By the Rev. Thomas M. Boles PhD., DMin., D.D.

A man once went with a friend for a ride out in the country.

They drove off the main road and through a grove of orange

trees to a mostly uninhabited piece of land. A few horses

grazed there amidst a couple of old shacks. Walter stopped

the car and began to describe vividly the things he was

going to build on the land.

He wanted his friend Arthur to buy some of the acreage surrounding his project. Walter explained to his friend, “I can handle the main project myself. It will take all my money, but, I want to you have the first chance at this surrounding acreage, because in the next five years it will increase in value several hundred times.”

Arthur thought to himself, “Who in the world is going to drive

25 miles for this crazy project? His dream had taken

the best of his common sense. He mumbled something about

a tight-money situation and promised to look into the deal

later.

“Later on will be too late,” Walter cautioned.

“You’d better move on it right now.”

Arthur failed, however, to act.

And so it was that Art Linkletter turned down the

opportunity to buy the land that surrounded what

became Disneyland, the land his friend Walt Disney had

tried to talk him into.

Most opportunities take a step

of faith whether for financial or relationship investments.

The doors of opportunity are marked “Push and “Pull.”

The soul of the sluggard desireth,

and hath nothing; but the soul

of the diligent shall be made fat.

Proverbs 13:4