“If a man can take moldy bread and make penicillin out of it, consider what a loving God can make out of you.” Mohamed Ali
Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the children of God! 1 John 3:1a
Performance: “the fulfillment of a claim, promise, or request” Merriam-Webster Dictionary
There’s a scene in the movie Seabiscuit that always makes me emotional. It shows the horses racing headlong around the last bend in the track, nostrils flared, eyes intense, pushing with all they have. It makes me emotional because there is a effort in it that is rarely seen. Seabiscuit was not supposed to win. He was a small gangly horse that was often the butt of jokes in the stable during the beginning of his career. He was known to be lazy and he liked to eat a lot. As a result, he didn’t start out as a great race horse, however, that’s what he became. I can’t help but think it’s because this country needed him. It was the depression era and hope seemed to elude most Americans. We needed overachievers and underdogs. We needed hope. For many that’s what Seabiscuit was. He had a spirit that inspired a nation. He performed for us and we still remember. Performance is always inspirational. That’s why millions of us watch professional sports and hang our emotions on the outcomes of games and people we don’t have anything to do with. We want to see our favorite athlete overachieve. We want to see them do something great. We want them to perform. And that’s what God made us all to do. He made us to perform. Of course we can’t all be professional athletes, but we can perform at what God made us for. Maybe God made us to be a shoulder to lean on, to be a mother, a father, or a writer. There are countless roles God made His creation for. You and I have one too. Are we performing, are we overachieving, are we inspiring with our efforts? Imagine life as a race and it’s our purpose we’re racing for. Would we be coming around the last bend giving it everything? Seabiscuit had nothing to run for. He didn’t get any of the winnings. Notoriety didn’t matter to him. He was a horse. Racing was his purpose and he gave it everything he had. That’s what makes me emotional about it. That’s why people still go to movies about him. We are children of God. He made us for a purpose. Are we giving our purpose everything we have?
Daily Journaling Questions:
1. How did I help someone in kindness today?
2. What did I lean today?
3. What am I thankful for?
4. Who did I love today?
5. What am I dreaming of?
6. What about today do I want to remember forever?
7. What are my goals for tomorrow?
Thanks for reading,
Jake
YOU ARE READING
Daily Self Growth Journal Pt. IV
Non-FictionThis is the fourth part of a project called the "Daily Self Growth Journal." Its purpose is to prompt readers to journal through encouragement, motivation, and inspiration. In it, the first thing I do is provide a motivational, or inspirational qu...
