Two Signs One Message

     
     Over the last week or so two marquees have garnered my attention every time I drive by either one. Both signs give a very similar message of encouragement, hope, and faith. The thing is to see both of these signs you would pretty much have to drive a route much like mine each day. It isn't like it is an out of the way roadway, so it is possible that several people do take this route occasionally, and some people that happen to live in close proximity to where we live may take this same exact route every day, but the vast majority of the people who live in the same community as I do not pass this way often if ever. Coupled with that is the understanding that a large majority of our reading audience do not even live in the same town let alone state, or possibly even the same country, so the good news I received stops right there with me if I don't share it.
     It's easy to spread bad news, bad energy, or negative thoughts, I don't know why but that seems to be the case. I believe it is just as easy to spread the good, but we have to be willing to speak up, share out, and make a point to not get caught up in the bad when it rears its head. I choose the good in life, it is a choice for sure, which brings us back to the two marquees on my route.
    Now if it were one sign with an encouraging message that would still be worth sharing, but two with similar messages in a close proximity of each other, yet not on the same route, well that spoke to me and I want to share this message of faith and hope with you. The first sign was displayed by a dear friend and colleague at Fairview Marguerite Elementary School. Mrs. Suzanne Wampler, principal of Fairview, donned the message to "Grow through, what you go through" on the school's roadside billboard. Appropriate message for this particular time in history wouldn't you agree? The other is on the Buffalo Trail Baptist Church marquee and it reads "A crisis is the anvil upon which God shapes our faith." Poignantly precise during a global pandemic. Now the two signs definitely spoke to me as messages of encouragement during the COVID-19 outbreak, but aren't these messages of encouragement appropriate for every day matters that we have encountered, are in the midst of, or will inevitably face as we move forward? Of course, we need this type of encouragement not only in a pandemic, but also in our relationships, dealing with what goes on at school, at work, and as we are driving down the road.
     "Grow through what you go through", in other words, take your crisis and beat it out with an anvil until it is shaped into something that you can use for the betterment of others not just yourself. If we take a piece of metal and use the anvil properly, that lump of iron becomes a tool for gardening, which in turn nurtures the plants, which at the right time produces the harvest we need to survive and thrive. Yet it all starts with an attitude of growing and not focusing on the pain that is associated with the growth. You know, "growing pains", as we grow it hurts because we are stretching our boundaries, we are extending ourselves past what feels comfortable.
      If we keep an attitude of growth as our forefront mentality then we can learn to appreciate the things we get pounded on by the anvil, because we know that the faith we have tells us that we will grow and benefit from that growth if only we will persevere, be resilient, and hold tightly to our faith. Whatever you are going through today whether it is the uncertainty of the Coronavirus or if it is a relationship matter that seems to be going nowhere but south, you can grow through it, but it takes faith. A faith that you can rely on, a faith that you can trust when it doesn't feel like trusting is worth the effort. That is what faith is, trusting that what feels bad, is actually present for a purpose, maybe not for your purpose, but most assuredly for the benefit of someone you will encounter. "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11. I encourage you today to grow through IT, embrace IT, trust that God is going to use IT whatever that IT is in your life today. He is faithful and He is with you each step along the way. Get ready to grow!
Coach Carter