Walking the path

(2-minute read)

I discovered early in my work career that I needed to motivate myself. Often, I would decide something I wanted to do differently but just get caught up in the day’s routine and forget about the change I wanted to make. I started writing little notes and leaving them for myself. I’ve discovered that I need this same approach in the things of the Lord. I’ll have good intentions, but the business of the day makes me fall back into my routine.

Recently, my sister-in-law Cindy sent my wife a photograph she took from her patio. My wife, Jo, liked how the sky reflected on the water. She wanted to paint something similar and experiment with a slightly different painting style. When I first looked at it, I thought I liked the painting and could use it to remind me each day to reflect the Lord. I quickly realized that water is not calm during a storm and doesn’t reflect the sky. Even water can live at peace as long as it’s undisturbed. To live in peace during a storm is an unexpected wonder. On the other hand, the trees are just what the Lord intended them to be. They may sway or bend during a storm, and their leaves get ruffled, but they can take a lot.

Like the trees standing by the water, I want to grow up to be what the Lord intended me to be, and when trouble comes, not be changed by it. When the Lord created me, he made me the genuine person I was to be, but through selfishness, I let in influences that made me different. I want to be the person God wanted me to be. The genuine person God wanted me to be is better than I am, and I want to be that better person. When I pass the painting each morning, before I know what storms the day may bring, I look at it and think, be genuine today.