Of the rest of your life.
I have really enjoyed seeing all the pictures of the kids going back to school. The first day of school is like letting a child go all over again, and while some parents want to celebrate, others find it hard not to shed a couple tears. It amazes me when I look at some pictures of some people’s first child and then their second child, and they look like they’ve been cloned, they look so much alike! I love to see how much each child has grown, in each new posting of their first day of school. I see all the new shoes and the new backpacks. I’m not sure if the smiles are because they got new stuff or because they’re going back to school, but they all seem to be smiling in their pictures. It gives you pause to think what this year may hold in store for them, what experiences will they have, both good and bad at school. How will they handle it, how will you handle it, and how the school will handle it! There’s an old adage that says; it takes a village to raise a child, and I think I finally understand what that phrase means. It takes participation on the part of the parents, the child, and the school, just to make the school experience work for each and every child. I have stated before, living in a small community, like where I was raised, all the parents on the block new each and every child, and would keep them all in line. Not just to reprimand them if they did something wrong, but to keep them safe also. Now we are embarking on a new school term, in which parents, grandparents, community, and school must be united together in making it an optimal environment to learn and grow.
The first day of any thing can be a little bit on the scary side. Whether it’s work, school, or being part of a sports team, you must meet the people and find out where in this scenario you fit. Many thoughts run through everyone’s mind at this point; will they like me, will they like my clothing, will they like my hair, etc.? It is no different for an adult entering a new workplace than it is for a child entering a new school environment. The first day can be scary for anyone, and filled with apprehension.
So it is when you become a Christian and it is the first day of fulfilling that role. What if I say something wrong? What if I do something wrong? What if I don’t know what to say at the right time, or how to act? The best thing about being a Christian is that we are guided by the Holy Spirit and he will actually help us with every decision we make, if we are willing to listen, and accept his guidance. I wonder if people realize that the moment you wake up in the morning it is the first day of the rest of your life. You are the author of that life, and it is up to you what decisions you will make, and how you will be influenced to make them. It does not matter what you did yesterday, today is the only guarantee of life you have, how will you use it? I just ran across a familiar piece of Indian folk lore on the Internet, about a father trying to instruct his young son about life’s struggles. He talks of a war between two wolves, light and darkness, going on inside him. The dark Wolf is evil, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt. The light Wolf is good, joy, peace, love, hope security, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith. These two wolves are inside you also, battling every day, the father told his son. The son ask his father a profound question, which Wolf will win? The father’s answer was quite simple: the one that you feed! So it is with the rest of your life, what will you feed, light or darkness, good or evil? Every morning you wake up, you have a decision to make; what will I do with the rest of my life, because this is the first day of it?!
As parents we face the same battle every (first) day as everyone else, in the choices we make between light and dark, good and evil. How will we help our children make the right decisions in their life if we don’t consider the decisions we make every day in ours? May I suggest that you open life’s handbook, (the Bible) and shed a light on the path that is before you. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Psalms 119:105 Live and teach by example!
We as authors, experience many firsts in our writing careers, our first failed manuscript, our first rejection letter, our first successful manuscript! Our past should be something we learn from but should not define us, every day must be the first day of the rest of our lives, a blank canvas on which we may write any story we choose. Which Wolf will be the inspiration for your next story, which one will you feed?
And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:
Ezekiel 11:19
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
II Corinthians 5:17
That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
Ephesians 4:22-24
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
John 3:3
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
John 5:24