SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSONS
With thanksgiving, we witness people’s progress every day who love God, consciously put forth the effort to be and do better for Him, and positively respond to life.
Most of us are familiar with these adages.
How do you swallow an elephant? one bite at a time? Or how do stop a bad habit or addiction? one day at a time. These one-step-at-a-time and one-day-at-a-time approaches instill courage and spark the impetus to change.
Two recent scenarios provided wonderful opportunities to witness friends’ step-by-step growth and share their progress.
A friend asked me to come with her to pick up a prescription at a local store.
Her hubby just had a medical procedure and was not a good patient. He spread his pain with a grouchy attitude—and she, at the moment, was not a fan.
On our way there, she related, not without compassion, “the spread” of his prickliness.
To her dismay, she realized in talking ABOUT IT, she became infected BY IT.
As Forrest Gump might say, “Prickly is as Prickly does.”
Upon entering the store, her demeanor changed.
New energy pulsed through her and her voice was lighter. As we stood in line for the prescription, her face beamed a thousand-watt smile.
Her answer to what is going on? was perfection.
“I am pretending to be Miss Universe, all perky and perfect, saying, ‘All everyone wants is peace.’ And peace I shall be.”
Our LOL laughter “awakened the multitudes.”
Smiles, not sourness, spread on faces. The girl who waited on us remarked, greeted us with a wide smile, “Looks like your day is going well” which brought on new bouts of laughter.
This was a perfect example of a one-step-at-a-time win.
Instead of spreading sourness, my friend chose to spread cheer.
Another friend shared her progress in adjusting and adapting to the “houses” in her life.
While grateful for it, a winter residence location is not my friend’s first choice. She related that she had a talk with herself and decided to make an attitude adjustment.
Positivity begets positivity.
She chose to take advantage of all the opportunities for connection by reaching out to women who she finds interesting and setting up get-togethers. The effort to connect is connecting her to the house and its location because she chose to change.
Silence is golden and creates peace.
Can’t tell you how many times my friend overcomes the temptation to open her mouth and insert her foot. (Nothing any of us can relate to 😊) She continually reports, “There’s so much I want to say, but I keep my mouth shut and say nothing.” Thus, she sacrifices her need to insert opinions and give advice and creates more peace.
Bet you know quite a few people who are making the effort every day to be better persons and to become more Christ-like in small ways.
Many of you are doing the same. Cheers to you!—keep going and keep growing!
Witnessing progress for each other is important.
Let us celebrate perfect responses and our works-in-progress one step at a time and one day at a time. May we encourage each other to be better each day and rid of the stuff that gets between us and God.
“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” –Galatians 6:9, KJV.