I Always Wanted To

An old prospector wandered into a small town where he was accosted by a loud, obnoxious and quite drunken cowboy. The cowboy pointed his six-shooters in the old miner's direction and asked, "Old man, do you know how to dance?"

"Nope," the prospector replied.

"Maybe you'd better learn," said the cowpuncher. Hot lead kicked up dust around the old man's feet and he began to dance.

Soon, however, the guns were empty. Now the old prospector reached into his saddlebag and pulled out a sawed-off shotgun.

"Son," he said, "you ever kissed a mule?"

Looking first at the shotgun, then at the spot where the mule's tail is attached to its body, the young cowboy got the message. "Nope," he answered, "I never kissed a mule. But I always wanted to!"

Most people want more out of life and work to do something to change their situation. In real life, that desire to change is not something that can be given by anyone else. If there is something you want to do, it is probably not because somebody is holding a gun to your head. You just want to do it. Your want to, your desire, comes from inside your heart. You're the only person that can make your dreams and visions come true with the help of the Lord.

If you decide you want to improve your condition, if you want a meaningful relationship or more fulfilling work, if you want a rich spiritual life or a healthier body, then the desire must come from your own heart. Nobody can make you want those things. They can support you, inspire you, even give you instruction, but only you can make it happen.

There may be a hundred reasons we think we can't be the people we want to be. But there is really only one. We don't want it badly enough to make the changes necessary to see it happen.

George Washington Carver, an African American who probably did have a hundred reasons not to change his circumstances, who a century ago said, "Most people search high and wide for the keys to success. If they only knew, the key to their dreams lies within."

Ask yourself today-What do I really want to do? Once you convince yourself and seek the Lord's direction go for it. Nothing beats a failure but a try. So try, try, TRY!