Sometimes...

I love my job. I get to see, with my own eyes, God grabbing hold of children's hearts and turning them towards Him and the truth and power of His Word. It is amazing. When it happens, when you witness something like this, your heart is changed.

Yesterday, in third grade, we were talking about Joseph. Specifically I was challenging the children to think about what would have happened if Joseph had followed through with his original plan (to divorce Mary quietly). As they are pondering this, and analyzing it with great intensity and depth, something amazing happened.

"Miss Liddell, sometimes...well, sometimes our choices really effect other people."

"Yes, sometimes our choices do effect other people."

"Yeah, like lots of people."

Another child mentions how the whole class can suffer because of one child not making good choices, because they lose points towards a party they are trying to earn.

"Yeah, but I mean more serious things. Like real things."

"What are you talking about Nathan?"

"Well, like sometimes the choices we make might effect people we won't ever meet. We never met Joseph but because he chose to believe the angel and marry Mary we have Christmas."

Sometimes it is easy to not think about the implications of our choices.

Sometimes we convince ourselves that our choices only impact us.

Sometimes we believe our choice of inaction is not really a choice.

Sometimes we let fear, uncertainty, the past, insecurities, or a whole list of other things prevent us from choosing faith.

Sometimes we choose faith. And sometimes we never know the implications of that on the lives of countless others.