Josiah and I hiked and we both learned a very powerful lesson today. Here is part I of our conversations on character building recorded digitally during the outing.\u00a0\u00a0 Words in quotes are from Josiah, and those without are my own:<\/p>\n
We came up to the earth sanctuary and I let you lead, \u00a0and what was the rule?<\/p>\n
\u201cTo only go as far as I can see you, but you didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t?\u00a0 Oh yeah, that part changed because we got to our resting place.<\/p>\n
Then we got to our resting place and what was the rule?\u00a0 Be patient with finding your “car.”<\/p>\n
Two more rules after we arrived:\u00a0 You could go wherever you want as long as you can see the \u201csanctuary,\u201d and only tell me stories about imaginary bad guys after you \u2013 \u201cafter a bad guy teaches me a lesson.\u201d\u00a0 That\u2019s right!\u00a0 That\u2019s right.<\/p>\n
What happened when you were patient with finding your car?\u00a0 \u201cIt taught me a lesson.\u201d<\/p>\n
What did it teach you?\u00a0 \u201cIt taught me that waiting is a good thing.\u201d\u00a0 That\u2019s right, and what is waiting called when you are doing something while you are waiting?\u00a0 \u201cPatience.\u201d\u00a0 Patience, yeah, it means you never give up.<\/p>\n
Your determination will never give up, and your heart will sing to what you want and it will find you <\/span>when you have that kind of determination.<\/em><\/p>\n What happened when you did that?\u00a0 \u201cI felt safe.\u201d\u00a0 You felt safe, and what did you find?\u00a0 \u201cMy car.\u201d You found your car, that\u2019s right.\u00a0 \u201cBut I can\u2019t get it.\u201d\u00a0 Yeah, you can see it but you can\u2019t get it, and that is also determination.<\/p>\n Then, when you let the bad guys teach you something, what did they teach you?\u00a0 \u201cIt taught me that -doing bad things to bad people is bad.\u201d\u00a0 Wow!\u00a0\u00a0 How did it teach you that?\u00a0 \u201cBy doing something bad to me after I did something bad to it.\u201d<\/p>\n Oh, so you got to feel how it feels like when someone does something bad to you.\u00a0 You knew that it was bad, even if you were bad, to have someone do something bad to you.<\/em><\/p>\n Wow, that is a powerful lesson, Josiah.\u00a0 You are a good teacher.\u00a0 \u201cThe bad guy even didn\u2019t teach me that, I just thought it.\u201d\u00a0 That is right, you are learning how to think and you are learning how to accept the energy that is inside of you, and learning how to think with great power.<\/p>\n I told you that I didn\u2019t want to hear stories about bad guys because it is not healthy to run away and to fight bad guys inside of you, and I only want to hear the story after you accept the bad guy because the bad guy is your power inside of you.<\/p>\n The bad guy taught him a powerful lesson that he was able to think for himself, that doing bad things to bad people is bad.\u00a0 Straight from the mouth of a 5-year-old child.<\/p>\n Shemmesh!\u00a0 AAAAAhhhhhhh.\u00a0 Shemmesh\u00a0 wrote a song today, we are calling it the song of determination. \u00a0\u201cWhat does determination mean?\u201d \u00a0Determination is the same thing as patience, but it is being patient while you are finding what you are looking for, and you never ever give up.\u00a0 \u00a0\u201cAAAhhhhh (shemmesh)\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 AAAAAAhhhhhhhh.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cPapa, I found but I can\u2019t get it.\u00a0 Be patient till you can get it.\u201d\u00a0 You found it but you can <\/em><\/span>get it.\u00a0 Did you ask Shemmesh to help you?\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u201d Well you can try to ask him to help you.\u00a0 He has little hands, he can reach it.\u00a0 Show him it and I bet he\u2019ll just get it himself when he sees it.\u00a0 \u201cBaby! Baby! Baby!\u201d<\/p>\n Alright, let\u2019s go together.