Boxes

Okay, I am trying to come up with some clever story to lead into what I want to write about but I am coming up empty handed. I thought about opening up with a story about how I like to look up definitions for new words I come across. Yeah, it may sound a little dorky but I'm okay with that. I also thought about stating a bunch of random ideas about boxes. Yes, I said boxes. The folded cardboard creations one uses to store items in. When I was in college they also doubled as furniture. But the subject of boxes gets really boring really fast.

With no lead-in story, unless that first paragraph can be counted as one, I'm just deciding to jump into what's on my mind.

I think we all have at some point had a problem with putting things in boxes. I think we all have struggled with definitions.

I know I have defined someone before I have had a chance to get to know who they really are. I try no to do it. Sometimes labeling others just seems so easy, does it not? Dork, Conceited, Shy, Weird, Dumb, Jackass, Promiscuous, etc. Labels can be passed out just by glancing at someone. You don't have to get to know someone before you put a definition on their life. We can just look at someone, label them, and then decide if this label is a person we would associate with or not associate with.

One thing I have come to learn is that preconceived labels really don't hold up when you start to get to know someone. People are much more complicated than one word can sum up.

We tend to only associate with those people in which we have many things in common. We tend to not associate ourselves with the labels that we find undesirable. There have been many times before where I have placed someone in a box (metaphorically) before I had a chance to know them. Then when I actually sat down and conversated with the person, I realized how stupid I was for placing them in the box. (Don’t tell me conversated is not a word)

I don't think God wants us to place people in boxes or give the labels. I think He thinks we are all equals. Even though He made us equals, I think He made us where we each bring something unique to the table. Maybe so we can each learn from each other. I like being around people who I don't have that much in common with. Though, I don't do it enough. They challenge me and cause me to grow.