Intentional: ‘Cause Someone’s Life Depends on It {Day 6 of 30}

I just returned from our Crossroads Fall Retreat about an hour ago and so much that happened there made me think of intentionality. The biggest lesson perhaps came out of our time on the high ropes course. Our teens climbed up, down, and even upside down. They were amazing and every single one of them took at least a step or two outside of their comfort zones. It was AWESOME!

Over the past 5 years I’ve been trained on three different courses in three different states as a high ropes facilitator. While each course has slight differences, one thing remains the key focus… safety.

Each time a new person comes up to start the 50 foot climb, the system is the same: Is their harness on correctly? Is it on tight enough? Are all the straps looped back through to cover the read? Is their helmet on properly? Is the carabiner locked? Is the rope straight, untangled, and attached to me? Do they have a spotter? Do I have an anchor?

On and on the list goes and for good reason: someone’s life could depend on it.

It could be easy to assume that since you put their harness on them 5 minutes ago it’s still on correctly or that the knot is still tight because it’s been tight the last 8 times you’ve used it, but neglecting intentionality could be dangerous or even fatal.

This has me thinking about what else could easily become “routine” in life but has some risk in allowing it to do so. Perhaps it’s our time alone with God each day. Slowly it becomes something to check off our to-do list, rush through, or even cross off as ‘unimportant.’ Easy to do, but dangerous. Maybe for you, the risk comes in neglecting to connecting with friend and family members who are struggling and need reminding that they’re on God’s belay. What’s routine for us might be their only lifeline. Others might see a need to be more intentional in investing in their spouse. Their marriage could depend on it.