...who's investing in you?
Last week someone asked me who I had in my life that was investing in me. They further asked who was challenging me to be a better human. Further than that this person asked me who I could count on for a discerning answer in the face of a rift in my life.
My answer wasn't very good.
I admitted that I didn't really have anyone in particular who I could really count on for the tough stuff. You know, the people you need to call you out on the carpet when they see you actin' a fool.
I recalled a conversation I had with my wife recently where she talked about an area of growth for me. She said that she noticed the most personal growth happen for me when I was meeting with a particular group of guys on Saturday mornings a while back. I met with these guys, most of whom are twice my age, for a little over a year every week. I could always count on them to challenge me in my character and integrity. I added to the conversation of this group, but not nearly as much as I was able to take away from it. The only reason I had for leaving this men's group was that my wife and I had a baby and things got a bit on the busy side for a while. I made the decision to take a break from the group for a while and sleep in...6am on a Saturday never sounded very good on Friday night. 6am Saturday morning didn't lend too many excuses either though...there's nothing going on at 6am on a Saturday...NOTHING!!
Admittedly I felt a personal challenge rise up in me and I made the decision that I would return to the group this week. I've been spending the last year or so reading the bible (way too little) and other books (too little as well) expecting those to be enough to challenge me personally. These books, yes even the bible, have come up short in this area. I need people. I need people who can read me and let me know when they think I'm full of crap. I've been telling people for a while now, friends stab you in the front.
I recalled a conversation I had with my wife recently where she talked about an area of growth for me. She said that she noticed the most personal growth happen for me when I was meeting with a particular group of guys on Saturday mornings a while back. I met with these guys, most of whom are twice my age, for a little over a year every week. I could always count on them to challenge me in my character and integrity. I added to the conversation of this group, but not nearly as much as I was able to take away from it. The only reason I had for leaving this men's group was that my wife and I had a baby and things got a bit on the busy side for a while. I made the decision to take a break from the group for a while and sleep in...6am on a Saturday never sounded very good on Friday night. 6am Saturday morning didn't lend too many excuses either though...there's nothing going on at 6am on a Saturday...NOTHING!!
So here we are 14 months later and I don't have people challenging me.
Admittedly I felt a personal challenge rise up in me and I made the decision that I would return to the group this week. I've been spending the last year or so reading the bible (way too little) and other books (too little as well) expecting those to be enough to challenge me personally. These books, yes even the bible, have come up short in this area. I need people. I need people who can read me and let me know when they think I'm full of crap. I've been telling people for a while now, friends stab you in the front.
So I went to the Saturday morning men's group today...at 6am.
Staying awake until 2am probably wasn't the best idea.
People were glad to see me again. I was glad to see them. It was great.
Staying awake until 2am probably wasn't the best idea.
People were glad to see me again. I was glad to see them. It was great.
I'll have to save time for another post on how you might identify these trustworthy people who invest in you. Who can you count on? Who is wise in the eyes of God and who is "water-cooler wise"? There is a difference and we'll explore that later on.
For now I'll simply ask the question, who's investing in you?
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1 waggish utterances thus far...:
Excellent question! I believe I have a few friends who will call me out and beat me as necessary. But I, too, read the Bible less than I should and that needs to improve! I think I will challenge myself to resume my Blogger.com blog wherein I post my response to a daily Bible reading. It helps me if I have an "assignment" after the reading. Thanks for the opportunity to assess! And anytime you need someone to give you a butt kicking just let me know! ;-)
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