Dues do bug us, but they may be needed
On the detour to Grangeville
Some goals contain obstacles to deal with before we reach them—we call that paying our dues. We conquer them by focusing on the pay off. Our motorcycle ride to Idaho and Montana had a lot of them, and here’s just a few.
On Day 1, I had to cover 860 miles BEFORE we met in our riding country. Dues. About 400 miles were desert—more dues. Las Vegas lunch was Del Taco with mystery meat carne asada burrito. Gas was $5.41, but some payoff came with 42 mpg, and great brisket at Fire and Smoke in Cedar City.
Day 2 gave some pay off—pretty farms, once I-15 bisected an alfalfa farm, one side green and baled, the other tan and shorn.
Day 4, a huge generational storm covered ID, and our projected next day faced a 7,000 ft. pass with 6-8 of snow. Paying dues: we had to cancel our hotel and leave for Missoula a day early. The payoff: no snow and a great ride over Lost Trail Pass in sunshine.
Day 5 dues came with a dead battery in Missoula, but Jerry brought a battery starter that paid off. More dues with the delay and rain that kept us from riding to meet fellow Gray Hog Brad in Regis MT, but for a pay off he was able to drive his truck for dinner.
Day 7 brought dues from road construction on Highway 12 from Missoula to Grangeville. It added an hour, but a detour took us through gorgeous country we’d never seen with rolling hills of farmland and green and gold hills.
Life is like that—good goals that pay off only get reached through a process of getting ready, doing our homework, of meeting all the requirements of the task.
Yet we live in an age of instant gratification—we want what we want, when and how we want it. We switched from cable TV to streaming, and I’m frustrated with the starting up lag. But even Jesus paid 30 years of dues before beginning his ministry. And his ultimate goal of redemption only came after the physical torture of the cross and taking of all the sins of mankind. Dues.
So how do we navigate paying dues? We follow Jesus’ example of looking at the prize instead of current obstacles and problems and dues.
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 1:2). The cross brought no joy, but joy resided on the other side of the cross. Maybe we can re-orient our thoughts and pay our dues, knowing a greater prize is just ahead.
Kick Starting the Application
When facing obstacles or dues, do you seem to get caught up in them, or the long-term prize? How can you switch to seeing them as dues to bring the prize closer?