Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky Philippians 2:14-15
My boys and I decided to go on an adventure while my hubby was working last week. I was going searching for emeralds, and my boys were just going searching! I wasn’t sure how this was going to turn out since we had only been to this area one other time. I figured why not give it a try since my boys are older and I have a GPS system in the vehicle. What could go wrong?
We sent my hubby off with a wave and loaded into the vehicle for our grand adventure. Did we have bug spray? Check! Did we have warm clothes? Check! Did we have money? Check! Did we have the address? Check! Did we have boots or waders? Check! Did we have food and bags for our finds? No, that would be our first stop.
Off we went to the grocery store to complete our checklist. Our lunches looked pretty promising, and since the temperature finally climbed out of the twenties, it was time to go wade in a creek. Yes, I said a creek…in the cold. Again, what could go wrong? We typed in the address, and with the help of two teenage navigators, we were ready. I have to say that we did great getting there. We only missed a couple turns!
When we arrived, we patted ourselves on the back…just for arriving. What can I say, we must celebrate the little wins too! Reason number two for celebrating was because there was hardly anyone there. Certainly not one person in the creek, giving us the whole thing to ourselves. We were brilliant going when we did! We paid and shuffled our way to the water in all our gear because we had some gems to find.
What a fun time searching the creek we had! I was thinking that I was so silly ever considering not taking the boys without my hubby. When what to my wandering eyes should appear? A son in the water sitting on his rear! Well, that wasn’t planned. Why were the extra clothes missing from our checklist? We were just starting, and I couldn’t let him be cold. It looked like we were cutting this trip a bit short.
There were several things that shocked me. My oldest didn’t outwardly roll his eyes and complain that he wasn’t near ready to go. My youngest insisted that he was fine and wanted to keep going for a bit more. I even came up with a game plan! We would make our way back to the beginning just doing a little looking here and there. We’d be hungry by then anyway. We considered going back to the hotel to get a change of clothes, but it was too far away. Everyone kept a good attitude and it wasn’t a big deal.
We started heading to the vehicle when one of the workers asked what we found. The excitement was great as we looked at our bags, but we had no idea what we were looking at. Since he wasn’t busy with other people, he was willing to go through everything we found while we labeled each thing. He was so kind and amazing! He loved us being interested and we wouldn’t have had this chance if the creek mishap hadn’t occurred.
Something that seemed like a disappointment turned out to be a blessing, even if my youngest might have disagreed at the time when he was pouring water out of his waders. We thought his rear was wet but didn’t realize water actually went inside!
My boys were amazing our whole adventure but when they were coming up with plans to get my youngest dry, I had to intervene. No, he couldn’t walk into the hotel in long underwear! No, he couldn’t ride back in his underwear! And, no, he couldn’t strip down in the parking lot! I ran into a store right down the road (should’ve done it as soon as it happened) and got him a new pair of pants. Time to head back.
As we were laughing like crazy about our adventure, our GPS stopped working. We don’t know why, but it was on strike. After all we went through, do you really think we were going to let that spoil our day? No way! I’m thankful for cell phones that will give directions. The boys did pretty well helping me navigate home. We only missed a couple turns!
What made that day special? Was it finding gems? Nope! Was it having everything perfect? No way! It was the memories I made with my boys and the amazing attitudes of everyone involved. It was one of the best days ever!
I don’t understand why we can’t be kind instead of being miserable. I don’t understand why complaining has taken over gratitude. I don’t understand why we can’t search for the good. I don’t understand why we choose to be miserable when we can laugh. I don’t understand why we can’t find something good during challenges. I might not understand why I act how I don’t want to, but I’m determined to change.
I know our adventure could’ve turned out much different with a flip in attitudes. It’s not always our actions that change the outcome. Sometimes it’s simply our reactions to situations. The shining gems were secondary that day. My boys and their attitudes are what sparkled brighter than the gems.
I challenge you to be the one to meet everything without grumbling or complaining. Even when you don’t understand why you’d be kind when everyone is being miserable, try it. Then try it again. Then again. Don’t give up and keep trying! Start helping those around you laugh instead of being miserable. Start shining among those around you like stars in the sky.
Remember, it’s not the plan, it’s the attitude for the adventure that determines the outcome!
