Number One

"Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

"O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen."

- Saint Francis of Assisi

Back in January of this year, I decided to make 2010 a year in which I would work on me. As selfish as that may sound, I am confident that the one who is needing the most reflection, reform, and growth in my life is, as Michael Jackson's '88 smash single so eloquently put it, "The Man in the Mirror".

I want to explore what it means to grow, not just through and with the times, but consciously and deliberately. I want to admit and accept my flaws, search for truth, and gain wisdom and direction through the experiences everyday life blesses me with. Of course, none of us are islands; we can't live to our fullest with the belief that we can encompass greatness all on our own. If we think we have, can, or will, then we are only fooling ourselves, and there is nothing particularly great about being a fool :). Still, there is so much we can and must do on our own. With that said, I want to make clear that by "greatness" I don't mean "glory". Greatness is the harmonious alignment of our purpose and our potential, which I believe are both gifts from God. Glory is merely the by-product of that harmony. In the same way that good penmanship - a by-product of handwritten poetry - is not the goal of poetry itself, glory - a by-product of a united purpose and potential - is not the goal of allowing harmony to define our lives. Yet, a great common tendency is to focus on the by-product or payoff of our actions, rather than the discovering and unwrapping of our dreams. Athough I yield to that tendency more often than I'd like to admit, my belief is that there's a greater purpose for my life than the pursuit of glory.

Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, "A right delayed is a right denied." The "right"s keep coming, and I keep delaying/denying. I think it's time for me to kick that habit and get in the mode of making things right. I want to paint a beautiful picture on the canvas of my life. and as I learn how to do that, I hope to share my colors with you.

"For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life."