Working, Winning, and Resolutions (Blurb)

I once decided that I would enter in the science fair at school. I cannot remember what grade I was in when I decided this, but I thought that doing a science experiment would be tons of fun and really easy. I also seemed to have the idea that I was a mad scientist and there was no way I could lose.

I had a book full of cool experiment that 'anyone' could do at home.  It was made for kids so I 'knew' that they would be really easy to do.  I was a kid.. so what could go wrong?

The experiment had to do with hot and cold water.  I used a fish tank filled with cold water and a small jar with a top filled with hot water and food coloring.  The small jar's top had a hole in it that you would cover with your finger as you placed it in the tank.  You would let this go and you would see the interesting 'pulling' of the hot water into the cold.  I really thought it was an awesome project so I worked really hard filling up the tank and jar.  I made sure your finger could cover the hole and then I took the book with the instructions on how to make it and what it showed.. and circled it with a big red marker.  In my mind - I was done .. there was no more work needed because the book that I had already told everything. 

I had no idea how a science fair worked, or how foolish my project must have looked on display, but I did what I thought was needed and turned it in.  I certainly did not win, but after learning what I missed it has been a lesson in life for.. the rest of my life.

For quite a long time it was a discouraging lesson.  I was terrified to put anything out there for the fear that I would have forgotten to do something that was needing to be done, so when I HAD to turn something in I would go over it .. over it... and over it, always worried that it was not good enough.  Often this may have proved to be true, but other times it would prove that I did a wonderful job.  These positive times never outweighed the negative.  I was always worried and sometimes I still am.

A crazy thing is that last year I learned something I wish I would have learned LONG before...

It is actually documented in THIS POST (You do not have to read the post .. just the quote and possibly the post that I link to by Jon Acuff - and I also recommend his book Quitter!)

There was a drastic change in my life at that time.  I 'picked up the pen' and began to write again.  Here is the change in graph form.

 

 

 

  as well as blogger's bar graph

 

 

Keeping in mind that Jan 2012 is only 2 days old :) you can see the drastic difference that these statements made in my life.  While huger numbers than this would certainly be more impressive.. I can see the drastic difference of 'being inspired' and 'killing procrastination'.  

Sometimes just getting it out there will inspire you better than it sitting still in some notebook that you and certainly no one else will ever look at.  I now understand that if I had never made the mistake of totally messing up my science project.. I never would have had full understanding of how to do it correctly.  

I encourage you, in this new year.. to not exactly make a resolution, but to move forward with something.  Jon Acuff is asking 'what will you finish', but all I ask at the moment.. is will you move forward again.  Maybe your like me and sitting on your thumbs because of a past failure.  That failure does not define you and oddly enough this goes well with Kung Fu Panda 2.. so go see it :) .  

Christ is there for us, not to make everything that we do perfect, but to make us perfect through what we do!  

 

Have a wonderful 2012!  I plan to keep up my blog and enjoy all that this new year brings! 

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