Child Like?

How do we perform during training days?

While co-listening (yes I was multi – tasking) to my ELAR trainers, I happened upon the whispers and voices of other adults. How much do adults resemble the students they teach? I am glad you asked (nod to Pastor J). MIRROR IMAGE!
There is a quote often heard, “you come into the world looking like your parents and leave looking like your choices.” If we only applied that to our faith.
If we came into the world looking like our Heavenly Father and left this earth reflecting His choices for us, or even following Christ’s example. How much value would the dash (in between our sunrise and sunset dates) hold?

Did I loose you? Let’s backtrack.

When a baby is born, we gather around them and ask which of the parents the child resembles. As they age into toddlers, we attempt to group character traits and personality when opportunity and identity meet. School comes, then we began to see academic habits form, the ribbons and rewards begin to stack up, and we have the celebrations that our families tend to have. Yes, I am generalizing. Finally, in a glorious time lapse, the high school children approach graduation. What they do now, in their pattern driven mind, either scars or propels them in the coming years. ::here is when children begin to look differently.::
What we do recreationally, nutritionally, sexually, physically, spiritually, and mentally show up in a very real way in our life.

Now fast forward to my original thought. What if we chose like Christ chose? What if we loved people in spite of differences? What if we choose the narrow path early and avoided veering off- consciously. What if we chose to view suffering with the thought: my later will be greater. What if?

I was recently in conversation with someone who said, “I’d rather ask for forgiveness than permission.” I had a fundamental issue with the statement, not the speaker. The statement speaks to a mentality. An embedded philosophy of “mercy abuse”. Consequences exist. Positive and negative residue from our choices exist in everything.

When penning this, I was aware of one key concept. If it is to be, it is up to me. In order to reach, I must teach. In order to teach, I must live. There is no cliff notes to life or it’s lessons. I am not the expert, I am in the row next to you. It’s not where you are in a race with others, you are only in competition with the best of self.

::reflection time: what can you do today, that affects how you look tomorrow?::

Ivy Out