{"id":1883,"date":"2013-01-16T16:00:47","date_gmt":"2013-01-16T23:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/billintheblank\/?p=1883"},"modified":"2013-01-16T16:00:47","modified_gmt":"2013-01-16T23:00:47","slug":"will-the-hobbit-inspire-your-own-unexpected-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/faithwalkers\/2013\/01\/will-the-hobbit-inspire-your-own-unexpected-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"Will the Hobbit Inspire Your Own Unexpected Journey?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

I confess it. I think I may be the only person left who has not seen Peter Jackson\u2019s latest rendition of J.R.R. Tolkien\u2019s classic tale The Hobbit<\/a>\"\"<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Usually I would be among the first at the theater. I made the midnight showing for The Return of the King<\/em> \u2014 the sound cutting out during the scenes in Mount Doom made it especially memorable. I\u2019ve watched the DVD versions of The Lord of the Rings<\/em> countless times with my children.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve read Tolkien\u2019s Middle Earth saga multiple times, even reading\u00a0it now to\u00a0my children \u2014 a journey that has itself taken quite some time. And I\u2019ve read a lot of the reviews\u00a0of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey<\/a> so I know to expect cinematic wonders with a plot that feels \u201cthin, sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of greater concern to me than the theater experience in the new year is the life question raised by a common theme in Tolkien\u2019s stories \u2014 the unexpected journey.\u00a0This first installment of The Hobbit<\/em> spotlights that theme as Bilbo answers the call to take an unexpected journey. A generation later, Frodo and Sam wrestle with how they\u2019ll respond to a similar call, the beckoning of another unexpected quest.<\/p>\n

It is their decision to embrace the challenge of the unexpected journey that defines their place in history.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I humbly suggest that it is the same way for all of us.\u00a0Your willingness to respond to unexpected opportunity and your courage to take the unexpected journey will go along way toward determing your legacy.<\/p>\n

What Would You Do?<\/h3>\n

Examples abound throughout Scripture of those who took an unexpected journey that defined their future \u2014 and ours. Moses and the burning bush. David and his encounter with Goliath. Daniel and his diet proposal. Joseph\u2019s encounter with a lonely woman and then a needy Pharoah. Rebekah offering to water Isaac\u2019s camels at the well. Jesus\u2019 call to some fisherman along the Sea of Galilee. A blinding light that knocked Saul to the ground and resulted in his name and mission being\u00a0dramatically changed.\u00a0Just to name a few.<\/p>\n

All of these encounters involved someone stepping away from the conventional wisdom of safe living and onto a road that probably scared the living daylights out of them. As Tolkien warned in The Hobbit<\/em>:<\/p>\n

There are no safe paths in this part of the world.\u00a0 Remember you are over the Edge of the Wild now, and in for all sorts of fun wherever you go.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

My Own Unexpected Journey<\/h3>\n

I know a little about taking an unexpected journey myself. About a year ago, I began sensing a new call to step away from my own perception of safety and security as a Christian school administrator. Not that there was anything wrong with what I was doing. In fact, it would be tough to find a nobler life work.<\/p>\n

But I sensed a call, a restlessness within that was stirring me, quite unexpectedly, to embark on a new journey to use my gifts more intentionally to equip Christians to think, live, and lead with abundant faith. As I told my incredible faculty team, I answered the call a bit like Abraham of old, not knowing exactly where I was going. I have learned that such unexpected journies are, in fact, to be expected:<\/p>\n

Most of us will have no idea where we are going most of the time. And I know that is unsettling. But circumstantial uncertainty also goes by another name: Adventure<\/em>. ~ Mark Batterson, Wild Goose Chase: Reclaim the Adventure of Pursuing God<\/a>\"\"<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I\u2019m not suggesting that my path is the best one or that it is the\u00a0model for anyone else.\u00a0\u00a0The truth was that no one would have ever known the difference if I had ignored the call\u00a0to step out of my comfort zone. But that is precisely where success is often found.<\/p>\n