\u00a0 Shemmesh, let\u2019s go find it!\u00a0 Let\u2019s see if the baby theory holds true.<\/p>\n Papa is getting up to look at the rocks with Josiah.<\/p>\n Baby let\u2019s go look at the car.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll show you where it is.\u201d\u00a0 Oh, that is too far for the baby to go.\u00a0 \u201cBaby:\u00a0 Up, Papa.\u201d\u00a0 Yeah, you want to go up?<\/p>\n \u201cDown there.\u201d\u00a0 Yeah, in between the rocks.\u00a0 \u201cDown!\u00a0 There!\u00a0 That hole!\u201d\u00a0 Holy cow, you said it was a tiny hole.\u00a0 It looks pretty deep down there.\u00a0 We\u2019re not going to let Shemmesh down there.\u00a0 \u201cBut he is bigger than it.\u201d\u00a0 Well, if he is bigger than it, then he will get stuck.\u00a0 \u201cWhy?\u201d Because he has to be smaller than the hole just like you in that hole right there.\u00a0 You are smaller than that hole and that is how you fit through it. \u00a0\u201cBaby:\u00a0 Hole?\u201d Yeah.<\/p>\n Well, I wonder, do you know what we can do, Josiah?<\/p>\n \u201cHe is thinner than it and he is bigger than it so he can poke his head out?\u201d\u00a0 Oh, you mean taller than it, yeah.\u00a0 I don\u2019t see the car yet.\u00a0 \u201cIt is in there!!\u201d\u00a0 Yeah, do you know what that car is made out of? \u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0 Metal, probably steel, and you know it might be the right kind of metal that sticks to magnets.\u00a0 \u201cWe should get a magnet.\u201d<\/p>\n Yeah, if we get a really strong magnet and tape it to a stick, we can probably run the stick down in there and then the car will stick to it, then you pull the stick out.\u00a0 Want to go make that and come back?\u00a0 I think that is the safest way to get your prize, what do you think?<\/p>\n \u201cNo, I want you to get it with your own arm.\u201d\u00a0 Look what my own arm is holding.\u00a0 \u201cOh, you can set baby down.\u201d\u00a0 No, I\u2019m not going to set him down on these rocks.\u00a0 If he sees me climbing up in these rocks he is going to be afraid because he doesn\u2019t want me to get hurt.\u00a0 He doesn\u2019t understand like you do.\u00a0 \u201cYou can put him over there.\u201d\u00a0 Yeah, but then I have to stay over there.<\/p>\n Josiah, part of being patient means using what you have.\u00a0 Being resourceful means using what you have, and if you don\u2019t have what you need, then to be patient means that you need to take another step to get what you need, meaning to build what you need.\u00a0 I gave you a good idea for something you can build.\u00a0 Even his stick right here could help you, especially if you tape a magnet to it.<\/p>\n \u201cOr stick a magnet to it.\u201d\u00a0 Well, magnets don\u2019t stick to wood.\u00a0 \u201cMagnets stick to magnets, and stick to metal.\u201d\u00a0 That is right, so if you found a metal pole that the magnet can stick to that is even easier, so we don\u2019t have to find tape. \u00a0\u201cI need help finding a metal pole.\u201d\u00a0 Yeah, we can probably find one in the dumpster, actually.\u00a0 \u201cAnd then we can climb back up here.\u201d\u00a0 Yeah, let\u2019s go!\u00a0 \u201cYeah!!!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Yeah!\u00a0 \u201cThen I can get it by myself!\u201d\u00a0 You can with the right tools, right?\u00a0 \u201cWith the right TOOL!\u201d<\/p>\n With the right tool, right.\u00a0 And if you don\u2019t have the right tool, you can create it.\u00a0 You have the power to create.\u00a0 You are a child of God.<\/p>\n \u201cPapa, this is how I jump!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Josiah and I hiked and we both learned a very powerful lesson today. Here is part I of our conversations on character building recorded digitally during the outing.\u00a0\u00a0 Words in quotes are from Josiah, and those without are my own: We came up to the earth sanctuary and I let you lead, \u00a0and what was … Continue reading Acceptance, Patience and Determination<\/span>