What Is Your Current Trajectory?

Here's a visual analogy for you to consider. Imagine someone sitting at the end of a tree limb and sawing off the very limb on which the person is sitting. As you might expect, when the limb breaks, both the limb and the person experience an awkward lesson about gravity. While the person may have achieved their goal of cutting down the limb, they also experience a painful lesson about the consequences of their actions. The question is, "Can the person learn from the painful lesson?"

As individuals, we can become blind to the fact that our actions today can have a profoundly negative and painful impact on our future. In other words, creating a desirable yet unwise present can jeopardize tomorrow's future.

Have you ever heard of a boxer in a boxing match where the boxer was throwing punches at himself? In my mind, I can hear the announcer saying, "…and he hits himself with a wicked right hand in the gut, now a ferocious upper cut to the head after several jabs with his left hand. And there's the knockout blow, a one-two punch to the side of the temple." That's like boxing yourself, and when you do that, you won't win many fights.

Here's an example of what I'm addressing today. There's a story of a dog walking across a bridge with a bone in its mouth. When the dog looked down into the river and saw its own reflection, it thought it was another dog with a bigger bone. The angry dog jumped into the river to get the bigger bone and drowned. Jealousy and envy-based choices have consequences. Conceptually, that dog sawed off the limb it was sitting on.

Here's another example of someone sawing off the limb that he is sitting on. 

In an upscale pet shop in Brooklyn, an elderly lady burst into the store. "I want to buy a canary, but it's got to be an outstanding singer. I've got cash, but I'm paying only for a canary that is an outstanding singer. The shop owner began moving a ladder towards a small cage on a shelf about fifteen feet up, near the ceiling of the store. "Ma'am, I'm forty years in this business. In this birdcage is the best singing canary I've ever had."

The woman said, "Don't think I'm going to feel obligated to pay for something I don't want just because you're climbing up a ladder like a monkey. I want a canary, but it's got to be a great singer."

The shopkeeper came down from the ladder. "Ma'am, this bird is a veritable feathered Caruso!" Placing the cage on the counter, the bird burst into melody after melody. Awed, the woman murmured, "This bird is really a good singer." Suddenly, the woman screamed to the shopkeeper, "Hey, what's with you? This bird has only got one leg." The pet store owner was perturbed, "Lady, what do you want, a singer or a dancer?"

Isn't it a shame that she couldn't see the miracle of a singing canary because of her ungratefulness and extravagance? Remember, when you are out on a limb, try not to cut yourself off from the very thing that is holding you up. You see this concept in action time and time again in families, marriages, business, politics, and life. Often, the people we love the most are the ones we cut ourselves off from. That is like winning the battle but losing the war. To do that is to oppose yourself.

We saw the cutting of the limb principle in action this week, as illustrated by the example of Cracker Barrel changing its rustic American logo. The company's CEO was warned by Cracker Barrel's biggest investor four times not to change the original logo. The result was a $140 million loss in the company's stock value, as well as a public relations disaster on social media. As a result, Cracker Barrel immediately restored its original logo, which represented a large part of its customer base. That's called changing your trajectory.

Will Rogers once said, "When you're in a hole, stop digging." That means if you are in a bad or difficult situation, you should stop taking actions that are making the problem worse. Instead of continuing to make the situation worse by digging deeper, you should pause, evaluate the situation, and take small steps or make a change to improve your direction.

Many people today are leaving God out of their lives and lifestyles. Please don't do that. That's counterproductive. God is the ultimate Counselor who will never leave you or forsake you. Don't let envy, bitterness, ungratefulness, humanism, or extravagance separate you from the One who loves you the most. Change your trajectory for a better temporal and eternal life.

What's your "We gotta' get out of this place" takeaway? If you're going to saw down a high limb from a tree, make sure you're on the right side of the limb. Quit digging your own grave. And, for your sake and heaven's sake, quit boxing yourself.