Will You Do What It Takes

It is always amazing to listen to people who have accomplished great things. Right now I am reading, “Wealth is it Worth It?” by S. Truett Cathy, the owner of Chick-Fil-A, and one thing that is clear is you have to be willing to do what it takes. The stories in the book are interesting as they talk about his commitment, and his heart for giving, but weaved in between the lines is how hard he worked, both inside and outside of the restaurant.

As I look at Chick-Fil-A now, it is a 4.5 Billion privately held company. As of Aug 2, they only have 1,614 stores, and they only operate in 39 states. They hold their commitment to never opening on Sunday, and they do tons of work in their community. Wow, not bad for humble beginning. I shared this with you today, not to be a commercial for a Chick-Fil-A restaurant, but I because I wanted you to think about the cost and significance of your dream. For 21 years, the Cathy family worked behind the counter of their restaurant, The Dwarf House before the first Chick-Fil-A restaurant opened in 1946. Just like most business owners the Cathy’s sacrificed and worked hard during that time. There must have been tons of days when they felt like quitting or thought about giving up. Surely, there were many days when they wondered if all of this work and sacrifices was really worth it. Yet, as we look back 67 years later there are certainly plenty of employees, and franchise owners who must be incredibly happy the Cathy family never quit.

Each and every one of you are gifted, and each of you has a dream, it may not have come to fruition yet, but it’s there. What if the work that has been assigned to you is bigger, or more significant than the work God gave to Truett Cathy? What if you are the one, who is going to impact billions of lives, and help millions of people? Today, your dream might just be a small seed that you will have to cultivate for years before you see it turn into an oak tree, but imagine if it’s as big as this or as important a work as this.

Truett Cathy built his restaurant with strong faith and a team. He had the great work ethic that he developed in his youth, and he never quit. As we look back over his story, we can only imagine what he experienced and what he sacrificed to get where he is today. One thing we know for sure is that he did what was necessary to get it done, and we see the fruits of his labor every day.

You have an incredibly awesome and unique gift inside of you, but in order to get it to go from a seed to a plan, to a tree you have to be willing to do something. Your life may need to look different than your friends for a while. You may have to make some hard decisions. Perhaps you don’t have the newest car, or you don’t live in your dream neighborhood. Perhaps you only go on staycations, wear old clothes, and sacrifice eating out on the weekends. No one knows what it will or has cost another person to be successful, and we don’t need to know. The question each of us has to answer is, “What are you willing to pay, and when will you get started?”. As you look at your gift and your gifting, commit to moving forward swiftly and consistently. Give your dream everything you got, you never know whose life it will change, and how important it maybe not just to you, but to us all. Just know it’s worth it, and keep on pressing!