Emotions make us do crazy things...a hard lesson I continue to learn so regularly. Today, I was supposed to have a day off, but as is the norm for my days off, I didn't. Well, to be completely truthful, I was able to take about half of the day off, then it was back to work. Things at The Zone (the teen ministry center at CCC) are going really well, but some of the community kids are testing the boundaries. They're just beginning to learn what the rules are and how far they can push them. They're learning rather quickly that I will not be pushed too far! All that is beside the point anyway. I just mention it because I am realizing this is the reason that my emotions probably were a little more...how shall I say this...umm...present and accounted for.

Anyway, there's no need to go into the specifics, but recently I found myself in a situation where I was faced with the realization that when push comes to shove, and I'm the one being shoved...well, it can get ugly. I seem to check my Christlike, fruit-of-the-Spirit self at the door. Don't get me wrong, I dont become a fist fighting, sailor swearing, irrational idiot (that's a really funny picture if you know me...haha). I know, though, that my patience wears thin, and I am ready for the fight. It's in those moments that I forget to practice the patience of Christ and put myself in the other person's shoes. I instead see the situation,and for that matter probably the entire universe, from one and only one perspective. And that perspective is through the eyes of someone who is being wronged.

There is usually another perspective though. It's the other person's reality...the shover. And usually, it's a really different reality. Tonight in my situation, I actually did this. I tried hard to be in that person's world...that shover's reality. And it was an amazingly different perspective. Amazingly different. And all of the sudden, I didn't feel so wronged anymore. In fact, I wasnt focused on myself at all anymore...even though I had been a huge casualty in their shoving match. The thoughts of "that's not fair" and "you better back up" were instead replaced with "how can I help" and "that's not fair...for them". My emotions went from ones of anger to ones of peace.

I know this isn't really any Earth shattering revelation for anyone above 9 years old...haha...I mean, we've been taught this since we were 5. But I was thinking tonight that maybe there are some other people out there like me that forget these early childhood lessons. Isn't there? So I thought I would share. Ya, it's late. Time for bed.