Midnight Chat and an Ice Cream Cone

I got home from spending a week in Los Angeles for another program on Saturday. My flight got in at midnight, and since my brother now lives in Dallas (yay!!!), he was able to pick me up.

[Quick side note: My brother now lives in Dallas because he is going to be starting classes in the fall at Dallas Baptist University. I am so proud of him for taking the step to move out on his own and start heading toward his goals/dreams. He will be studying kinesiology, and he is super excited about what God has planned for him! It has been such a blessing to see how much he has grown and matured over the last year. God is working in his heart and is molding him every day into the man he was created to be. I am such a proud older sister!!!]

Ok. So back to before…because I hadn’t had much sleep and was somewhat delirious, I got us turned around after leaving the airport and I didn’t know how to get home. LOL. Sad, I know. Anyway, long story short, because we went the long way home, we were able to talk and catch up, which was really awesome. He got to tell me about the exciting new things that were going on in his life- about making the move to Dallas, finally being on his own for the first time and what that feels like, etc. We stopped at a McDonald’s for ice cream cones and had the best of conversations. I got to vent to him about all the frustrations I had pent up from the past week, mainly my disappointment in people. It’s something that he is able to relate to, since he has dealt with people disappointing him a lot in recent months. It’s hard, because some people who disappoint us, we really should expect it because we can’t hold them to the same standard that we hold ourselves. And yet, it’s still seems just as disappointing when they do something out of character or even just outside of common decency and moral ethic.

It has had me thinking in recent days about how far away from moral integrity we as a society really are. A white lie or a lie by omission is no big deal anymore. You are labeled as judgmental or harsh if you point it out as a lie, no matter how small. People sacrifice their morals and integrity and don’t blink twice. The mentality of “win at all costs” is prevalent, and I have seen it on a whole new level in recent months. Despite the fact that the people who have recently disappointed me are not held to the same standard of righteousness, it still leaves me floored and wondering what the heck is going on. The fact that people can get away with the things they do, and there is nothing we can do…it’s the most irritating thing in the world. And for a period of time, it seems as though the bad guys win. Of course, in the end, I know they won’t. But by the world’s standards they do, and that is still a frustrating thing to watch and endure.

My brother pointed out to me how important it is that I am different in a world that accepts such a disregard for ethics and morality. Do people really look at me and see something different? Because if they don’t, then I have some serious re-evaluating to do. I am called to a higher standard…which includes praying for my enemies. I can’t tell you how hard it was to pray for my enemies this past week. And yet, God still asks me to. And so I pray for them. I surrender my life to the sovereign God of the universe, because He is ultimately in control, and has the final say in this world (thank goodness!). I commit my life to His ways and work toward becoming righteous and holy in His sight. Because it’s not until I do that that people can really see a difference. The light of His Son is the only thing that sets us apart in such a dark world.

Airport toll to pick me up at the airport...$2.00

Extra gas because I got us lost...$10.00

McDonald's Ice Cream Cones...$1.50

Chatting with my brother and gleaning from his wisdom...priceless :)