E-mail Encouragment: Forging Character

When I was a child, I looked at the people I was around the most, in their teens and above, and would form some sort of a thought about whether I would like to be like them some day. I remember people who I thought were "cool" and fun to be around, which could have been for different reasons, depending on their age. Sometimes, I would think to myself that I wanted to be like them when I was older because they exhibited something that was good. However, there were definitely those who were not someone to imitate and those who I thought were "cool" but ended up not being someone to look up to after all. Outside appearance and actions do not always define a person's character. This brings us to this week's quote...

You cannot dream yourself into a character; you must hammer and forge yourself one. ~ James A. Froude

Having a father as a principal for four small schools meant that I was around a lot of people throughout my life. This gave me the opportunity to be influenced by a lot, too. However, many of those people did not turn out to be anything like they appeared to be, once they became adults. Even some of the adults weren't as good as they appeared once I became an adult.

No amount of "dreaming" will magically create us to be what we become or want to become. The valley and mountain peak experiences and journeys have helped "hammer and forge" me into what I am today. As life continues, then the valleys and peaks that are in my future will continue to affect what I will become. To become a person of great character, we must be "hammered" to become that person because simply dreaming about it does not make it happen.

As you end your week, may you use the circumstances/situations that come your way or have come your way, to "forge" you into a finely crafted person of great character.

Blessings ~
Jarrod