A Made-Up Mind! Part 1

Good Morning and Happy December 1, 2024, Everyone! We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and were able to make some lasting memories. We sure did as we gave thanks to our Heavenly Father, Who has taken care of us! He Is Always Faithful!

As I sit here this morning on this unseasonably cold December morning, I have many thoughts running through my little brain but the title and sub-title are thoughts I have had for several weeks now. I am going to try explain what they mean to me and I hope you find them helpful in your walk with Jesus! This may take a few posts to explain thoroughly so I hope you will get the point when I finish.

As I grow older, (I’m in my late 60’s now) I find myself remembering more and more of my childhood. I think about playing with my siblings, (all brothers) and even getting punished right along with them because I wouldn’t be a tattletale when one of them would do something bad. I know I wasn’t the perfect child either so I probably deserved some of the punishment, as well. Most generally, I do remember my dad saying ” You Are Bound and Determined to get a whipping!” Of course, when you are a kid you aren’t thinking about the meaning of words, you are thinking about getting a whipping or some other form of punishment, right? As I grew into my pre-teen and teen years, the “Bound and Determined” statement I would hear, changed from getting punishment to being admired for sticking with whatever chore I was given until I finished. Are you getting the point, yet?

You see, all through my life I have had this feeling inside that there is more I could do to make things better, if I really wanted to! Nowadays, people say that is too much pressure to even think about. And it can be if you are doing it in your own strength instead of asking Jesus to help you! When I was a kid, I was Bound and Determined to stick up for my brothers, even when it was wrong. Oh, how it must have hurt my parents to have to punish us when we disobeyed! But again, in my little brain, I thought I was doing right by taking up for my brothers who were in the wrong.

As I matured, I realized how important it was to be Bound and Determined and have a Made up Mind. I can remember my brothers taking on this lawn mowing job for a neighbor, but soon after, they quit. I was 11, almost 12 yrs. old, when I went to our neighbors and asked them for the job my brothers quit. At first, my neighbors said I was too young and too little but after I begged them to give me a chance, they did! And for 3 Summers I mowed their yard and ran errands for them. I saved lots of money and even loaned my brothers money from my little mowing job. It was a hard job and a pretty good size yard but to me it was fun and I looked forward to it every week. To this day I am so glad I was Bound and Determined and had a Made up Mind, this time, in doing something good. Isn’t that what growing up is all about? Both Physically and Spiritually? The Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:11  “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.”

I hope you are beginning to understand the point I am trying to make but I think this is a good place to stop for today! Tomorrow I will continue with more life lessons and lead up to the “Grande Finale”! I don’t think you will be disappointed!

Have a Blest Sunday!