Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Growth Spurts

It's an awesome thing to watch children grow up. I look at my daughters today and say to myself, "I remember when they were just babies." I watched as my eldest daughter wrote her first paper in high school. I told her she would be asked to express herself in writing more often as she continues her education. She said she didn't mind writing as long as she got to choose the topic.

How much would we like to choose the things we deal with in our lives? Growing is not about being able to choose but being able to accept. We can not always determine what is ahead, but we must be ready to release the things that just don't fit us anymore. If we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and savior, each day brings us closer to where we are going. Our narrow faith patterns get too small and we out grow the same old way of doing things. I know that pair of shoes fit so well. You would convince yourself they did not hurt your feet. You probably kept them longer than you should have. Those pants were too short but they were just what you were looking for when you bought them and you just can't seem to find another pair just like them in your size. I was fine when all I had to believe God for was health and strength. I liked praying just once a day. I still had time for everything else.

That's life. The Serenity Prayer states, "To accept the things I can not change and to have the courage to change the things I can." Acceptance offers the opportunity to release and courage presents the opportunity to embrace the new with all of its difficulty and struggles. As a child, sometimes we will have to grow into things. I am God's child and I thank Him for growth spurts. I bless Him for change and all of its challenges.