I am always amazed when I learn lessons from children. Whether it is a small nugget, or a life-changing declaration, children impact us in so many different ways. I think God set it up that way on purpose, to remind us that being child-like is really what He wants from us. We get caught up in the daily grind of life, figuring out finances or how to better ourselves, but what He truly wants is for us to just sit with Him and be loved.
I had one of these learning moments from one of the kids I work with at the orphanage in San Lucas. I arrived for the daily dose of soccer and sports, but most of the kids were busy working on various projects. This was rather unusual, but I proceeded to help them while figuring out why they were doing all these projects. One of the boys, Tony, who is really bright and has a smile that goes on for miles, was working on a paper mache fish. It looked like an angler fish, teeth protruding from its mouth so big it could not shut. He took so much pride in what he was working on, so I decided to help him out.
While working with him he was talking about how they were doing plays for history week. He said they were doing a play and all the cardboard cutouts and paper mache animals were for their play. Looking around I saw the tattered cardboard that was painted with left over paint from another project. The paper mache looked old and very hard to work with. I started to think to myself how sad it was that they only had rough materials to work with. I though about children who had the money to buy really nice props and get the best materials to work with. I asked Tony what he thought of the work they were doing, and the response hit really hard in my heart.
Tony said, “I think our things are going to be the best. They will be better than the rest of the classes. It doesn’t matter what it is made of, what we make will always be the best.”
I love Tony’s statement and it really took me by surprise. I expected a very somber answer about how he wishes he had better things to use, but no. He said in such a cheerful voice that these props were going to be the best, no matter what. Tony was speaking from a place where he is not a victim of his circumstances. He is a child in an orphanage here in Guatemala, he does not have a lot, but he does not let that effect his attitude toward excellence. He looks past the circumstances and he sees how talented they are, how they took torn and shredded materials and made beautiful pieces of art with them. His words ring true, and they were spoken with such a power.
Later I began to think about my own life and how I still feel like a victim of my circumstances. Do you feel it too? I think we can play it off very easily at times, but we can sit in the fact that we may not have direction or not have money to do something. We get lost in the victim mentality and that there is nothing that we can do about it. Tony shined a light though and said that being a victim is not who we are. We are children of God the Father, the King of Kings. Though we go through troubles we are NOT victims. I will repeat that, WE ARE NOT VICTIMS, of the circumstances around us. We are victorious because Jesus was and still is victorious over death and sin. We are victorious because we were bought with a price and we have the incredible gift of the Holy Spirit inside us.
So despite your circumstances, despite your environment, believe that you are a victor and walk out that truth. We are not held back by our circumstances, but we are propelled forward by the confidence to face them knowing we have victory in Jesus. And know that Jesus has confidence in us no matter what situation we are in. So be confident, be a victor, and walk no more in a victims mentality.
