"The sugar fell," he said, quickly offering up an unsolicited explanation, which is a sure sign of guilt, by the way. Of course, I knew there was more to the story. After all, I had only stepped out of the kitchen for a brief moment to give Kaleb his two slices of cinnamon toast I'd just made, which happens to be one of his favorite treats. I used to love it when my mom made it for me as a kid too. I just toast the bread, add a little margarine, cinnamon and powdered sugar for a totally kid-friendly, palate-pleasing snack.
Anyway, it was clear that the sugar didn't just jump off the counter top. "What happened?" I gently pryed. I knew whatever happened was likely an accident. I figured, after I got to the bottom of what really took place, it would be most appropriate to take the opportunity to teach a lesson, rather than scold him. "So, tell mommy what happened," I said leading him along. "Did you try to taste the sugar or did it fall on its own?"
It didn't take much before the truth came pouring out. Just as I suspected, once I stepped foot out of the kitchen, Kedar made a beeline over to the sugar and accidentally tipped it over. So, once he finished nervously confessing, I calmly told him how important it is to be honest and take responsibility when things happen, whether good or bad. I think he got the message.
You know, I believe that lesson applies to all of us, but quite often, when there's a "mess" of some sort in our lives, we do what Kedar did initially and focus on the effect, rather than owning up to our part in causing it. However, if we're willing to take ownership, (something that indeed takes great courage), we can usually trace the negative effect back to a particular action we carried out, or a poor decision we made.
It's easier said than done though, because it's human nature to shift blame and absolve oneself of any guilt. But, if we want to maximize our God-given potential, we have to be real about what personal decisions contributed to our present state of being. It's so crucial to be honest with ourselves, because if we always see the mess and never take personal responsibility for the part we played in it, we're doomed to repeat the same errors over and over again.
And God doesn't want that for us.
Now, I must acknowledge that there are situations that have happened to each of us, that we had no power to control. In those instances, we must be careful not to carry guilt, bitterness, or even shame. On the other hand, if we find ourselves in an undesirable place due to a slip-up on our part, we must own it, face it, deal with it and then, move beyond it with a fresh commitment to change.
Listen; no one is perfect. We have all made poor choices at some point in our lives and they're not all necessarily pertaining to sin against God. Some of us have not managed our money well, or our health, relationships, business, career, or even our spiritual walk with God.
But, we can change the effect, if we can trace it back to the cause.
There's a saying I really like that applies here. "If you understand the root, you'll understand the fruit." In other words, the why behind the what is the key to breaking unhealthy cycles and moving forward to greater things.
That's what God absolutely wants for us...
The time is now to to trace the cause, so you can start fresh and change the effect!
As always, thanks for reading and until next time... may you be empowered to prosper!
Dianna Hobbs
