Posts Tagged: hurting others and self

“MATURITY: THE ART OF RECOGNIZING THE CONSEQUENCES”

On December 16, 2021 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

For several years now, I have been taking a word or a short phrase to set the tone for my year. The word for 2022 is “maturity”. I figured that I would start the year a little early. So, here goes!

But first an important question: What is maturity? There are probably many aspects to the understanding and living out of maturity. A friend and I were talking about what maturity is, and he came up with a simply wonderful and wonderfully simple definition: Maturity is recognizing that there are consequences to all our actions, words, and thoughts, good and bad.

Perhaps the opposite of maturity is not immaturity, but insanity. Insanity has been defined as “doing the same thing over and over—and expecting different results.

When I was little, I thought that I could get by with things. I rarely succeeded. I still sometimes fall into that thought. However, it simply isn’t so. Nobody gets by with anything. When I say or do something unkind, there is an immediate wound to another person. There is also an immediate self-inflicted wound on my heart and mind and soul. Even my thinking (which usually precedes my speaking and acting) leaves a wound. The wound may seem small to me, but it is big to the victim. It will not heal quickly. It may get infected and never heal

 When I say or do or something kind, good comes into being for others and for myself. There are immediate consequences for good thoughts and words and deeds. These consequences are often even less perceptible than the effect of harmful thoughts and words and deeds. But imperceptible doesn’t mean insignificant.

So, today, I am going to think and speak and act in a mature, consequential manner. Today, I am choosing to be mature. And I am determined to be mature in good ways. Living consequentially beats living inconsequentially every time.

, , , , ,
Follow on Feedly