t keep you going.  You have to determine within yourself that NOTHING will hold you back from your dream to make it to the top.  Too many people give up short of their dreams because the terrain gets too rough for them.  When faced with obstacles and challenges they give up.  But in order to reach the top we have to fight through the set-backs and unforeseen challenges.  Always remember this…you can’t climb a smooth mountain.  It is the rocky places that we can use to become better and stronger in life.  What challenges do you face when it comes to climbing your dream? What can you do to keep your determination strong till the end? Identify the top 2 things that seem to hold you back and make a commitment to break through those things.  Get a plan to navigate through the challenges and you will begin to see progress.  Don’t allow Mission Drifting to occur in  your life, stay the course.