Passions ... So many


Hi, Everyone,

I hope my little post will be a little interesting or at least help me make sense of my thoughts, passions, time and life in general . . .WOW . . . I'm probably already confusing everyone, but that's what you girls get for asking a non-American to post on an English speaking blog . . . :)
So . . . what was I saying? . . . yes . . . passions. I think I have a lot of passions in my life and I'm actually very glad and thankful that God gave me so many (though very surprised that He found room to put them all.)
I'm not going to bore you with all of them, since I am just going to mention three or five. In any case, I don't really have any time to do anything about my other passions for now anyways, other than just suffering in silence.
My first passion is - and I hope it will always be - God and His amazing plan for this world (which by the way, I am very happy that I don't have to actually understand, since that would bring a lot of frustration to my already very limited mind). I won't discuss this passion in detail here, but it plays many roles in my life in very intricate ways.
My major passion was added a few years ago, when my children showed up in my life, which had been pretty boring up to that point. They started showing up at the most unplanned and unwished for moments (from my earthly perspective). In the meanwhile, I humbly learned that their arrival was indeed perfectly timed. I'm still not passionate about cooking dinner for my family, or cleaning or other fun things like that, but I am very passionate about my kids and my husband. (Since I gave up trying to mold my husband I am left with the job of molding my two adorable children.)
I want to be able to show them the world the way it is, without painting it pink or lavender. This is a task where godly wisdom is highly needed, wanted and asked for (as often as I remember to ask for it). I want my children to see as much of the world as possible and understand that, in the times we live, there are really only a few boundaries between countries and continents, and those are mostly only on paper (in this case very important papers). What I mean is that I want my children to understand that most of their actions have a reaction someplace else in the world. That, for every “second” toy or sweater that they want, there will be less or none for others (I'm not saying that we are even entitled to the “first”, only that we are blessed with it). We are commanded to live responsibly and with great, caring hearts for other people. I think it is easier (though not easy) to just live responsibly than it is to live both responsibly and live with a caring heart for others. From my understanding, it takes a lot more sacrifice to do the latter. Anyway, I want my children to willingly chose to live with less and to give as much as they can to others (I need God to help me here since I personally fail at this a lot, but than again that is why we have God).
Living on less also means making very well informed decisions about where that “less” is coming from. I really want my children to be as un-materialistic as humanly possible. And this is where two of my other passions come in and those are poverty and the environment.
I strongly support trying to minimize poverty and taking care of the earth (which, incidentally, is more than capable of sustaining people all over the world if only we could stop abusing it for the sake of convenience). I think it's sad and aggravating to see how we as humans treat each other, and how easy it is to draw lines between us (the affluent) and them (the poor), especially when they are removed form our daily experiences. I am very interested in third world countries and in how our behavior (in both the first and second worlds) feeds the vicious cycle of poverty. (By the way, I do not consider Romania a poor country, merely one with a very unfortunate history that has left a sad mark on its people.)
Fighting poverty is not a passion that I can pursue as much as I want to, given the time restrictions applied by my previously mentioned passions (a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old to be more specific). But I try as much as I can to discourage exploitative behavior and to be thankful for all that God has given me without constantly wanting more just because there is the possibility of having more.
I think the world we live in is very black - a lot of that stemming from our sinful nature - and I want my kids to understand that, but I also want them to be able to see the beauty that still exists in the world thanks to our unfailing God (I bet you thought I can only see black). I want them to enjoy this life, but to enjoy it because they live it through God's eyes, and also because they see the greatness that awaits us beyond death. I think that there is hope and beauty in this world, but it is not in people, it is in God.
The beauty of seeing this world through God's eyes (as well as I can) is what makes me pick up a camera and shoot away (ok, financial needs do have something do with it, but I'm still trying to figure out how to actually make money with it...:) ). It is a blessing to be able to capture moments in time, in a way that will always move my heart (wow that sounded so cheesy). It is indeed a blessing for me to be able to try to make a living doing something that I love and that gives me the flexibility of investing time in my family as well.
I have other passions too, but if you want to know about those, you will have to ask me in person, because this is getting wayyyyyyyyyyy tooooooo loooooooooong.
As a conclusion, I pray that my kids will be better than me at keeping their eyes on God and eternity and that they will see the world for what it is and be willing to fight God's battles - and not their own - on this earth.
I pray the same thing for myself too. . . :)
Do I hear an AMIN . . . . . ? :)