Thursday, August 28, 2008

I Could NOT Do That Before!

You know my son is 6 years old and started his first day as a 1st grader yesterday. He also had his first day at (flag) football practice the other day. Even though he can be a little fearful of new things and experiences, he is genuinely excited about all the things that growing older lets him do. He's always been that way, and I think most of us are that way. This morning for example, after breakfast he came in the kitchen grabbed his leg and stood on one foot and said "Dad, did you know I could do this??" I responded with the appropriate "Wow! I sure didn't!" As he was walking away he said "I could NOT do that when I was 5!"

As adults I wonder if we have lost the wonder and excitement about growing. We develop our patterns and our world views and devote a lot of effort to making ourselves comfortable. We do that. And yet, I wonder if in our pursuit of comfort, safety and security if we have lost the joy of discovering new things. Do we ever look to God and say "Jesus, teach me something new about you today," or "Jesus, about these spiritual gifts that are a mystery to me, could you help me in a greater experience of you?"

All I know is that if in five years I look back in my life and see sameness, I would be greatly discouraged. Even though that is the natural pull of my life, I know that with God there is more. I have only scratched the surface of Who God is and what it means to be His servant. Let's take a lesson from children who get to experience growth and new adventures all the time and realize that we too can still grow and become different, greater. Would you join me in the great adventure and open your life up to more today? By God's grace and in Jesus Name, may we all be able to say tomorrow, next year and in five years, "I Could NOT do that before!"