Tip of My Iceberg

He’d been to at least one party every weekend for the past six weeks.

Beck attends pre-K in Lakewood, Colorado, and the norm for his class was to invite everyone to a party. All fifteen kids. They were held at different venues, like a bounce house emporium, an indoor pool, or a recreation center. Many of the kids would actually come, one weekend after another.

Beck turned five this week, and Courtney, his mom, asked if he wanted to invite his whole class to his party.

His response was a solid, “No”.

Courtney was a little surprised, but not startled. She knows her son, and he’s more of a small crowd child than a huge gathering kid.

He invited seven of his best buddies. They didn’t go to a venue. Shock of all shocks, they went to Beck’s house for a Mario party.

Everything was Mario themed, down to the cupcakes with the iconic figures on tiny rods rising from the frosting. There were goody bags for each of the boys, and games were played, laughter erupted, and fun was had by all.

Who knew a little “mom” creativity and planning could provide such enjoyment?

Being like everyone else and doing things just like everyone else does, causes us to lose the uniqueness that defines us as individuals. Choosing to be different from others takes courage, boldness, and confidence that who we are is what God intended us to be. Uniquely made, delightfully crafted, each fashioned to be loved and cherished, not to be a cookie-cutter cut-out of anyone else.

He made each of us beautiful and special.

“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” Ecclesiastes 3:11

In God’s design, we each have a beauty and purpose in harmony with His greater purposes. For our season, our time. But in our humanity, we can’t appreciate or fully understand the whole scope of what He is doing in each of us. We can see glimpses of the beauty around us, but we need to be alert to better understand that heavenly lovliness.

We don’t have to aspire to be like anyone else for He made us in love to be ourselves. We won’t always understand our own limitations or why hard things happen in life. But God knows the bigger picture. He holds the bigger picture.

Courtney chose not to do a party like everyone else. A small adjustment in a world full of big and little adjustments. It was a bold move in the world of five-year-olds, moms, and party protocol.

Being ourselves is a step of bravery that releases us from seeking to satisfy who others think we should be. It launches us into being content with our uniqueness.

That’s real freedom.