Growing up in the suburbs brings with it certain rites of passage. It’s mostly a homogeneous experience. You’re in the general cultural tribe. Most families went to church on Sunday. Most of your neighbors were in similar social- economic circumstances. You socialize together, you play together, you attend school together, and you grow up together. There are a few incidents that make you a singular individual. Riding a bicycle is one mile marker in the life of a child. Things haven’t changed drastically yet. You learn to ride with training wheels until the day you exhibit that ability to break free and be independent.
When the adult in charge sees that you’re displaying an air of independence of both ability and confidence, OFF come the training wheels and you’re on your own recognizance. Whether you’re two or thirty-two, it’s that moment in time when you grow up. It’s much more than it sounds like. You step into a pseudo-adult role that quickly adapts into “individual” responsibility. If you fall off your bike it’s your fault, if you succeed it’s your skills and savvy.
If only things were that simple when you move from childhood to adulthood. Wait a minute; it operates exactly that way in the grown-up world. When you attend school you read and study the subject matter in earnest. When test time comes and you fail or succeed, it’s your responsibility. You either failed because you didn’t apply the time-tested rules of study and application or you succeeded and were rewarded with good grades or promotions. Do you see where this discussion is heading? Of course you do. It’s always the same thing being directed at you day after day, and year after year. The training wheels are off. Have you chosen to become a grown-up and assume responsibility for your own actions or not? That answer is a yes or no.
There is coming a great Day of Judgment. Jesus refers to it often. The Book of Revelation emphasizes it often. Are you thinking of it often? The training wheels are off, you’re steering, you’re responsible, you’re an adult now.
"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me." 1 Corinthians 13:11
"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me." 1 Corinthians 13:11
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