Gleanings…

Have you ever been afraid to do something new?  While it may seem like a crazy question, the truth is that we are presented with opportunities to do something new every day.  What is not new is how often we fail to see the opportunities that are right in front of us.

What am I talking about?  Well, look around you.  Who do you see?  Now, if you say “same old, same old” then, in truth, you missed it again.  Sure, we’re surrounded by items and people that we have looked at more times than we can count, but it is the very things that we see every day that give us the chance to do something new.

Now, I am not talking about trading in the old for something new especially when we are talking about a member of the family.  And I am certainly not talking about taking on debt to “refresh” the old.  No, I am talking about using what you have always had in a new way.  What am I talking about?  Your eyes.

Yes, your eyes are the key to doing something new every day.  What you see, physically or spiritually, calls for a response.  That response can be a patterned reaction that has always gotten you by.  But, when we fall back on old patterns of response, we close ourselves off to the possibility that there just might be a better way to respond to what we see.  This can be especially true with people.

Have you ever thought about how much you change every day?  While your physical self may look essentially the same, what you have learned from reexamination or another way of thinking about something/someone can make significant changes in you.  That is an on-going process.  What needs to happen at that point is to make a conscious decision to not treat anyone or anything the same old way.

What will this do for you?  It will fill you with expectancy.  What new understanding will I have today?  What new responses can I have to the same people, places, and things that are a regular part of my life?  When these questions arise regularly and naturally, our attitudes can change and we begin to live in the present again.

When God created all that is, God did not say that there will never be any deviations from the original.  This tells me that we must always be open to changes in ourselves and others.  Every person and every thing is always being acted upon by other people and things.  The only constant in creation is that everything changes.

Here is the invitation: Join me in deciding to look for what has changed in the people we see every day.  Join me in expecting that God has had an impact on every person’s life and that they are no longer who they were.  Join me in allowing God to show us new ways of relating and responding that works for peace among us.  And join me in showing God’s love through everything we do.

Grace and peace,

Braxton ><>