1 - First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady.  During my second month of
college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious
student and had breezed through the questions until I read the last
one:  'What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?'
Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman
several times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50's, but how
would I know her name?  I handed in my paper, leaving the last
question blank. Just before class ended, one student asked if the last
question would count toward our quiz grade.  'Absolutely, ' said the
professor. 'In your careers, you will meet many people. All are
significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do
is smile and say 'hello.'  I've never forgotten that lesson. I also
learned her name was Dorothy.

2. - Second Important Lesson - Pickup in the Rain.  One night, at
11:30 p.m. , an older African American woman was standing on the side
of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rain storm. Her car
had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she
decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help
her, generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 1960's. The man
took her to safety, helped her get assistance and put her into a
taxicab.  She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address
and thanked him. Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's
door. To his surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his
home. A special note was attached.  It read:  'Thank you so much for
assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched not
only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along. Because of
you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before
he passed away... God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving
others.'  Sincerely,  Mrs. Nat King Cole

3 - Third Important Lesson - Always remember those who serve.  In the
days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-year-old boy
entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass
of water in front of him.  'How much is an ice cream sundae?' he
asked. 'Fifty cents,' replied the waitress.  The little boy pulled his
hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it. 'Well, how much is
a plain dish of ice cream?' he inquired.  By now more people were
waiting for a table and the waitress was growing impatient.  ' Thirty-
five cents,' she brusquely replied. The little boy again counted his
coins.  'I'll have the plain ice cream,' he said.  The waitress
brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away. The
boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left. When the
waitress came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table.
There, placed neatly beside the empty dish, were two nickels and five
pennies.. You see, he couldn't have the sundae, because he had to have
enough left to leave her a tip.

4 - Fourth Important Lesson. - The obstacle in Our Path.  In ancient
times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself
and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the
king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked
around it.  Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads
clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way.
Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon
approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to
move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and
straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked up his load
of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder
had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King
indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder
from the roadway. The peasant learned what many of us never
understand!  Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our
condition.

5 - Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When it Counts... Many years ago,
when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I got to know a little
girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare & serious disease. Her
only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-
year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease and
had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness. The doctor
explained the situation to her little brother, and asked the little
boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister.  I saw him
hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and saying,
'Yes I'll do it if it will save her.' As the transfusion progressed,
he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing the
color returning to her cheek. Then his face grew pale and his smile
faded.  He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice,
'Will I start to die right away?.  Being young, the little boy had
misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his
sister all of his blood in order to save her.

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust Him more!

I've heard it said that life is not about arriving, but it is about the journey.  I've found this to be true, especially in my walk with God.  God is not as much interested in whether or not I arrive at success (although He's promised me that all I have need do is ask), He's not so much concerned that I be esteemed greatly among my peers (although He's promised that those who trust Him will never be put to shame), He's not even that concerned about all my good works (even though He's said faith without works is dead).  Rather, I'm finding that in every situation God is after my heart.

Every situation I go through I see how I could push through and make it to the "end"; but how that's not really the point.  The choice to make it to the end is not, in fact, the major choice that I'm confronted with.  Instead the choice I have in every circumstance is whether or not to surrender to His dealings and whether or not to do so with a good attitude.  I've lost count the number of times that I have gone through various situations and have in effect been led kicking and screaming until I learned what God was trying to do.  How much more is He honored and glorified if I trust Him implicitly from the beginning, even when it hurts.

I was thinking this morning how much easier it is to surrender to God when you know how long it will take and what the end product is. So Much Easier.... I can easily say, " Ok God, have your way with me today, because I can handle the discomfort for about an hour..."  How much harder is it to say, " God I surrender to your process"...  " Make me and mold me into what you want me to be..."

I'm finding that much like life is about the journey; so too, becoming more like Him is much more about surrendering to His process in my life instead of surrendering to instant perfection.