Whether you battle depression or not, you know that concentrating on the issue of time can be a stressor that leads to a dark place. Time…we sometimes want to rush it along and sometimes we want more. During the summer, we wish for winter. During winter, we wish for summer. When we’re 13, we can’t wait to reach 21. When we’re 40, we wish we could go back to 13. Let me just put it out there. It may seem to some that I have reached a comfortable level of success, but I really don’t feel as if I’ve even started my journey. I’m about 10-15 years beyond my personal goal timeline. By now (in my mind) I should have already reached many of my goals. Where’s the son I always wanted…Hello, where’s the husband that’s going to father that son? Where’s my private jet? Where’s my Grammy Award for songwriting? (If you’re going to dream, dream big. Right?) I certainly don’t have any problems meeting men. I invest in my brand. I write and submit songs. But what in the world is taking so long. I need you to hear me. There are other goals that I have such as being a successful author that I know can’t happen yet because I haven’t published any of my books. I’ve written several books but nothing is going to happen until I make an effort to do my part and put them out. So I’m not “behind schedule” in my dreams. I’m dreaming just fine, and my dreams continue to evolve. Rather, the active work I’m doing to fulfill some of those dreams should have manifested by now. I’m actively participating in my life, and I’m still behind schedule.
I know I’m not alone in my thinking. If you feel hopeless about your future, or if you feel you are too old and don’t have enough time left to see your goals come to fruition, I want to encourage you. I have to constantly remind myself that I am right where God wants me to be. I have to encourage myself that if God said it, it will happen. Remember, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6).”
I’m in a constant battle with my mind to trust God for my future. After all, I’m over 40 and geez…..when God? When is it going to finally happen? For me, trusting God means to cling to Him. Sometimes, when people ask me how I’m doing, I’ll say, “I’m clinging to God”. Because literally, I am. I am holding on tightly to all of His promises. I have hope. And, I believe in that hope because, “[it] is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness”. Listen, cling to whatever or whoever is going to give you hope.
George Eliot said, “It is never too late to be what you might have been”. Many people have proven this statement true. I want to provide you with a few success stories from people who fulfilled their dreams later in life. I hope this encourages you to keep on keeping on. Let’s live life with the expectation that the best is yet to come. And as always, let’s press on together!
20 People Who Became Highly Successful After Age 40
10 People Who Switched Careers After 50 (and Thrived!)