Not Seeing

"I got my grades!"  This was all the text said when I received it from my youngest daughter, Amanda.  She had attached a picture of her grades with the text.  I scanned down the list a bit overwhelmed at its sheer size.  She was taking ten (10) classes this semester.  Yes, many of them were one credit hour classes, but still, there were ten of them!  She had one "C+," one "B," and the rest were distributed between "A-" and "A."  I was excited and shocked all at the same time.  (She had been preparing me for a few of the classes where she thought she had bombed the final exam, final paper, or simply blown it in other ways.)  I had to respond immediately: "Fantastic!  What a great semester!!!"  Of course, this prompted me to check my account to see if my grades had posted yet, too.


My grades were in.  Three of my four classes were graded.  Two were an "A-" and one was an "A."  I felt a sense of relief.  You see, I had turned in much of my work late this semester because of travelling back and forth to Cincinnati, snow storms, and a generally overwhelmingly busy schedule all the way up until last week.  My professors had shown me grace on the late submissions and simply graded them rather than reducing the grade as they could have for being late.  (My fourth class is not graded because we have our final paper due by this Monday, May 17th.  The professor made it clear that this one MUST be on time.)

I started thinking about why Amanda and I were doing the happy dance.  (No, really, we actually do a happy dance.  It's a sight to see.)  The more I thought about it, the more it made sense.  We like to know we are doing ok.  We like feedback, encouragement, and a sense that our work is worthwhile.  I think that is just a part of being human.  God reminds us, though, that we can be encouraged inside even when we are not receiving encouragement from the outside.  We receive it through our faith.

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. (Hebrews 11:1-2 NIV)

Even though we have faith and can be encouraged without seeing, it still helps to know that someone else does see God at work in us.  That is one of the reasons God gives us one another.  We can encourage one another in our walk together with God.

I know that I blog every day and that many of you receive these blogs in the form of an email.  But God has been really convicting me over the past two semesters in ways that I can encourage you in your walk and ministry.  This post in God Sightings will be one of those ways.  Sometimes it helps to see what God is doing in and through you from a different perspective - through a different set of eyes.  That's why I am calling this column, "Pete's Perspective."  Its just another perspective on how God is working in and through Life Bridge.  I hope you will be encouraged by it.  You really should be.  You're getting an "A+." ;-)