It was good for me. I didn’t think it was good for me to have boundaries and rules, but it was. When we’re children we don’t understand how important it is to respect boundaries in life. But as I look back, I can see that it was good for me to have them.
There’s a saying I’ve heard that says “coloring outside of the lines” is a good thing. This is true when children are learning how to color with crayons. But, take driving for instance. It’s not good counsel to color outside of the lines when driving. “Stop” signs are a good example. They are placed at intersections for our good. We risk getting into an accident if we don’t stop when the signs tell us to stop. Please don’t decide to color outside of the lines when you come to a stop sign. Make sure you look both ways and stay in the lines.
It was good for me to learn
How many of us can say, when we look back with perspective, that not all difficult lessons are bad? Sometimes, if we’re honest and brave enough to admit it, those lessons were good for us. I remember a time years ago in Burundi when we were trying to buy a vehicle specifically to help us with the feeding outreach. At the time, we were feeding 1,500 children a day who were displaced due to the civil war. Raising funds to buy a vehicle was hard enough. But, with the war, finding a decent vehicle for sale was no simple thing.
So, Jamie called his father, who was our pastor as well, and asked him his advice about a vehicle we had found for sale. It was a great deal, the price was good and it was in decent shape. It appeared to be exactly what we needed. After explaining the issue, Dad replied, “Son, I just don’t feel good about it. You can do what you want, but I don’t feel good about it.” It was a hard thing to say no, but even then in our youth, we at least knew not to rush into anything when given such a warning.
Wondering why
We carried on for some weeks, still needing a vehicle, still wondering why we couldn’t buy the one we found. It was tempting to color outside of the lines and go buy it. But we resisted that impulse. Eventually, we did find another vehicle that served us well and put the issue of the other vehicle to rest in our minds.
One day, when we were going about our business, the topic of the original vehicle for sale was brought up in a conversation Jamie had. He learned it was good that we didn’t purchase it because, as it turned out, the vehicle was stolen. We could have lost everything we had for a vehicle purchase had we bought it – it was good for us that we appreciated those boundaries Jamie’s dad had given us.
Coloring in the lines is good for me
Today, with the things I’m facing, I know one day I’ll say, “It was good for me.” How are they good? I’m not sure, but I know that coloring in the lines is good for me. God sees much more than we do, He works far above our pay grade. I’ll stick to coloring in the lines thank you very much.
