I have several friends who blog on a regular basis. I will get a message on Facebook or I will get an e-mail letting me know when they have posted a new post on their blog. Not too long ago I was reading a friend’s blog, about a friend they met in college. As I was reading my friend’s post I began to realize my friend was writing about me. It was interesting to catch a glimpse of myself through my friend’s eyes.
We were made to be in relationships. We need relationships. We need people around us who will help us see ourselves in a little different way. Often, we can’t see things about ourselves, because we are too close to the situation… We need people around us who can help us see the good and bad in our lives that we are blind to. That does not mean we let others define who we are, but we need to let others speak into our lives so that we have a more complete picture of who we are.
Having people in our lives that can and will help us see ourselves more completely is a huge gift to us. They can help us act in a different way or refrain from doing certain things so that we don’t always have to learn the hard way. They can also help us see the many ways we are unique, we are gifted, and the talents we were created with.
I hope that you have people in your life who will celebrate your uniqueness by sharing with you the gifts and talents they see in you. I hope that you have people in your life that will help steer you away from the pitfalls they see up ahead. I hope that you have people who will help you see yourself in a more complete way, those that will not define who you are but will let you grow into who you were created to be.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Night Lights
When we moved into our current house several years ago, it seemed so dark at night. The first few days/weeks I cannot count the number of times I bumped into a cabinet, or a piece of furniture, or I slapped at a wall trying to find a light switch. I purchased numerous night lights to save my shins, elbows, etc. from the torture that furniture laying in wait dishes out.
The night lights were nice. I could see where I was going at night and didn’t have to turn on all the lights in the house to do it. The kids had a light in their room so if they happened to wake up in the middle of the night, they could get their bearings and go back to sleep.
A few months ago, I started noticing that I don’t like the lights anymore. It started with a light that wasn’t even in my house. About a block away there is a street light. Once the leaves fell from the trees in our backyard and our neighbors’ yard (and I think one or two branches might have come down by the wind), that street light shines right in my eyes as I lay in bed. I can see that silly light even with my eyes closed. So I would roll over and the light from our electric blanket would shine in my eyes. At times I have lain in bed not able to sleep because of how bright the house is.
Now that the house has become more familiar, I am able to notice all of the other lights I didn’t notice before. There is a light on the VCR, the phone cradle, the TV, our alarm clocks, my wife’s computer, the coffee maker, the space heater in the corner, etc. These lights were there before, yet I was just not aware enough to notice them. Our house is anything but dark anymore, and there have been several night lights that have had to find their way into a drawer.
How often in life do we deal with other “night lights”? For a time they are helpful to help us get our bearings, or get us where we need to go. These things may help us feel more secure or make us feel more freedom... But, at some point, they stop becoming helpful and become more of a hindrance or inconvenience.
The subtitle of a book I was recently given is “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There.” Too often we continue to rely on things that were once helpful, long past their usefulness. There are times in our lives we need to put those things away because they aren’t needed, because we have grown, changed, and have become more comfortable in our surroundings. We may have to find a new “tool” to help move us forward in our lives, but if we cling to what got us here, we won’t ever get there. For healthier relationships, minds, bodies, etc. there are things we need to let go of so that we can grow and change.
The night lights were nice. I could see where I was going at night and didn’t have to turn on all the lights in the house to do it. The kids had a light in their room so if they happened to wake up in the middle of the night, they could get their bearings and go back to sleep.
A few months ago, I started noticing that I don’t like the lights anymore. It started with a light that wasn’t even in my house. About a block away there is a street light. Once the leaves fell from the trees in our backyard and our neighbors’ yard (and I think one or two branches might have come down by the wind), that street light shines right in my eyes as I lay in bed. I can see that silly light even with my eyes closed. So I would roll over and the light from our electric blanket would shine in my eyes. At times I have lain in bed not able to sleep because of how bright the house is.
