Author, Wife, Busy Mom, A Woman after God's Heart.

Tag: ponderinglife

The World View from a Child

“The world is not how you see it; it’s how God sees it.”

My seven-year-old drew this picture for me today. When I asked her what this meant she had this to say…(some paraphrasing included):

“This is how God created the world: with beautiful flowers and the cross to remind us of His son, Jesus. Our world is in trouble, Mommy. There are people fighting each other and people saying mean things to one another. Nobody likes America anymore. I don’t think God likes that, so he gave us hurricanes, so we can learn to be nice to each other again.”

My reaction. “Oh, okay. Great observation…Nice job! It looks real pretty. Is this a specific place?”

“No. It’s just a cemetery.”

“Ah, why a cemetery?”

“Because it is beautiful too, even if there are dead people. But, especially if it is filled with flowers.”

And then, I asked where all the “living” people were in the picture?

“I don’t know. Gone, I guess. I have no people.”

“Hmm…Wouldn’t it be okay to have people in the picture?”

“No. People ruin the earth.”

So, my child drew a beautiful picture, one that she believes God envisioned, but with so much division and fighting in our world lately, there probably won’t be any more “decent” people left.

I’m reminded of a quote from one of my favorite Rocky movies. This one was from Rocky IV (1985):

It’s toward the end. Rocky just beat Drago, the Russian boxer. Throughout the fight the crowd is booing Rocky, but when he beats Drago, they get on his side and begin chanting his name. This is what Rocky has to say about that…

“During this fight, I’ve seen a lot of changing, in the way you feel about me, and in the way I feel about you. In here, there were two guys killing each other, but I guess that’s better than twenty million. I guess what I’m trying to say, is that if I can change, and you can change, everybody can change!”

So, on this Friday and on every day going forward, let’s do something for someone else. A change of heart, a  change of mind, and a change of attitude starts within each of us.

#FridayFeeling, #RockyIV, #TakenfromASevenYearold, #Outofmouthsofbabes, #writing, #ponderinglife, #Changebeginswithyou

 

A Brave New Year

A brave new year.

A brave new year.

 

I’ve spent the first week of this month pondering my New Year’s resolution. Honestly, I haven’t had a resolution in God knows how long. I don’t keep them and it always ends up not reflecting what I intended at the time I made the resolution.

Two years ago, I incorporated a “New Word” of the year. Everyone was doing it and so I tried it too. You know what happened? Nothing. Six months later, I forgot the “Word”.

“Resolutions” and “Word of the Year” don’t work for me.

On recent afternoon while on Christmas break, my daughters begged me to go outside. They were bored of staying in. It was a cold day, so we bundled up and headed out. They wanted to romp around and make snow angels as well as play explorers on a mission. As I observed my kids, it dawned on me—my wish for 2016. They were living in the moment, exploring their surroundings, solving made-up problems, braving each step ahead of them with a curiosity to reach an intended goal—the other side of the driveway without getting eaten up by giant polar bears.

By taking one step at a time using a jump rope, two shovels, and one pail, they were deliberate and intentional with their decision-making process. Their comments and responses to my questions as to the “whys” and “how” they were going to make it to the other side—alive and not frozen in the deep snow where wolves and vultures would come and suck out their blood, was amazing. Children are so keen on finding simple solutions to difficult tasks.

Each of our so called “resolutions” and “one word(s)” should include all of what they experienced…for our whole year and every year after. It’s a lifestyle and mindset change. Taking a risk, and living the life of an adventurer because you just never know when wolves and vultures will deter you…

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