What did I learn?

I wrote a few days ago about sharing about some of the things that God has been teaching me during the process  of my recovery from the fall that I incurred in October of last year.  I will have to admit that some of the lessons have been difficult to receive and I would have preferred to have avoided them if at all possible.  But in retrospect I realize that some of these principles needed to be reestablished in my heart and life if I was going to successfully follow God into the fullness of my future.  Did you take time to notice the last four words of the previous sentence?  Each of us have no option about the future; we do not know what the future holds but we can know the One who holds the future.  I have decided that I just do not want to move into my future in some haphazard manner and attitude.  I want to walk into the fullness of God's plan and purpose but to be successful in that endeavour I must be willing to learn the principles that God will place in my life.

This is one of the first principles that I learned following the accident; I was not as independent as I thought and acted.  I learned quickly that I would need help from others if I was going to recover from this accident.  It did not take me long to appreciate those that God placed in my life for the specific purpose of assistance.  I started looking for the goodness in that person who was assisting me rather than the faults or weaknesses that I could identify if I looked at them through critical eyes.  I was amazed at the difference in my life as I looked through eyes of appreciation rather than eyes of criticism.  I needed help with my clothes, with my jacket, with my shower, someone needed to drive for me for a few days and even certain foods had to be cut by my wife so that I could eat that particular food.  Here is a funny incident, I even had to ask a lady in McDonald's to put a lid on my cup because I was unable to complete that maneuver.  Doesn't that paint a great picture of Mr. Independence?  

If we are not careful we take that attitude toward God and the fellow members of the Body of Christ.  We declare these words through our actions; "Leave me alone, I can do it by myself.  I could have done that without your help.  I don't need your help and I don't want your help.  I can take care of myself, I don't need your sympathy."  Each of you could add your own commentary to these statements but take a moment to catch the point that God placed in my heart.  God has not called us to be independent rather He has called us to be inter-dependent.  First of all we are to be dependent on God for all of our needs and second of all we are to look at those people God has placed in our lives with eyes of appreciation.  Look at your family with eyes of appreciation; look at your Pastor with eyes of appreciation; and look at your fellow Christian brothers and sisters with eyes of appreciation.  We need each other and many people have the ability to contribute to your journey through life.  Take a moment today and appreciate all of the wonderful people that God has placed in your path through your life.