As I write this I am proud to announce that my 3 1/2 year old son Deacon is now potty trained. What has been a long and arduous road came to an end last week when he decided he just didn't want poo in his pants anymore. Now, he is a pottying machine!
This past Saturday I took him and his two older sisters to the Wake Forest football game. Since he is so new at this potty thing, I put a pull-up on him so that he wouldn't feel pressured to go non-stop to the bathrooms at the stadium. But my boy doesn't want anything in that pull-up at all, so about every 20 minutes I was taking him down the stadium steps to the bathroom so that he could empty his bladder. Fortunately there is a family restroom right outside of our section that is clean and private, yet these countless trips began to add up over time. Still, I am very proud of the fact that he refused to compromise on his new found freedom from diapers and I would have taken him 50 more times if that's what it took.
Watching the third of my four children potty train is an exciting time for me. It means no more money spent on diapers, pull-ups, and wipes and at the same time more responsibility for me and Kellie as we help our son become more disciplined with his bathroom habits. What makes it great is that once Deacon realized how awesome it was to stay clean - not to mention how fun flushing the toilet can be - he wants to go all the time and we don't have to ask him or remind him. He knows it's time and he goes.
What does Jesus have to do with the potty? Bear with me if you will. Being a Christian, especially a young believer, is a lot like learning to use the potty. It's new and exciting and clean. It doesn't seem to get old and we enjoy every moment that we get to experience the rush of our new relationship. Now I don't want to be too graphic but let's face it, as we age going to the potty isn't the exciting thing it used to be. Instead, it becomes more of a necessary habit. We learn to hold it while we travel and there are moments that we just can't wait, but overall it's just one of those things in life that we do almost without thinking about it.
To be sure a relationship with Christ is much more meaningful and sanitary than potty training, yet this example should serve as cautionary tale to us as His followers. Jesus isn't a habit, something that we simply "do". The rush that we get at our salvation as the Spirit takes control of our lives is a great feeling and, while we can't exist on our feelings alone, it is this excitement that spurs us on to further growth and passion for Christ. I don't remember the day that I gave up diapers but I do remember the day that I surrendered my life to Christ. Do you remember that day in your life? Are you just as passionate about Jesus now as you were then or has that moment become only a distant memory in your past?
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