Playing it Grand!
Playing It Grand!
“Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. . . . We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone.” (Nelson Mandela)
Every life is full of possibilities, and consequently we are presented with endless opportunities to choose. We are not only making the obvious external choices—what to do on any given day, what to wear, what to eat, etc—we are also making internal choices. It is those internal choices—what thoughts to allow in, what vision of ourselves and others to adopt, how we view our position in the universe, in time, in relation to our Creator, etc—that actually shape the quality of our day.
Mandela’s comments encourage us to see ourselves as powerful. Why? Because we are children of God. He says,“We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.” He is encouraging us not to settle for the least we can be or accomplish. He is asking us to pause and consider our origins. When we do that, we understand that we are not here on earth merely to further our own existence. We are all part of a large community called the human race.
Regardless of our faith basis, we know that the human race is important; it is the pinnacle of creation. As an individual member of that “pinnacle of creation,” it is vastly important that we make choices that create peace in us so that we can extend support to others. Mandela is right when he calls us to service of others, when he exhorts us not to play our lives small, because in the final analysis no life is small. Every choice we make creates a ripple effect in our society and thus impacts many people.
So I choose to. Won’t you join me? play it grand
Kay