sThe Irish have a proverb that goes like this, “You’ve got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your Grandfather was.” That we might do our own growing it is necessary for us to open several doors of our lives to an unusual variety of people.
The first person (besides our mother) that we allow to look at us and touch us in places on our bodies usually kept private is our family doctor. Every orifice is open to his or her inspection, and several personal bodily functions are at times discussed. It goes on for a lifetime, is often invasive, and almost always embarrassing, but it helps us grow.
The next people we allow into our lives to help us grow are teachers. They enter our lives at a very early age. My first recollection of a teacher was Mrs. Purcell, the Sunday School Superintendent at the Christian Church in Julesburg, Colorado. My mother tells me that I was such a naughty boy that Mrs. Purcell kept me out of any class and took me with her on her Superintending rounds. I guess I wasn’t about to let those teachers run my life. I didn’t change much as the years went on and fought almost every intrusion of a teacher into my busy life and schedule, that is, until I went to college and later graduate school. Once there I wished I would have let them teach me something because I found out I wasn’t as smart as I thought I was.
As we grow, and if we like athletics, we will allow coaches to place all sorts of restrictions on us. We let them set our schedules, design our menus, manage our relationships, and even control our bedtimes, all for the sake of becoming better athletes. Many adults move from high school and college coaches to personal trainers to help them manage their menus, establish their exercise regimen, and monitor their physical health.
Most people allow some kind of spiritual advisor to enter their lives to help them find forgiveness, grow close to God, or become a better person. The advisors (pastors, Bible teachers, etc.) are allowed to inquire about how they think, what they do, where they go, how they talk, etc. with the intention of guiding their disciples into a more virtuous and purpose filled life.
Counselors, psychologists, and psychoanalysts are professionals who help people grow away from destructive behavior patterns, caustic relationships, or serious mental problems. They are allowed intimate access into hearts and minds so individuals can sort out traumatic events of the past, understand the pain they feel, come to grips with conflicting emotions, and face reality so they can grow and thrive.
Another group of people some folks allow into their lives are personal success coaches or members of an accountability group. Why? To help them succeed in their marriage, business, or other aspect of their life.
Financial advisers are yet another group of people we allow almost unlimited access into a very personal part of our lives. We’ll tell them how much money we have (or don’t have), how much we earn, how much we save, how much we spend, and what our financial goals are so we can grow financially.
It’s quite a list, isn’t it? You and I open our lives to many different people because we want to be in good physical shape, guilt free, wealthy, better educated, wiser, or mentally healthier! We often pay these people large sums of money to tell us what to do, when to do it, how to do it, and why we need to do it. In most cases we do it willingly and with great hope that by letting others into the secret places of our lives we will get the help we need “to do our own growing.”
The next is the last in this series and you’ll not want to miss it. The seventh reason We MIGHT open the doors of our lives to others is TO LOVE!
