Are you Looking or Seeking?

“They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing,

 To declare that the Lord is upright…”    Psalms 92:14-15

While out shopping the other day I noticed a little girl with what appeared to be her grandmother.  The older woman walked slower pushing the cart while the little girl danced and pranced down the aisles.  At one point they found an item to purchase and the grandmother questioned if it was the correct item. The child emphatically though not disrespectful said, “I KNOW that it’s the right one.”  Then she let out a loud sigh and placed her hand on her hip as if to say “Come on old lady let’s keep it movin’ !”  I had to chuckle to myself, because I remember that as a child I thought life itself was moving too slowly.  Maybe that’s why you hear people constantly telling kids to “Be still! “ Stop moving around so much!” Can’t you sit still for a minute?”    Maybe not, they are so chomping at the bit to get things going!  Only to want it to slow down as you get to my age.  LOL

But as I thought about it, it came to me; here we have the youth with vitality and physical strength, and the matured, though moving a little slower, but has the wisdom that only comes with experience.

The impatience of youth to have things happen now compared to the patience of a matured person is a study in life…period.   I am convinced that the impatience comes because they have not experienced much yet.  Because once you’ve fallen a few times you soon learn to slow it down and think about what you’re doing.  It is so true what Joyce Meyer says “The person with all the answers, have not lived most of the questions.”

That is why I love this painting so much that I had to buy it a few years ago. A little girl slowing down enough to braid her grandmother’s hair.  The grandmother utilizing that time to give her some words of wisdom perhaps.  Oh how I wish that I could sit at the feet of my mom and maternal grandma and let them pour into me all of their wisdom.  What they tried to tell me back then, I was too impatient to listen or thought it as not being useful.  I guess I thought how can someone that moves so slowly understand what I am experiencing in my young life?  Fast forward to now and I treasure the words I did manage to receive from them.  Words that I thought never took root, but somehow as I’ve gotten older, God has brought them back to life and I understand the truth in them.

The youth stir up our energy that encourages us to keep moving, while our words and encouragement from our experiences help them to make wiser choices and maybe avoid some things we went through.

I love being around young people they make me want to continue to dance through life.  And I thank God that I realize I have something to offer them too.  Since I’ve  ran ahead of them a bit on this journey through life, I can offer them my experiences; and hopefully one day they will remember as I do today, how much we need each other.