This kid loves to jump. He always has. Way before he should have been jumping, he was. And loving it. He was 9 months old when we started fondly calling him Jason Bourne because of his ability to get up, over, and around any obstacle that seemed impossible for him to overcome. Many a guest worriedly summoned me to get him as he would scale the outside of the bannister at our old house, climb over it onto the stairs and then come down a few steps only to jump to the bottom and do it again. When I wouldn’t panic and run to get him down they gave me the wide eyed stare that said, “WHAT ARE YOU THINKING?? GET HIM DOWN! DON’T YOU KNOW HE MIGHT GET HURT???” What I knew about Pete was that no matter how many times I got him down, he was determined to make the climb again. Or to find something else to climb and jump from. I learned early that it was better just to teach him how to climb and then stand back and watch him go. Not much has changed as he has aged, at least in the determination and jumping department. Right after the jump in this picture he came running to me all smiles and said, “Every time before I jump I think for a second I am scared, but then I do it and I remember how awesome it feels to jump. Then I land and I think That was awesome! Then I want to do it again. ” A woman who was walking at the beach saw this jump and stopped and asked him how he didn’t get hurt. He said, “Sometimes I do get hurt. But then I learn what to do differently so the next time it doesn’t happen again.”
He always amazes me, wears me out, and makes me think. Isn’t this just like what I do each time I feel God calling me to take a leap of faith? I look at what He is asking and I feel afraid, but them I remember how it has felt to follow Him in the past. Without those leaps I would never get to the place where I can turn around and say, “Wow, YOU are awesome God. Let’s do it again.” And just like Pete I have had my share of ‘bruises’. But each time He shows me what to do differently. He prepares me for the next big leap. He has turned me from the girl who was stuck at scared into the girl who loves to jump. Not because I can trust myself, but because I can trust Him. I don’t know what He may be asking you to do, but I do know that no matter what the onlookers think, or how scared they think you should be, He is watching. Not because He wants to see if you can do it, but because He knows what He is going to do. And when you stick that landing and look back you are going to think, “Wow, YOU are awesome. Let’s do it again.”
“So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10
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