Adventurer versus Tourist

I never like being a tourist when I travel. When I'm at an airport and I see a stream of people in line to board a sightseeing bus, I am so glad that I'm not one of them. The thought of being confined to a seat, and looking out the window for hours at a pre-determined course and listening to the same speech given to multitudes of people feels stifling and de-energizing.

My desire when I travel is to be an adventurer and not a tourist. I feel travel should have an element of excitement and discovery. As I relate this to my own life journey, it has caused me to question if I am approaching life as an adventurer or as a tourist. Am I engaging in life or watching life pass me by? Am I participating in life or watching others as they participate in life?

I don't believe God intended me to live out my life with a tourist mentality. I wasn't given life so that I could live passively observing life pass me by. I have asked myself lately, "What adventures am I living?" and "What are the most exciting adventures I'm involved". This sobered me as I realized I've allowed areas of my life have been relegated to a tourist mentiality, sitting on the sidelines watching the game of life being played without me.

The word "adventure" derives from the work "risk". Living life as an adventurer involves risks. When I think of risk, I think of faith and trust. To trust is risky. To trust God is risky. To trust God is adventuresome. So, my questioning continues more specifically..."What adventures am I experiencing at work?" "What adventures are taking place in my marriage, and in my parenting and in my friendships?" "What risks am I taking that is exciting in these areas of my life"?

This perspective has helped me this last week at work when I saw an opportunity to develop a new client relationship. Through a series of phone calls and email pursuits, I decided to pursue this possible client with a faith adventure attitude. Today, I took a risk. Today, I asked for an opportunity to do work for this prospective client. The relationship is not solid, but the response was encouraging.

Having a adventuresome attitude helped me in my marriage recently. Over the weekend, I did something that hurt my wife. She hurt me back. Later, we risked the possibility of further pain through a tense and emotional adventure. I didn't enjoy the interaction at the time, but I'm glad for it now. I did enter it with a sense of adventure and that helped me in taking some risks.

"Lord Jesus, your journey on this earth was certainly not a sight seeing trip. From the moment of conception, your life was an adventure. You engaged in life and I thank you for inviting me to journey with you in the adventure of life. Please lead me in many adventures today that will bring you glory and give me the grace to risk when I'm afraid and can't see the outcome".