One of my
deepest confessions is, I love more people under twelve than over twelve. Part
of my love for children lies within the fact that I am a twenty-eight (almost
twenty nine) year old child at heart and the other part of my love lies within
my deep appreciation and admiration for the innocent care free hearts and minds
of children. I have MANY children who hold the key to my heart and remind me
daily of how blessed I am to be their “adult” best friend and role model. I am
also blessed by parents who welcome endless cupcake baking, “Jay” haircuts,
pudding eating in bathtubs, and my own personal quotes and quotables. (Bizzle,
Wackado, and craptastic have become common phrases among my tots) Last August,
my life was forever changed and my blessings quadrupled when a fantabulous
six-year-old diva officially adopted me as a sister. Since that time we have established quite a
list of sister musts including: nightly sister teeth brushing rituals (complete
with Justin Beiber music and our best eight count dance moves), sister secret
handshakes, serious sister talks, and most importantly sister date nights.
Tonight, I was fortunate enough to have a sister date. Our date consisted of
Michael Jackson Dance on the Wii, ice cream sundaes, homemade matching
T-shirts, car dancing/singing (with sunglasses on), an intense game of this or
that, and a Greek yogurt eating contest. This or that was an invention from the
mind of the wisest six-year-old God ever created. (The ice cream was an
invention from the best junk food eating twenty-eight year old God ever
created) This or that is a simple but very entertaining game. One person picks
two items and the other person picks the option they like the best. Some of my
personal favorites from this evening were: shampoo or conditioner, mustache or
beard, drinking or slurping, and gas pedal or brake pedal. Clearly, my resume
proves that I am a low maintenance no conditioner, turned off by facial hair,
slurping, speed racer kind of gal so my answers were usually predictable. But
it wasn’t the suspense that made this new game entertaining, it was turning ordinary
everyday occurrences into memories with greater meaning simply because I was
able to share laughter with my sister as we gave our responses.
Laughter is one
of the many benefits of having such a fab sister but her greatness begins in
her heart. (I would be doing her an injustice if I didn’t add that she also
picks out my clothes and gives me advice on exercise, marriage, and music) Her
heart reflects all that truly matters in this life. Yes, I am completely biased
but I can support my claims by her answers to our new game tonight. She chose
forgiveness over forgetting. Half full over half empty. Giving over receiving.
Family over friends. And sisters over boyfriends. (Now you know why I am
biased) I would have picked the exact same answers simply because everyday I
choose Jesus. And because I choose Him, I strive to live like him daily. But my
choices aren’t as pure and genuine as those of a child. My choices come after
years of heartache, numerous failures and regrets, and unfortunately many
unwise choices. My choices are a daily struggle of flesh verses spirit. It’s
much easier to choose my will over God’s will. It’s much more bearable to
choose to live within my emotions opposed to live beyond them. And it’s much
more convenient to say, “Yo God, I got this so just trust me” opposed to
believing Him when He says, “Yo Jay, I got this so just trust me.” As much as I
love God and as convinced as I am that He is always the best choice, I still
have moments where I struggle with choosing Him. It’s definitely not something
I am proud of but it’s something that all Christians can relate to at some
point in their walk with the Lord. When I am faced with those moments and know
I have a choice to make, I simply get on my knees. I turn to my Father with my
childlike heart and say, “I have no idea how I am going to get through this
moment but I do know that I need you to be here now.” I pray that prayer daily.
I am not ashamed of my dependency on Christ because my dependency is a direct
result of continually choosing Him. I am also not ashamed to say that I have
chosen everything but Jesus at times. And it was during those times that I
found myself more broken, battered, and lost than I could have ever imagined. It
was during those times I felt completely alone. I no longer have to doubt God,
His will, or His promises to me. I no longer have to doubt that He is the only
choice for me. I no longer have to make any choice in this world alone. Jesus
is and always will be the best choice friends. He doesn’t promise us a life
without pain but He does promise us a prosperous life-A life that will lead us
to eternal glory with Him as long as we choose Him each and every day. So I ask
you this; Jesus or Fill in the blank? I say fill in the blank because only you
know what you put above Jesus in your own lives-Only you know the depths of
your personal relationship with Christ. You have a choice to make and I can
assure you that if you chose Jesus, He will meet you where you are and make all
things new. He will allow your heart to reflect all that truly matters in life.
I tell my sister
daily, that I want to be just like her when I grow up. She always laughs and
reminds me that she knows because I just told her yesterday. The truth is, I do
want to be just like her. Not because she is much more bizzle than I could ever
dream to be but because she chooses Jesus without hesitation and without even
realizing it. That’s the legacy I want to leave behind- that’s the legacy my under
twelve best friend following deserves.
Verse to
remember:
John 20:27-29
27 Then
he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and
put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”29 Then Jesus told him, “Because
you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and
yet have believed.”
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