In his book Aspire: Discovering Your Purpose Through the Power of Words<\/a>\"\", Kevin Hall points out that \u201cmuch of what we want and seek in life that is meaningful and significant is just beyond the edge of our comfort zone.\u201d Perhaps that is why \u201cthe road goes on and ever on.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Sirens\u2019 Call to Settle<\/h3>\n

It is all too easy to settle into our comfort zones because just about everyone\u00a0else has\u00a0settled. Thus when we settle for less than what might have been, we can count on almost everyone else to smile, nod, and affirm our own lack of faith. Only we will know that we stopped short of what God was pulling at our hearts to accomplish. If that\u2019s the choice you make, you can actually purchase a hobbit home\u00a0of your own.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

For me, it began with a committment \u2014 call it tying myself to the mast \u2014 to press forward toward the goal, no matter how slow the pace or the barriers to achieving it. It was on May 10, 2010, that I jotted down this quotation and determined to take the journey, whatever that might mean:<\/p>\n

The moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issue from the decision, raising in one\u2019s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would come his way. ~ William H. Murray<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0As I look back now, I certainly see that to have been true. I could never have predicted the course I\u2019ve taken or the help I\u2019ve received.<\/p>\n

Apparently, ideas do have consequences<\/a>. Good ideas can have awesome consequences. So why are we so hesitant to embrace them?<\/p>\n

Why We Don\u2019t Take an Unxpected Journey<\/h3>\n

In a word: comfort. An unexpected journey is anything but comfortable. Leaving the perceived safety and security of our own Hobbiton is a scary thing. As Tolkien famously expressed, walking out our front door can be a dangerous business. Better to hide out. Play it safe. Go with the flow.<\/p>\n

John Maxwell wisely noted the problem with that approach: \u201cYou can\u2019t reach for a dream and remain safely mediocre at the same time. The two are incompatible.\u201d\u00a0 All too often we remain trapped by the fear of what if<\/em> instead of being liberated by acting as if.<\/em> We tend to quit before we start:<\/p>\n

Safe living generally makes for regrets later on. We are all given talents and dreams. Sometimes the two don\u2019t match. But more often than not, we compromise both before ever finding out. ~ Richard Elder<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Our Missing Margins<\/h3>\n

Another reason we hesitate when offered the chance to explore an unknown road is that we\u2019ve left ourselves very little margin to do so.<\/p>\n

Our hectic lives leave little room to maneuver because we have not been intentional about creating space to grow and explore. We run our financial affairs so that we think we couldn\u2019t afford to miss a paycheck or two. We take on debt that restricts our ability to follow a new call. We fill our schedules\u00a0with so much to be done that we don\u2019t have time to think about such things, let alone actually take an unexpected path.<\/p>\n

Truth be told, we haven\u2019t taken the time to get clear on what is important<\/a>. Consequently, it all feels important. But if it\u2019s all important, none of it is important.<\/p>\n

So\u00a0What If You Don\u2019t Go?<\/h3>\n

We know what the One Ring did to Gollum. What we don\u2019t know is what would<\/em> have happened to Frodo had he chucked the ring away and burrowed deeper into his hobbit hole. Certainly, no other hobbits would have badgered him about his decision. They likely would have praised his wisdom and invited him to endless parties.<\/p>\n

However, I suspect that although he wouldn\u2019t have been stabbed by ring-wraiths on Weathertop, a poison of a different sort would have begun pumping through his soul. I doubt he could have lived contentedly knowing\u00a0he had walked away from his destiny to clutch ever more desperately to his perceived security.<\/p>\n

And Middle Earth would have paid a very high price indeed for his decision.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s Required of Unexpected Travelers<\/h3>\n

I\u2019ve learned that there are at least three things required for a hobbit \u2014 or any one of us \u2014 to take an unexpected journey.<\/p>\n