"Don't Push the River"
Our guide shouted, “Don’t push the river!” I was white-water rafting (poorly) down the Amazon. With the raft swirling and the water splashing, the guide’s command made about as much sense as choosing what you are supposed to do with your life at eighteen years old. I remember thinking, “That’s dumb. How can anyone push a river?” A year later, I picked up Richard Rohr’s Everything Belong s . To my surprise, he has a chapter called "Don't Push the River." Turns out my river guide knew more about life and vocation than my ears could hear. According to Rohr (and my river guide), “don’t push the river” is exactly what it sounds like. If you push against the current, you will lose. In other words, for those of us trying to make something of ourselves, we think we need to go upstream. We think we can stand out by accomplishing tasks and winning awards. We interpret our successes to mean we are worthy, we are important, we belong to God. It is hard to keep this pa...