Who knew that Mr. Rogers could be so profound! I love this. I love that we can all choose to be more Christ-like in our lives through loving and serving those around us. I love that it can be a sacred responsibility. I especially like where he says appreciation is a holy thing. How many times do we, in the very human mess that we live in, fail to appreciate the efforts of someone else? How many times do we think that we can change things tomorrow?
It is easy to think about the things that we wish we could have done, or the things we wanted to see, or even the person that we would like to become. It is easy to place blame somewhere, anywhere else. We can lose our focus and not appreciate those whom we love the most.
I have learned that it does not matter how people behave in public, I want to know how they behave in private. I want to know how the speak to their wives and children, to their families and close friends. One thing that I have observed in life, is that we tend to treat strangers better than we treat our families. We expect more from our families.
A good example of that is found in my own life. Many, many years ago, I was the person who always signed up to bring dinner to others, or make cakes for birthdays. Once, I only had one cake mix left in the cupboard and needed to make a birthday cake for a friend, so I did. One of my small children was so very disappointed that I made something for someone else and not them that he started crying, and told me that I "never did anything nice like that for them".
Now, I know that little boy was exaggerating, but something in his tone and tears hit me right in the heart. I vowed then to change so that my children would never think I saw them a second best. I can't say that I am always as successful as I want to be, but I can say that I am more successful than I used to be. Today, when I make dinner and dessert for someone else, we make the same thing for our own house. If I make brownies, or rice krispies treats, I make them for home too.
My family could never be second best to me. I am pretty sure that most people feel the same way about their own families, so, if we are supposed to love our neighbor as ourselves, our own family needs to feel and see that love first, not second or third. They should feel our love in both our words and our deeds.
As I struggle to become more Christ-like in my life, I really can't think of a better place to start than right in my own home.
It is easy to think about the things that we wish we could have done, or the things we wanted to see, or even the person that we would like to become. It is easy to place blame somewhere, anywhere else. We can lose our focus and not appreciate those whom we love the most.
I have learned that it does not matter how people behave in public, I want to know how they behave in private. I want to know how the speak to their wives and children, to their families and close friends. One thing that I have observed in life, is that we tend to treat strangers better than we treat our families. We expect more from our families.
A good example of that is found in my own life. Many, many years ago, I was the person who always signed up to bring dinner to others, or make cakes for birthdays. Once, I only had one cake mix left in the cupboard and needed to make a birthday cake for a friend, so I did. One of my small children was so very disappointed that I made something for someone else and not them that he started crying, and told me that I "never did anything nice like that for them".
Now, I know that little boy was exaggerating, but something in his tone and tears hit me right in the heart. I vowed then to change so that my children would never think I saw them a second best. I can't say that I am always as successful as I want to be, but I can say that I am more successful than I used to be. Today, when I make dinner and dessert for someone else, we make the same thing for our own house. If I make brownies, or rice krispies treats, I make them for home too.
My family could never be second best to me. I am pretty sure that most people feel the same way about their own families, so, if we are supposed to love our neighbor as ourselves, our own family needs to feel and see that love first, not second or third. They should feel our love in both our words and our deeds.
As I struggle to become more Christ-like in my life, I really can't think of a better place to start than right in my own home.
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