My Pen Mates,
Too often, we live up to the expectations of our culture. The "ningas kogon" mentality of flaring up and quick and be extinguished just as quickly is a fair assessment of how we go about embarking on projects. It's quite embarrassing how we somehow pigeonhole ourselves to that stereotype, but it's prophetic in the manner it tends to self-fulfil.
Things don't always go as planned, and to be fair, God's will in our lives and our time and in how we relate with others is unfathomable. But I believe that God also designed us to be persistent and we all have been gifted with an ability to focus and be determined when we follow the path of righteousness. While distractions abound, I am of the mind that these serve not to test our gifts but to refine them. Just as sandpaper polishes with constant rubbing, hurdles and challenges are necessary to improve our focus and produce a product worthy of distinction.
But there is no actual finished product. Distinctions are cast by the wayside as soon as they are attained, such that one whose goal is to gain it finds an empty arena at the end of the race. Being polished and accomplished in one field should be considered a preparation for the next goal, the next jewel in the strand of life's wondrous cycle. It's a journey with self-determined set landmarks to mark progress, and the trip is its own reward. For in the final analysis, the ride is where the joy lies, not when the merry-go-round stops.
So how many jewels you end up having in your strand equates to the beauty of the gift you have for your Creator at the time of reckoning. Was your ride rewarding and fun such that you were ready and content when it ended? Or were you constantly seeking that first jewel because you never took the time or exercise patience to polish it?
It's a process no matter how it's viewed; one has to go through all the motions and procedures, no matter how tedious or mundane, just as one needs to keep on rubbing the stone to turn it into a jewel. Results are not instant, lest the reward is trivialized. The archer needs to hone his skills both in marksmanship and craftsmanship. His physical skills and discipline, coupled with his trained ability to assemble reliable bows and arrows, need to come together over time, to hit the intended mark. And when that is accomplished, a new target, a new challenge, thus becomes the new stone that can be polished.
I wish to convey this Life lesson to my son Lucas, on his 14th birthday.
Love,
Dad
< Latest
