How do you see it? Consumed or Consumer?

I love a good fight. I like to see my team win. Contests where two equals duke it out until the strongest wins gets my adrenaline rushing and my entire being is consumed in that moment. If the winner is the team or person I'm rooting for, what extreme joy explodes thru me and I love to dance around and shout. It's even more fun if I am taking the side of the underdog against all my family. If my side wins in that situation, PRICELESS!! lol

Imagine being on the Moses team. Millions of people moving through the land based on the cloud by day and the fire by night. You wake up in the morning and the cloud is not over the Tabernacle, it's moving toward the east side of camp. Do you excitedly get everyone up and packing, overjoyed because you are moving today? You're eating bread that no one can bake; it's just there every morning for you to pick up and eat. At least you don't have to try and make breakfast. It's sort of what we do on a busy day; get breakfast from McDonald's on the way out of town in the morning. (well sort of)

So you're on the Moses team. The contest is against those people on the other side of the Jordan river. You have no idea what their strengths or weaknesses are. So being a great coach, Moses chooses scouts from the 12 offensive and defensive teams under his leadership. The objective is to go into their territory and check it all out. Are they strong or weak; are they fortified and dug in, or are they in temporary housing? Is the turf good or bad; rich or poor. You get the picture. They leave and are gone for 40 days.

As they arrive, you see the bounty they are bringing back from their scouting trip. I mean how can you not. Two men are carrying grapes so large they're hanging on poles and carried on the shoulders of two men. Excitement and adrenaline rushes through your body as you anticipate this contest. Just imagine being able to live in a land where grapes are that big, not to mention all that other stuff the other scouts are carrying.

Moses calls a pre-game planning session and everyone attend. Spirits are high, anticipation of the game day is pumping through you and you can't wait to hear the plan. The men are sharing what they saw. When we win this game guys, we are going to live on honey and milk; it flows in that place. I mean just look at this fruit, that's what the land produces over there. BUT there are giants there. They are huge and their cities are fortified like strongholds.

Snap, Crackle, POP! Is that what your dreams would have done? Or would you have been like Caleb? Let's go Team Moses, Let's go!!

Caleb could not convince the people. Matter of fact, the other men's report ended like this. "There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight." (Numbers 13:33)

What I find interesting is that they saw themselves as grasshoppers and small. Because of this, they assumed that the giants saw them in the same way. They projected in their attitude and their words so much negativity that the entire team, all 12 defensive and offensive teams, except two people, were consumed and defeated with their attitude before the game even began.

As I ponder on this I remember the past history of this Moses team. Before they began this hike in the outdoors, they lived in Egypt. Their ancestors knew about grasshoppers. Oh yes they did! God sent grasshoppers and locusts to terrorize and consume every living plant on the face of the land when Pharaoh, the great king of Egypt, refused to let them go on the hike.

Isn't that how we are sometimes. There's a big bully in our path. We know we are smaller, under weight, not as smart perhaps. So we assume that bully sees us in that way too. Our own negativity and limited insight projects defeat before we even give it our best effort.

Imagine if they would have seen it differently. Grasshoppers consume! They may be small but they can do a lot of damage together! Remember what happened when God sent them into the land in a great swarm? We can do this! Let's go.

What would have happened was just as Caleb said. They could have overcome the giants. They could have swarmed through the camp, consumed the enemy, and taken possession of the land. They were on the winning team, but they could not see themselves that way.

There is one difference between being consumed and being the consumer. One letter; D and R. It's an attitude. You can be a D and be Defeated and negative and never get anywhere in your life. Keep doing the same thing you always do and keep getting what you always get. OR you can be an R. An R is a Realizer. A Realizer is someone who can take something and make a profit out of it. Someone who clearly understands the value of something and is able to convert that into profit.

The result of the Moses teams first response to the game was defeat without fighting. They roamed in the desert until all the men who did not believe died. The victory that was eventually realized was minus several team members. The enemy didn't change; the team changed.

How do you see your situation? Does it defeat you; are you consumed by the overwhelming odds that you see against you? Or are you a realizer? Is there something inside you that sees those same things but the outcome is that you win? The difference is one letter!

Don't waste your past experiences. Negative or positive. Learn from them. Look to realize great things in your future because of what your past has been. You can be consumed or you can be the consumer. Which will it be for you?

As for me, I will possess my dreams!! I will become what I was truly meant to be!! Let's go team, let's go!! We will, we will, rock you!! Sing it together now!! We will, we will, rock you!!

Can you see in the dark?

I can see in the dark. Well, that is when my eyes adjust. I know some people can't do that very well. My husband gets a little aggravated with me at times over that. I'm really not sure why; it's a puzzle. lol He says I have cat eyes. Can cats truly see in the dark? Why cats? Can dogs see in the dark? I don't know. I guess I'll have to look into that later as I digress....

We are so drawn by the obvious; what we see with our eyes. The beautiful compels us. The ugly repels us. We are quick to judge. First impressions are lasting, don't you know.

We are going through the hiring process again and now that I am located several states away from our corporate office, I participate by phone. It's amazing what you see when you're actively listening. One of the best resources I ever hired I never met face-to-face until after he was on our staff for a couple weeks. You truly don't have to meet someone face-to-face in order to get to know them.

We are warned, encouraged and taught to be careful to make a good first impression. Make sure we are dressed appropriately for the occasion, make sure we demonstrate good personal hygiene and comportment.

We are also warned not to judge others just by what we see. Give people a second chance, we are told. The cold fact of the matter is that's a lot easier said than done. We must be constantly vigilant and work hard at leaving the measuring stick in the closet.

CeeLo Green made a statement I heard that I can't get away from and it's so true. He said, "Everyone is the same color when the lights are out." Think about that for a while. If I was writing in Biblical times, I'd say, 'Selah'.

The Bible tells us that God looks on the heart. He is concerned more with our heart because from there the true motivation of a person will eventually be seen or will become evident in actions. If we can get our heart right, the other things will fall into place.

As I ponder today, I close my eyes and think about the people I admire most. Is it because of what I see with my physical eyes, or am I attracted to the condition of their heart. To be fair, there are people I really don't like. I'm pondering those too. Am I being unfair and judgmental because of what I see with my eyes or is it because of what I see in the dark?