Don't look down!

My daughter shares with me an intrinsic propensity to be easily inspired.  We both look at the world and the circumstances around us with a "teach me!" lens, and get really excited about life lessons and how we can grow.

Take myself, for example.  Whenever I attend a business conference or meeting, I almost always come away with 2-3 things that I will actually do about what I've heard.  Occasionally, it's a technical learning point, but much more often, it's some tangential application on team dynamics, as to how we organise ourselves, or interact with each other, or how we can be better equipped.  My colleagues have learned to be wary about me attending conferences, because it means another new idea is coming their way :D

In fact, if I think about it, that's what causes this blog to be written.  I get easily inspired by what happens around me, and it helps me to write it down.  Today's blog is particularly symptomatic of this - because it's about me being inspired by my daughter being inspired!

As an incurable busy bee, my daughter signed up for a community service program where she learns to play football alongside special needs kids.  The idea, I suppose, is to expose the two groups of kids to each other, so as to mutually learn empathy and see each other's worlds through their respective lenses.  Football is an especially useful medium of instruction, since it is a great equaliser - on a scale of 1-10 my daughter's football skills are approximately -2.7!

And, just as I extract life lessons from playing basketball, my daughter extracts life lessons from football!  After her first lesson, she came home and shared with me that the football coach was teaching them to dribble the ball while looking up, rather than looking down at the ball.  Because if you keep looking down you don't know where you're going with the ball, and can't see opportunities to pass or shoot.  She concluded with this life lesson - it's the same in life outside the sports field - look up, don't look down!  Be purposeful and positive and confident - you've got this! Don't just look down at the ball at your feet, worried that you'll miscontrol or lose it.

Then just a couple of days ago, my daughter excitedly shared what she had heard at morning assembly.  This doctor who goes on medical missions was sharing that there were two villages - one upstream and the other, further downstream.  The upstream village has better access to clean water and food (fish).  The downstream village is in a not-so-good situation.  But here's the interesting bit.  Both villages consider themselves poor and marginalised.  As a consequence, both have problems associated with poverty - alcoholism, crime, depression.

The point is, as my daughter explained, when we (like the upstream village) look at our own lack, we don't see that we actually have more than we think.  Without trivialising poverty in any way - if we strive to be grateful for what we do have, then even if we have lack, just like the football analogy, we can look up and draw purpose, positivity and confidence, instead of looking down, worried about losing what we do have.

Providentially, just yesterday at my church care group, a friend was sharing something very similar.  When we focus on a lifestyle of giving, we are gratefully reminded of what we have.  When we focus on a lifestyle of getting, we are dis-satisfactorily reminded of what we don't have!

It's pretty obvious that a lifestyle of giving is going to be much more joyful, purposeful and satisfying than a lifestyle of getting.  That's the kind of life I want for sure!  But... it's not so easy to look at our own situations and constantly tell ourselves - I have all I need, so I can give!  Right... ?

Thank God that, for those who hear Jesus, and choose to follow Him, we have an amazing promise - that in every situation, His unmerited favour is sufficient for us; His power is made perfect in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). 

And as the Bible records of the apostle Paul "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do all this through him who gives me strength."

How amazing that we get to walk through life, looking up, and not looking down!  (And if you are interested in finding a regular outlet for giving in your life, let me know, and I'll share with you our bread distribution exercise details!)

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