Courage For Today

standards

They Were UnEducated and UnTrained

Self-Worth

I’ve been fortunate in life to cross paths with many, many different types of people and personalities.  I’ve met Presidents and CEO’s of Major Corporations.  I’ve met famous politicians. I’ve even met popular sports figures.  All in all, I guess you could say that I’ve been able to meet a lot of individuals that are held in fairly high esteem by the World’s standards.

The World would look at these people and come to the conclusion that they were at the top of their respective fields.  Afterall, the Presidents and CEO’s certainly must have advanced degrees and education.  The politicians certainly must have education plus all the “people” skills necessary to influence others.  And, of course, the sports personalities surely must devote their energy to hours upon hours of dedication and practice.  I think all of these things are probably true for the most part, but somehow that just doesn’t impress me.

Maybe it’s because I’m getting older in life, I don’t really know.  But, I can tell you that credentials from people just really don’t mean much to me any more.  I’m not saying this is always true, but it just seems like most of who I used to call “Big Whigs” seem to be so insincere and pretentious.  It’s almost like they flaunt their power and degrees and success and are saying to me:  “I’m important and you’re not.”

I compare these individuals to others I have known over my years; those that the World would not hold in high esteem.  Individuals that are not even on the radar and would be unnoticed.  I’m thinking of my first real friend in elementary school who stood by me when others wouldn’t. I’m thinking of a youth counselor that led me to Christ when others rejected me.  I’m thinking of my first Boss who gave me a chance and saw something in me that others didn’t.  I’m thinking of my wife who has stood with me year after year, despite my many faults.  And, I’m thinking of my parents who always taught me to do the right things, even when it wasn’t popular.

What’s different about those individuals?  They weren’t really educated or trained by today’s standards.  They didn’t really hold high positions.  What set them all apart was that they had all accepted Christ as their savior.  There wasn’t anything hypocritical or arrogant about them.  They didn’t think they were better than anyone else.  They were just real and they cared about others.  The moment you met them, you knew immediately that they had been with Jesus.  It showed in everything they did.

At one time in my life, I wanted the fame and importance that the world offers.  Not any more, because it really has no lasting affect on anything or anybody.  Instead, I’ve learned that I want to help others as I can and for others to look at me and know immediately that “he’s been with Jesus.”

If you’re you’re feeling lost and insignificant, I would encourage you to be thankful and not regretful.  There is nothing about you and your God-given gifts that is insignificant in God’s eyes.

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Happiness or Joy

Grace

My Mom went on to be with the Lord in May, 2006.  There have been many days since then that I think back on how wonderfully blessed I was to have had her as a Mom.  I suppose there are many of us that would say the same things about their own Mom. Looking back on her now, after these years, it’s even more amazing to me how special she was.  How she lived her life and how she treated others made a permanent impact on the many lives whose paths she crossed.

It wasn’t that she was some “great” member of society, as we would know it.  She wasn’t a great business person.  She didn’t have a worthy profession such as a Nurse or School Teacher.  In fact, there was nothing that would really set her apart by the world’s standards.  But, as I came to learn, she didn’t live by the world’s standards.  She had another set of heavenly standards and priorities by which she operated.  Standards that are ever so hard to follow, but seemed effortless with her.

Mom was not blessed with good physical health.  She suffered through multiple back operations (8 or 9, I believe); multiple blood clots as a result of various surgeries; strokes; lung and breathing issues; and on and on I could go.  The point here is not what she suffered through but rather the victories that she lived while enduring these issues.  I know I am biased in saying what I am about to say, but I can honestly and sincerely say that I can’t remember a time where I ever heard her overly complain about her lot in life.  She never had the “woe is me” complex, or the “God, why me” complex.  I never heard her say she wished that she was not the way she was, or if she could be like someone else.  Honestly, not one time did I ever hear that from her lips.

To me, it was such a perfect example of how we should lead our life’s.  We are so caught up in materialism and “keeping up with the Jones'” that we lose sight of what is really important in life.  We think that buying the next car, or better house, or whatever might be on your list, will suddenly make us happy.  Instead, it just makes us emptier.  I realized that there is a tremendous difference between Happiness and Joy.  Contrary to popular belief, they’re not the same.

Mom had a special relationship with our Creator.  A personal relationship.  She just didn’t know who He was. She knew Him on a personal level.  She had total and complete confidence that her life was exactly as He designed it.  Even though, by the World’s standards, her life was painful beyond measure, she still had that inner confidence to know that she was in His hands and in His control.  Mom’s happiness was not based on the outer self.  It wasn’t based on the best car, or best house, or even how good she felt on a particular day—because she had many days in which she felt terribly.  She learned the difference between having an inner Joy and peace that only a relationship with our Creator can provide.  She learned that even though she may not always be “happy” with things that may have been going on in her life, she could still have that inner “joy” that gave her the strength to make it.

To this day, when I find myself feeling unhappy or sad, or even jealous of someone else, I remember my Mom and I remember that it really is the Joy in HIM that I should reach out and grab, and not the fleeing happiness that this world offers.  Happiness is temporary.  Joy is permanent.

Which one will you pursue?

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