Now that the house has become more familiar, I am able to notice all of the other lights I didn’t notice before. There is a light on the VCR, the phone cradle, the TV, our alarm clocks, my wife’s computer, the coffee maker, the space heater in the corner, etc. These lights were there before, yet I was just not aware enough to notice them. Our house is anything but dark anymore, and there have been several night lights that have had to find their way into a drawer.
How often in life do we deal with other “night lights”? For a time they are helpful to help us get our bearings, or get us where we need to go. These things may help us feel more secure or make us feel more freedom... But, at some point, they stop becoming helpful and become more of a hindrance or inconvenience.
The subtitle of a book I was recently given is “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There.” Too often we continue to rely on things that were once helpful, long past their usefulness. There are times in our lives we need to put those things away because they aren’t needed, because we have grown, changed, and have become more comfortable in our surroundings. We may have to find a new “tool” to help move us forward in our lives, but if we cling to what got us here, we won’t ever get there. For healthier relationships, minds, bodies, etc. there are things we need to let go of so that we can grow and change.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Rocks
My oldest son started a bad habit his first year of school. The school that he went to had several large trees that dropped “nuts”. Our son would grab hand full’s of these “nuts and place them in his pocket. He has passed this habit on to his younger brother. The items they place in their pockets (who knows for what reason) have changed. Sometimes we find dandelion heads, or leaves, very often we find rocks, pebbles are probably a more appropriate term, but they are still rocks.
Recently I was taking clothes out of the washer and dryer and found several rocks that had escaped our pre-wash search. As I was taking the rocks out of the washer and dryer I was a little frustrated. “Why do the boys pick up these rocks and leave them in their pockets? “ I thought to myself. As I was asking the question a memory hit me. When I was younger my family had a ranch southwest of our hometown. When we would go to the ranch my brother and I would take “hikes” and find all sorts of beautiful or unique rocks. We would pick up these rocks and take them to Mom so she could see the wonderful treasures we had found. We also wanted to bring these treasures home, but Mom would always tell us that they wouldn’t look as unique at home. Sometimes we would listen to her and leave the rocks to be rediscovered later, but sometimes we smuggled some home. After a few days or sometimes a few weeks we would pull out our rock treasures to marvel at what we had found and brought home. It never failed, every time we pulled these treasures out all we had were just a bunch of rocks.
These memories started me thinking. How many times are we like those rocks my brother and I used to smuggle home? In our natural environment we sparkle we shine, we are beautiful, we are unique, but when we are taken out of our natural environment we look a little plain, we don’t look as special…
I hope you never have to suffer from being taken out of your “natural environment” and look plain and ordinary. I hope that you can find your “natural environment” so that you can sparkle and shine, and show the world your uniqueness.
Recently I was taking clothes out of the washer and dryer and found several rocks that had escaped our pre-wash search. As I was taking the rocks out of the washer and dryer I was a little frustrated. “Why do the boys pick up these rocks and leave them in their pockets? “ I thought to myself. As I was asking the question a memory hit me. When I was younger my family had a ranch southwest of our hometown. When we would go to the ranch my brother and I would take “hikes” and find all sorts of beautiful or unique rocks. We would pick up these rocks and take them to Mom so she could see the wonderful treasures we had found. We also wanted to bring these treasures home, but Mom would always tell us that they wouldn’t look as unique at home. Sometimes we would listen to her and leave the rocks to be rediscovered later, but sometimes we smuggled some home. After a few days or sometimes a few weeks we would pull out our rock treasures to marvel at what we had found and brought home. It never failed, every time we pulled these treasures out all we had were just a bunch of rocks.
These memories started me thinking. How many times are we like those rocks my brother and I used to smuggle home? In our natural environment we sparkle we shine, we are beautiful, we are unique, but when we are taken out of our natural environment we look a little plain, we don’t look as special…
I hope you never have to suffer from being taken out of your “natural environment” and look plain and ordinary. I hope that you can find your “natural environment” so that you can sparkle and shine, and show the world your uniqueness.
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