There are seasons when the horizon stretches wide before us—
full of shimmer, full of promise—
and yet the closer we move toward it, the more it dissolves.
We think we see a path.
We think we understand the direction of our Calling.
We think we know what Spirit is asking us to build or become.
And then, just as our foot meets what seems like firm ground, it shifts.
What we thought was certainty becomes mist.
What we believed was Calling becomes only the spark for the fire.
In these moments, leaders often feel disoriented.
Not because we have discerned wrongly,
but because we assumed the glimpse was the destination
rather than the invitation.
When the Horizon Moves
In the discernment journey, there comes a point when the Calling we pursue begins to blur.
The vision that once guided us begins to fade at the edges.
The horizon refuses to stand still.
This is where despair sometimes enters—not dramatic,
but quiet and unsettling,
a sense that what we reached for has slipped beyond our grasp.
But this is not failure.
This is the Spirit’s mercy.
The horizon does not stay in place because its purpose was never to be a map.
Its purpose was to awaken our attention,
to stir desire,
to ignite surrender.
The Illusion of Direction
So much of our anxiety in leadership comes from believing we must chart the course—
that if we just listen hard enough, pray long enough, plan well enough,
we will discern the exact direction of our Calling.
But the spiritual life does not unfold like the landscape we walk on.
It behaves more like light on water:
shifting, shimmering, revealing and concealing in the same breath.
What we think is “direction” is often only reflection.
What we think is “purpose” is often only possibility.
The real work is not to navigate the horizon
but to yield to the Spirit who moves beyond our perception.
In Sacred Listening, surrender sits in the very center of the discernment cycle.
Not because surrender is weakness,
but because it is the only posture that lets us release the fantasies we craft—
the imagined futures, the assumed destinies, the expectations that masquerade as faith.
Fantasy is our attempt to steer.
Surrender is our willingness to be carried.
When Calling Outgrows Our Imagination
The deeper truth is this:
Calling is never limited to what we can see.
What we perceive as the endpoint is often only the spark—
the flicker that draws us closer to the One we seek.
We glimpse possibility,
but what Spirit intends is always wider, deeper, more unfathomable than we can comprehend.
The realm of Spirit—the unseen landscape of God’s possibilities—
cannot be navigated by sight.
It cannot be grasped by imagination.
It cannot be reduced to a vision board or strategy.
It asks something far more demanding and far more freeing:
the courage to surrender what we believe life is supposed to be
so we can be shaped for what cannot yet be seen.
Surrender as the Way
The path of discernment is not a journey toward a better future.
It is a journey into deeper obedience.
Spirit is not leading us to a destination;
Spirit is leading us into alignment.
Not alignment with our preferences,
our fantasies,
or the outcomes we hope for—
but alignment with the work that Spirit is already doing,
the work that is not ours to control.
Surrender is painful because it requires loosening our grip on what we think we know.
But surrender is also the threshold—
the very place where the illusion of direction gives way to the reality of Presence.
When we release certainty,
Spirit reveals what is real.
When we let go of control,
Spirit opens what is possible.
When we stop navigating the horizon,
Spirit teaches us how to walk.
Reflection Invitation
Where in your life does the horizon seem to shift just as you approach it?
What assumed direction might be dissolving so Spirit can draw you deeper?
What fantasy about your future—or your leadership—might be asking to be surrendered
so that the real work of Calling can emerge?
This week, listen for the places where you feel disoriented.
These may not be signs of misdirection,
but gentle invitations to release the illusion of control
and follow Spirit beyond what you can perceive.
If you sense the Spirit inviting you into deeper discernment,
schedule a consultation.
Sometimes the next step becomes clearer when you name it with someone who is listening with you.
#DiscerningLeadership #SpiritLedLeadership #SacredListening #SurrenderAndCalling #LeadershipFormation #ListeningForSpirit