Actions

If you knew you were not going to be here tomorrow, what would you do today?  Politicians campaign to change the outcome.  If they can’t they quietly disappear.  Sports figures lose their edge if trade talks surface.  Once the trade is done they, like politicians, quickly disappear.  Mothers and those who know they are dying however take a different course.  Stories recount an emphasis on the apparently mundane aspects of life, simply living moment to moment.
 
In coming back to India I am struck by the difficulty any and everyone has in changing anything.  As I reflect on the hope I find in many eyes I wonder aloud about the source.  The source appears to rest within the purpose and power our choices, decisions, and actions have.  It is as if people here have discovered what mothers and those who know they are dying have grasp.  Life is about the small things we do everyday. 
 
It is our actions which tell the story of the values you and I hold close to our heart.  It is the intent of our decisions which expresses our priorities.  With actions we model the principles which define life itself.  There is no particular commentary on the good or bad of the outcome; rather that it is a statement in and of itself.
 
I wonder if I have put much thought into the actions of the day yet to unfold.  Have I made a conscious choice?  Am I just letting life dictate?  Do the stories of my step tell what I think and want to hold dear?
 
Jesus made a series of choices, right up to the last moments of his life.  His knowledge of what was coming couple with a clear sense of purpose is a model which we can use.  “So the world might know how thoroughly I love the Father, I am carrying out my Father's instructions right down to the last detail.  ‘Get up. Let's go. It's time to leave here.’”  (John 14.31)
 
Our actions today will tell a story.  What kind of story will it be?