Stage 2: Too Good to be True

It is completely natural to resist our calling.

In fact, it is essential that we do so at first. We invest a great deal of energy in maintaining the status quo of our lives, and answering a calling always requires disrupting what is comfortable and familiar. To step forward, we must be willing to commit to a new direction, a new quest. Until we reconcile the tension between our calling and the life we know, we remain unwilling—or unable—to move forward.

Leaders often feel the stirrings of change but hesitate to listen. There are countless reasons not to upset the apple cart, especially when the existing system appears to be functioning. In the anti-poverty space, for instance, the poverty management system is well-established: it brings in funding, distributes resources, and provides a sense of structure and predictability. It reassures those within it, offering clear rules about what can and cannot be done. Yet, there is little financial or institutional incentive to innovate, disrupt, or rewrite the playbook. In fact, such efforts are often discouraged. Stay within the box. Follow the checklist. Ensure the paperwork is in order. Do not provide anything beyond what eligibility criteria allow.

But does any of this help people escape poverty? Not usually.

When we first encounter an alternative approach—like a Poverty Alleviation System—our instinct is skepticism. This sounds too good to be true. We dismiss it before taking it seriously, convincing ourselves that it simply won’t work. This internal conflict simmers, while we continue running the same old poverty management system, frustrated by its failures yet resigned to its limitations.

There are many reasons to stay the course, even when we recognize its shortcomings. It may feel like a mud puddle, but it’s our mud puddle. It’s familiar. We know how to navigate it, even if it makes us unhappy. In an odd way, that familiarity can be comforting. This same resistance appears in every major life transition—whether in careers, relationships, creative pursuits, or community involvement.

If our calling is real, answering it will change our lives. And that transformation cannot come solely from within. To resolve the conflict, we must seek support. It is through the aid of others that we find the courage to move forward and fully embrace the journey ahead.

"Too Good to be True"

Acrylic painting by Scott C. Miller

To purchase prints please contact [email protected]

“The Weight of Freedom” (Associated with ‘Too Good To Be True’)

I sat out with energy and pride

but sometimes it’s too hard…

 

Yes,

I can crawl on beaches

but on asphalt it hurts my hands.

I found a nugget of happiness,

that floated out with the riptide.

Where it leads, I cannot follow

I will sit here twisting my hands instead.

The weight of freedom is

like an invisible hand

pressed against my chest

and pushing with all its might

down.

It’s impossible to fight what isn’t even there…

But maybe that’s the catch?

When balancing the cosmic scales

the weight of hope far exceeds

the weight of apathy,

and a single molecule of adventure

can ignite the reactor of chance.

But I must stay where I am already warm

and hide my selfish desire to change.

Who am I to head a call?

Who am I to rearrange?

 

If I stay, I cannot be hurt

and I’ll never know the taste of dirt,

though if I don’t go, I’ll never know

what’s at the end of that rainbow!