Not So Gratifying, Huh?

So after reading Mel's latest post on instant gratification as well as the - is it a fable or short story? - about Peter and the ball of yarn, I've been inspired to write a post of my own on time. Well, not necessarily time. You'll see.

If you haven't read the story, you should! Go to the Grass Roots Movement link and check it out on Mel's latest post. Honestly, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. You immediately understand the moral of the story about the second paragraph in, but regardless, I think it's a must-read. It immediately reminded me of the movie, Click. You know the moral of that story, right? Stop fastforwarding through the difficult times of life. Sooner or later, you'll wish you would have stuck through them - otherwise, you miss out on some of the most important parts of life, and before you know it, you're old and gray and cannot return to the past. Props to Sandler for incorporating his usual humor into a movie that had a good story in it.

What would happen if you did fastforward through all the sucky parts of life? No drama with friends, no more people problems, no more pain, no more anything bad. Wouldn't that be nice?

I guess it's those times that are most trying for us that teach us the most in life and help us grow. This concept reminds me of high school a little bit. At my school, some of my classmates, friends, and fellow students were given opportunities that I and others were not offered. Sometimes it was because of a last name, other times it would be because they were staff kids, and sometimes they were just the favorites. Well, ya know what? Thank God I was never a favorite. These people would always be the first picks for all the of the most desired gigs: the school play, the singing groups, the hot spots for competition. It was like a political race without actual competition: if you were better liked, then you were in. Half the time, talent had nothing to do with the matter.

Now I know you're wondering, what the heck does stupid high school politics have to do with not wanting to skip all the difficult times of life? Well, here, let me make the connection for you. Those favorites, those first picks, those staff kids - they had it easy. I'm not going to sit here and lie to you and tell you they were just special. Trust me, they weren't. And it wasn't just at my school. This type of thing happens pretty much wherever you go. The connection between the two points is this: I'm glad I wasn't a favorite, a staff kid, a top pick. At least 95% of the time, I had to work to get what I earned. I wasn't just picked. And it was those times that I made it into groups and accomplished goals, that I knew that it was the hard work that had gotten me where I was - not a last name. Those times of working for what I got while watching the same things just get handed to others helped me grow and become better at what I did. Just like the rough times of life build a person's character, so did hard work give me a better sense of accomplishment in my mind.

I can't imagine looking back on life and wondering what it would have been like to have hard times. Hard times are just a natural part of life. And it seems like the moment I get past a hard time, another just shows up in its place. It's either my friends, or my family, or I'm sick, or something terrible happens. It's everything. But those are the times that I am forced to learn, to do something that is outside of my comfort zone, to break down a wall and build a newer, firmer one in its place.

Sometimes, I would get annoyed at different preachers when they would say, "Now you should be thanking God for the hard times in your life just as much as you should be thanking Him for all of the good things He gives you." I mean, just hearing those words would make me shift in my seat. Are these guys nuts? Why on earth would I thank God for making my life miserable at times? Well, looking back, the puzzle pieces actually do fit. Seeing how one rough spot got me past certain barriers in my life and helped me grow in other areas is such an amazing thing. Maybe it's cliche to say this, but I believe it to be true. There is a reason for everything, and while going through those difficult times sucks, having the ability to look back and see how I got through it, how I perservered, and how God gave me the strength to get through everything just leaves me with a feeling of awe. Not having that opportunity would be stripping myself of life's most important lessons.

Peter learned his lesson, and Adam eventually figured out that you just couldn't click yourself through life and enjoy the nice times exclusively. Bad times have their time and place, and those bad times are what make the good times that much sweeter.

And I think the worst part about instant gratification is that the enjoyment lasts as long as it took for the good thing to happen: an instant. What's so gratifying about that? I think I sense an oxymoron.