I bought myself a coloring book
recently.
I can’t believe I just told you that,
but it’s true. It’s one of those coloring
books that has intricately designed
patterns on really nice paper, and it
was labeled as an “advanced” color-
ing book, which helps me feel a little
bit better about myself. But to be hon-
est, I’m still kind of embarrassed about
it.
It was an impulse purchase, pure
and simple, brought on by a sudden
fit of inspiration and nostalgia that hit
me when I saw my son and daughter
sitting at a table together coloring.
You see, I started thinking about how
much fun my wife, our two kids, and I
would have together as we sat down
by a warm fire every evening—each
with a coloring book, laughing the
entire time while drinking hot choc-
olate—and about all the places we
could hang our creations around the
house.
Of course, none of that ever
happened. Instead, I used that ad-
vanced coloring book once... I think.
And it has been sitting on one of our
shelves—next to some really expen-
sive markers—ever since.
50 Solutions
I wish I could say this was the only
time something like that has hap-
pened, but it’s not. Over the years,
I’ve accumulated countless items that
have become monuments to pas-
sionate endeavors that never quite
panned out. And I don’t even want to
admit how much money I’ve spent on
hobbies that never got off the ground.
Maybe you can relate.
Passionate commitment without
patient persistence leaves behind a
graveyard of unfulfilled dreams.
What happens when the passion
we felt early on in our relationship
with God gives way to the humdrum
of daily life? Where do we turn when
the fire that once burned so brightly
in our hearts becomes a barely visible
ember? Hobbies that we never saw
through to completion are one thing.
At worst, we’ve wasted our time and
money. But what happens when our
faith and our hope get put up on a
shelf next to the scrapbooking sup-
plies? The potential consequences
are much more severe—a wasted life.
This brings me to a dirty little secret
that many of the bravest Christians I
know have shared with me. Few dare
to speak the words out loud, because