When I worked at Grace Adventures, I used to facilitate the climbing tower for guest groups. My job was to make sure the climb was physically safe and emotionally safe. Most groups would come to the tower for the purpose of team building and personal growth.
It was so interesting to see the different attitudes people had when attempting a climb. Some would choose the least challenging climb just so they wouldn’t fail in front of their friends. Some would be a bit over confident and choose the most difficult climb. Some would celebrate getting one foot off the ground and fighting through their fear of heights. Some would just hang, sitting in their harness, thinking of their next move, comfortable and trusting their gear.
My absolute favorite person to watch at the climbing tower was the person who was terrified. The person who was absolutely NOT into the idea of climbing a 30 foot tower and repelling back down. Now, I realize how awful that sounds, but hear me out. It wasn’t their fear I enjoyed. It was watching their framework change from zero feet to 15 feet off the ground.
Before you climb at Grace Adventures, you have to set a goal. For someone who is afraid of heights, their goal might be just to get on the wall. Another person’s goal might be half way. And another might want to scurry to the top in under 5 minutes. Everyone’s challenge is different.
Usually the goal of a terrified climber was only 10 feet off the ground. As they would begin their ascent, the belayer would be asking questions to get the climber out of their head and to focus on the next hold.
“What can you do with your hands? Are you using your legs? Have you considered all your options?”
When you are on the wall, sometimes you forget to push with your legs. Sometimes you forget to look all around for footholds or handholds, because you are only focusing on what’s directly in front of your face. While this can be frustrating to work through, sometimes it’s a blessing. When you are working on climbing upward, you forget what’s below. Like the fear you started out with on the ground.
Another common phrase to hear at the climbing tower is,
“Trust the rope.”
If the climber was working on growing in their faith, we would explain that the rope tied to the harness is like Jesus. He’s holding you and it is okay to trust Him. How often do we forget to trust that if God has placed a desire on our heart, He will be with us wherever we go?
Back to the terrified climber…
And so the climber is slowly, but surely making their way up that wall. And then you hear:
“You did it! Look you’re past your goal and so close to the top. I think you can do it!” Hearing those words and then watching the rest of the group cheer on that climber is invigorating.
The most beautiful thing was when that climber, who went higher than they thought possible, gets back on the ground. First, you see relief on their face because they are no longer dangling in the air. But, then you see it: the light in their eyes that comes from achieving a goal, pushing themselves to do the hard work and the toothy smile of sheer joy, because now they believe they can do hard things in real life too.
Tomorrow evening I will be teaching my first Enneagram presentation.
I may or may not being panicking a bit. I’m excited and nervous. I’ve also had to convince myself a couple times to not give up. Here are some of the thoughts I’ve been battling:
“I’m not smart enough to talk about this.”
“No one wants to hear what I have to say.”
“Why did I want to do this?”
“It would just be easier if…”
“If my first draft wasn’t perfect, then my presentation will never be good enough.”
“People are going to think I’m crazy.”
And when those thoughts came into my head, I would remember my phrase for 2020: DO THE WORK.
At times every fiber of my being wants to resist doing the work. I want to walk away from the 30 foot climbing tower in front of me and give up. It’s so much easier to sit and cheer people on while they climb than to actually push myself to take a risk.
Tonight, I’m gearing up. And I want you to join me. Let’s set a goal and keep pushing for it. Let’s cheer when the person next to us gets five feet off the ground. And let’s remember to celebrate when we push ourselves to just go a little higher.
And instead of a belayer asking you questions, I want you to hear my voice telling you these things as you work on your ascent:
You can do hard things.
If you mess up, you can try again.
You can persevere.
You are enough.
Trust the rope.
What are you striving for? What steps are you taking to reach your dreams?
House of Dreams 